At that time I questioned why those invited seized, mistreated and killed the king's slaves. It was odd to hear Jesus describing the king's retaliatory
violence to how the invited reacted. Coming from the Jesus in my heart - the Jesus who teaches that "All who live by the sword will die by the sword." this violence did not feel right.
Also, the king here acts directly from human authority, which is not
God's default way of wielding power as affirmed in scripture. The
king commands a guest be bound hand and foot and thrown into outer
darkness "where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." because
the guest is not wearing the right clothes to the banquet. I did not deny that an
outer darkness, maybe called hell, exists. I could be persuaded of the existence of this outer
darkness but a God that would command someone be thrown there for wearing the wrong clothes to a celebration seemed capricious and arbitrary.
I asked then "given this should I worry about cosmic or kingdom of heaven consequences
if I am not properly dressed for this afternoon's reception after
Pastor Ray's installation?" which happened on this same Sunday in the lectionary cycle three years ago. I saw it then, at best, as a cautionary parable regarding Jesus' teaching on
the kingdom of heaven. After all, he tells this parable at the time to
those who reject his overall teaching and misunderstand God's grace in
favor of life as it is normally lived and judged. In other words Jesus
was telling this to people like me who follow life's normal way as a warning.
Today Pastor Janell presented the key insight to the congregation. Jesus teaching "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son." does not need to mean this king represents God. We need to search harder for our God in this parable. Pastor Janell suggested that God and Jesus is represented by man without the proper wedding garment. Our God is one of surprises.
Everything fits together when Jesus is thought of as the guest not wearing a wedding robe. In the parable the king commands his servants "So go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find." Both Pastor Ray three years ago and Pastor Janell today noted that historically wedding garments were supplied to the guests which makes sense in this parable. It is unlikely that the guests were already wearing wedding clothes on the street nor would they all have access to the clothes to match what the event would demand.
The wedding robes are supplied and obviously required to be worn by this king. The guest does not conform to what all the other guests are wearing. He is doing this deliberately. Pastor Janell compared the behavior of this guest to America's John Lewis, who talked about making good trouble when there is something that is wrong.
What the parable describes then fits perfectly. The guest is speechless, just as Jesus is in Matthew before the high priest. The king commands him to be bound, like Jesus was bound at his trials. His command is to bind him hand and foot, like the dead Lazarus in John 11:44 "And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with grave clothes. Jesus will then command them, "Take off the grave clothes and let him go.".
The king commands the guest be thrown into the outer darkness. This guest is bound to be with others not picked or recognized by the ruler to be among the select. By not wearing the conforming robe the guest has chosen to be among the disenfranchised who weep and gnash their teeth because of the oppression from which they suffer by this ruler. He is clothed for them.
"For many are called but few are chosen." makes better sense when God is represented as the guest. We are no longer talking about very few being chosen for the kingdom of God but that only a few are chosen, or choose, to follow a life of engagement in good trouble that allows the called (and uncalled) to recognize the injustice operating in the world around them.
Jesus gives this parable in response to the chief priest and elders question "By whose authority are you doing these things?" His answer is clearly that it does not come from human authority.
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