MAKING LIGHT OF GOD'S INVITATION
Matthew 22:1-5 NKJV
22 And Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables and said: 2 "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, 3 and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come. 4 Again, he sent out other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding."' 5 But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business.
Jesus spoke a parable about a king inviting people to the marriage of his son. And Jesus likened the parable to how the kingdom of heaven operates. So anytime we see Jesus saying the kingdom of heaven or the kingdom of God is this way, we need to pay attention. Jesus would use earthly examples to portray spiritual truths. He would say things like the kingdom of God is like a man scattering seed on the ground. Or the kingdom of heaven is like a man searching for valuable pearls. The parables would illustrate in easy-to-understand terms how God's kingdom works.
In the parable for today, we see Jesus likening the kingdom of heaven to a king giving a marriage feast for his son. This king sent out servants with invitations, but the invitations were rejected. The people were unwilling to come. So the king sends out more servants with the promise of blessings. In that day, wedding feasts were big deals and royal wedding feasts were on another level. There was going to be a serious steak dinner. Jesus did not say steak, but when you see oxen and fatted cattle, you know steak was on the menu. Everything was ready; all the guests had to do was come to the wedding.
The next phrase caught my attention. "They made light of it and went their ways." Their king had invited them to come to his son's wedding, and they treated the invitation as if it were of no consequence. When you make light of something, you are saying there is not much value here. So when something is a low priority, no changes need to be made. The people went their own ways. One went to his farm, another to his business. When they made light of the king's invitation, they placed their own ways and their own things above the desires of the king. Reducing the value of an invitation offered to you by a king was not a good idea. Later on, in verse eight, the king says that those who were invited and did not come were not worthy.
But if we look at the inverse of this parable the ones who made a big deal out of the king's invitation and came to the wedding were worthy. These worthy ones did not earn anything; they simply responded positively to the king's invite.
APPLICATION
There is always so much to learn from the words of Jesus. In our verses for today, we learn that God invites mankind to come to the wedding feast. God has prepared salvation for all who will simply say yes to His invitation. And God's salvation is more than heaven when we die, but an abundant life here on earth now. God's salvation is a literal feast for mankind. We must ensure that we are not making light of God's invitation. God invites us to walk with Him and learn His ways. And we must treat that invite as precious and valuable. It is way too easy to make light of the things of God's kingdom. Too easy to get caught up in our own ways and the things that concern our life here on earth.
But I don't want to miss what God has for me. I want to treat all of God's things and ways as important. Many of us have already said yes to the invitation to receive Jesus as Lord and Savior. Let's say yes to all God has for us. Being filled with His Spirit, receiving His strength and healing. Saying yes to His invitation to give and receive from His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. The King of the universe is giving us an invitation, make a big deal of it and say yes!
PRAYER
Lord, my answer is yes to all You have for me. Thank You, for the invitation!