“The Kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son.” (Matthew 22:2). We are reminded today of this great wedding banquet that is being thrown for Jesus Christ and we are all invited. Jesus has invited everyone to the banquet. The table is ready and the party is about to begin. Yet none of those invited are showing up. There were many things going on. The invitation now is for all people; those who are good and bad. Then someone in Matthew 22:12 doesn’t have a wedding garment on and is thrown out. This reminds us all that we gather and are clothed not with our own sense of goodness but with the garment of Christ.
We gather today discouraged by the news all around us this week. Dissatisfaction with the past and those things we have done or failed to do. Discouragement with the present and the uncertainty of our investments that has stole our joy away. We gather with distrust of the future and where things will go from here in our personal life and faith life. We have forgotten the blessings of yesterday. We are indifferent to the calling of today and we are uncertain about the security regarding tomorrow.
Our joy is gone. The lack of joy is a consequence of man’s separation from God, and the presence of joy is a consequence of the reunion with God.[1] Often we think that our joy is only found in things we can control. We often confuse joy with happiness. Happy relates to the word happenings; the situation or circumstances we are in that might bring us happiness.
This Tuesday we have much to celebrate! It was October 14, 1908 that the Chicago Cubs won their second World Series in a row! Dynasty! What a celebration and festival. The banquet of celebration was all around. But now we gather today while the world is in a series of financial troubles and we have no joy.
We find out joy in the LORD! There is great joy IN this invitation and the feast that has been prepared for all of us. As we gather here in this place the table is set and we are called to celebrate IN the lord. We celebrate around this table knowing that God is not far off. The altar’s presence reminds us that we celebrate with Christ really present. We rejoice in the Lord for God is near and we are invited yet again.
Paul was writing to the people of
Yet there are reminders that no matter the circumstance, we are called to rejoice in the Lord always and again I say rejoice. As Karl Barth put it, the joy that Paul describes is a defiant "nevertheless,"[2] which draws strength from the gospel story and from laying one's deepest concerns before God "with thanksgiving." The Psalmist said, “This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice & be glad in it.” Nehemiah wrote during difficult situation, “The Joy of the Lord is my strength.” Paul writes, “Rejoice in the Lord always and again I say rejoice!”
We gather at this banquet to celebrate the birth, life, death and resurrection. This parable of the banquet from Matthew 22:1-14 is just a few days before Jesus will die. The opposite of joy, Paul Tillich stated, is sorrow. We gather knowing that joy is often found in the midst of sorrow. What is the Christmas song about joy? “Joy to the world, the Lord has come. Let earth receive her King. Let every heart, prepare him room and heaven and nature sing; and heaven and nature sing; and heaven and heaven and nature sing.” Yes, it seems too early for Christmas but every Sunday is Christmas and Easter wrapped together.
Yesterday I was returning from teaching a Diakonia class and wanted to stop at Target to find a new water bottle that is BEP free. I learned a lot at the Mission Gathering this week about Environmental Stewardship. So I’m walking through Target yesterday and pass the Halloween decorations and then I pass one isle filled with… yes, Christmas cards. You can at least get started on this part of the Christmas tradition they were saying. So it connected with what I discovered this week, that the Christmas card as we know it, was designed in 1843 by the artist J.C. Horsley. It measured about the size of a postcard. From this design, one thousand cards were lithographed and hand-colored three years later for Sir Henry Cole, first director of the
We are called to rejoice in the Lord in all circumstances, especially in the difficult ones. Matthew 5:11-12 says that when you experience rejection in the name of Christ, “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven.” We can pray to the Lord in all of our challenging circumstances, making our requests be made known. What you will receive is the peace that goes beyond our human understanding. “Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice.” Let us pray: Gracious God, we call upon you in all our circumstances knowing that our joy is IN you and not in the happenings around us. Guide us as we gather at this banquet to know and share your grace, in Christ we pray, Amen.
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