You’re Invited!!!
Matthew 22:2-14
July 10, 2005
Matthew 22:2
"The Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a king who prepared a great wedding feast for his son.
A Heavenly Wedding Celebration
Christ the groom will be united with His bride
• The church is the bride of Christ
Not determined by membership, but by relationship
This union calls for an eternal celebration
• Revelation 19:7
• Revelation 19:9
Revelation 19:7 (NLT)
Let us be glad and rejoice and honor him. For the time has come for the wedding feast of the Lamb, and his bride has prepared herself.
Revelation 19:9 (NLT)
And the angel said, "Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb." And he added, "These are true words that come from God."
Matthew 22:3-4 (NLT)
Many guests were invited, and when the banquet was ready, he sent his servants to notify everyone that it was time to come. But they all refused! [4] So he sent other servants to tell them, ’The feast has been prepared, and choice meats have been cooked. Everything is ready. Hurry!’
The Invitation Has Been Made
The message is simple…come
• Matthew 11:28
Matthew 11:28 (NLT)
Then Jesus said, "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.
The Invitation Has Been Made
The message is simple…come
• Matthew 11:28
• John 7:37
John 7:37 (NLT)
On the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, "If you are thirsty, come to me!
The Invitation Has Been Made
The message is simple…come
• Matthew 11:28
• John 7:37
Multiple invitations are extended
• God wants all people to have the opportunity to accept His invitation
2 Peter 3:9
2 Peter 3:9 (NLT)
The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise to return, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to perish, so he is giving more time for everyone to repent.
Matthew 22:5-7 (NLT)
But the guests he had invited ignored them and went about their business, one to his farm, another to his store. [6] Others seized his messengers and treated them shamefully, even killing some of them.
[7] "Then the king became furious. He sent out his army to destroy the murderers and burn their city.
Rejected Invitations
Many will reject God’s invitation
• Indifference
• Rebellion
• Ignorance
Luke 9:59
Luke 19:22-23
John 5:43
Luke 9:59 (NLT)
He said to another person, "Come, be my disciple."
The man agreed, but he said, "Lord, first let me return home and bury my father."
Luke 19:22-23 (NLT)
"There is still one thing you lack," Jesus said. "Sell all you have and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." [23] But when the man heard this, he became sad because he was very rich.
John 5:43 (NLT)
For I have come to you representing my Father, and you refuse to welcome me, even though you readily accept others who represent only themselves.
Rejected Invitations
Many will reject God’s invitation
• Indifference
• Rebellion
• Ignorance
The Jewish people were God’s chosen
• They had repeatedly turned their backs on God and faced His judgment
Jeremiah 2:27
Jeremiah 35:15
Jeremiah 2:27 (NLT)
To an image carved from a piece of wood they say, ’You are my father.’ To an idol chiseled out of stone they say, ’You are my mother.’ They turn their backs on me, but in times of trouble they cry out for me to save them!
Jeremiah 35:15 (NLT)
I have sent you prophet after prophet to tell you to turn from your wicked ways and to stop worshiping other gods, so that you might live in peace here in the land I gave to you and your ancestors. But you would not listen to me or obey.
Matthew 22:8-10 (NLT)
And he said to his servants, ’The wedding feast is ready, and the guests I invited aren’t worthy of the honor. [9] Now go out to the street corners and invite everyone you see.’
[10] "So the servants brought in everyone they could find, good and bad alike, and the banquet hall was filled with guests.
All Are Invited
God’s message of hope is for all people
• The message is the same…“come”
Galatians 3:28
Colossians 3:11
Galatians 3:28 (NLT)
There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female. For you are all Christians—you are one in Christ Jesus.
Colossians 3:11 (NLT)
In this new life, it doesn’t matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized, slave, or free. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us.
All Are Invited
God’s message of hope is for all people
• The message is the same…“come”
Galatians 3:28
Colossians 3:11
Many will respond to the invitation to come
• Many people are looking for God, heaven, etc…
• Churches today are filled with sinners and saints
Matthew 22:11-12 (NLT)
But when the king came in to meet the guests, he noticed a man who wasn’t wearing the proper clothes for a wedding. [12] ’Friend,’ he asked, ’how is it that you are here without wedding clothes?’ And the man had no reply.
Do You Have the Proper Attire
The righteousness of Christ separates the redeemed from the religious
• Isaiah 61:10
• Revelation 3:4-5
Isaiah 61:10 (NLT)
I am overwhelmed with joy in the Lord my God! For he has dressed me with the clothing of salvation and draped me in a robe of righteousness. I am like a bridegroom in his wedding suit or a bride with her jewels.
Revelation 3:4-5 (NLT)
"Yet even in Sardis there are some who have not soiled their garments with evil deeds. They will walk with me in white, for they are worthy. [5] All who are victorious will be clothed in white. I will never erase their names from the Book of Life, but I will announce before my Father and his angels that they are mine.
Do You Have the Proper Attire
The righteousness of Christ separates the redeemed from the religious
• Isaiah 61:10
• Revelation 3:4-5
All will face the day of judgment
• Matthew 7:21-22
• 1 Peter 4:17
Matthew 7:21-22 (NLT)
"Not all people who sound religious are really godly. They may refer to me as ’Lord,’ but they still won’t enter the Kingdom of Heaven. The decisive issue is whether they obey my Father in heaven. [22] On judgment day many will tell me, ’Lord, Lord, we prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’
1 Peter 4:17 (NLT)
For the time has come for judgment, and it must begin first among God’s own children. And if even we Christians must be judged, what terrible fate awaits those who have never believed God’s Good News?
Matthew 22:13-14 (NLT)
Then the king said to his aides, ’Bind him hand and foot and throw him out into the outer darkness, where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ [14] For many are called, but few are chosen."
Only One Way
Only those clothed in the righteousness of Christ may enter in
• Comes from a personal relationship with Christ
John 14:6
John 14:6 (NLT)
Jesus told him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.
Only One Way
Only those clothed in the righteousness of Christ may enter in
• Comes from a personal relationship with Christ
John 14:6
All others will be separated from the love of God for all eternity
• Matthew 7:23
• John 12:48
• 2 Thessalonians 7-10
Matthew 7:23 (KJV)
And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
John 12:48 (NLT)
But all who reject me and my message will be judged at the day of judgment by the truth I have spoken.
2 Thessalonians 1:7-9 (NLT)
He will come with his mighty angels, [8] in flaming fire, bringing judgment on those who don’t know God and on those who refuse to obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus. [9] They will be punished with everlasting destruction, forever separated from the Lord and from his glorious power
You’ve been invited!!!
Will you come???
**Powerpoint available on request
