160-The One Who Does Not Wear a Wedding Garment#
160-The One Who Does Not Wear a Wedding Garment
(JP Text Group - 整理 by the Little Prince of Heaven)
Matthew 22:1-14.
The title of our sharing today is: The One Who Does Not Wear a Wedding Garment.
1 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 slaughtered, 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.”
Let us first say a prayer.
Heavenly Father, we especially thank and praise You. We know that You have prepared everything for us, and You invite us into Your kingdom, You invite us to participate in Your banquet, not to work, but to share in Your joy, because You have prepared everything. Today, we also believe that as a new week begins, You have prepared everything, and today we are participating in Your grace, in Your provision, because You have prepared everything. We are willing to know You here, to know Jesus, to know what You have prepared for us.
Renew us once again, help us once again, Holy Spirit, work here personally, guide each of our hearts, let us know You more, thank and praise the Lord. In the name of the Lord Jesus, we pray, Amen! Hallelujah!
The title of our sharing today is: The One Who Does Not Wear a Wedding Garment.
In a moment, I will explain why this person does not wear a wedding garment, because he thinks his own is beautiful. Why did I say during the greeting that you look beautiful instead of saying I look beautiful? If so, that would be a problem, and that would make this person today.
Look, our text today starts with chapter 22, which mentions that Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like…”
Isn’t it talking about the kingdom of heaven first?
Brothers and sisters, are you sure that you have entered the kingdom of heaven today? The crowd responds (Sure). What do you rely on to enter? It’s not your behavior, is it? It’s not about what you did, but about believing, right? So, in this way, we can understand this very simply today.
Here it mentions that the king prepared a wedding banquet for his son. The kingdom of heaven is like a king; who is this king? It is our Heavenly Father. Our Heavenly Father prepares a wedding banquet for His son; who does His son refer to? It refers to Jesus. Who is the bride? The church. Right? So, you are the church, right? Absolutely correct. It’s not this building; in the future, Jesus will not marry this building, that’s not right. The one Jesus is going to marry is the church, Amen! We are the church, and we are linked together; we are the church. So, Jesus is going to be betrothed to you.
This is a custom in the ancient Middle East; the wedding banquet is held at the groom's house. We are all in the groom's house; why not at the bride's house? Because if it were at our house, it would be troublesome; every church is relatively poor, right? Compared to what is said in Revelation 22, we are very poor compared to the kingdom of heaven.
When we get to heaven, what will the streets be like? --- Pure gold. Not paved, but all pure gold. And it is transparent, as if you can see through it. If you haven’t read it carefully, go read it. Especially for those who have just come to our church, this is a challenge for you to know how wealthy our Heavenly Father is. Why hold the banquet in His house? Because He can prepare things that we cannot prepare.
The king prepared this wedding banquet for his son; the wedding itself is the responsibility of the groom's parents. Do the brothers and sisters know this? Unlike in China, where you have to handle it yourself when you get married; it’s not like that. It is the parents who are responsible.
This is a custom in the Middle East; when children get married, the parents bear full responsibility. Brothers and sisters, think about our Heavenly Father, who bears all the responsibility for Jesus. When the bride stands with the groom, who is more beautiful? In fact, many of us are already married, and I found that when I got married, the makeup was done casually and quickly, but how about the bride's makeup? It takes hours, and I don’t know what they are doing in there! Changing outfits again and again, and the hair takes a long time to do. What does this prove? God cares about you very much, Amen! He carefully dresses you up.
Have you noticed that the groom's outfit is all similar? What about the bride's? When she comes out, people know she is different. So, you are different; in the eyes of the groom, you are the most beautiful, Amen!
In Jesus’ eyes, you are the most beautiful. Likewise, in the Father’s eyes, you are the most pleasing to Him. So, this is a wedding banquet, a place that brings great joy, right? Believing in Jesus should make you feel joyful. If believing brings you more pain, you probably are not going to a wedding banquet; if you end up at a funeral, that would be troublesome. So, make sure you are going to the wedding banquet when you believe in Jesus. Amen! God is preparing for you a wedding banquet, and it is the Father who is responsible for it.
This banquet, the banquet symbolizes the joy of God and man together. Amen! Well, brothers and sisters, what should we do at the wedding banquet? Do you have to do anything when you attend a wedding banquet? Isn’t it that they have prepared a rich feast, and you just need to eat?
Brothers and sisters, today I want to talk about the king's wedding banquet. It is different from an ordinary wedding banquet. Today, when we mention a wedding banquet in the secular world, we get scared, right? Why? You don’t even dare to enter the door. But at the king's wedding banquet, you don’t have to worry about this issue; you don’t need to prepare anything! I’ll tell you the answer first: you don’t need to prepare anything; you just need to enter. Because this is called grace!
This symbolizes that the Father has prepared everything, allowing you to enter and rejoice with Him, letting you enjoy what the host has prepared for you. So, when you share the gospel with others, it’s not to make them suffer; it’s to tell them, come join me at the wedding banquet! That is the king's banquet. Amen!
Let’s share the first point: The Father has prepared everything and is waiting for them to come.
When the king has prepared all this, what does he do? He sends people to invite these guests. Here, a word is used, “call,” which actually means to invite. The king sends his servants to invite those who have been called to come to the banquet; what is their attitude? They refuse to come.
Brothers and sisters, look at such a joyful place, a peaceful place, a place for you to enjoy provision, yet people are unwilling to come. Isn’t this also a characteristic today? The church is a place that provides God’s salvation, a place that provides the blessings of Jesus Christ, a place that provides His joy, yet people are unwilling to come.
In fact, whose loss is it? It is the loss of that person. For the king, having one more or one less makes no difference to him, but the king has a very merciful heart; He wishes that all those He invites can come. This is the will of our Heavenly Father. Amen!
He wishes that the kingdom of heaven is filled with people; He does not want anyone in hell. Amen! This is the will of our Heavenly Father, so today He places this model of the kingdom of heaven—the church—here to tell us. This place is what our Heavenly Father hopes will be filled with people. Because if not here, then in the world.
What characteristics do these people have? They are unwilling to come. They are unwilling to come.
Brothers and sisters, this is the first group of people they invited; their chosen attitude is unwillingness to come.
Before Jesus began to preach, the first group of people who went to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ were unwilling to come. So, at the beginning, John the Baptist shouted in the wilderness, “The kingdom of heaven is near; you should repent. Come over here, for the king is coming, everything is prepared!” But these people were unwilling to come. So at that time, John the Baptist and his disciples preached a baptism of repentance, hoping that these people would renew their thoughts and prepare their hearts. Unfortunately, the Israelites at that time were unwilling to accept.
Verse 4 says, “The king sent other servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that my banquet is ready. My oxen and fattened cattle have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the banquet.’”
This is the second stage: when the disciples are spreading the gospel, Jesus Christ is the ox and the fattened cattle.
The king tells us, “I have prepared everything; the oxen and fattened cattle have been slaughtered.” The sacrificial lamb has already been offered; all salvation is complete; come over!
At the beginning, when Jesus had not yet come, they said, “Come over! The kingdom of heaven is near; you should repent!”
But now, when the servants are sent out again, they tell those who have been invited, “My banquet is ready; everything is prepared; the oxen and fattened cattle have been slaughtered.”
When Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins, at that time, salvation was already complete. Now you don’t need to do anything anymore. Before Jesus shed His blood and sacrificed Himself, you still needed to take up your cross and follow Jesus; you might have fear and worry. But when Jesus was offered on the cross, at that time, everything was prepared; everything was prepared!
The Heavenly Father hopes these people can come, saying, “You don’t need to worry about anything else anymore, because everything is prepared. The oxen and fattened cattle have been slaughtered, and everything is ready.” This is the second group of servants sent by God in the New Testament era. This includes apostles like Paul and other apostles. After Jesus Christ died and resurrected, they began to spread the gospel because the oxen and fattened cattle symbolize that the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, has been crucified for the sins of the world. At this time, what we need to do is to participate in His banquet and enjoy His grace and provision. Amen!
So, in this matter, we clearly know that at that time, John the Baptist said a word; when John saw Jesus coming, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”
The first group of people, when Jesus had not gone to the cross, still had fear and said, “I am not worthy to see the Lord, not worthy to attend the king's banquet; I feel my identity is not good, and my behavior is not good.” But when Jesus died on the cross for our sins, you should remember what John the Baptist said at that time; “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.”
When Jesus died on the cross for our sins, you should be assured that your sins have all been taken away by Jesus, and at this time, you can boldly attend the king's banquet without any burden, without any debt, without any guilt, because all of this has been taken away. Amen!
The banquet of salvation has been prepared, it has been completed; it is not for you to do anything; it is not for you to follow Jesus while carrying that heavy cross because it is all completed. You are invited to receive everything Jesus has done for you. So, Jesus has prepared abundant blessings for us to receive. What should we do?
The first word is believe. Believe that Jesus has prepared everything, believe that the Father’s banquet is given freely.
The second word is come. Do you want to come? Brothers and sisters, this tells us that the Father is now calling you: Come, come into my banquet; everything is prepared. Come!
People still have a choice. So we always emphasize: our God, although He is omnipotent and omniscient, one thing is that He does not force you. Amen! Although there are abundant blessings with Him, He will never force you to receive them, so He still gives you the right to choose whether to come. Just like in our church now, I will tell you that when you come, you will receive God’s abundant blessings. You have a choice, either to come or not to come. But those who come will definitely gain something, Amen! In the face of such abundant grace from God, what is the attitude of these invited people?
Let’s look at the third verse: They are unwilling to come. They do not listen; they are unwilling to come for some reason, just unwilling to come. So how can those who are unwilling to come receive God’s blessings? Many people always ask: God, why have you made me like this? God says, come over here; I have a rich banquet. Come over here; don’t stay in that place; come over here. But they are unwilling. This is not a new thing; it was the same in the Old Testament.
Let’s look at Isaiah 30:15; let’s read it together: 30:15 The Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says: “In repentance and rest is your salvation; in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it.”
What kind of heart does God have? It says here: your salvation is to return to rest. What does rest mean? God has prepared everything; you enter into Him and enjoy everything He has prepared for you. That is rest. And then? You will gain. You say you are weak now; you say you have many problems now, what should you do? Come to Him, come before Him. You will gain strength in quietness and trust.
When you come before Jesus, God will not let your blood pressure spike; He will not. He will let you be at peace! He will let you be quiet and stable. He will let you know that here, everything is supplied freely; God has prepared everything to be supplied to you freely.
You need to do one thing: come! Amen! So you can invite your friends to come to church with me, come! We are that servant. Amen! No matter whether this person comes or not, we should invite him to come to church with me; there is a rich king’s banquet there. Hallelujah!
The problem is that when the Israelites heard God’s words, they were unwilling. They are unwilling to come, brothers and sisters. If they are unwilling to come, can they receive? They cannot. Then verse 5 says: they paid no attention, so the king said, “You don’t need to worry; I have prepared all this; the oxen and fattened cattle have been slaughtered. Everything is ready.” They didn’t listen, directly ignoring those people.
So verse 5 says: those people paid no attention and went away, one to his field, another to his business. In fact, this represents two types of Jewish people; both have a common characteristic: they value physical enjoyment. They are unwilling to attend the king’s banquet and only focus on whether they can gain these things in this life. So you will find that there are indeed such people; you go to share the gospel with them and say: Believe in Jesus.
They say, “I don’t believe.” They might even say, “Will believing in Jesus drop money from the sky? Will believing in Jesus drop steamed buns? Will it drop bread?” They are just like these two people. Jesus is not concerned about this; He only cares about whether what I am doing now can be doubled by God. In fact, it is disbelief. They do not know that when you truly enter the king’s banquet, you will no longer focus on your little matters because God gives you what? He gives you better, He gives you more abundant. Amen!
This is the reason why we today truly understand the grace of Jesus Christ and do not want to leave. Because we know that in the past, I always thought that little piece of land was great, but now God says, “I will give you a hundredfold.” Amen! Not only will you have a hundredfold on earth, but what else will you have in the future? You will also have eternal life!
What if you don’t come? You can only see your little bit of things. When you enter the king’s banquet, everyone will be amazed one day. Brothers and sisters, do you know what they will be amazed at? When the real new heaven and new earth come, we will all see this. Everything God has created for you will amaze you, Amen!
You say, “Lord, I have only done so little for You in this world, yet You give me so much.” Because that is the king’s banquet. Hallelujah! God not only lets you in but also gives you abundant rewards.
As a result, these Jewish people? They value their own matters very much; one went to work in his field, and another went to do business. Verse 6 says: the rest seized his servants, mistreated them, and killed them. You say, “If you don’t go, that’s fine, but why do you torment those who preach the gospel, mistreat them, and kill them?” Isn’t that despicable? Despicable.
Did the king say, “Go get me more people and beat those people to death?” Did he do that? So the Bible says: “Vengeance is mine; I will repay!” You should not seek revenge, Amen! What does this tell us? Indeed, when you share the gospel with others today, they may mistreat you, they may attack you, and they may even use evil words to attack you.
But it doesn’t matter, because one day they will definitely regret it; they will know how foolish their actions were at the beginning. You don’t need to argue with them because God knows all this. This is not something that only happens in this world; it has always been happening, Amen!
Some ignore you, some will speak against you, and some will mistreat you. This is their attitude towards the gospel. These people actively oppose the gospel, so most of them are zealous Jews, thus persecuting and killing the servants of the Lord. In the book of Acts, James and Stephen were killed, right? What did they do? They only preached the truth of Jesus Christ to these people, and as a result? They were mistreated and killed. Brothers and sisters, for us, those who are martyred for the Lord Jesus will receive great rewards from God in the future. Amen!
In Revelation, it is recorded that there is a millennium; do you all know? Do you know what kind of people are prepared for the millennium? It is not that all believers can enter; from the creation of the world until the end of the world, there is a group of people who were killed for the sake of Jesus, just like we mentioned earlier. These people were mistreated and then killed. We feel sorry for these people, right? Dying so young. Because of this reason, many people say, “Jesus cannot be believed; look at that person, so young, he died for Jesus. What a pity!”
But you know that God is just, right? He will not let His children suffer loss. For those who are martyred for the Lord Jesus, these people will enter into the millennium. God says, “I will compensate them for a thousand years.” Amen! A thousand years, the millennium will still be on earth, and in the future, God will renew this time.
When it is renewed to be as beautiful as the original Eden, this is what Isaiah mentions: the lion and the child will be together. Do you remember that scene? The scene of the millennium! So those who are martyred for the Lord Jesus will all enter into the millennium, just like us, and live for a full thousand years. God says, “Didn’t they die for me? Didn’t they lose decades? I will compensate them for a thousand years!” So God is just. Amen!
We feel it is unfair, but God says, “I will not let you feel it is unfair; I will let you feel that all this is worth it.” Hallelujah! Now that so many apostles understand this, are they willing to be martyred for the Lord Jesus? We feel sorry for those people, dying so young. God has compensation for them. Amen!
Well, let’s continue. What about those who persecute these people? What is their end?
Verse 7 says: “The king was enraged; he sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.”
In fact, here, Jesus is telling a prophecy. It is a prophecy about what will happen to those who do not accept Jesus. It does not refer to us; it refers to the Jews at that time and what their end will be.
This matter was not what Jesus wished for; we know that in AD 70, Titus led the Roman army to invade Jerusalem, right? What were those people doing at that time? They were worshiping God in the temple. Then the Roman army entered and killed all those who were worshiping, and blood flowed out of the temple, eventually flowing into the Kidron Valley. Do you know where the Kidron Valley is? The Garden of Gethsemane. The place where Jesus prayed at the end.
What is that valley for?
Every year during Passover, many lambs are killed, and the blood of those lambs flows out of the Kidron Valley. Jesus is actually that true lamb, right? His blood flowed for us, so our sins are forgiven. But what about those who do not accept Jesus? Your own blood will have to flow; your sins cannot be forgiven.
So when they did not know they killed the true Holy One and rejected Him, one day they were worshiping in the temple, and their own blood flowed out of the Kidron Valley. This is the manifestation of God’s justice.
Today, don’t feel that my world is unfair. Give it to God! Don’t take on what you cannot solve; give it to God! Amen! But the death of these Jews is also not what Jesus wished. I will show you a passage in Matthew 23. Now we are reading chapter 22, right? After Jesus finished this story, in chapter 23, He told this story to His disciples.
Let’s read it together:
37 “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing. 38 Look, your house is left to you desolate. 39 For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’”
This refers to the Jews. So in the year 70, this indeed happened. When we see here, there are two very important words: “I have longed many times.” Do you know that Jesus wishes that many people would be saved? Do you know that Jesus wishes that all the Jews would repent? It’s just that how? It’s just that you are unwilling.
Brothers and sisters, so today when you share the gospel with others, and they refuse, you know this is not God’s will. Amen! They died in pain, in sickness, in accidents; this is not God’s will. God is willing to gather them. What does it mean for a hen to gather her chicks? Because a hen can help you. When there is wind and rain, you are under the hen’s wings, right? It can protect you. They are unwilling; they expose themselves to the hands of the enemy.
But you were unwilling. For us today; entering the kingdom of heaven is very easy; as long as you believe, then coming is enough. Amen! Believe, and you have already received this blessing; come, and you will see God’s power and grace supply. Hallelujah! It’s just that the Jews at that time were unwilling. So we see God’s will; He does not wish for anyone to perish; He wishes for everyone to repent.
We share the second point: Many are invited, but few are chosen.
When the king was enraged, he sent his army to destroy those murderers and burned their city. Then he said to his servants: “The banquet is ready, but those who were invited did not deserve to come.”
Brothers and sisters, this is our current situation, letting us know that when God has prepared everything, how many people are worthy to participate in that banquet? In fact, none are worthy, right? Here it says, “but those who were invited did not deserve.” The invited people refer to the Israelites.
Verse 9, “So go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.”
Well, here I want to talk about the book of Acts. When the Jews rejected Jesus, rejected the gospel, God’s grace still flows; this gospel came to the Gentiles. Amen! So brothers and sisters, if today this person does not accept the gospel, others will accept it. We who spread the gospel should have this mindset, Amen! If this person does not accept, what will you do? Don’t be sad and cry every day; change to the next one. Amen!
That’s how it is, brothers and sisters. We know it is impossible for everyone to accept because their hearts are unwilling, unwilling, unwilling.
God will not force them, so if you don’t believe, you can go to the hospital and see if there are many people suffering in cancer wards, moaning like that. You say, “Believe in Jesus.” Will they believe? Many still do not believe, right? But are there some who believe in there? Yes, there are believers, and there are those who are healed. Amen!
Last week, I shared that testimony. A brother had rectal cancer, already in the late stage. Then, in the hospital, his relatives said: “Be healed in the name of Jesus... Be healed in the name of Jesus.” He accepted it and was healed. Do you know how many rectal cancer patients have died? Isn’t that right, brothers and sisters? We cannot say that this disease is given by God; if you can meet God in the midst of disease, that is a joyful thing for you. Hallelujah!
God is willing for you to enter into Him at any time. The invited people are unworthy, so this refers to the Jews. Unworthy means they are unwilling to accept God’s salvation, unwilling to accept God’s abundant grace. So the Jews rejected the salvation of the Lord Jesus, placing themselves in an unworthy position. Let’s look at a passage of scripture.
In Acts 13:44-46, let’s read it together:
44 On the next Sabbath, almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. 45 When the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy; they began to contradict what Paul was saying and heaped abuse on him. 46 Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: “We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles.”
It is not that God is unwilling to let the Jews be saved; it is that they do not want to. So what is our responsibility today? We just need to tell others; if they do not want it, then pass it on to others. There will always be someone who needs Jesus Christ. Amen! So when the Jews did not want Jesus, they placed themselves in an unworthy position, thinking they really could not obtain it, determining that they were unworthy of eternal life.
The king said: “Well, you go to the street corners.” Now, were these people at the street corners people who were originally planned? No. These people might be those who are wandering at the crossroads, standing at the intersection, saying: “Where should I go?” Is there really a God in this world? I have so many problems at home; what should I do? They are at the crossroads. They do not know how to choose; you tell them, “I have the king’s wedding banquet; come join me!” They come over. So, people like this are particularly easy to accept Jesus. Amen!
What kind of people are these? Generally, those in pain, without direction, in despair, in depression; I find that such people are very easy to accept Jesus, right? Because they do not know which direction to go. Such people accept it, so the king says: “Go and invite such people to come!” Such people first feel unworthy, right?
Because you are not in the plan; you have encountered the king’s grace. Hallelujah! It’s like saying you are walking on the road, and a waiter at the entrance says: “Brother, are you busy? Come join me for a wedding banquet! Today, there are too many reserved seats, but few people are coming. Do you want to go in and have a meal?” Do you want to go?
That’s the situation. You might be puzzled and say, “Is there really such a good thing?” What is your first choice? You can go or choose not to go, saying, “You are a liar.” But if you know, you believe, and you follow in to take a look, you will know this is grace! Amen!
Brothers and sisters, this is how we invite others to meet Jesus; this is how we invite people into the kingdom of Jesus. You go to the street corners and see those people who have no direction; they are walking, and you say: “Come with me! Don’t stay here; Jesus is your direction.” Amen!
When in sickness, Jesus is your healing! Hallelujah! Jesus is your joy because you are going to a wedding banquet! Hallelujah! So this represents: the salvation of Gentile believers. They did not come voluntarily; it is out of the Lord’s invitation. Amen!
The difference between Christianity and other religions lies here. Other religions are people looking for God, and the result is that they find all fakes. Only Christ sends people to find you; you can be busy with your own matters, and at this time, the master sends the servant to say, “Come with me!” So brothers and sisters, feel free to invite your friends! It doesn’t matter. Amen! Whether they come or not is their business, but you must extend the invitation. Because we are the servants of Jesus Christ. Hallelujah!
Then, there is a very important thing here: regardless of good or evil.
Let’s look at verse 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.” Amen!
This is what the kingdom of heaven will look like in the future. What does regardless of good or evil mean? When you go to share the gospel with others, do not act like a fortune teller. You know that many people used to say this, right? “I can share the gospel; I will share a bit of the gospel with the village chief; that person is very good; you don’t know, he cares about the people in our village. There is a big bully in our village; we must not let him believe in Jesus. If he believes in Jesus, won’t he ruin the kingdom?” Don’t be that kind of person, regardless of good or evil. Amen!
Regardless of good or evil; today, many people think, “I absolutely cannot share the gospel with that person.” Think about it; how did he treat my family in the past? If I let him believe in Jesus, God will forgive all his sins; isn’t that unfair! Haha… Please remember, this is not what the servant should do. The servants do things like this: regardless of good or evil, they gathered everyone they encountered. Brothers and sisters, everyone you can encounter is not appearing before you for no reason. You can say this is an opportunity given to you by God.
God gives you the opportunity to share the gospel with them. Hallelujah! So what do you do? Invite them to accept Jesus. In this way, regardless of good or evil, do not ask them what sins they have committed in the past; just write them all down on a piece of paper, and I will confess them to the Father for you. There is no need to be so troublesome; just believe. He believes that God can forgive all his sins. Amen! Regardless of good or evil, it is worth it; it does not distinguish between good people and bad people, what they did in the past, what they are doing now, or what their profession is. As long as you are willing to come, you are willing to believe, you will receive.
So we see in Ephesians 2:8-9:
8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—9 not by works, so that no one can boast.
Today, we are saved not because our behavior is good, not because we are worthy; we were all called Gentiles, and we might be those who are wandering in this world, perhaps those who are walking on the road. Now God, through His servants, has brought the gospel to you. For us, this is called grace! Amen!
Originally, you were unworthy, undeserving, but today you have the opportunity to receive it. It is not because you did some good deeds, good works, or achievements; it is because the king’s grace has come upon you. So, regardless of good or evil, this points to the principle of salvation; His principle transcends your personal behavior, whether good or evil. You can all receive grace. Someone says, “I have done many bad things in the past; can Jesus forgive all your sins?” Amen! He can change your life. You say, “I am the chief of sinners.” Please remember, you can also receive God’s mercy and be justified by faith. Hallelujah! Amen!
So is this invitation good? The original people were unwilling to come; now, at the crossroads, everyone they see is invited to enter the king’s banquet. The problem arises here; a very strange thing happened. When the guests were full, the king came in to see the guests and noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. He said to him: “Friend, how did you get in here without wedding clothes?” The man was speechless.
I want to ask everyone a question: Why did this man not wear wedding clothes? Is it because this man is very poor? Or did this man not have time to change clothes? Does the Bible say that those who met on the road said, “There is a king’s banquet here; you should go back and change clothes before coming”? It does not say that; they were gathered together as soon as they met on the road.
Well, since he was among those who were walking on the road, how could they possibly have wedding garments? Because those walking on the road might be poor, sick, or beggars, right? Such people have no wedding garments. So in this situation, we think the king’s requirement, the king’s words, are a bit excessive, saying, “Why don’t you wear wedding clothes?”
If you say the king’s response is excessive, what should this person say? “I don’t have money to buy wedding clothes,” or “I didn’t have time to go home; I came directly from the road.” He should have an answer, right? The problem is here; why was the man speechless?
So today we need to understand one thing: what does this wedding garment refer to? Some people explain that not wearing wedding clothes means not having good behavior, that is, not having righteous deeds. He may have believed before, but because he did not have good behavior, the king said, “Where are your good deeds?” The man was speechless. As a result, what did the king say? 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.”
If this explanation is true, isn’t it very dangerous? I will demonstrate it for you; if that explanation is true, I have checked many explanations of scriptures, and they basically all say this.
You were originally recorded in the book of life; when one day you go to attend Jesus’ banquet, the king—our Heavenly Father—comes to judge and says, “Where are your good deeds?” You would be speechless. If the Heavenly Father were to investigate our sins, to investigate our good deeds, we could only be speechless, right? This explanation sounds correct. But the problem is here: if the king asks you, “Where are your good deeds?” would you dare to say? Do you have good deeds? You can only be thrown out.
In this case, our salvation would be uncertain. In this case, you must serve the Lord well in this world; you must serve the Lord well. Otherwise, even if your name is in the book of life, one day when the king investigates your sins and sees that you have no good deeds, he will say, “Come here, tie him up, and throw him into the outer darkness,” which refers to where you know? Hell.
Don’t guess about this; it is hell. I have checked the word darkness; this word corresponds to another place, which refers to the dark place of the devil, the same original word. This proves that once this person is thrown out, he will end up in hell. If we follow that explanation, is it dangerous? Today, if you believe, you may not necessarily be saved because you may lose your salvation.
But we do not speak like this; the Bible does not speak like this. Amen! The Bible says; believe, and you will be saved! Because the scripture says; “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith; this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God.” “Not by works” means it has nothing to do with behavior, nothing to do with behavior. Amen!
Brothers and sisters, it has nothing to do with behavior. Then this proves that the previous explanation is wrong because it relates to your behavior, doesn’t it? Saying, “Where are your good deeds?” Salvation has nothing to do with behavior. So what does this explanation refer to? What does the wedding garment refer to? Some people say that because he is a victorious Christian, the king’s banquet is a place for victorious Christians to go; defeated Christians do not qualify to go.
Then I ask some people, where do those defeated Christians go? They answer, “The Bible says that outside the gates of heaven are the dogs; if you fail, you might as well become a dog in heaven. If you succeed, you directly become a person and enter heaven.”
Is the holy city filled with victors while the outside is filled with failures? In this case, is salvation again linked to behavior? This is wrong. So I wish that we brothers and sisters would return to the Bible, Amen! What we just said is wrong, so do not understand it in that way. If you used to think that way, please abandon that thought; it is incorrect. Amen!
What is this article talking about at the beginning? The kingdom of heaven is like…
Isn’t it talking about entering the kingdom of heaven? Then is entering the kingdom of heaven related to behavior? No! Always remember, it is not. Amen!
So we see that the invited people refer to what kind of people? The invited people. So there is a sentence later that says, many are invited, but few are chosen. Many people link these two verses together, thinking that even if you believe in the Lord now, although you are already saved, in the future, few will be chosen by God! This does not mean that; the invited people refer to those who are invited. God invites everyone to enter the kingdom of heaven. Amen!
Just like inviting the Israelites. But do all people accept it? So when we share the gospel with others, we say, “Believe in Jesus,” you are inviting him to enter the kingdom of heaven. Amen!
Many are invited, but few are chosen. Chosen, in the original language, is a passive verb. It means: few are chosen. Jesus invites those people, but few choose Jesus! This proves that this will really happen. From a global perspective, in the future, the saved will still be a minority. Many people hear about Jesus but do not accept Him.
Why do these people not accept? The reason is very simple; they have a kind of self-righteousness within them. Why was this person thrown out? It was because of his wedding garment, right? Others do not have this problem; only this person does not wear wedding clothes. Then let’s unravel what this wedding garment refers to. The one who does not wear wedding clothes refers to what kind of person? God wishes that everyone would be saved,
So He sends His children to spread the gospel to everyone, but only those who believe are saved. Amen! That is to say; God invites everyone, but only those who choose to believe in Jesus are saved. Then this wedding garment refers to: the righteousness of Jesus Christ! Amen!
Let’s look at a passage in Galatians 3:26-27:
26 So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith. 27 For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.
What does it mean to be clothed with Christ? At the moment we accept Jesus, something happens in the spirit. All the filthy clothes on you are taken off, and you put on the robe of righteousness of Jesus Christ. This is what Jesus accomplished for you on the cross. So when you say:
“Lord Jesus, I am willing to accept You as my Savior,” at that moment, the blood of Jesus cleansed your whole body and washed away all your sins. Amen! He puts His robe of righteousness on you.
So now, what kind of identity are you living in? You are living in the identity of Christ. Amen! Because you are wearing the robe of righteousness of Jesus Christ, when others look at you, they no longer see the past you; they see Jesus. Amen! In the eyes of the Father, it is the same. So when you stand before the Father, wearing this robe of righteousness of Jesus Christ, the Father sees you as the same as Jesus. Amen!
So at that time, you will not boast about what you have done... You can only say, “Because His righteousness is upon me, everything I have is given to me by Jesus. I have a glorious name called a disciple of Christ.” In short, a Christian! Thank the Lord! So how do you wear Christ? How do you wear Jesus? By believing in Jesus Christ. Amen! So when you believe in Jesus, you are baptized into Christ; the Holy Spirit dwells in our hearts, right? At that moment, you are all clothed with Christ. You are wearing the robe of righteousness of Jesus Christ.
In the Bible, there is a parable of the prodigal son: Do you remember at the beginning, the younger son had everything, but later he squandered it all. When he returned, what was his clothing like? Very shabby, very torn, and full of the smell of pigs. But in such an environment, what did his father do? His father said, “Quick, bring the best robe and put it on him.” Amen! That means God does not look at how you are behaving now, does not look at what you did in the past; when He puts His robe of righteousness on you, everything about you changes. Amen!
The Bible mentions the righteousness of Christ, the righteousness of God, which means that today, at the moment you accept Jesus, God gives you His righteousness freely. So why did this person not wear it? He may have many reasons and excuses.
Perhaps he thinks, “My clothes are beautiful; I don’t want to change into yours. I think I can attend the wedding banquet in this outfit.” This is called self-righteousness! Such a person cannot enter.
Let’s look at a passage in Romans 10:1-4:
1 Brothers and sisters, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. 2 For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. 3 Since they did not know the righteousness of God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. 4 Christ is the culmination of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.
Just like this person today, he does not know how valuable that garment is; it is made of silk and gold. What is Jesus’ garment? It was exchanged for us with His life, the robe of righteousness. You cannot buy it with any amount of money; they do not know the righteousness of God, so what do they want to do? They want to establish their own righteousness and do not submit to God’s righteousness. So this person is very likely to say, “I think my clothes are even more beautiful than yours; I don’t want your clothes.” So when he enters the venue wearing this outfit, he can only be thrown out.
Christ is the culmination of the law. Please remember, this is a characteristic within the law. So you see some people today still living under the law; they think, “I am better than you; you are not as good as me,” and they will condemn others. Their life reveals that they do not submit to God’s righteousness but establish their own righteousness. But all those who wear the robe of righteousness of Jesus Christ, how do they see the people around them? You are in the image of Jesus; he is in the image of Jesus; they are all the same. Amen! Because they are all bought back by Jesus at a great price. So how can you slander Jesus? When you attack this brother, aren’t you attacking Jesus? Similarly, loving this brother is also loving Jesus. Hallelujah!
Because he does not know the righteousness of God, does not know that what he is wearing is also the righteousness of God, he does not submit to God’s righteousness. The culmination of the law is Christ, making righteousness available to everyone who believes. Amen! Our righteousness is not earned by our efforts; it is given to you by God when you believe. Thank and praise the Lord! So this wedding garment is what God has prepared for us; God has prepared a complete wedding garment for us! Unfortunately, this person thinks his clothes are good, so he is self-righteous; he is unwilling to take off and change, unwilling to believe in the righteousness of Jesus Christ. In that case, he can only be thrown out.
Romans 3:21-22 says:
21 But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 22 This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile.
Did you see that? Here it mentions two kinds of people; the first kind is the Jews under the law; they have no righteousness under the law and must find righteousness outside the law, right? As a result, they rejected Jesus; they could not obtain this righteousness. The righteousness of God is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe, and there is no difference. It refers to: whether you are a Jew or a Gentile, today when you accept Jesus, the righteousness of God is freely given to you; it has nothing to do with your behavior, nothing to do with the law, nothing to do with your achievements, and nothing to do with your personal efforts. Amen!
The one who does not wear wedding clothes refers to those who do not believe in Jesus Christ or those who think the king’s clothes are just so-so. Today, do you know how many people look down on the kingdom of heaven? Especially some who believe in other religions; they say, “You all go to heaven; I can go to hell.” If everyone goes to heaven, how regrettable it is that hell is empty; I have to go there. Do you know what kind of mentality such people have? They do not submit to God’s righteousness. Some even learn from others and say, “If I don’t go to hell, who will?” You know that people who say such things do not understand what hell is like! They also do not understand what heaven is like.
Because they do not submit, they look down upon it, so they establish their own righteousness. Therefore, such people do not believe in Jesus. Always remember, brothers and sisters, this person did not wear wedding clothes because he did not believe; he did not accept it. It is not that God did not prepare for him; it is not that the king did not prepare wedding clothes for him; it is that he was unwilling to wear them, unwilling to put them on.
In this case, the king asks him: “Friend, how did you get in here without wedding clothes?” The king means: I have prepared for you; don’t say I didn’t prepare for you; I prepared for you; why don’t you wear it? The man was speechless. So he could only be thrown out, thrown into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Today for us, it is not that everyone who enters the church is saved; only those who believe can be saved. Amen! Only those who believe in Jesus Christ are saved. Today we do not know who truly believes and who falsely believes. But one day, those who falsely believe will not have the righteousness of Jesus, and without the robe of righteousness of Jesus, they will definitely be thrown out because you cannot deceive the Father. So today we do not criticize whether this person is saved or that person is saved. We can only judge whether we are saved.
If you know that today you are wearing the righteousness of Christ, then you know: I represent Christ. Amen! Everything I have is given to me freely by Jesus; it is the robe of righteousness He exchanged for me with His precious blood, with His life. You look at the love of the Father with this heart, and then look at all the people around you who believe in Jesus; your life will change. Amen!
Thank and praise the Lord. This is the abundant banquet that the Father has prepared for you. Do not worry about your behavior; God has prepared everything for you, and then you can invite your friends to come and participate in this wedding banquet. Amen! Hallelujah. Thank and praise the Lord!
Well, brothers and sisters, please stand! Let us pray together.
Heavenly Father, we especially thank and praise You! Thank You for preparing this time for us today to understand Your salvation. The one who does not wear wedding clothes is because he does not believe, because he is unwilling to accept, he has self-righteousness within him. Lord, we know we are unworthy, but Jesus Christ, You have given me everything. I know we should not have received this salvation, but today You found me and gave me Your love. I can accept You also because of Your grace.
Today, in every matter of life, I need Your grace because You are the complete provider. Please help me to meet You in my life, to meet You in everything. When I know that today I am not living for myself but living for Christ,
You give me a heart to see the people around me through Christ, to see my brothers and sisters; they are also bought back by Christ with His precious blood. Lord Jesus, You let us love one another, letting us know that all of us are wearing the robe of righteousness of Christ. When we accept You, You give us this robe of righteousness freely, so we are also willing to treat the brothers and sisters around us with this heart.
Please help us, let us grow together in Your love. Thank and praise the Lord! We are willing to tell this good news to those around us, letting them join me in this joyful banquet. This is Your will, God; this is Your will, Heavenly Father. You wish that Your kingdom is filled with people. Thank and praise the Lord! May all glory be to You. In the name of the Lord Jesus, we pray. Amen!