3 “And he sent out his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding feast, and they were unwilling to come. 4 Again he sent out other slaves saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited, “Behold, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and my fattened livestock are all butchered and everything is ready; come to the wedding feast.” ’ 5 But they paid no attention and went their way, one to his own farm, another to his business, 6 and the rest seized his slaves and mistreated them and killed them. 7 But the king was enraged, and he sent his armies and destroyed those murderers and set their city on fire.”
Those who say Jesus was only about love and kindness, haven’t read the actual Gospel accounts, or at least have read them very selectively. Modern purveyors of politically-correct truth pick and choose what they want about Jesus, trying to tame Him down to their own sensitivities and sentiments. But on what basis do they make their choices? We must take Jesus as He actually was. The only way we can objectively and historically know anything about Him is through what was written by the New Testament writers. The real Jesus was, to be sure, the epitome of love—but He was also dangerous! Ultimately, to reject Him would have enormous consequences. That is the point of this story.
The Lord spoke this parable just a few days before He was to be rejected by the nation of Israel, and it was clearly an indictment against them; the parallels are fairly obvious. The King in the story portrays God. He has invited many to the celebration of His Son’s wedding. From later revelation we see the analogy of Christ and His bride the Church (see Eph 5:23-27, John 3:29, Rev 19:7). The invited guests were unwilling to come; clearly referring to the religious leaders and ultimately to all who resisted Jesus. Historically, God’s chosen people had continually rejected the messengers sent, the prophets. Despite a few intervals of revival, for the most part they rejected God’s message and the prophets. The King (God) pleaded with the people repeatedly, reasoning that there would be great blessings and celebration, but the response continued unabated—the people were inflicted too greatly with self-interest.
God is extremely patient (Psalm 103:8, Isaiah 57:16), to be sure. But, as Jesus tells this parable, there is a limit to God’s patience. This is not new information, for many events of the OT testify to this: Noah’s flood, the Babylonian captivity, and currently being under Roman domination. Jesus spoke frequently of those who will be cast out into “outer darkness,” where there will be “weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matt 8:12, etc.).
Lord, help me to not take Your patience as a sign of slackness (2 Peter 3:3-9), but You are withholding judgment for a time not wanting anyone to perish.
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