20 Minutes

It’s Thursday. A home day. Home days are meant for homekeeping around here. Sometimes that means cleaning and organizing or kitchen work. Most of the time that means reading or creating more messes.

Today I started out with studying mostly just sitting and thinking about our Sunday School text. I am the teacher for the next two Sundays in our class. Matthew 22:1-14 is a parable that Jesus told.

He was talking to the scribes and Pharisees, which is important context. So is the cultural and historical context important to understand. If you have eyes to see and ears to hear, then you’re ahead of his audience when he told this parable.

Two invitations went out to guests for a fabulous banquet being held. Descriptions of the fare and setting are impressive. Fatted, prepared meats of the best of the best to be served in the king’s palace/presence. Formal dress is required. Two, urgent, you-don’t-want-to-miss-this invitations.

I found my CDs in the glove box of the car the other day. Micheal Card, Enya, choral music, and my favorite, Rutter’s twenty-five year old Thanksgiving album. So I’ve been listening to old familiar music. Except Michael Card teaches through his songs and they’re never old or outdated. The lyrics of “I am the prophet, won’t you listen to me….I scream and cry and wonder, yet you never seem to learn.” There, the “two” invitations that Jesus is referring to. His servants, the prophets. The pharisees were suspicious and uncomfortable with Jesus’ parable, I’ll give them that.

“I always feel worried that we’re Pharisees.” I mourned to Elv. We’re religious and on point, Biblically. We care about the things of God. A lot. This lesson adds to my conundrum. I reread the passage. Looked up the corresponding selections. One of the commentaries in the quarterly, (which I never read but I did now because I should at least know, because someone else in class may have…) said that Luke’s rendition of this feast is a different idea/story/parable and he stated his reasons for saying that. Which reasons were lame, excuse me sir. Because clearly, Jesus was referring to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb in both renditions.

We all have farms and spouses and responsibilities. Normal life to attend to. Just like those favored folks who were invited to the feast. I feel worried that we’re just as prone to indifference and excuses. And a false sense of righteousness.

We also have the invitation based on the finished work of Jesus on the cross. This should help us to identify with the highways and byways folks. Everybody got an invitation, based on being human. Period. And we all need to prepare by accepting said invitation.

Arriving without prep is costly. We know this, as well. Especially, since Jesus pointed that possibility out. What WAS that guy thinking? How DID he get in there? None of us has this problem, I guess?

Then I found the worship scene in Revelation 19, which is the opening to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. Preparation and righteous acts are again mentioned by John. The last line of John’s telling of the scene, the angel says, “Worship God, because the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” I really want to pay attention and have ears to hear and eyes to see. I really want to be there that day. Don’t you?

I sure hope people study this lesson.