TOPIC:‌"Making Light of the King's Invitation"

                  by Rev. Dr. Reg Dunlap

 

TEXT:‌Matthew 22:1-14

 

‌‌"They would not come...they made light of it" (Matthew 22:3, 5)

 

‌In our Lord's parable of the marriage feast in celebration of the royal wedding for the King's Son, we get a vivid picture of how 21st century people treat the Gospel invitation as it is presented to them. Here in the verses before us those who were invited to the reception made light of it and refused to go.

 

‌I went to a number of different translations to investigate how the words "they made light of it" were rendered. It is very interesting the words used by these translators to describe how these people in the parable responded to the invitation of the King. The NIV has it: "They paid no attention to it." Phillips renders it: "They took no notice of this." Weymouth puts it: "They however gave no heed." The NLT renders it: "The guests he had invited ignored them" The Living Bible takes a little more liberty here: "the guests he had invited merely laughed and went on about their business."

 

‌Now that is precisely how people treat God's invitation when it comes to receiving His Son, Jesus Christ, to be their Savior from sin. The make light of it. The pay no attention to it. They ignore it. While the vast majority of those invited to receive Christ just smugly smile and walk away showing no interest, still there are a few like those in this parable who actually resent it and might even persecute the ones who gave them the invitation. We read of such action in the words of verse 6: "The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them" (NIV). And this is happening to many of God's servants throughout the world today. In this message I want us to look not only at those who flippantly with their casual attitude make light of the King's invitation, but also those things God has given to help us make the right decisions.

 

I.

 

‌Consider, to begin with, those AREAS in which God has given some gift that we must not treat lightly. For if we do there is bound to be certain trouble each one of us will encounter. Let me mention them.

 

‌Take this matter of our God-given CONSCIENCE. It is that inner moral ability or power that prompts us to conform our lives to that which is right and good instead of that which is wrong and bad. If we make light of our conscience, disregard it, ignore it, then it will end up condemning us. That is what Solomon had in mind when he declared: "Fools make a mock of sin" (Proverbs 14:9) or as the NLT renders it: "Fools make fun of guilt." It is possible to so dull our moral . . .