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“For many are called, but few are chosen”

Matthew 22:1-14

[Mt 22:1] Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying, [2] “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son. [3] “And he sent out his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding feast, and they were unwilling to come. [4] “Again he sent out other slaves saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited, “Behold, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and my fattened livestock are all butchered and everything is ready; come to the wedding feast.”’ [5] “But they paid no attention and went their way, one to his own farm, another to his business, [6] and the rest seized his slaves and mistreated them and killed them. [7] “But the king was enraged, and he sent his armies and destroyed those murderers and set their city on fire. [8] “Then he *said to his slaves, ‘The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. [9] ‘Go therefore to the main highways, and as many as you find there, invite to the wedding feast.’ [10] “Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered together all they found, both evil and good; and the wedding hall was filled with dinner guests.
[11] “But when the king came in to look over the dinner guests, he saw a man there who was not dressed in wedding clothes, [12] and he *said to him, ‘Friend, how did you come in here without wedding clothes?’ And the man was speechless. [13] “Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ [14] “For many are called, but few are chosen.” (NAS)

Matthew 22:1-10

A King’s Party

There are some Jewish and middle-eastern cultural nuances that we might readily miss which are central to this story. Let’s examine them in order to give us a fuller picture of Christ’s alluring description of heaven.

The income gap was obscene in Christ’s culture (a sin obviously not limited to his time). Wealthy eastern kings would throw lavish parties that would last for weeks. A wedding feast such as this one could cost millions in contemporary dollars. Yet hospitality was a sign of a king’s power. Such gatherings were not merely social events—but strategic diplomatic events with an opportunity for the host to show just how powerful he was to his guests. He wanted those guests to leave so impressed that they would never consider returning with an army in tow.
Equally to not respond to a King’s invitation would be considered not just arrogant but defiant—even an act of war. Envoys would travel great distances to show their allegiance and respect to the king. With weeks or more of travel behind them, the host would be expected to accommodate guests for lengthy stays. Not only was food and housing given, but guests would also receive the finest clothing and even servants to make their stay comfortable.

Preparations for such an occasion could take months and so it was customary to extend two invitations. One to request that the guest prepare to come and a second invitation for when all the preparations were complete. The king would have to prepare huge amounts of grain, vegetable, fruit and meat. But, with no storage, he would not be able to harvest the fruit asnd vegetables or slaughter the meat until the last moment before the feast.

Preparations might even include preparing roads so that an important guest would not be forced to travel on a rocky footpath. In fact this is how the intricate road system of ancient Rome was built. It was inconceivable that the Emperor would have to travel on common footpaths or shepherd trails, so wherever his envoy was sent a new road was built.

It is important to also remember that this was the role claimed by John the Baptist. He was the envoy heralding the Messiah’s arrival.

Matthew 3:3

[Mt 3:3] For this is the one referred to by Isaiah the prophet when he said,
“THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS, ‘MAKE READY THE WAY OF THE LORD, MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT!’”

The Inconceivable Invitation

The first thing Jesus would like us to grasp is the magnitude of the feast God has in store for us. Even the Emperors of Rome could not hope to emulate the celebration that God longs to offer his faithful. Anything human is but an infinitesimal glimpse of the awesome banquet that our Lord and Savior has in store for us. Imagine the gathering that will lay before us on the day when captives are freed, the wounded restored and the poor sheltered. All the vulnerable of this life will be safe and fed from the Master’s own table. This is at the heart of Christ’s mission statement;

Luke 10:9-10

“And heal those in it who are sick, and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’”
It was the heart of Isaiah’s promise:

Isaiah 55:1

[Isa 55:1] “Ho! Every one who thirsts, come to the waters; and you who have no money come, buy and eat. Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.”
It was the heart of the revelation of John:

Revelation 22:17

[Rev 22:17] And the Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost.

The inconceivable aspect is when those invited do not respond to the king’s invitation—twice! Herein lays the most tragic part of story. The king doesn’t just offer the customary number of invitations. In the face of incredible rudeness by the invitees—the king looks beyond their effrontery and offers yet a third invitation!

Even in the face of rejection—God continues to offer his compassionate invitation. Yet he was sill rejected!

Jeremiah 35:15

[Jer 35:15] “Also I have sent to you all My servants the prophets, sending {them} again and again, saying: ‘Turn now every man from his evil way, and amend your deeds, and do not go after other gods to worship them, then you shall dwell in the land which I have given to you and to your forefathers; but you have not inclined your ear or listened to Me.”

Finally, God must act. The meat is on the table and the Son’s wedding date has arrived. In an incredible act that defies tradition the highest King in the land opens the door to his inner chambers to beggars and slaves. People who might have eaten meat once annually—if at all—stand in front of a bounty the likes of they would not even presume to dream.

We are that people! We do not even deserve the invitation. We are not royalty, we have no heritage or birthright deserving such luxury. We are street beggars and thieves.

It is not comfortable for many church people to hear—but our churches are filled with either sinners or liars. If that statement makes us uncomfortable—then we really do not understand the extent of God’s invitation to us! We are not invited to God’s side by merit or worth—we are brought forward by compassion.

Acts 13:46-49

[Acts 13:46] And Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said, “It was necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you first; since you repudiate it, and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles. [47] “For thus the Lord has commanded us, ‘I have placed You as a light for the Gentiles, that you should bring salvation to the end of the earth.’” [48] And when the Gentiles heard this, they {began} rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord; and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed. [49] And the word of the Lord was being spread through the whole region. (NAS)

What is the right response to such an inconceivable invitation? Once again, we can turn to John the Baptist who displayed the only appropriate response to our Lord’s invitation; humility.

John 3:29-30

[John 3:29] “He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. And so this joy of mine has been made full. [30] “He must increase, but I must decrease.” (NAS)

The closer we are to Jesus—the humbler we will become. Only when we are completely humble is Jesus able to become Lord of our lives. Paul speaks about this over and over to the Corinthian Church. A church similar in many ways to our churches here in the United States. They were a church that was wealthy and proud and more concerned with pomp and position than serving the Lord. Paul called them to a new humbleness, deeper service, the end of boasting and to embrace humility:

1 Corinthians 1:27-31

[1 Cor 1:27] “But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, [28] and the base things of the world and the despised, God has chosen, the things that are not, that He might nullify the things that are, [29] that no man should boast before God. [30] But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, [31] that, just as it is written, “Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord.” (NAS)

1 Corinthians 4:10

[1 Cor 4:10] We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are prudent in Christ; we are weak, but you are strong; you are distinguished, but we are without honor. (NAS)

1 Corinthians 9:22-27

[1 Cor 9:22] To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak; I have become all things to all men, that I may by all means save some. [23] And I do all things for the sake of the gospel, that I may become a fellow partaker of it. [24] Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but {only} one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win. [25] And everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They then {do it} to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. [26] Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; [27] but I buffet my body and make it my slave, lest possibly, after I have preached to others, I myself should be disqualified. (NAS)

2 Corinthians 11:29-30

[2 Cor 11:29] Who is weak without my being weak? Who is led into sin without my intense concern? [30] If I have to boast, I will boast of what pertains to my weakness. (NAS)

2 Corinthians 12:10

[2 Cor 12:10] Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong. (NAS)

The response of a street beggar to a king’s invitation is humility not pride. We do not puff up as if we deserve the invitation, we are humbled. There is no sense of giving credit for this invitation to our own works. If we are able to speak at all it is simply words of praise and thanksgiving.

Matthew 22:11-14

[Mt 22:11] “But when the king came in to look over the dinner guests, he saw a man there who was not dressed in wedding clothes, [12] and he *said to him, ‘Friend, how did you come in here without wedding clothes?’ And the man was speechless. [13] “Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ [14] “For many are called, but few are chosen.” (NAS)

The Inconceivable Sin

It is so inconceivable to think that, with such an incredible offer of love, we still respond with bold-faced audacity. Here is the inconceivable sin. The Greek’s called it hubris—the ultimate sin of pride. Placing myself above God. This guest thinks that God is lucky to have him preening at the table.

Remember the king not only provided food, housing and clothing for the wedding party but he gave those items to every guest who attended the celebration. To reject the robes offered by the king was to say that his clothing was beneath my dignity. It is similar to us when we say; “I can make it on my own.” Or, as a popular saying states; “God helps those who help themselves.”

If we get anything from the Gospels, it should be this; “God helps those who fully embrace humility and fall completely upon his mercy and compassion.”

How the King will clothe us

Only Jesus can clothe us with glory. Only his love makes us “acceptable for the feast.” Only his garment wraps us in a robe of eternal acceptance. Look to scripture for how our God will clothe us with his dignity and worth:

Psalm 132:16-18

[Ps 132:16] “Her priests also I will clothe with salvation, and her godly ones will sing aloud for joy. [17] “There I will cause the horn of David to spring forth; I have prepared a lamp for Mine anointed. [18] “His enemies I will clothe with shame, but upon himself his crown shall shine.”

Isaiah 52:1-3

[Isa 52:1] Awake, awake, clothe yourself in your strength, O Zion; clothe yourself in your beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city. For the uncircumcised and the unclean will no more come into you. [2] Shake yourself from the dust, rise up, O captive Jerusalem; loose yourself from the chains around your neck, O captive daughter of Zion. [3] For thus says the LORD, “You were sold for nothing and you will be redeemed without money.”

Zechariah 3:3-5

[Zec 3:3] Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments and standing before the angel. [4] He spoke and said to those who were standing before him, saying, “Remove the filthy garments from him.” Again he said to him, “See, I have taken your iniquity away from you and will clothe you with festal robes.” [5] Then I said, “Let them put a clean turban on his head.” So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments, while the angel of the LORD was standing by.

Our clothing is the sin and pride that we have put upon ourselves during this life. The clothing of the Lord is the humility and grace in which we will find complete freedom and salvation in his name. Whose clothes would we rather wear?

How to accept the inconceivable invitation

“Many are called; few are chosen.”
The Chief Priests would have suffered apoplexy over this statement. They thought of themselves as “called and chosen.” Their belief was that they had an undeniable, inherited place at the table. Yet, Christ makes a categorical distinction between being called and being chosen. In other words; we can be called and not chosen.

Those called but not chosen in this story include those who; a) rejected the invitation to celebrate the son’s wedding—Jesus as the Groom of the Church—and b) the man who thought his clothes were better than what the King had to offer.

To make sure we are “at the banquet” when invited, we need to:

Make Jesus the Lord of our lives.
In the last study, we saw that making Jesus our Lord (the cultural term that a Jewish bride at Christ’s time would use for her husband) is more than a verbal statement. It must be a life of complete obedience. Jesus gave prostitutes and traitors preeminence over the disobedient “believer” (the son who said “yes” but refused to do his Father’s bidding [Matt 21:28-32]). To be chosen and called is to accept the invitation and to put on the robe (the way) of Jesus.
Root out any false assumption that our clothing (our actions, our outward signs of faith, possessions or positions) is good enough to wear before God. We are clothed in sin… Period. Thus our response to the invitation of the King must be pure and absolute humility. Nothing we can wear, do or say will earn us the invitation that has been freely extended to us by God.

The overlooked role

There is one group often overlooked in this story. It is probably the most important role that we, as Christ’s servants, must adopt as our own. Of course, we are not to be like the guests who rejected the invitation nor are we to be like the man who thought his clothes were better than the Lord’s clothes. One might think that we are to be like the grateful guests sitting at the feast of splendor. Yet, the overlooked role is that of the servants who go out to the streets to extend the King’s invitation.

That is the role that Christ calls his disciples to fulfill:

Matthew 20:26-28

[Matt 20:26] “It is not so among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant, [27] and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave; [28] just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”

Matthew 23:11-12

[Matt 23:11] “But the greatest among you shall be your servant. [12] “And whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.”

John 12:26

[John 12:26] “If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there shall My servant also be; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.”

Clearly, the servant who is sent into the street is the premier role to which we should aspire in the banquet of our Lord. It is the role that the Chief Priests, Pharisees and Herodians neglected. It is the role to which we are called and chosen;

Matthew 10:6-8

[Matt 10:6] “…Go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. [7] “And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ [8] “Heal {the} sick, raise {the} dead, cleanse {the} lepers, cast out demons; freely you received, freely give.” (NAS)

Luke 9:1-2

[Luke 9:1] And He called the twelve together, and gave them power and authority over all the demons, and to heal diseases. [2] And He sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God, and to perform healing. (NAS)

Luke 10:1-2

[Luke 10:1] Now after this the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them two and two ahead of Him to every city and place where He Himself was going to come. [2] And He was saying to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.” (NAS)

Acts 1:8

[Acts 1:8] “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.” (NAS)

Paul himself chooses this role as his only proper title. He is the Bond-Servant or “purchased slave” of Jesus Christ. The term applies to a servant who was bankrupt and had to sell his life in service to the master to pay an unredeemable debt. Paul says that that is his role in God’s kingdom;

1 Corinthians 9:19

[1 Cor 9:19] For though I am free from all {men,} I have made myself a slave to all, that I might win the more. (NAS)

Romans 1:1

[Rom 1:1] Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called {as} an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God. (NAS)

Galatians 1:10

[Gal 1:10] For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ. (NAS)

Titus 1:1

[Titus 1:1] Paul, a bond-servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the faith of those chosen of God and the knowledge of the truth which is according to godliness. (NAS)

In addition, look who else welcomes the claim of bond-servant of Jesus Christ:

James 1:1

[James 1:1] James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes who are dispersed abroad, greetings. (NAS)

2 Peter 1:1

[2 Pet 1:1] Simon Peter, a bond-servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ: (NAS)

Jude 1:1

[Jude 1:1] Jude, a bond-servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to those who are the called, beloved in God the Father, and kept for Jesus Christ: (NAS)

Revelation 1:1

[Rev 1:1] The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show to His bond-servants, the things which must shortly take place; and He sent and communicated {it} by His angel to His bond-servant John, (NAS)

Revelation 15:3

[Rev 15:3] And they sang the song of Moses the bond-servant of God and the song of the Lamb, saying, “Great and marvelous are Thy works, O Lord God, the Almighty; Righteous and true are Thy ways, Thou King of the nations.” (NAS)

There are some who might consider the role of bond-servant to be drudgery. Those who would rather feast at the banquet than be sent out into the streets. However our greatest joy is not in being served but in serving. Imagine the joy of leading someone to the table! Imagine the tears of joy, of acceptance, or freedom from the slavery of sin experienced by those who have never been to the feast of love before. Repeatedly, I have found there is no greater joy than leading someone whose life is broken by the repetitive habits of sin into the presence of the only one who can fill that emptiness. Christ is the only one who can fill the void of hunger that creates the appetite for sin.

Service is the only natural outgrowth of being invited to the table ourselves. Once we have experienced the joy of our Lord’s banquet—we are unable to hold it internally. The most obvious response to our Lord’s bounteous invitation is to give it away. In gratitude, we become lavish with God’s love. In the exuberance of his joy—we cannot hold anything back!
Humble service is the only way to continued growth as a follower of Christ.

The robe of gratitude

Let us determine to make our lives full of complete gratitude. In this story, we see those who expressed:

Disinterest in the Lord’s invitation.
Who were interested in the bounty—but unwilling to change their behavior (robe).

and

Beggars and sinners who sat at table and said; “Who am I to deserve such an invitation?”

The joy of the Lord belonged only to the last group. Let us determine to express our gratitude by going out and inviting as many as we can to the Lord’s table. There is room for all!

God invites us to the feast. He invites us beyond reason and beyond custom but, in order to eat from his abundance—we must humbly wear his robe and give ourselves as servants. There is no abundance outside of his table and no abundance inside our own efforts. Jesus has our robes ready, robes of light (not white—that is a cultural translation), of purity and focus that shine from within. Jesus reveals to John that those who overcome will be clothed in his robe.

Revelation 3:5

[Rev 3:5] “He who overcomes will thus be clothed in white garments; and I will not erase his name from the book of life, and I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.”

Only Jesus can help us to overcome. We can never hope for salvation by our actions or through our righteousness. We are beggars invited to the bounty. The bounty is not a material feast but a feast of love. It is inconceivable love—love we do not deserve. Humility is the required dress at the Lord’s Table. Humility leads us to availability which leads us to rejoicing and giving God the glory due Him for our salvation.

Revelation 19:7-8

[Rev 19:7] “Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready.” [8] It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.

About the Author

Jerry Goebel is a community organizer who started ONEFamily Outreach in response to gang violence and youth alienation in a rural community in Southeastern Washington. Since that time, Jerry has worked with communities around the globe to break the systemic hold of poverty by enhancing the strengths of the poor.

A primary philosophy of ONEFamily Outreach is to teach; “poverty is a lack of healthy relationships.” And, a primary focus of ONEFamily Outreach has been to break down the barriers of poverty through creating “cultures of intentional courtesy.”

As well as having developed ongoing mentoring outreaches in his own community, Jerry travels extensively to work with church leaders, community governments, and educators.

Jerry has received five popular music awards from the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers, a Best Educational Video Award from the National Catholic Education Association, and a lifetime achievement award from the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry for living Gospel Values.

To contact or book Jerry for a presentation in your area write or call:

Jerry Goebel
ONEFamily Outreach
jerry@onefamilyoutreach.com
http://onefamilyoutreach.com
(509) 525-0709

Copyright Notice

Scripture Quotations noted from NASB are from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD VERSION of the bible. Copyright © The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org)

The New Testament Greek Lexicon based on Thayer’s and Smith’s Bible Dictionary plus others; this is keyed to the large Kittel and the “Theological Dictionary of the New Testament.” These files are public domain.

The Old Testament Hebrew Lexicon is Brown, Driver, Briggs, Gesenius Lexicon; this is keyed to the “Theological Word Book of the Old Testament.” These files are considered public domain.