Matthew 22: 1-14
Getting thrown out!
On
Sunday, October 5, 2014 I challenged the congregation to arrive and worship in
clothes that they normally would not wear to worship service on a Sunday. I
asked them to trust me and one person was sad because he is a Mason Clown and
he could not attend. The following is a summary of the sermon for Sunday,
October 12, 2014.
It
is important to get some of the historical background of the book of Matthew
and it’s purpose in writing. It was written during what one Theologian calls a
“family squabble.” The family squabble is not about believing in God but it is
about who Jesus is. Some did not believe that he was the Son of God while
others did.
This
community of Jesus believers was a minority community in and amid a larger
Jewish community. The “Christians (later called)” were able to use the
synagogue to worship in earlier times. At the time of the book of Matthew, they
are being pushed out of the Synagogue and have to find other places to worship.
One of the purposes of this Good News of Jesus that we call the Gospel of
Matthew was to sustain this community with God’s Word in their faith in Jesus
Christ.
In
his commentary “Matthew at the Margins”, Warren Carter addresses how this
parable is filled with symbolism of the realities in their current world. He
points out who the actors are in this parable:
The King = God. Powerful and creator of all that is:
seen and unseen.
Son = Jesus. This Son is the bridegroom. It is a
direct reference to Matthew 9:15 where Jesus refers to himself as the
bridegroom.
Slaves = these are the prophets who go out into the
world and do as the King asks. They are beaten, killed, mocked, arrested…we
have heard that one.
Guests = are the elites. They are the ones born into
the church roles of leadership. Pharisees and Saduccees. They reject the Kings
invitation 2 TIMES and we know what happens when the King is rejected…
Soldiers come into the picture = Carter points out
that the soldiers are Roman soldiers and in 70 C.E. they burn down the temple
(possibly doing God’s action because of their - the elites – disobedience).
They burn the place down.
No need to worry
because this King has more slaves and they go out again. This time the order is
to find whoever they can. “Go to the street crossings (our Gospel just says
streets but the Greek points out street crossings) and invite everyone you
find.” This time the King doesn’t want to waste his time. He wants everyone
invited…Guess who hangs out at those street corners? The good and the bad.
The King did not say
“go sort out these people” but says invite everyone you can find. The slaves
(prophets) do just that; they bring them in “both good and bad.”
The problem is that
there is this one guy. You know THAT GUY! The guy who is not dressed properly
for this wedding banquet. Everyone knew in that time that there was appropriate
dress for weddings. Everyone had some form of proper attire just for weddings,
but this guy didn’t even take the time to put on the proper clothes; so the
king saw this and he was bound and thrown into the outer darkness. IF there is
one place you don’t want to go, it is definitely the outer darkness; the name,
outer darkness sounds so….final!
Sticking with Warren
Carter’s theme and this is symbolism, what do you think it means to be properly
dressed for this wedding banquet? Is it simply wearing the right clothes or is
there more to it? How do you think those people might have felt being invited
to the King’s banquet hall for a wedding banquet; especially when you have
never had any interaction with the King?
We can easily imagine
what the good person might have felt; this sense of being special. Maybe “the
King wants me to come to one of his wedding banquets?!” OF course there might
be the sense of “I have to get just the right clothes” and there is a flurry of
making sure the right protocols are followed, words are said, etc.
I would even imagine
the bad person might have a different feeling. “This king invited me, am I in
troubles, why would they invite me?” there might even be some sense of feeling
important and wanting to look good maybe so that you don’t draw attention to
yourself or get singled out.
Either way, there is a
different feeling that comes over this invitation to these people on the
street. There is a process of preparation. In that process can be elation,
nervousness, anxiety, jubilation, excitement…a sense that because of that one
invitation, your life has changed and it will never be the same.
That is the point of my
challenge to you today. Were you nervous wearing these different clothes? Was
there excitement in seeing where this was going to go? Was there interest OR
maybe there was a lack of interest? Maybe there was a sense of “this is
ridiculous” and it doesn’t feel special. No matter how you feel, this has been
a successful illustration of this parable.
Most importantly, I
want to say that we will not be throwing anyone into the outer darkness. I am
not telling you how to dress for church that is up to you; what I am saying is
that my hope and prayer is that when we get ready Saturday evening or Sunday
morning, there is a sense of excitement. Your heart and soul is preparing you
for this time together to hear God’s Word; as Luther puts it “get your hearts
and minds prepared to fear and love the Lord our God (The King). Because God’s
Word is life changing; living out and sharing the grace and mercy that God
first shows us is exciting, anxious, scary, and yet a blessing.
Receiving the body and
blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, sacrificed for you and for me is something to
praise God and give thanks for God’s never-failing love. My hope and prayer is
also that we take those feelings of being special out into the world to share
our experiences of God in our lives
Thanks be to God: Amen
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