Matthew 22 - "Guess Whose Coming to Dinner?"

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The Parable of the Wedding Banquet

22 Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: 2 “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. 3 He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come. 4 “Then he sent some more servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’ 5 “But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. 6 The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. 7 The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city. 8 “Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. 9 So go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’ 10 So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good, and the wedding hall was filled with guests. 11 “But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. 12 He asked, ‘How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend?’ The man was speechless. 13 “Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ 14 “For many are invited, but few are chosen.”

As we have seen so many times in the book of Matthew, Jesus tells a parable about "what the kingdom of heaven is like". These parables give us the key to entering and participating in God's kingdom, where Jesus rules and reigns. Jesus spoke to them in parables so that the people who really wanted to understand would seek the meaning of the parable. Parables were earthly stories which people could relate to with heavenly meanings. 

In this parable a king prepared a wedding banquet for his son. In our society it is usually the mother's who are most involved in planning a wedding. Weddings in Jesus' day were a big deal. Tons of preparation went into the wedding banquet, and who was on the guest list was a big deal, especially at prince's wedding. When the king sent a message out that the banquet was ready through his servants, those invited refused to come. 

So, he sent more servants and told them to tell the guests that the meat had been prepared, the table set, and to please come. They refused again. This time it says some had other plans like going back to their fields or businesses. But others not only refused to come but seized the servants, abused them, and killed them. Understandably the king was enraged. 

The king changed his plans and told his servants to go out and invite everyone to come to the banquet, the good and the bad. The open invitation filled the hall with guests. But the parable ends on a strange note. One of the guests came in without the proper wedding clothes. The king asked him how he got in. When he had no answer, the king commanded his servants to tie his hands and feet and throw him into the darkness, where there was weeping and gnashing of teeth. 

We don't often use that term but it is a state of eternal regret. A position that no one wants to be in. You want to turn back the time so that you could change the decision you made, but you are stuck in a timeless and meaningless state. Then, comes the punchline in the parable when Jesus says, 

"For many are called but few are chosen." 

 It seems strange that those invited refused an invitation to a royal wedding. This illustrates the principle that there is no logical reason God’s good gifts are refused. (Guzik)

The reaction of those invited made no sense, but it does give an accurate description of the reaction of many to the gospel. Many made light of it; others go back to their business. (Guzik)

This statement of Jesus, in this context, touches on the great working together of the choices of man and the choosing of God. Why did they not come to the wedding party? Because they refused the invitation. Why did they not come to the wedding party? Because they were called, but not chosen.

What does this mean?

I think first of all since so many of the parables dealt with the rejection of the Jesus by his fellow Jews, this is similar I think those who were invited but refused to come were the Jewish people who were the chosen people of God. If anybody should have recognized and responded to Jesus' invitation, it should have been those who all their lives had learned what the Messiah would look like. 

But since most of the Jews rejected Jesus, he sent his servants to the "the highways and byways to compel people to come in!" (Luke's gospel 14:23). This would represent the Gentiles. 

So what about the guy who came in with the wrong clothes? 

Most commentators agree that the wedding clothes represent the "robes of righteousness", which only Jesus can give us. The robes are Christ's righteousness which has been given and "put on" us. Our garments we bring to the banquet are stained by sin, but Jesus has washed our sins and given us a pure and white garment to wear. So what does this have to do with the story.

Apparently the man came,  but he refused to wear the robes provided by the King, who represents Christ. He thought he did not need what Jesus gave him. He thought he belonged to the banquet based on his own robe. He didn't need a better one. 

This illustrates the person who thinks they can make it heaven based on their own works. They don't realize the key to their entry into in heaven is through Jesus Christ and what He has done for them on the cross. 

In Isaiah, the prophet says. "Our righteousness is like filthy rags." Isaiah 64:60. It is an offense to God when we assume we can get into heaven on our own merits rather than through His only Son. It is by grace you have been saved through faith not by works so that no one can boast. If righteousness could come by us keeping the Law, then Christ died for nothing. (Ephesians 2:8, Galatians 2:21)

Have you put on the robe of righteousness Jesus gives to you, or are you trying to earn your way into heaven? Remember the man in the parable who came to the wedding unprepared and where he ended up!

Paying the Imperial Tax to Caesar

15 Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him in his words. 16 They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians. “Teacher,” they said, “we know that you are a man of integrity and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren’t swayed by others, because you pay no attention to who they are. 17 Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay the imperial tax[a] to Caesar or not?” 18 But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, “You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me? 19 Show me the coin used for paying the tax.” They brought him a denarius, 20 and he asked them, “Whose image is this? And whose inscription?” 21 “Caesar’s,” they replied. Then he said to them, “So give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” 22 When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went away.

Once again the Pharisees tried to trap him. In this case they asked him if it was right to pay taxes to Caesar. They tried to put him in a bind. If he said it was right to pay taxes, they would have accused him of aiding and abetting Caesar, the sworn enemy of the Jews. But if he told them not to pay the tax, he would be accused of teaching them to disobey the law. He would be advocating lawlessness and rebellion. 

But Jesus didn't buy into the trap but turned the tables on them, as he always did. He took a denarius (about a day's wages) and asked them whose image was on it. When they answered "Caesar", he told them to give to Caesar that which was Caesar's and to God what was God's. 

What does this mean?

Again, with His wise answer, Jesus showed that He was in complete control. He rebuked the wickedness and hypocrisy of the Pharisees and Herodians." (Guzik)

“Every Christian has a double citizenship. He is a citizen of the country in which he happens to live. To it he owes many things. He owes the safety against lawless men which only a settled government can give; he owes all public services.” (Barclay)

Everyone has the image of God impressed upon them. This means that we belong to God, not to Caesar, or not even to ourselves. (Guzik)

Do you pray for your governmental leaders that they might protect your freedoms and keep you safe? Do you pay your taxes and obey the laws of the land? It is God's will to be a good citizens, which is another reflection of who we are as Christ-followers.

Marriage at the Resurrection

23 That same day the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question. 24 “Teacher,” they said, “Moses told us that if a man dies without having children, his brother must marry the widow and raise up offspring for him. 25 Now there were seven brothers among us. The first one married and died, and since he had no children, he left his wife to his brother. 26 The same thing happened to the second and third brother, right on down to the seventh. 27 Finally, the woman died. 28 Now then, at the resurrection, whose wife will she be of the seven, since all of them were married to her?” 29 Jesus replied, “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God. 30 At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven. 31 But about the resurrection of the dead—have you not read what God said to you, 32 ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’[b]? He is not the God of the dead but of the living.” 33 When the crowds heard this, they were astonished at his teaching.

There were two major groups of Jewish religious leaders. One was the Pharisees, and other was the Sadducees. The Pharisees were the legalists. The tried to enforce every jot and tittle of the Law but didn't lift a finger to help the people to obey it. They were critical, judgmental, and hypocritical. Jesus called them a "brood of vipers". 

The Sadducees, were more of an aristocratic bunch. 

The Sadducees were the ancient version of the modern liberal theologians. They were anti-supernaturalistic, only accepting the first five books of Moses as authentic – and disregarding what was written in those books when it pleased them to do so. (Guzik)

The Sadducees took the scriptures and twisted to mean what they wanted it to mean. They took scriptures out of context to justify and rationalize their bad behavior. In this case they tried to take one of the Mosaic Laws, which stated that if a man dies and leaves their wife without children, the man's brother would be obligated to marry his wife, so she could have children. 

This practice of a brother-in-law marrying the widow of his brother is known as levirate marriage. The term comes from the Latin “lavir,” meaning “brother-in-law.” This is the specific idea in the question. “Marry is not the normal Greek word, but a technical term for the performance of the levirate duty.” (France)

The bottom line was that they were trying to trip up Jesus. They assumed that the way we understand marriage in this life would be the same in heaven. Most of the definitions of heaven are hard for us to understand. One, because we have never been there. Two, it is going to be so great that it can't be explained with our current mental limitations. 

Saint Paul said it this way, "No eye has seen, ear heard, nor mind conceived what the Lord has prepared for those who love him!"

Heaven is going to be out of this world!

When God says He is the God of Abraham, Issac, and Jacob it shows us that these men are still living. Jesus is referring to the resurrection from the dead. 

The Sadducees denied supernatural truths such as the existence of angelic beings and the bodily resurrection. They had a fundamental doubt of the power of God to do beyond what they could measure and understand in the material world; many today are like the Sadducees in this respect. (Guzik)

Simply put their view of Yahweh was too small!

Does this mean we won't be with family members in heaven? There is no reason to think we wouldn't be with family members in heaven if they were Christians in this life. One of the most painful things is when you have a family member or loved one who is not a Christian. When you have the opportunity make sure you share the hope you have in Christ, but do so with gentleness and respect. (1 Peter 3:15)

The Greatest Commandment

34 Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. 35 One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: 36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’[c] 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[d] 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

As Jesus stumped the Sadducees, the Pharisees jumped back in to trip up Jesus. They asked him what was the greatest comamndment. This one was easy. Love God with all of your mind and soul, and the second is like it. Love your neighbor as yourself. 

Perfectly understanding the essence of the law, Jesus had no difficulty answering. Instead of promoting one command over another, Jesus defined the law in its core principles: love the LORD with everything you have and love your neighbor as yourself.  (Guzik)

Whose Son Is the Messiah?

41 While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, 42 “What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?” “The son of David,” they replied. 43 He said to them, “How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him ‘Lord’? For he says, 44 “‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.”’[e] 45 If then David calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be his son?” 46 No one could say a word in reply, and from that day on no one dared to ask him any more questions.

Now it was time for Jesus to ask them a question. They asked him whose son was the Messiah. They a answered correctly, "the son of David". Every Jew knew Jesus would come through the house and line of King David. This was the royal covenant made in the Old Testament. But then Jesus cites that in Psalm 110 that David, called Jesus the Messiah his Lord. How could the David, the Messiah's father, call the Messiah Lord?  

They were stymied. They had no answer because this was a spiritual question, not a legalistic one. It was a mystery, which they could not explain because it could only be explained by God. This is true with the two main doctrines of the Christian faith. The Trinity. One God revealed in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Three does not equal one? Jesus is fully God and fully man! 100% plus 100% equals 200% not 100%

The Pharisees were partially right in saying that the Messiah is the Son of David. But they didn’t have a complete understanding of who the Messiah is. He is not only David’s Son (a reference to His humanity), but He is also David’s Lord (a reference to the deity of Jesus, the Messiah). (Guzik)

“The force of Jesus’ argument depends on his use of Psalm 110, the most frequently quoted OT chapter in the NT.” (Carson)

Many times people will try to ask you questions to trip you up or make you silly. They want to try and make you dumb and/or justify their own denial of Christ by asking you a question you can't answer. This is why you need to be prepared to give an answer for your faith (1 Peter 3:15). 

The Greek word for "answer" in 1 Peter 3 is "apologea", where we get our word "apology". But it does not mean saying we are sorry for our faith, but the more proper meaning is to give a "defense" of our faith!  

Are you ready to give a defense for what you believe? If not what can you do to prepare? 

Here are three great books to read:

1. "Evidence that Demands a Verdict", by Josh McDowell

2. "Case for Faith", "Case for Christ", and "Case for a Creator" .  by Lee Strobel

3. "Case for the Resurrection", Gary Habermas

4. "Mere Christianity" C.S. Lewis (where he explains his famous argument for Jesus's claim to be God - "Liar, Lunatic, Lord"