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The 21st Sunday after Pentecost
(A) [Pr. 23] Once more Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying: “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son…” I wonder how much that this king must have spent for this occasion? Several years ago, BRIDE’S MAGAZINE researched the costs for an average American wedding and came up with the following list totaling almost $19,000: Stationery (invitations, advertisement announcement, thank-you notes, etc.): $374 Bouquets and other flowers: $775 Photography, videography: $1,253 Wedding favors: $240 Music for the wedding and reception: $745 Clergy honorarium and church or chapel fee: $248 (one of the smallest expenses!) Limo rental: $427 Attendants’ gifts: $299 Wedding rings: $1,060 Engagement ring: $2,982 Rehearsal dinner: $762 Bride’s wedding dress: $790 Bridal headpiece/veil: $150 Bridal attendants’ apparel (average of five): $720 Mother of the bride’s apparel: $198 Groom’s formalwear (rented): $100 Formalwear for ushers (average of five), best man (rented): $500 Reception (average of 186 guests): $7,246 Total: $18,974 (Charity Curley, “High rollin’ romance: How much a wedding really costs,” The Wedding Center, iVillage.com: The Women’s Network – as reported in Homiletics.)That’s a considerable sum of money, isn’t it?! Almost $19,000!! And remember, that amount will suffice only for an average wedding. Some weddings may cost less, but others (and as a pastor I have certainly been involved with some!) cost a whole lot more! The king in Jesus’ parable surely spent at least fifty and perhaps even a hundred times more than that amount in order to make his son’s wedding the very best that it could be. He spares no expense to ensure that every possible detail was taken care of. Every detail, that is, but one very important one!! For when the king sends his slaves to summon those who had been invited, they refuse to come! Disbelieving, the king then sends other slaves to them, saying, “Tell those who have been invited: Look, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet.” But still the invitees make light of his invitation, and go away. As Jesus puts it, one went to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his slaves, mistreated them, and even killed them. By their actions, the invitees make it very clear that they do NOT want to be at that wedding! How would we feel if, after thousands of dollars and weeks of preparation, no one showed up for our son or daughter’s big day?! How would we feel if all of our friends and relatives simply refused to come because they had more “important” things to do? We would certainly be very disappointed, hurt, and angry, to say the least! Not only because our hospitality had been spurned, but also especially because our son or daughter whom we love would be deprived of a wonderful celebration! The king in Jesus’ parable is also very angry, but for more than just the apparent waste of time and money that he has spent in preparing to host the wedding, or in being disappointed for his son and future daughter-in-law. Most of all, the king understands the refusal of those who had been invited to come as being a deliberate snub and act of rebellion. In Luke’s version of this parable, the invitees offer excuses such as having bought a field that needs to be seen, or having bought some oxen that need to be examined, or having just married a wife. But in Matthew’s version – the one that we are dealing with today – no excuses are even attempted. The ones who had been invited are rich and powerful people who apparently do not like the king and his son and therefore refuse to show any allegiance and loyalty to them. That is why they treat his invitation with contempt. Jesus says that as a result, the king was enraged and sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city. In the end the ones who were originally invited to the wedding and yet rejected the invitation –get the judgment that they deserve! (It is obvious that in the original context of this parable, this group corresponds to the Jewish religious leaders of Jesus’ day – who although being the “chosen ones” of God, refuse to obey and honor him and his Son.) But here is where the parable starts to really get interesting, especially to Jesus’ original listeners. The king, trying to make the best of a bad situation, decides to invite everyone in the streets – the “common folks” who ordinarily would never ever expect to be invited to a royal wedding. Even if the original invitees would not come, the king wants to have his wedding hall filled with guests. And so at his command the king’s slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found. Some of the “street people” invited to the wedding were good, and some were bad. Some were rich, and some were poor. None of them, however, were on the original invitation list. But because of the king’s generosity and desire to honor his son, the people in this group are now invited to come for free food and drink and to share in the joy of this wonderfully extravagant wedding celebration! It seems apparent that this second group is the one that WE are in! Although we are not among those who were originally chosen and invited (we are Gentiles), and we have done nothing to “earn” admission into the kingdom of heaven, God has now invited us to share His joy and to receive all of the blessings that the first group rejected. What a great and gracious God we have! The final scene in Jesus’ parable is concerned with just one person, but who represents something very significant. Jesus tells us that when the king comes in to see the guests, he notices a man there who is not wearing a wedding robe. This was not just an accidental oversight on the man’s part. It is rather an obvious and deliberate “snub”, because even the poorest person could at least borrow a suitable garment for a very special occasion such as this – as we certainly would. If we were invited to a state dinner at the White House or were invited to dine with the Queen of England at the Buckingham Palace, I am sure that we would want to be suitably dressed for the occasion. Indeed, some commentators on this passage have speculated that the king’s slaves were even handing out these robes at the door for anyone who might need them – because the king’s overwhelming desire was to invite as many guests as possible IN to the wedding hall, not to keep them out. The attitude of the person who was not wearing a wedding robe is what I would call “passive aggression”. The first group of invitees showed their contempt for the king by flat out rejecting his invitation to come to the wedding banquet. This person, however, chooses to show his contempt in another way. He comes to the wedding, but comes only in body and not in spirit. His failure to wear a wedding robe was symbolic of his attitude. He is not going to make any effort to show honor and respect to the king and his son. He is not going to make any effort whatsoever to share in the JOY of that occasion. Instead he just stands or sits there, with his arms crossed and with a scowl on his face as he communicates to others nonverbally just what he thinks of the proceedings. He is like a dark cloud blocking out the sunshine and spreading gloom all around. He is trying to sabotage the JOY of that wedding feast! When the king asks this man why he is not wearing a wedding robe, the man has no answer. I am sure that he could have apologized and put on a robe, and then everything would have been fine. But he doesn’t do that. The parable simply says that he was speechless. He absolutely and defiantly refuses to change. And at the end, the king decides that he is not going to let this contemptuous, “passive-aggressive” person spoil the joy of his son’s wedding that he has spent so much on and worked so hard for. He has him thrown out the door into the outer darkness! This parable certainly has a message that is very pertinent for us Christians today. As I have said, we, like the “street people” in Jesus’ parable have been invited to be a part of God’s wonderful wedding banquet. Although it has cost God a fortune – it has literally cost him the life of his Son – he invites us in for free! We don’t have to do anything except to wear the “wedding robe” of love, peace, and joy that he provides us with. But do we wear that “wedding robe” in our lives? Do our lives show that they have been transformed by Jesus, or do they rather manifest words, actions, and attitudes that are characteristic of people who are opposed to God’s reign? Each and every day, may we remember to wear the “wedding robe” of God’s love in all that we think, say, and do – thereby witnessing to God and to each other that we are filled with joy and are thankful to be a part of God’s kingdom forever! In just a few moments from now, we will be receiving Holy Communion. We will be sharing a wonderful banquet meal with God and with one another. A meal that is to be filled with joy and love. God has graciously invited us and says, “Come, for all is ready!” “Come and share my joy and my love!” Have we got our wedding robes on? Let’s eat!! Amen! -------------------- George R. Karres, Pella Lutheran Church 418 W. Main Street Sidney, MT 59270
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