The Invitation to the Wedding Feast: Are You Ready?

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This chapter was immediately given me by the Spirit as I completed the last one regarding the Pure in Heart, so I am assuming that as I type this, the Lord is going to be revealing Himself to us all:

Let’s read first the scripture of Matthew 22:1-14. I’ve typed it here for you:

And Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said, The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son, and sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding : and they would not come.

Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready: come unto the marriage .

But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise: and the remnant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them.

But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.

Then saith he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy.

Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.

So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests .

And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment: and he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless. Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

For many are called, but few are chosen .”

Oh wow, that’s deep… isnt’ it…

But let’s dissect it together, for the meaning will become crystal clear in our doing so.

Let’s first look at those who were bidden to come to the Wedding:

Those which were bidden were not worthy … for they didn’t come when invited… We all see that, right?

In fact, this was spoken by the King, so we cannot get that fact wrong: “they which were bidden were not worthy.“

We are told that the bidden ones all made excuses of why they couldn’t be bothered with attending a wedding! They had more pressing matters to attend to.

In fact, they got so perturbed with those servants “inviting them” that they treated them spitefully , and we’re told “they slew them”.

Now, who is this referring to?

My own heart questioned…

Is God speaking of The Jews?

They killed the prophets sent to them. They didn’t believe Jesus was their Messiah, so they certainly wouldn’t give any thought to a wedding to him or a feast for him.

But my heart also questioned…

Is God speaking to modern day believers? Who seem to have every priority OTHER than Him? Even though they are being invited to a wedding feast, i.e. time feasting in his presence and with his people. Many haven’t even said yes to Jesus yet?

The red printed portion of the scripture above gives us the answer we seek.

This is in Matthew 22:7. It says:

But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent forth his armies , and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.

I researched as I pondered this verse and found this account of Jewish history that I believe may be the answer, you see… and so I’m going to share it so you can ponder it too… and come up with your own conclusion.

I cut and pasted this from the The War of the Jews Book 6. So, please note the underlined areas for emphasis:

[401] So they now left these towers of themselves, or rather they were ejected out of them by God himself , and fled immediately to that valley which was under Siloam, where they again recovered themselves out of the dread they were in for a while, and ran violently against that part of the Roman wall which lay on that side; but as their courage was too much depressed to make their attacks with sufficient force, and their power was now broken with fear and affliction, they were repulsed by the guards, and dispersing themselves at distances from each other, went down into the subterranean caverns.

So the Romans being now become masters of the walls, they both placed their ensigns upon the towers, and made joyful acclamations for the victory they had gained, as having found the end of this war much lighter than its beginning; for when they had gotten upon the last wall, without any bloodshed, they could hardly believe what they found to be true; but seeing nobody to oppose them, they stood in doubt what such an unusual solitude could mean. But when they went in numbers into the lanes of the city with their swords drawn, they slew those whom they overtook without and set fire to the houses whither the Jews were fled, and burnt every soul in them, and laid waste a great many of the rest; and when they were come to the houses to plunder them, they found in them entire families of dead men, and the upper rooms full of dead corpses, that is, of such as died by the famine; they then stood in a horror at this sight, and went out without touching any thing. But although they had this commiseration for such as were destroyed in that manner, yet had they not the same for those that were still alive, but they ran every one through whom they met with, and obstructed the very lanes with their dead bodies, and made the whole city run down with blood, to such a degree indeed that the fire of many of the houses was quenched with these men’s blood. And truly so it happened, that though the slayers left off at the evening, yet did the fire greatly prevail in the night; and as all was burning, came that eighth day of the month Gorpieus [Elul] upon Jerusalem, a city that had been liable to so many miseries during this siege, that, had it always enjoyed as much happiness from its first foundation, it would certainly have been the envy of the world. Nor did it on any other account so much deserve these sore misfortunes, as by producing such a generation of men as were the occasions of this its overthrow.

[409] Now when Titus was come into this [upper] city, he admired not only some other places of strength in it, but particularly those strong towers which the tyrants in their mad conduct had relinquished; for when he saw their solid altitude, and the largeness of their several stones, and the exactness of their joints, as also how great was their breadth, and how extensive their length, he expressed himself after the manner following: “We have certainly had God for our assistant in this war, and it was no other than God who ejected the Jews out of these fortifications; for what could the hands of men or any machines do towards overthrowing these towers?”

At which time he had many such discourses to his friends; he also let such go free as had been bound by the tyrants, and were left in the prisons. To conclude, when he entirely demolished the rest of the city, and overthrew its walls, he left these towers as a monument of his good fortune, which had proved his auxiliaries, and enabled him to take what could not otherwise have been taken by him.

[414] And now, since his soldiers were already quite tired with killing men, and yet there appeared to be a vast multitude still remaining alive , Caesar gave orders that they should kill none but those that were in arms, and opposed them, but should take the rest alive. But, together with those whom they had orders to slay, they slew the aged and the infirm; but for those that were in their flourishing age, and who might be useful to them, they drove them together into the temple, and shut them up within the walls of the court of the women; over which Caesar set one of his freed-men, as also Fronto, one of his own friends; which last was to determine every one’s fate, according to his merits. So this Fronto slew all those that had been seditious and robbers, who were impeached one by another; but of the young men he chose out the tallest and most beautiful, and reserved them for the triumph; and as for the rest of the multitude that were above seventeen years old, he put them into bonds, and sent them to the Egyptian mines

1Titus also sent a great number into the provinces, as a present to them, that they might be destroyed upon their theatres, by the sword and by the wild beasts; but those that were under seventeen years of age were sold for slaves. Now during the days wherein Fronto was distinguishing these men, there perished, for want of food, eleven thousand; some of whom did not taste any food, through the hatred their guards bore to them; and others would not take in any when it was given them. The multitude also was so very great, that they were in want even of corn for their sustenance.

1 See the several predictions that the Jews, if they became obstinate in their idolatry and wickedness, should be sent again or sold into Egypt for their punishment, Deuteronomy 28:68; Jeremiah 44:7; Hosea 8:13; 9:3; 9:4, 5; 2 Samuel 15:10-13; with Authentic Records, Part I. p. 49, 121; and Reland Painest And, tom. II. p. 715.

Flavius Josephus. The Works of Flavius Josephus. Translated by. William Whiston, A.M. Auburn and Buffalo. John E. Beardsley. 1895.

Well, that was quite the education! The Jews were indeed met with this judgment in 70 ad. They were met with famine and pestilence and many died before the city was even burned. Many were taken captive, but it gives the huge number of 11 hundred thousand DEAD! That’s a massacre! What’s more Josephus, above, points out at (411) above, that only God could have taken down the city as it was taken down. No man or machine could have done so.

The history therefore tells us that what Jesus declared IN THIS PARABLE, indeed CAME TRUE !

Jesus was referring to his own people, the Jews of that day. God, The King, was wroth because they rejected His Son Jesus and refused to come to the Wedding Feast… and from this historical account in Jewish History, this is now quite clear!

Jesus, himself, knew ahead of time that they were going to reject Him. Even though they were given 70 years to repent…they did not. He died for them anyway.

But they killed anyone “with the message” or “the invite” to Receive Jesus, didn’t they. The bible tells us that they killed the prophets and they killed the Lord.

We can conclude then, that though they were invited , they chose not to attend the wedding. They chose not to believe in Christ Jesus, who just laid down his life for them. The Jews were the ones initially invited to the King’s Wedding Feast…but they made their choice, at that time.

So, then we can also conclude, that the servants that were then sent out , were sent out to the Gentiles… i.e., those not Jews.

So, this is the time we are in , friends. We, who are Gentiles, have been invited to the Wedding Feast by the King! His son, Jesus Christ, being the bridegroom! It is now “our choice” to come To Christ. Amen?!

The king told his servants to go into the highways and as many as they shall find, bid them to the marriage.

In our passage, 22:9, it goes out of the way to tell us: “they beckoned both good and bad to the feast that it might be full of guests.”

This means, their invitation was not based upon “their righteousness”. You see that, right?

In fact, there was no exclusivity mentioned at all as the King extended his invitation through his servants to others. Exclusivity is “the practice of excluding or not admitting someone” OR “restriction to a particular person, group, or area”.

God excludes no one from the invitation to come To Christ. You and I are invited. You and I are bidden to attend The Wedding Feast. Will we be wise and say “yes” and “not make excuses” to avoid coming?

The Jews did not recognize their Messiah, and they received God’s wroth response. But at the end of the age, they will cry out for His return. They are still receiving God’s invitation, you see. They are still invited. This is why Believers continue to pray for the Jews. They were the original “invited guests” and Jesus is indeed Jewish. Paul teaches us that it is to the Gentiles blessing that there is a blindness in part upon Israel. It is so we, the additional now-invited guests can attend the banquet God has prepared for us.

This is God’s amazing plan. We, Gentiles, are being offered what the Jews were offered: Christ Jesus the Lord! Their Messiah… our Lord.

Let’s look at this verse: Romans 11:25

For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.

Paul refers to himself, in fact, as the apostle of the Gentiles. Romans 11:13-24 is a great passage to read too. It likens the Jews as the original olive tree whose branches were broken off because of unbelief, but we, the Gentiles, are being grafted in. We are not “any better” than the Jews! Rather, God has just “given us a gift” in offering us his Son too! If we thoroughly grasped the enormity of this amazing “privilege” we’d all be running to Christ! Accepting our invitation!

Christ did not immediately set up his kingdom on earth. Instead he shed His Blood for the remission of sins for “everyone”! This is what enables “no exclusivity”! The King, God, wants the wedding feast for His Son Jesus to be FULL TO OVERFLOWING! He wants everyone who will come, to come. What a celebration awaits you!

But there is one more very important thing to see in our original passage of Matthew 22. Let’s look at verses 11-14.

I will retype them here again for you:

Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

For many are called, but few are chosen .”

I n weddings in those days, the King would provide both the wedding garments and the feast. These wedding garments were fine garments….an honor to wear…and a glory to the King, their host. The garments given to all guests to wear. And it would be an affront, a huge insult, to the host if they were not worn.

So, what then do we read in this parable that is of significance?

We read, that a man, who was of that number who then attended the wedding, came in without his wedding garment upon him.

He was instantly thrown out!

Oh, my goodness!

The host is The King… and He, himself, comes up this man to address the matter! (…therefore, a serious matter, we all can conclude…)

He was asked “How did you come in, without your wedding garment?” meaning, he was in there basically “without what was required.”

So, what exactly is our wedding garment , Believers?

Let’s find out.

According to Charles Spurgeon, a famous theologian, there will be “pretenders” creeping into the Church, the wedding, who have no true part or lot in the matter, for they did not come in “through Christ” and through the only way to God , which is to be clothed in Christ’s righteousness. We must be wearing this garment. Our own righteousness is as filthy rags!

And yet we are provided wedding garments by our host. We are given His Righteousness...His Salvation.

Look at this verse:

Isaiah 61:10

“I will greatly rejoice in the Lord , my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.”

God is so good to put this verse “even in the context of a wedding feast” so that we, those invited…which means all of us, can see the what are wedding garments are!

Let’s talk about who the man in this parable represents:

This man was willing to come TO the feast, partake of its good things, but intended no respect for The King or His Son!

He did not, like the others, say “I will not come ”… But his behavior said, “I will come, but it shall be on my own terms. I shall be present as on onlooker but take no share in the ceremony.”

In other words, the man came in full exercise of SELF-WILL and SELF-LOVE. He yielded no homage , but asserted his independent SELF-SOVEREIGNTY.

He would show the King he had no fear of Him! He was defiant.

When he came to the feast he found the other guests had put on the garment suitable for the marriage banquet, but he would not. He chose to defy the rules and to insult the king. He had no objection to being there, to eat the dainties, recline upon the seats, see the pomp and show, but he was only IN IT, and NOT OF IT; he was there in body, but not in spirit.

I believe the man’s actions represent defiance . It was worse than those who didn’t come in the first place out of no interest. This man was openly defiant of the King. And as a result, was met with The King’s Wrath!

This was his punishment: He was bound, hand and foot… taken away… and cast into outer darkness… where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth! This is severe punishment. This was a place of torment with no light… ever! Outer darkness! And he was bound, so he would never be getting out of that place! When people gnash their teeth, it is associated with rage or dispair.

Yikes! The man would never get out from there! The King made sure of it.

The man was a pretender… standing in his own righteousness… full of SELF… and not there with the “required” wedding garment… which we conclude means, He was not “clothed with Christ’s righteousness” but stood on his own righteousness.

Interestingly, as the Spirit often does, I am “remembering” the Matthew 7 passage that goes like this:

Matthew 7:21-23

“Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven . Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity .”

This passage from Matthew 7 seems to coincide with what Jesus was speaking in the parable of Matthew 22, for the parable’s first line says “The Kingdom of Heaven is like unto…” And this verse also refers to entering The Kingdom of Heaven.

It infers we can’t only Speak the name “Lord”, but we need to DO THE WILL OF THE FATHER, who in Matthew 22, is called THE KING. Was the man without the wedding garment doing the will of the Father? Absolutely not!

Was the man without the wedding garment trying to “appear like” he belonged, but he didn’t “really” belong? Yes! For sure!

So, since we see the parallels thus far, let’s look at the Lord’s words: “I NEVER KNEW YOU” – Depart from Me – Ye that Work Iniquity.”

Years ago, (and I include it in my Receive From Me Book Series in the chapter, Bruised for Our Iniquities, of Book One), the Lord revealed to me that iniquity refers to our “heart attitude” and “refusal to turn from sin”… even when we know it IS Sin. It’s justifying it. It’s blaming others for it. It’s a stubbornness that God can’t tolerate in us. So, when he says, Ye That Work Iniquity, he is referring to those who want to have all the benefits of being a Christian, without the doing things God’s way. They want the blessings of God, not the commandments of God. They are pretenders.

And clearly from both Matthew 7 and Matthew 22, we discover… IF YOU ARE A PRETENDER, YOU WILL BE CAST OUT… You will not be attending the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, because you don’t belong!

But let’s examine something:

Do you not belong because of God’s choice? or your own choosing?

This parable is clearly saying that God is not “exclusive”…He provided the invitation, the wedding garment, and the feast itself!

But that “our choice” to be “defiant” to The King and to not do things required, will be very costly indeed.

It is our choice. Amen?

Is this meant to put the fear of God in you!

Evidently so!

For how can we know the real meaning of this parable, and receive this instruction from the Spirit, and not want to make things right with God?

He is calling for our repentance before it is too late …either of our not “accepting the invitation” or of our not “clothing ourselves in Christ’s righteousness” by receiving the gift of salvation purchased through Christ’s blood.

Only you know if this chapter is warning YOU.

Or perhaps you know others whom it is warning. Share its message!

God, through His Spirit, is trying to warn people before it’s too late, because He is going to be coming soon to take His People to the Wedding Supper of the Lamb.

This may be a parable but it’s going to be a real happening… just as in the parable we established that the Jews of that generation that received the invitation were destroyed and their city burned. It ended up being a real happening. Christ’s words of the parable came to pass.

Only those clothed in Christ’s righteousness, and have received salvation through the blood of The Lamb, will be attending with wedding garment!

Revelation 19:8 defines this even more for us:

The wedding garment identifies the righteous, those who lived according to God’s ways.

“And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.”

If you want to make sure you are Christ’s and IN CHRIST… able to attend this banquet in the Kingdom of Heaven… then go to this link and I will lead you to Christ, so that you know that you are clothed in His Righteousness. You will understand that it’s HIS BLOOD that gives you HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS.

Here is that link (click if an eBook or type into your phone if reading on paperback):

https://receivefromme.com/come-to-christ

I believe time is so short now, that God is pulling out the stops! He is revealing Himself like never before to people! Are you ready to attend The Wedding?