But they paid no attention and went off- one to his field, another to his business. -Matthew 22:5 (NIV)
Today’s assigned reading in Matthew is a parable of Jesus about a king who prepares a wedding banquet for his son. When it is time for the banquet, the king sends his servants to those who have been invited but they refuse to come. One invitee goes off to his field; another goes off to his business. The remaining invitees seize the king’s servants, mistreat them, and then kill them.
Most scholars believe that the king in Jesus’ story is God, the son is Jesus, and the invitees are the chief priests and Pharisees who refused to accept that Jesus is the Messiah.
As I read this parable, I am really not surprised that some things haven’t changed much. The world is still full of people who reject the invitation to come to the banquet of Christ. Some of us do so violently, as the ones in the parable who kill those extending the invitation. Others of us refuse the invitation because we’re too busy doing other important things, like going to work in the field or at the office. I can certainly relate to being distracted by the pressing demands of life.
How do you respond to the invitation of Christ? Violently? Hopefully not. But do you resist spending time with him because of other important tasks that need to be completed, tasks that aren’t bad in and of themselves but nevertheless prevent you from the joy of being with Jesus?
May God grant you the grace to hear the gracious invitation of Jesus today and the grace to respond.
If you're interested in reading through the Bible, here are the readings for the weekend (I'll be back with another devotional on Monday): Saturday: 2 Samuel 11-12, Psalm 51, and Matthew 23. Sunday: 2 Samuel 13-14 and Matthew 24. Monday: 2 Samuel 15-16, Psalm 32, and Matthew 25.
No comments:
Post a Comment