A New Devotion - Bad, then Good

Here's a new devotion that I wrote. You can find a recording of this devotion at the bottom of the page.

Matthew 22:1-14

Once more Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying: "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding banquet, but they would not come. Again he sent other slaves, saying, 'Tell those who have been invited: Look, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet.' But they made light of it and went away, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his slaves, mistreated them, and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city. Then he said to his slaves, 'The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore into the main streets, and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet.' Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad; so the wedding hall was filled with guests.

"But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing a wedding robe, and he said to him, 'Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?' And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, 'Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' For many are called, but few are chosen."

Bad, then Good

A couple of weeks ago, I preached a sermon that started with two good news, bad news jokes. And after looking at this passage, I think the same concept applies here. You see, for those who believe they can mock God and claim his grace without appreciation, I think there’s a lot of bad news in these words of Jesus. Now before I say anything else, I believe our ultimate destinies are in the loving hands of God; therefore, he’s in control and not us. And yet, as we live our lives, we face the consequences of our actions and attitude. And neither our social status nor political power will enable us to avoid the results of mocking God and using his name to advance ourselves. Nor will our willingness to claim his mercy and love excuse us from having to demonstrate this intention through our lives. You see, for those of us who play fast and loose with grace, eventually we’re probably going to lose the respect of God’s people and any sense of closeness to God. Now that’s the bad news.

But then there’s the good. You see, the banquet is ready, and God has prepared it himself. And the invitations have been issued, and they’re based on his love and not our merit. In fact, there’s a particular focus on those whom the world considers least deserving of his favor. I’m telling you, God’s love is that broad and deep. And all he wants from us is appreciation and respect, something we can show by incorporating some of his mercy and compassion into our characters.