The religious leaders that often confronted Jesus made note of the fact that he didn’t associate with the kind of people they thought he should. After Jesus called Matthew, a tax collector, to be one of his twelve disciples, Matthew tells us, “And as Jesus reclined at table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were reclining with Jesus and his disciples” (Matthew 9:10). Tax collectors were hated by the Jews because they were perceived to be traitors that helped the Roman government gain a financial advantage over the people of Israel, who were under their control at the time. Sinners were the outcasts of society, a group of people that were looked down on and avoided by religious hypocrites. When the Pharisees asked why Jesus ate with the tax collectors and sinners, Jesus responded, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners” (Matthew 9:12-13). The Greek word that is translated call, kaleo (kal-eh’-o) means to call “in the sense of to invite, particularly to a banquet” and is used metaphorically, “To call or invite to anything, e.g. of Jesus, to call to repentance” (G2564).

Jesus illustrated God calling people into his kingdom with parables that used the banquet metaphor. In his parable of the wedding feast, Jesus said:

“When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in a place of honor, lest someone more distinguished than you be invited by him, and he who invited you both will come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this person,’ and then you will begin with shame to take the lowest place. But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when your host comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at the table with you. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” (Luke 14:8-11)

Jesus’ reference to the wedding feast was intended to convey “the happiness of the Messiah’s kingdom” (G1062). The book of Revelation contains a section that refers to rejoicing in heaven (Revelation 19:1-5). This section is followed by the marriage supper of the Lamb. Revelation 19:6-9 states:

Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and the Bride has made herself ready; it was granted to her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure”–for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.”

The connection between the Lord our God the Almighty reigning on earth and the marriage supper of the Lamb seems to be the inclusion of saints in God’s kingdom. John was told that the fine linen worn by the Bride was “the righteous deeds of the saints” (Revelation 19:8). The Greek word that is translated saints, hagios (hag’-ee-os) means “sacred” or “consecrated” and is “Spoken of those who are purified and sanctified by the influences of the Spirit, a saint. This is assumed of all who profess the Christian name” (G40).  

Jesus continued his discussion of people receiving an invitation into God’s kingdom with the parable of the great banquet. In this parable, Jesus indicated that the Jews did not value the privilege of being God’s chosen people. Jesus explained that God’s motive for allowing others to take the place of the Jews in his kingdom was because the Jews didn’t think they needed to be saved. Luke tells us:

He said also to the man who had invited him, “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”

When one of those who reclined at table with him heard these things, he said to him, “Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!” But he said to him, “A man once gave a great banquet and invited many. And at the time for the banquet he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it. Please have me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to examine them. Please have me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’ So the servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house became angry and said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’ And the servant said, ‘Sir, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’ And the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled. For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my banquet.’” (Luke 14:12-24)

The master told his servant to go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in (Luke 14:23). The Greek word that is translated compel, anagkazo (an-ang-kad’-zo) means “to compel by force, threats, circumstances, etc. (Acts 26:11; 28:19; 2 Corinthians 12:11; Galatians 2:3, 14). To constrain by entreaty , invitations, etc.; to persuade” (G315). It doesn’t make sense that people would have to be forced to attend a banquet unless you understand that in the Jewish culture, if an invitation was accepted, it was expected that you would return the gesture (Luke 14:12). The poor and crippled and blind and lame were more than willing to accept the invitation to the master’s banquet, even though they were unable to return the gesture, because they knew it wasn’t expected of them.

Jesus explained that there was a cost to accepting the invitation to enter God’s kingdom, but it wasn’t a matter of giving something back to God, it was a matter of self-denial. Jesus told his followers, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not bear his cross and come after me cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26-27). Jesus used a vivid hyperbole to convey the point that one must love Jesus even more than his immediate family in order to be a true disciple or to be considered a genuine believer in Christ. The phrase bear his cross was used with the figurative “meaning to undergo suffering, trial, punishment; to expose oneself to reproach and death” (G4716). “Jesus did not want a blind, naïve commitment that expected only blessings.” Jesus compared counting the cost of discipleship to building a tower and a king going out to war. “As a builder estimates costs or a king evaluates military strength (Luke 14:31), so a person must consider what Jesus expects of His followers” (note on Luke 14:28, KJSB).

Jesus concluded his illustration and discussion of God inviting people into his kingdom with the example of salt losing its taste. Jesus said, “Salt is good, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is of no use either for the soil or for the manure pile. It is thrown away. He who has ears to hear, let him hear” (Luke 14:34-35). The Greek word that is translated salt, moraino (mo-rah’-ee-no) is derived from the word moros (mo-ros’) which means “dull or stupid” and is used to describe someone that is a “(moral) blockhead” (G3474). Jesus described believers as “the salt of the earth” in his Sermon on the Mount and asked his followers the same question, “if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored?” (Matthew 5:13). The idea that believers can become moral blockheads after they are saved doesn’t necessarily fit with the concept of regeneration, but the point that I believe Jesus was trying to make was that salvation does not guarantee that a believer will reach spiritual maturity, only that you have received the invitation to spiritual growth and will have to surrender to Him in order to enter the kingdom of heaven where the marriage supper of the Lamb takes place. Jesus illustrated this point in the parable of the ten virgins. Matthew 25:1-10 states:

“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept. But at midnight there was a cry, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’ And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut.

All ten of the virgins were invited to the wedding feast and given lamps to watch for the bridegroom’s arrival, but only five of the virgins attended the banquet. Jesus referred to the five virgins who had taken flasks of oil with their lamps as wise and the five who did not as foolish or moros in the Greek. Although we’re not told what the flasks of oil represented, it seems likely that the oil had something to do with spiritual discernment.

Jesus told his disciples that they must be ready for his return because he would be coming at an hour they did not expect, Jesus said, “Stay dressed for action and keep your lamps burning, and be like men who are waiting for their master to come home from the wedding feast, so that they may open the door to him at once when he comes and knocks” (Luke 12:35-36). Then, addressing the crowds, Jesus said, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, and say at once, ‘A shower is coming.’ And so it happens. And when you see the south wind blowing, you say, ‘There will be a scorching heat,’ and it happens. You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky, but why do you not know how to interpret the present time?” (Luke 12:54-56). The Greek word dokimazo (dok-im-ad’-zo), which is translated interpret, means “to test” (G1381). Dokimazo is used in 1 Thessalonians 2:4 where is says God tests our hearts and in 1 Thessalonians 5:21 where is says that believers should not quench the Spirit, “but test everything.” Dokimazo is also used in 1 Corinthians 11:28 where it says that a person should examine himself before participating in The Lord’s Supper.

One of the ways that we become more like Christ as we mature as Christians is the development of spiritual insight or discernment. Based on Jesus’ parables, spiritual discernment seems to be something that has to be used regularly in order for it to be effective. In his parable of the great banquet, Jesus said those who were invited made excuses so that they wouldn’t have to attend. In the parable of the ten virgins, the five foolish virgins were going to buy oil for their lamps when the bridegroom arrived, “and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut” (Matthew 25:9-10). In both of these situations, the invitation was given, but not acted on appropriately. Jesus’ instruction to his disciples indicates that prioritization is an important factor in gaining entrance into the marriage supper of the Lamb (Luke 14:25-33). Jesus stated, “So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.” “The phrase ‘who does not renounce’ (v. 33) refers not to the total abandonment of one’s belongings but to the proper prioritization of them. The Greek word is apotassetai–the middle voice of apotasso (657), from apo (575), ‘from,’ and tasso (5021), ‘to properly arrange.’ It signifies that believers who are worthy of Christ know how to properly arrange their lives so that Christ is given preeminence” (note on Luke 14:25-33).

Hebrews chapter twelve provides encouragement to believers who are waiting for Christ’s return and tells us that we should not grow weary or fainthearted in our struggle against sin, the inevitable result of receiving an invitation to participate in the marriage supper of the Lamb. Hebrews 12 concludes with a warning to not refuse or make an excuse when you receive Christ’s invitation (Hebrews 12:25) and then, talks about the transposition of the material world into the spiritual realm. This section of Hebrews 12 includes a quote from the prophet Haggai and an interpretation of Haggai’s message. It states, “‘Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.’ This phrase, ‘Yet once more,’ indicates the removal of things that are shaken–that is, things that have been made–in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain” (Hebrews 12:26-27). The point of this passage of scripture is that believers need to look at life from an eternal perspective. Whatever things may seem more important to us now than fellowship with Christ will eventually disappear, so we need to keep expecting Christ to return and know how to interpret the present time (Luke 12:56). The writer of Hebrews concluded, “Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire” (Hebrews 12:28-29).