Exodus 31-33 Matthew 22:1-22

“Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. So go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’” (Matthew 22:8-9)

Weddings are exciting. Royal Weddings even more so. The king had invited all the important people to celebrate the marriage of his son. Then, the day came, and all those invited decided to be busy. The king was upset. He decided to show everyone who had snubbed him up, and sent his servants out to round up people on the street to join him as he celebrated his son’s wedding. He apparently provided clothes for everyone, but one guy decided he wanted to do things his own way and never changed, prompting his immediate eviction from the wedding party.

The message of the story is obvious. God had invited the Jews into a relationship with Him, and when the Son, Jesus, came to fulfill that invitation, the Jewish leaders rejected Him. So God sent His servants to invite the common people to join in a relationship with Him. He provided everything we need to enter into that relationship. Still, there are those who won’t do things God’s way, and try to do things their own way. That way doesn’t end well.

Lord, You’ve invited us to Your table, You’ve supplied our needs, and You’ve shown us Your love. Help me put on Your mercy, forgiveness, and grace given through Jesus.

Scripture taken from the New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

(Just saw that I posted this before the Feb 2 post. That will be coming out in about an hour.)