SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 8/1/2023 11:09 AM
My Worship Time Focus: “The New
Guests Invited”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Matthew
22:9-10
Message of the verses: “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.”
Now we move into the third scene of this parable
where we see the slaves go out to find guests to replace those who had
repeatedly refused the king’s call. As
we have seen in earlier verses the wedding feast for the king’s son was all
ready but there was no one to attend unless these new guests were invited.
We
can see in verse nine where the king directed his slaves to go in order to fine
these new guests who will be invited, he says as many as you find there,
invite to the wedding feast.’ Here was
the plan, and that was for them to go everywhere and find everyone they could
and then invite them to come. Now let us
take a moment to look at what Jesus said right before He ascended into heaven: "Go
therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of
the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.”
Long before this God had spoken through the prophet Hosea which Paul
repeats in Romans 9:25-26 “25 As He says also in Hosea: “I will call them My
people, who were not My people, And her beloved, who was not beloved.” 26 “And it
shall come to pass in the place where it was said to them, ‘You are not My
people,’ There they shall be called sons of the living God” (NKJV). (Hos. 2:23; 1:10). MacArthur adds “By the Jews’ ‘transgression,’
Paul wrote in that same letter, ‘salvation has come to the Gentiles’ (11:11).
In
verse ten we see that "Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered
together all they found, both
evil and good.” What they did was
call the morally evil and the morally good alike, their being equally unworthy
in themselves to come to the king’s feast.
I think we should answer why it was that the first guests did not come
and these other guests came so willingly.
These original guests had not been invited because of the moral or
spiritual superiority, and neither were the newly-invited guests. Among the ancient Jews were those who lived
exemplary, upright lives, who were helpful to their neighbors, told the truth,
never used the Lord’s name in vain, never cheated in business, never committed
adultery or murder or theft. There were also those who lives were a moral cesspool.
But the first kind of person was no more acceptable to God in himself than the
second. God has always extended His call
for salvation to both evil and good people, because neither are righteous
enough and both are equally in need of salvation. Like I have said before we are all born wrong.
Paul
talks about this to the Corinthians in 1 Cor. 6:9-10 “9 Or do you not know that
the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived;
neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor
homosexuals, 10 nor thieves, nor the
covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom
of God.” He then goes on to write in
verse 11 “11 Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were
sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in
the Spirit of our God.”
So the question is what exactly happened to these
Corinthians? Well they all, whom Paul
is talking about here were washed in the blood of the Lamb, they had realized
that they were sinners in need of salvation because they were all born wrong
and the confessed that and accepted the salvation Christ offered to them.
MacArthur
concludes “What makes a person worthy of salvation today is exactly what has made
a person worthy of salvation since the Fall, namely, personal faith in God’s
gracious provision in Christ. All who
accept God’s invitation to His Son’s celebration, that is who follow the Son as
their saving Lord, will be dinner guests in His divine and eternally glorious wedding
hall.”
I am truly looking forward to that feast
in heaven with my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
8/1/2023 11:42 AM
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