Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Lectionary: 142

"The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son."

Jesus addressed this parable specifically to "the chief priests and elders of the people." So you know it's going to be loaded with something wonderful for the world and everyone who receives it; but unwelcome to its particular audience. The chief priests and elders of the people were not prepared to hear any news from God or His Messiah – good or bad – despite all their deep knowledge of Jewish history, scripture, and traditions,. 

Why did they dismiss the warnings of ancient prophets from Amos to Zechariah? Had they not seen the Holy Spirit abandon the Temple in Jerusalem, as Ezekiel prophesied, and watched its destruction by the Babylonian army? Without God's Spirit the most sacred building on earth was nothing but a museum of past greatness, a warehouse of pointless victories and pompous grandstanding.

Even the new temple in Jerusalem, which the pride and joy of the chief priest and elders, was known as "Herod's temple." "Herod the Great," as they called him, was the same despot who murdered members of his own family and baby boys in Bethlehem. That's got to tell you something! This parable is not going to end well for the "the chief priests and elders of the people.”

But it is a wonderful story for God’s people, those whom he has called and gathered into the green pastures of his affection. Jesus had studied and knew well the prophecies of Isaiah, 

On this mountain the LORD of hosts

will provide for all peoples

a feast of rich food and choice wines,

juicy, rich food and pure, choice wines.

The story of God begins with creation, a miracle that happened a long time ago, is happening in every moment of our lives, and will continue into infinity. God’s love, mercy, and justice are inexhaustible. They do not end. We live even at this moment because God wills it. His eye is on the sparrow, and I know he watches over me. 

God’s love is limited only by the foolish choices we make when I am persuaded that I know what God thinks, but my way is better. God can tell me nothing I don’t know already. 

Saint Matthew gives us this story of the Lord’s address to chief priests and elders of the people not to tell us something that happened a long time ago. The Evangelist was reminding the Church that recalcitrant chief priests and elders of the people came into the church, and will remain among us always. They still pretend to tell us what God is thinking, what God is not thinking, and how to live in peace, prosperity and security if we only do what they tell us. 

They may be priests and bishops, they may be parents and teachers; they may be television personalities or Internet influencers. They may be secular or religious authorities who have never known the Lord’s severe rebuke. Or they may have been rebuked, and now speak of it often – too often – but have forgotten what they learned. 

We receive the guiding presence of God like a baseball-sized crystal ball in our hands. It’s fascinating and beautiful and we can’t take our eyes off it. And when it moves in our hands we move with it. Wherever that Sacred Peaceful Presence goes, we follow. It may hurry or go slowly; it may go to left or right, up or down; but it leads us and we go with it. 

But sometimes we lift our eyes for a moment and see – or think we see – where this is going. And we follow that path. But the crystal ball was attached by an invisible string to the Lord who sits above all things; and when we lifted our eyes we lost sight of it. It went away, to wherever God was leading us; while we thought we had seen where it was going. And so we go on with only the idea that we have God in the palm of our hands and we know where he is leading us. 

Some progressives think they see the future and we must go there. We should make every sacrifice to get there because the future will be a universal democracy of equal citizens, or a workers’ paradise, or a secure, peaceful, stable economy with education, health care, opportunity, and jobs for everyone regardless of their religion, beliefs, or opinions. 

Some conservatives think the crystal presence of God stopped moving some time ago and we must go back and find it – although it never stopped moving after they went another way. It's not there in the past. 

But, having lost the peace of God’s presence, we must finally notice our disease and distress, and realize how foolish we have been. We must ask the Lord that He might find us where we are now, in this dark and bitter place. And that his Spirit might come and lead us to him.

Today’s parable warns us about what must happen to those who refuse the Lord’s invitation:

“The king was enraged and sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city.”

The same king also commanded his servants about the man who thought "It's a free country. I'll crash the party and dress anyway I like!"

 'Bind his hands and feet,

and cast him into the darkness outside,

where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.'

And finally, Jesus explains it to those remember who they are -- disciples of the Christ -- and that we must live as the Lord commands us : 

Many are invited, but few are chosen."

In this 21st century, we must learn, and learn again, and never stop learning to listen to God’s peaceful spirit, and to trust his guidance in a world where violence can erupt at any moment, in any place.