The Father Of The Groom Requests Your Presence

It is no secret that everybody loves a wedding.

Everybody that is mighty with the exception the problem of the groom and the bride's father. They both are two different reasons for that, but nonetheless wedding is a great and joyous celebration mother of the bride. I cried but still a joyous celebration psychologist say that the girls tend to marry boys like their fathers, and that's why mothers of brides cry. Everyone says that the reason people cry at weddings because they have been through it and they know it's no laughing matter. There was a small girl seven years of age of first wedding ever. She's been through it and then she sat next to her mother that she saw the bride combine, she turned to her mother. She said mother. Why does the bride wear white mother quickly kind of try to hush and finally said well why is the color of happiness and this is the happiest day of her life. While a few seconds later this little girl just thought about that and she said well why does the groom wear black wisdom comes out of the mouth of babes, but in all seriousness, there is one person that truly look forward to that day so bride.

She longs to be with her future husband. She has dated him for so long. She has loved him for some time now.

Life is filled with expectations about being permanently united with him in the husband to be, has shown kindness tour. He has promised to be a protector has promised to be her cover and he promised to be her spiritual head and she can't wait for that to happen, to prove to her, probably again and again during the time of courtship that he loves you unconditionally that he will always be available in the times of need that you will always be supportive in the times of uncertainty. All that adds up for the bride to be excited. On that day and she is counting the seconds for that day to come. It is not surprising, therefore, that the image of a husband and wife. In an ideal biblical relationship is what the Scripture gives us again and again in the relationship between God and his people throughout the Old Testament. The Lord talks about Israel as his bride and then the apostle Paul in the New Testament says that the church is the bride of Christ. That is a special relationship, but also the Bible tells us what happens in the book of Hosea. For example of what happens when a faithless spouse.

In this case was the wife what happens when she breaks her husband's heart.

Unfaithfulness can work either way. But with God is only can work one way we, the unfaithful ones.

He is a faithful always and throughout the Old Testament God revealed to us again and again how he felt toward the unfaithfulness of his people.

He has fulfilled all his promises. He has fulfilled all the sides of his blog, he has provided for them day and night. PS protected them day and night. He has richly blessed them in every way. He love them unconditionally. He called again and again to repentance, but the captain running after other gods, they kept him running off the things they set their hearts on things in the list of this world and the system of this world and they began to reflect the world instead of the God who love them and you know again in the book of Hosea we see one of the most hurtful thing of all is when a spouse ignores the spouse or his spouse to become indifferent toward his love and in the light of this history, the Lord Jesus Christ tells this parable in Matthew 22. Turn with me please in your Bibles to Matthew 22 verses 1 to 14.

This is a magnificent parable. This is a magnificent story in order to focus our attention so we don't all over the place with this parable. I want you to focus on four different groups in this parable. First of all I want you to focus on those who have refused the invitation. Secondly, those who excused themselves from the invitation.

Unfortunately, those who made use of invitation and fourthly, those who refuse the king's provision those of the four people with which we are confronted in this parable. Ancient Middle East wedding feasts are inseparable from the wedding itself. Depending of course in the financial strength of the family. These celebrations these wedding celebrations. These wedding feasts can go on for weeks, not now, given the economic conditions but nonetheless this was the case. In fact, until recent times. This practice was continuing. I remember as it is a small boy growing up in the Middle East that we had a neighbor who had a son and only son, and that his wedding time is wedding feast. They had a tent in the ardent and they served food every night for seven nights and then of course the big banquet was on the night of the wedding. These were seven nights before the wedding. Now guests were invited from all over the country and they stayed in the groom's father's house for the entire time.

Even today in the Middle East every guess that gets invited to a wedding receives a gift when they leave the gift you receive a gift when you get invited to a wedding.

The groom's father provides always wonderful festivities. He pays for all the food and he pays for the gifts that people receive before they leave and that is why in the Middle East is the groom's father who cries by the royal wedding. Of course, is held in the palace and the king always was very extravagant in the way his desire to please his guests. He is very extravagant in the way he throws this party. I'm going to come to the extravagance of God in a minute, and the fact the best wedding feast is in this parable. The fact is, a wedding is really incidental.

The emphasis of the story of our Lord Jesus Christ is upon the feast itself effective notice of the bride is not even mentioned here a royal feast obviously is going to be the party of all parties on it is the king's party for his son is going to make every other party look insignificant again in the Middle East.

People like to outdo each other in their extravagance because it is so tied in with their views of of generosity and their views of hospitality in the so-and-so's party was for seven days Lazenby for eight days and the next guy will be for nine days you think of anything more foolish than well, to each their own, but when it comes to the king. No one can match his parties in this particular party is given by the greatest monarch in the universe to the most honored guests in the eyes of God. Those who have come to the Lord Jesus Christ. But when the preparation was completed.

The king sent his servants out and send them to all those who have been pre-invited to the wedding party. The invitation was issued ahead of time. They knew that the wedding is coming then you that the party was coming feast was coming and this is only a time of preparation so they received the pre-invitation.

I want to explain that to you to receive an invitation from your king is the highest honor that anybody can receive and it is all free.

You don't have to do anything or pay anything so you can imagine when your name is on the king's A-list preinvitation list topless and then when he got invited to the feast you don't show up.

Imagine the inside.

How can such a thing really. The very thought of turning down your caring and turning down such invitation is preposterous. An invitation from one's king is the greatest honor imaginable to spurn your opinions. Invitation is a serious offense. Now of course back then and even now there are few kings of any who are known for their humility, who are known for their patients, especially when they are openly insulted like so this king sends out another invitation.

But this time not only they refused invitation. They had an excuse that were busy.

They went about their work. Look at it in the parable this time invitation was more urgent. The food is ready, the king is sitting on his throne sitting at the table is waiting for the people to come is waiting for the invitees to come.

Everything is ready. Everything is done, it is not surprising, therefore, when Jesus died on the cross for your sins and for my he said it is finish he completed all his already for the invitation is already for you to come and receive this table has received from his great salvation three automation perhaps or some imploring on the part of the servants imploring these people to come please you have been invited come probably from leaving with them to come. The king is awaiting with many of the invitees were cold and there were in different there were selflessly preoccupied with their personal business. They were busy making a living, and missing out on the real life they were preoccupied with their wallets and their ambitions in life for getting the most important things alive.

There were so immersed in their imaginary satisfaction that they have failed to know the real fulfillment of life. They were anxiously going about on the pursuit of happiness, which is no more than a fleeting dream very were running around seeking a mirage when the real festivities in the real king and the real joy in the real value of life is only in the king's and the Lord's house.

I pray to God that if you're a person who been hearing the voice of God inviting you to come to be trying to silence it for a long time that you would not silencer today.

Then there was another group of invitees. There were worse than in different look at the second group. This group was far from being concerned about offending the king, far from being concerned that they are insulting the king. There were themselves were offended.

They themselves were insulted by the persistence of the king and they were insulted by the continuous persistence of the invitation itself and they act in brutal arrogance. They insult the servants they abuse the servants they mistreat the servants, and finally the extinguishing I want to tell you something.

Listen to me carefully. Please, I thought and prayed about that a great deal this past week. I believe that in modern America today. The equivalence of our day. Of those people are those who declare that Jesus is an illegal name to be named in public school there equivalence are those ones will legislate godless laws. There are the ones who insist that the 10 Commandments must be taken off walls lest it might make people think of God. They are the ones who insist that anything to do with God, must be practiced in private that must be practiced in secret they are the ones who called dogs faithful servants to be extremist, which is only two steps removed from them trying to lock them up and exterminate their the ones who would imprison anyone who would kill a rat but then they say it's okay to kill a baby in the mother's womb.

They're the ones in this parable who represent those who are actually hostile to biblical truth and if you have an opinion of living in this world you have not met those who are hostile into the gospel of Jesus Christ. You're not living in this world you know what they do it with a smile and to do it with charm and they do it with wit and even people in the Cheshire said yes but he's nice but she's nice. What is nice got to do with throughout history, the two enemies of the cross. Listen carefully, one is indifference and true is a false religion and apostasy in the church.

The enemies of the cross are both the purveyors of errors in the church and those who study was not the enemies of the gospel are both those who promote falsehood in the church and those who tacitly support.

I was talking to somebody not so long ago and he was telling me about why he has to stay in the church as apostate church is a get out of there. He said Narcan. My grandmother was better than my grandfather was better.

There also listen if your grandmother was living today.

She would get out to, but I want to tell you it gets to me. In this parable were really gets to me is the persistence on the part of the king, which is an indication of his gracious patients is an indication of his gracious forbearance with the reject how often is God calling America to turn back for how long will God keep calling America to turn back to him, but I want to tell you that God, the time is going to come when he says enough is enough. My patience has run out my gracious is right now it is time for judgment and I want to tell you that is exactly 40 years from the time that the Lord Jesus Christ told this parable he told this parable exactly 40 years later, his prophetic words came to fulfillment, for he came to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

These are the ones who receive the pre-invitation then the ones who supposedly good. Looking forward to long for this coming the Scripture from beginning to end is saying that the Messiah's coming. The Savior's coming when it comes believe in him. But when he came to refused to come and save accept his invitation and the opportunity for the invitation to those who pre-invited the household of Israel, the people of God the opportunity for them to come and accept that invitation. Right now, after 40 years, the sitcom, but they wouldn't and it was exactly 40 years of persistent invitation. Look at verse seven of the parable. The king was enraged and he sent his armies and destroyed those murderers and set the city on fire.

That word of prophecy took place in 70 A.D. for history tells us that of that year there was a Roman general by the name of Titus, who came in and killed more than 1,100,000 Jews in the slaughter of countless thousands of others throughout the land of Palestine. What will happen to America. If we persist in not accepting the invitation of God. In Matthew 22 verse eight. In this parable Jesus said the king sent his servants to the highways and the byways and other one thing Roman Empire dated as of the open highways.

The open roads all over the known world at the time and all these roads lead to Rome, and therefore Jesus ago after the highways in the byways go to the Gentiles, which bring me to the third group in this parable. Those who made good use of invitation.

Those who refused those who excused and now those who use invitation. The servants commission was to draw everywhere inviting anyone who will come and this is precisely is what we called the great commission of the Lord Jesus Christ. He told the disciples to go to the world and preach the gospel and make disciples of every nation and invitation is to whomsoever comes, whomsoever will accept whomsoever receive.

There is no class system in the church of Jesus Christ. Whomsoever rich and poor black-and-white older young whomsoever, so the servants will go out. They went out in the cold. Both the morally good and the morally bad Lisa Halcomb. Exactly how come listen carefully because they are both equal in the sight of God. The morally good and the morally better both equal in the sight of God, because by themselves they are unworthy to come to the king stable.

They are unworthy to come to the king's palace.

The original invitees show themselves to be morally superior to certain souls to be spiritually superior. So Jesus said, go on and on and invite them than the second group was a mixed bag. The Bible said that only those who have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb would make it to the king's feast. Then there was 1/4 group is represented by one among those who came there was one who was not wearing the wedding robe. Now this intruder who came was no party crashing. He was invited he came by invitation, but he came wearing his own close the wedding clothes is also affected back in the ancient days and royal weddings and wealthy people's weddings when you came from the outside.

There was a tent where before you got to the palace before you got to the castle you were handed a robe one-size-fits-all type of rope in order that you go into the wedding feast into the royal palace all dressed the same as like we are sometimes in together some restaurants in Japan not only take your shoes off of the handier components that F2 wears all the same color and Ottoman when you go I went to one of those snooty restaurants and you kind of dressed casual there bring you some old code and reported on you and a 10 inch tire and let you where to because he dressed casually for this particular snooty restaurant. It was something like this and everybody came in wore a special dressed war special gala special robe in order to get into the wedding that set identification.

The artist special invitees. The king knew that all of his guests.

All of those who have responded to his gracious invitations. There were spiritually poor. There were sinners by nature and they did not have any royal attire. The King of Kings knows that none of us nonetheless you and me.

None of us have any righteousness of our own that gets us anywhere near heaven. He knows that all of your good works and all of my good works without Jesus is like a dirty rag in his sight, so he made provision for those of us who trusted his son for those of us who come in humility and brokenness before him for those of us who come in confession of our sins, he made a provision for us to report on the role of righteousness of his. There was one person representing many, and I daresay there are many in the professing church today like this. This one man who came not wearing the royal road is one person who decided to defy the royal protocol is one person who was a proud man who was self-willed, individual, and he was insulting to the king's provision.

This one person in the wedding represents all those who think that they are going to heaven on the strengths of the good works he represents all those who think that they are going to heaven on the strength of their own merits.

He represents all those who think that they going to heaven because God doesn't care what you believe he represents those who think they can go to heaven without repentance. They can go to heaven without faith in the son of God. Notice what the Bible said when the king confronted this man this presumptuous man who thought that is going to get to heaven on the basis of his own understanding is all plan. The Bible said this man was speechless. He was dumbfounded to see. They refused to believe what the servants are telling them. But when they get there they say. Now I understand that you know what it is too late. This man's arrogance was short-lived. The king found him out that he send them out into the outer darkness, so I heard somebody resubmitted the liver joke about hell because there are real people who were going ever since Cain attempted to please God, his own way ever since Cain tried to please God in his own terms. There have been countless of millions of people who have tried to do the same foolishly in the day is coming when there will be thrown into the outer darkness on the fiery furnace is see our God is so rich how God is extravagant are king is so rich in goodness is so rich in wisdom is so rich in grace, and so rich in mercy is so rich in glory and only his goodness that will get us into heaven, only the richness that he imputes upon his children, and upon those who believe that this only that richness that they receive from him will get to heaven because our king has riches that is incorruptible because our king has riches that are inexhaustible because arcing has riches that are incompatible because arcing has riches that are unsearchable. Therefore, it is only his righteousness that will qualify you the to get into his pass to get into his feast. Only this royal garment of his righteousness. Jesus is telling us in this parable will give us into the royal feast into heaven.

You know when the prodigal son. The Bible said he came to census. That's another word of saying he was repentant and he came to his daddy and brokenness and repentance and he said father has sinned against you and again is heaven in all of the father did the first thing the father did is that he brought the best garment and put it on him.

Why, because only the garment of his righteousness can cover our sins.

Only the comfort of his righteousness can cover our imperfections under the government of his righteousness can cover our rebellion under the garment of his righteousness could cover us from the scorching heat of sin.

Only the grommet of his righteousness can cover us from the fiery darts of the enemy is sending away every single moment, only the garment of his righteousness, and cover us from the power of full scale and no one can take that away from you. Most illustrations are imperfect illustrations with they do make a point to let me conclude by telling your story that, from an earthly point of view hopefully illustrate what I'm trying to tell you the point of the terrible in the Midwest. There was a little girl who was terminally ill and was a matter of time before she was dying.

She comes from a poor working-class parents but you only had one wish before she dies. And that was to shake the hand of Pres. Franklin Delano Roosevelt. She kept saying to her mother mother.

I have one wish mother I wish I could take the hand of the president. She dated would dream about shaking the hand of the president until finally out of love for her little girl.

The mother went to a local businessman whom she knew, somehow, had connection and told him the story and solicit his help in the mantle. The mother, as it is matter of weeks. The president is coming here and I'm hosting a dinner for him, most certainly, you and your daughter will be invited. The day came draw near the man send out invitations and he invited the little girl and her mother to come to dinner and he didn't hear anything in. Finally, he wondered what happened but before long he got a letter from the little girl and I want to read part of it to you little girl said to the man she so, so grateful for the invitation. This was a dream come true for her. There is nothing she wanted more than to be able to shake the president's hand, but she could not accept invitation.

Why, she said, because my close were all tattered and a pair of shoes that I have a worn through the Tahoe and I could not see the president in my shameful condition. Businessman brought back in and he said all that is needed will be provided. You and your mother will get new clothes and new shoes for the president's dinner and then he continued, he said I will not allow my guess, to be ashamed in front of the present site was at long last the little girls realize her dream of meeting Pres. Roosevelt man, like all men who died. Like all men, and I want you to take that the multiply to a million times. How many of us really dreamy of the day when we see Jesus face-to-face spiritually speaking anyone.

I have tattered clothes and worn-out shoes, spiritually speaking, we have nothing that will qualify us anywhere near heaven. We could not in our own shame of sin and guilt get into the chamber of the key, but the prince came and hung on the cross and he died in order that he might provide all those who submit projects new close not just new shoes, but his own robe of righteousness, servants, how many of you have done now and invited those who don't know the king to come to those of you who know the Lord for many years.

How many people have you invited to come to the king because you and I know that those who come to him like us will not be allowed to be put to shame when they meet his father at the wedding feast, but the sum of you this may be a piercing message in your heart that God has provided the only way of salvation, but you have not accepted his invitation, thinking that somehow in your own effort and in her own merit in your own hard work and in your own way they going to get there, but that's not the way God provided for salvation. He is saying to you, and repentance come in face of my son and you will be saved, you will come into the palace, you will come into the feast. Chopra heavenly father we are so overwhelmed that we get invited to the king's palace that the King of Kings love her so much and care for us so much that he keep sending us invitation and perseveres with us and patient with us.

We thank you.

We bless you for that Lord Jesus, and father, I thank you for those who are genuinely desiring to be inviting servants reaching out to those who have never understood the invitation.

Father I pray for your Holy Spirit to empower father. I take comfort in the man who said to Jesus, I believe, help my unbelief. You know us through and through. I pray for you power to empower the to even surprise citizens give the fruits of the labor honor their decision for Jesus sake and thanks for listening to this message from Dr. Michael. You sat recently featured on leading the way. If you'd like to know more about us, please visit LTW.org that LTW.Ward