Are You Ready For The Wedding? by Bryan Craig
“The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son, and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come.” Matthew 22:2-3
I have the privilege and honor of officiating my 3rd wedding next month as the bride and her family are long-time friends of ours. I’ve been spending time with this young, engaged couple as they prepare for a new life together, understanding God’s design for marriage and how these two independent, different individuals will become one. They will let go of their former individuality for the sake of something greater, a beauty and oneness that is stronger and more powerful as, in love, they each consider the other’s needs and desires greater than their own.
They are planning a very special ceremony and celebration. But what if no one showed up?
Such was the case as I was seeking the Lord the other day and read Matthew 22. Jesus tells a parable of a king who threw a wedding feast for his son, but no one would come. At first, he thought the invitees must not have understood the great invitation he was offering, so he sent his servants to re-invite them. But the invitees, once again, ignored the invitation, and a few got so angry at the king’s persistence that they killed the messengers who were bothering them. The king got so angry that he destroyed the city of the people who refused his invitation.
Then, he told his servants to invite anyone who would come, from anywhere, even good and bad people.
I’ve always understood this story to mean that the Wedding feast is Heaven. God the King is throwing this banquet for His Son, Jesus. The first to be invited were the Jews. They rejected the invitation and even killed some messengers, even the son. And God opened up the invitation list to the rest of us, everywhere. It says the wedding hall was filled with guests.
But then, there’s a strange part. It says there was a man who “had no wedding garments.” He was cast out of the wedding to “the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” This description is used often to describe Hell.
So, this begs the question…what are the wedding garments?
These verses help us understand:
“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” Colossians 3:12-14 NIV
Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?” I answered, “Sir, you know.” And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Revelation 7:13-14
The verse in Colossians has always struck me as a direct comparison to the “fruits of The Spirit” as described in Galatians 5:22-23. Jesus says that if we abide in Him, we will bear great fruit. In our Journey groups, we explore this idea that as believers in Jesus start abiding in Him, this fruit or clothing begins to be part of who we are and what we look like…compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, love. Revelation gives us a picture of heaven through John’s eyes of God’s people wearing the wedding garments of white robes, washed in the blood of Jesus.
There is another wedding parable a few chapters later, in Matthew 25, that describes 10 virgins, waiting on the “bridegroom” to come get them. It says 5 were foolish and 5 were wise. The wise ones had their lamps full of oil. The foolish ones had no oil. The bridegroom came at the hour they least expected and the foolish virgins panicked because they were not ready. It seems a lamp full of oil was a requirement to go to the wedding feast. The 5 wise virgins went in and the 5 foolish virgins were shut out. They beat on the door, but the Lord said:
“Truly I say to you, I do not know you.” Matthew 25:12 ESV
This is a very similar story to the first parable. In this case, it wasn’t clothing but rather, oil. Throughout Scripture, nearly 200 times, oil is described as a metaphor of the Holy Spirit and His anointing. And who has the Holy Spirit? Those who know Christ.
In all of these cases, it is clear that knowing Christ, having His Spirit, looking like Him is something that Jesus emphasized. I’ve heard a pastor, years ago, say, “If you go down the list of the fruits of the Spirit, and you do not think you have any of them, you might want to re-evaluate whether or not you are a Christian.” I’ve heard others who take John 15:6 very seriously:
“If anyone does not abide in me, he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.”
They make a case that if you are not abiding, you are not really a Christian. You may not be welcome at the wedding banquet.
But what about Romans 10:8-10 ESV:
But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.
Yes, Jesus is the Bridegroom. He is inviting all to His Wedding Banquet. His blood was the sacrifice which bought our white robes so we wouldn’t have to buy wedding clothes. But He wants us to put those clothes on now and have our lamps filled with oil now. He wants us to get to know Him now and have that oneness with Himself, just like a married couple. He has sent us the wedding invitation, and He’s coming to pick us up. He wants us to be ready.
“Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.” Philippians 2:12-13 ESV