A king made a wedding banquet for his son. He invited the people who he thought would come. We know them, they say, “We will be there, you can count on us.” Then the big day came, and the excuses began. Everything was ready except there would be few guests. “Go out into the streets, invite everyone you see, rich or poor, good or bad; give them the invitation of grace.”

There are the people who never expect to get invited to society’s big events. How did they feel when the invitation came: “The King’s banquet is ready; you are invited to his table.”

“What are we going to wear?” That must have been the question on the street, and in humble homes where new clothes had never been worn. I am certain that the King provided the proper attire to those who were poor and invited so late. The dress code was important to him, and he knew that it was impossible for these folks to afford what was required.

That is why he was justified in his anger to the man who refused to wear the wedding clothes. He asked, “How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend?’ The man was speechless.”

Do we understand the importance of such a parable? Who among us could have ever imagined that one day Jesus would call us to his banqueting table? Do you remember the day we exchanged the rags of a sinful life for a garment suitable for Heaven? It was a gift from God.

Like the man in the parable, some want the benefit of the kingdom, but not the life. What about us? We are offered the chance of an eternity; how foolish to dishonor God’s Son by insisting that we live the new life in our old clothes. If we got Heaven our way, it soon would not be Heaven. Why not celebrate with the ones who honor Christ by faithfully living the life that he has freely given us?