In the first fourteen verses of Matthew 22, Jesus was sharing another parable with the religious leaders who were questioning His authority. In this parable, a King was planning a marriage for his son. He sent his servants out to invite the guests to a wedding feast but they scoffed at the invitation and had other things to do. Later, when the feast was ready, the king again sent out messengers to bring the guests in, but they again refused and even murdered some of the messengers. When the king found out, he sent his messengers out into the public roadways, not the private drives to invite both the good and the bad to the feast. So the wedding hall was filled with guests.

Matthew 22:11 “But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment.

Wait a minute … how could the king have expected these guests to be attired in anything but what they were wearing when they were invited? Didn’t the King just send out His servants to invite those who were not initially invited; these guests were not expecting to be invited in the first place, how could they have been expected to wear the right clothes?

The answer must be that the king provided the clothes.

Isaiah 61:10 I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, My soul shall be joyful in my God; For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

Resurrection is a gift. The wedding garment is the righteousness of Christ, which is worn by all who accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior. It’s not something that’s earned, it’s an invitation to which we say yes. It’s rejecting the clothes of the grave and putting on the robe of the King.

Ephesians 2:8 God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God.

Matthew 22:12-13 So he said to him, Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless. Then the king said to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

This man, who was not adorned in the wedding garment, was speechless. I hear some people say they don’t need all this Jesus stuff … they’ll just take their chances arguing their case before God when the time comes. It would seem that those who are depending on their own works, merit or something else will stand speechless before God, unable to give a valid defense for rejecting Jesus.

We cannot earn salvation. The Bible says that without Christ all our works are like trash to God. So no matter how much we try to make the good side of the scale outweigh the bad, the scale will never be swayed.

We don’t know when the end will be. We are usually not afforded that luxury. God is speaking to you today. Don’t turn down the invitation. Life awaits. Resurrection is NOW.

Romans 10:13 For “whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.”