Many Christians know this phrase from the parable of the wedding banquet in Matthew 22. These were words spoken by Jesus. The Son of GOD was expressing a truth to us with many applications and facets. An event was at hand, the king was giving a wedding feast for his son. The Bride of Christ was to be joined together and Our Heavenly Father made the call to come forth a be a part. A wedding represents a celebration of Love and its consummation. The engagement process is complete and now it is time for the culmination to occur.
When the call was made it was met with indifference. The people were lukewarm. “But they were indifferent and went away, one to his farm, another to his business.” This portion of the parable could point to the Jews of today, the clergy, the five-fold Pentecostal ministry, and others who have been “called” to minister and be set apart. Nonetheless those who should have heard the call failed to attend the event. Some even attacked the messengers of the truly Good News.
Others were summoned to attend and they responded. They were the outsiders, those rejected by the previous generation of “called out ones”. What separated them from the prior group? First of all, they could hear Our Heavenly Father’s Voice. Secondly, they would add something to the wedding feast: Love. Do you think Our Heavenly Father would want someone to show up who put a damper on the occasion? One such person did:
22:11 But when the king came in to see the wedding guests, he saw a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. 22:12 And he said to him,‘Friend, how did you get in here without wedding clothes?’ But he had nothing to say.
Oops! There are of course many prophetic ramifications to attending without wedding clothes but the point here is that the man was not prepared. He failed to consider others. He was self-absorbed with himself to the point where he was totally unprepared for the consummation of Love. What happened to the man?
22:13 Then the king said to his attendants, ‘Tie him up hand and foot and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth!’
Do you think that Our Heavenly Father would invite someone to this wedding feast who did not have a revelation of Love to some degree? If “GOD is Love” and the whole law is based on Love, then the invitation to the wedding must incorporate a revelation of Love. I would submit to you that the best education will not get you in the door nor the best head knowledge of Scripture. I would suggest that the best preparation for attending a feast of this nature is to pursue the revelation of Love at all costs. Will there be failures along the way? Absolutely, I can attest to that reality on a personal basis. However, Our Heavenly Father knows my heart and encourages me to continue on the path to the full revelation of Love. At the fullness is Him for HE is Love. If you travel in the other direction away from Love, you find the outer darkness, away from Him. It’s all about direction. For many are called, but few are chosen.