Matthew 22 starts with a parable about the many being called and the few being chosen. Then we get a series of questions between Jesus and the religious leaders.

In the parable, there’s a man who comes to the wedding banquet but is kicked out into hell for not having on a wedding garment.

It’s not enough to respond to an evangelist’s call. It’s not enough to raise your hand and repeat a prayer. It’s not enough to be sorry for your sins. Coming to Christ isn’t just a decision.

The man made the decision to come to the wedding feast. It wasn’t enough. He wasn’t clean. Our wedding garment is pure white, spotless. We must be blameless.

Jesus washes away our sin, but He also conquered our sin and takes away our sin.

By the work of Christ on the cross, we are forgiven and cleansed so that we can receive the Holy Spirit and be partakers of the divine nature.

The Holy Spirit makes us holy. That shouldn’t be a surprise. It sets us apart from the world, from the rest. We should be different. We must be unlike the world, spotless.

Wanting to please man is not holy, not separating yourself.

The Pharisees note that Jesus doesn’t care about anyone’s opinion. Jesus doesn’t sway to their flattery and silences them.

He’s harsher with the Sadducees who don’t believe in the resurrection from the dead. They ask about who a woman will be married to in the resurrection if she had multiple husbands. They think they are proving their point that the idea of the resurrection doesn’t work.

Jesus responds that they don’t know the Scriptures or the power of God. He rubs it in by asking, “Have you not read?”

It’s not enough to show up at church and to read your Bible. You need to know the power of God. You need to know the Spirit’s transforming work of holiness.