Devotional

You Are Invited! – Matthew 22:14

“For many are invited, but few are chosen.”

This might be one of the scariest sentences of the Bible because if you will just read it alone, it can lead you to an understanding that God chooses who will be saved. This is the reason why we should really read the whole passage to fully understand what it meant. 

This verse is a closing sentence of the parable Jesus pointed out as an example of how the kingdom of God is like. Jesus was using the Parable of the Wedding Banquet as a comparison of what the kingdom of God is like. The parable revolves around a king sending invitations to people and people rejected it and killed some of the servants. The king got mad so he sent his army to destroy them. After that, he asked his servants to invite them again but people ignored it. So the king instructed them to invite everyone they will see in the streets. So the party started and in the middle of the party, he saw someone who was not wearing wedding attire so he asked the guards to seize the person and throw him in the dark where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 

Basically, we see this parable as a very unfair and scary parable. Because we think that the king is God and that He is very harsh and unfair. However, we should really understand that God who is the King of kings has given us invitations but some of us just refused it. It is really up to us which batch we think we belong. 

We can really see that there are people who are really like that. When God sends people to invite them to preach them the gospel, they will reject it and even persecute the messenger. There are also people who will just ignore the message and act like they were never invited. Lastly, there are people who will go but do not follow instructions. 

Either which batch we identify ourselves in the grace of God remains the same. The invitation is still up for everyone to receive and it’s up to us on how to respond to it. However, Jesus also warned us that if we will not, we will really receive condemnation. It is very important for us to know that hell is not only a concept but it is real. God wants us to understand that whatever we choose, we will really be destroyed unless we will choose to accept the invitation. 

However, we should also take note that we should really follow God’s instructions. It is not because we can be saved through it but because His only instruction was to believe in the One whom He has sent which is Jesus Christ. Without believing in Jesus, we will be like that one man who was seized by the guards and thrown into the dark. It is just the same as rejecting and ignoring. 

One thing is for sure, God invited us to His kingdom without any payment or cost that we need to pay. God has always been inviting us to receive the good news and to come to His home through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He wants to dine with us and He wants us to be with him but we are the problem. We are naturally evil and we don’t like it when someone or even God tells us what to do,  that is why we don’t follow Him or we reject Him or we just ignore Him. Therefore, let us not be like this and instead, accept God’s invitation because indeed many are invited but few are chosen. 

The sentence is not about God choosing who to save, it is about who are the people who choose to follow the instructions. In the salvation case, the chosen ones are the one who chose to believe in the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Many are really invited because salvation is for everyone. However, there are only few who respond to the good news and have followed the instructions.

Therefore, let us be careful on what to choose and think carefully. Let us reflect and assess ourselves if who we really are? Are we the ones who rejected and persecuted the messengers? Or are we the ones who ignored? Are we the ones who accepted the invitation but did not follow the rules? Or are we the people who accepted and followed?

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