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Post Date: |
Friday, 2017-03-10 |
| SCRIPTURE | |
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From: |
Matthew 22:12-14 (NLT) |
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Text: |
12 ‘Friend,’ he asked, ‘how is it that you are here without wedding clothes?’ But the man had no reply. 13 Then the king said to his aides, ‘Bind his hands and feet and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’14 “For many are called, but few are chosen.” |
| OBSERVATION: | |
| In this parable, Jesus tells of a king who invited many guests to a wedding feast. When they didn’t show up, he sent his servants into the streets to invite any and everyone in. Most came prepared for a wedding feast, except one, whom the king addressed personally about his attire. With no explanation from the guest, the king had him thrown out. Let’s see out this applies to us…. | |
| APPLICATION: | |
| I would imagine that in your church you face pretty much the same challenge as in my church, for members and attendees are encouraged to go and invite a friend or neighbor to church with you. Now, in your mind I want you to scan the audience of one of your favorite services and consider this question: If Jesus returned to gather His bride, the saved of this earth, right in the middle of that favorite service, how many do you think would remain? I know that you are not the judge, but wouldn’t you assume that there will be some who have just gone through the motions and attended church to please someone, or to keep someone from continuously bugging them, but they have never accepted the call (invitation) of Jesus to surrender their life to Him? I believe that there is no better place to find good, sincere friends and fellowship than around churches. I believe that there is no better place to be, than with God’s people who sincerely worship their God, seek His face in prayer, and understand His response through studying, or hearing the Word of God taught/preached. However, there is nothing in the Word of God that indicates that because you were invited to church and attended; or you had good fellowship with believers and actually befriended several of them; or you heard the Word taught or preached; or you attended a very serious prayer meeting – none of these things qualify you for meeting Jesus face to face. I believe that Jesus is extremely happy to see you fellowship with His children, but unless you believe on their Lord and Savior and surrender your life to His call on your life, then you will be much like the miss-dressed guest in this story when Jesus considers whether to accept you into His kingdom. So friend, you received an invitation to fellowship with believers and you accepted and did that. Hopefully you also received an invitation – a tug on your heart from the Lord Jesus to surrender your life of sin to Him for forgiveness and acceptance into His kingdom. That RSVP is the only means of you retiring to glory when you graduate from this earth. For it is only through accepting Jesus as Lord that He will see a believer as one washed white as snow, because of His forgiveness and acceptance. Neglecting this step will lead you to the same outer darkness referring to in the Scripture today. You, and only you, will make the choice about responding to Jesus. My prayer is that, if you have not knowingly made this commitment before, that you go directly to my Footnote and click the link ‘To Know Jesus’, for no one knows the day or the hour when the Lord will call either of us out of this world. Let’s be ‘dressed in our wedding clothes’, in other words, be found righteous by our holy God, and therefore ready to meet Him in the air! That meeting could take place today! | |
| PRAYER: | |
| Thank You for Your precious Word dear Lord, and I thank You for tugging at my heart’s door many years ago, and I humbly accepted Your call. Lord, may I be found faithful right up to the day that You call me home to be with You. Lord, I may have some friends, and maybe even some family, who may fit into the same scenario as the guest who was thrown out from the wedding feast, for I’m not sure that they ever completed their RSVP that You personally delivered to them. I believe there will also be readers of this blog that may fit this description also. Lord, I pray that You would anoint this blog with Your Holy Spirit that will tug at the hearts of these ones again today. May this be a day of decision by many today, is my heart’s cry in sincere prayer to the only One who can make a difference, Jesus, my Lord and King, AMEN! | |
| FOOTNOTE: | |
| There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog could indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely to subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Highlands County, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would be thrilled to welcome you at Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us! | |
Nuggets From God's Word 