The text describes Elohim’s (God’s) invitation to the “wedding feast of the Lamb” as a symbol of salvation and eternal life. It makes it clear that worldly things such as possessions, family, or comfort must not take precedence over this invitation. Believers are called upon to put Elohim first and to actively live out their faith.

Introduction

The rapture of the bride of the Lamb, i.e. the Christians[1], is imminent, in order to celebrate the wedding feast in heaven. The entirety of believers is the „betrothed“ of Yehoshua Mashiah, and the wedding will take place in heaven after the rapture.

What is the wedding feast?

The wedding feast of the Lamb is the gathering of the raptured believers in heaven, as described in the Book of Revelation, chapter 19, verses 6 to 9:

“6 And I heard as it were the voice of a great crowd, and like the voice of many waters, and like the voice of mighty thunders, saying: Hallelu-Yah! Because the Lord, the Elohim the Almighty reigned. 7 Rejoice and exult, and give him glory, for the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his Wife prepared herself. 8 And it was given to her to wear fine linen, pure and shining. For the fine linen is the righteous act of the saints. 9 And he says to me: Write: Blessed are those who are called to the wedding supper of the Lamb. And he says to me: These are the true words of Elohim”

Those who participate in the wedding feast are those whose names are written in the book of life. There, one receives the reward for what he has done for the Lord on earth. Everyone will be held accountable according to the gifts of grace they have been given. According to the Holy Scriptures, there will be awards and crowns bestowed.[2]

Every time the Bible tells us about an invitation or a shared meal, it reminds us of the ultimate banquet at the wedding of the Lamb and the Bride in heaven. For the Lord Yehoshua will not speak to us about anything that he himself did not experience on earth.

The parable of the banquet

In Luke 14:15-24, we read about the great supper. Here, as in many other places, the Lord brings us closer to spiritual realities by confronting us with physical things and explaining them.

„15 But one of those reclining with him, having heard these things, said to him: Blessed is he who will eat bread in the Kingdom of Elohim! 16 But he said to him: A certain man made a great supper, and he invited many people. 17 And at the hour of the supper, he sent his slave to say to the invited: Come, for all things are now ready. 18 But they all with one consent began to make excuses. The first said to him: I have bought a field, and I must go and see it, I beg of you, have me excused. 19 And another said: I have bought five pairs of oxen, and I am going to examine them, I beg of you, have me excused. 20 And another said: I have married a wife, therefore I cannot come. 21 And the slave, having come, reported these things to his lord. Then the master of the house, being angry, said to his slave: Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in here the poor, the maimed, and the lame and the blind. 22 And the slave said: Lord, what you commanded has been done, and yet there is room. 23 And the lord said to the slave: Go out into the roads and hedges, compel the people to come in, so that my house may be filled. 24 For I say to you that none of those men who have been invited will taste of my supper.”

In these verses we read about various reasons that someone can give for not attending this banquet.

The excuses

In our parable, three people declined the invitation. „But they all with one consent began to make excuses“ it says in verse 18.

The stomach

The first person had to take care of his recently purchased field. The field grows plants, grains and fruits that feed us. It is a symbol of the things we eat. This first person could not serve, because food was so important to him.

The second person, who had bought oxen (verse 19), also used his stomach as an excuse. These animals are a picture of the meat we eat. Everything we consume goes into the toilet and ultimately into the sewage treatment plant, no matter how good it tastes or how exquisite it may be, no matter how well-stocked the market or department store may be.

Everything we buy on earth has no lasting value, no matter how excellent the quality is. It is of transient value, of transient work.

Everything we work for on earth remains on earth, because it is only about the preservation of earthly things. It has no lasting merit for the kingdom of heaven. Earthly riches do not give us access to the wedding feast.

Please note, so that there is no misunderstanding: The Lord agrees with earthly food because it sustains our bodies. But He places more value on the word of Elohim, which is food for the soul and spirit.

The woman

The third person who was uninterested in the invitation declined because of his wife. Marriage was more important to him than the Lord’s invitation.

Elohim did say in His Word that it is not good for man to be alone. However, one must never place marriage above the Lord’s invitation! This man, however, refused salvation because of his wife.

If the Lord loves you so much that he urgently wants to save you, he can also take your wife or husband away from you, if you do not fulfil your calling because of her or him. Even if you do not fulfil your calling because of your children or parents or other family members, the Lord can take them away from you or separate you from them.

The invitation to the wedding feast is the most important call. If you refuse the invitation to the feast, you refuse salvation, and you will not be saved.

And the two most important obstacles to following this invitation are the belly and the wife. We also read this in the story of the Fall of Man.

The Fall

In Bereshit (Genesis), chapter 3, verses 1 to 7 it says:

“Now the serpent became more subtil than any living of the field which YHWH Elohim had made. And he said to the woman: Certainly, has Elohim said: You will not eat of every tree of the garden! 2 And the woman said to the serpent: We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: 3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, Elohim has said: You will not eat of it, neither will you touch it, so that you do not die! 4 And the serpent said to the woman: No, die, you will not die! 5 For Elohim knows that from the day you will eat thereof, then your eyes will be opened, and you will become as Elohim, knowing good and evil. 6 And the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a desire to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to prosper. And she took of its fruit, and did eat, and gave also to her man with her, and he did eat. 7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed leaves of the fig tree together, and made themselves girdles.”

Once again, we learn here about seduction by the woman and the belly. However, the responsibility for the situation developing in this way lay with the man. He had failed to correctly pass on to his wife the word of Elohim that had been given to him! In chapter 2, verses 15 to 17, we read:

„15 And YHWH Elohim took the human being, and made him rest in the garden of Eden to work it and to keep it. 16 And YHWH Elohim gave this order to the human being, saying: Eat, you will eat of every tree of the garden. 17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good or evil, you will not eat of it, for in the day that you will eat thereof, die, you will die.„

At that time, man was still alone. His other half, Chavvah (Eve), the woman, had not yet been created when the Lord YHWH gave his command to Adam. Thus, he was given the task of properly teaching this command to his wife.

The serpent took advantage of this opportunity and tempted humans: human desire was there, they wanted to eat. They wanted to become like Elohim, and thus the woman and, with her, the man were led into occultism. Adam was no longer the boss; he died spiritually. Through this sin, all evil came into the world: murder, deceit, racism, oppression and much more, and ultimately death, that is, the mortality of man. This one act had such a great and far-reaching impact on the whole of humanity! We too must therefore carefully consider what legacy we leave behind in our actions or omissions.

If, for example, Yehoshua had complied with the request of his beloved disciple Petros not to die, the whole of humanity would not have been saved and would have remained subject to death! In this context, the Lord showed us how to deal with the deceitfulness of the serpent. He said to Petros: “Get behind me, Satan!” (Luke 4:8) Although he loved Petros, he was not caught up in emotions.

Digression: death

There are three kinds of death:

à       spiritual death: people who walk the earth as living corpses because they have not (yet) accepted Yehoshua as their Saviour.

à       physical death

à       the so-called Second Death: the lake of fire (When a child of Elohim dies, the angels take him to heaven; when another person dies, the angels take him to the lake of fire).

Self-denial

In the Gospel of Luke, chapter 14, verses 25 to 26, Yehoshua speaks of the difficult subject of self-denial:

„25 But large crowds were journeying together with him. And having turned, he said to them: 26 If anyone comes to me, and does not hate his father and mother, and wife and children, and brothers and sisters, and yet even his own soul, he cannot be my disciple.”

This instruction sounds relatively simple, but denying oneself is no easy task.

Dealing with family

„Hating“ your family has nothing to do with true hatred or rejection. It is a comparison between love for your family and love for the Lord. When it comes down to it, you should follow the Lord rather than your family members.

You must leave those who brought you into the world and raised you. Despite their great concern for you, they are not your Elohim on earth!

If you always listen to your family and help them in all matters, you may participate in their sins. Family members also do and demand things that do not honour the Lord and are not in accordance with His will. The devil is behind many actions and practices.

For example, if you „hate“ your children as in the Bible verse, you will not simply let them marry whomever they want. The father must agree because he wants to do what Yehoshua shows him!

Another example of „hating“ your family, as the Bible verse says, is when you are sent on a mission by the Lord. At that moment, you must leave your family, even if it is hard and there may be a problem at home, such as illness. It is not easy to leave home when you see your wife crying. However, your trust in the Lord must be stronger, that he will take care of your loved ones when you follow his command.

To give another example, it should not come to the point where a woman can no longer pray, because she loves her husband more than the Lord.

The parable of the wedding

In Matthew chapter 22, we also read about this wedding feast: “And Yehoshua, answering, spoke to them again in parables, saying: 2 The Kingdom of the heavens may be compared to a human being, a king, who gave a wedding feast for his son. 3 And he sent out his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding feast, but they were unwilling to come. 4 Again, he sent out other slaves saying: Tell those who have been invited: Behold, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fattened livestock are all butchered, and everything is ready, come to the wedding feast! 5 But they were indifferent and went away, one to his farm, another to his business.“

Those who reject this are denying their eternity with the Lord. The Lord has nothing against material things. David was also materially blessed. However, it is about the attitude of the heart towards these things. In 1 Timothy 6:10 we are told: „For the love of money is the root of all evil. For having desired it, some have gone astray from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.“

We read further about the wedding feast: „6 And the rest seized his slaves, treated them outrageously and killed them.7 But when the king heard about it, he was angry. He sent his bands of soldiers to destroy those murderers and set their city on fire. 8 Then he said to his slaves: The wedding indeed is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. 9 Go therefore to the main crossroads, and as many as you find there, invite to the wedding feast!10 And those slaves went out into the streets and gathered together all they found, both evil and good, and the wedding hall was filled with those reclining at the table.11 And the king having come in to see those reclining at the table, saw a man there who was not dressed in wedding clothes.„

The wedding garment

How can you go to the wedding without wedding clothes? What is this wedding garment anyway?

„6 And I heard as it were the voice of a great crowd, and like the voice of many waters, and like the voice of mighty thunders, saying: Hallelu-Yah, for the Lord, the Elohim the Almighty reigned. 7 Rejoice and exult, and give him glory, for the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his Wife prepared herself. 8 And it was given to her to wear fine linen, pure and shining. For the fine linen is the righteous act of the saints. 9 And he says to me: Write: Blessed are those who are called to the wedding supper of the Lamb. And he says to me: These are the true words of Elohim.“ (Revelation/Apocalypsis 19:6-9)

Righteousness is all spiritual deeds done for the Lord, including the formation of his character, so that the fruits of the Spirit may be seen.

Israel and the Gentile Christians

The parables always speak of realities. We further read in Matthew/Mattithyah 22,10: „And those slaves went out into the streets and gathered together all they found, both evil and good, and the wedding hall was filled with those reclining at the table.“

This refers to Israel and the nations. Israel had the revelation of Elohim, but now the gentile people also have access to heaven. They are called „the nations.“ On the cross of Golgotha, the enmity between the two was destroyed: „And he reconciled the two in one body to Elohim through the cross. Through this he destroyed the enmity.“ (Ephesians 2:16)[3]

The Lord prepares his church for the wedding feast in the background. This now consists of both Christians from the Jews and Christians from the nations. This united church will be raptured.

Digression: The second coming of the Lord after the wedding feast

“10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said to me: No, be careful, I am your fellow servant, and of your brothers having the testimony of Yehoshua. Worship Elohim! For the testimony of Yehoshua is the spirit of prophecy. 11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse, and he sitting on him called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. 12 His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head many diadems. And having a name written, that no man has known, except himself. 13 And clothed with a garment dipped in blood, and his name is called: The Word of Elohim.“ (Revelation/Apocalypsis 19:10-13)

This refers to the second coming of the Lord, when he will restore Israel. According to biblical prophecy, the Lord will return to Israel and set his foot on the Mount of Olives when he comes (see Zechariah 14:4). That is why the other nations also want to destroy Israel as a result of Satan’s plan.

Heaven as the goal: one’s own salvation and the salvation of souls

The gaze of the first Christians was fixed on heaven, not on earth. But what about Christians today? After five minutes of prayer, they fall asleep because they no longer love heaven. They bow down before other people. Paul was caught up to heaven. Yohanan also saw heaven. Today, we are far removed from such great revelations. Little things from everyday life throw us off course!

What is the goal of Christian life? Not marriage or family, not material prosperity or a full refrigerator, but heaven. The ultimate goal of faith is heaven, the salvation of souls, as the Apostle Peter confirms: „obtaining the goal of your faith, the salvation of souls“ (see 1 Peter 1:9).

So if the Lord gives you a spouse in the course of your life, then continue walking with the Lord! If He gives you children, then continue walking with the Lord! If He gives you prosperity, then continue walking with Yehoshua toward heaven!

Compulsion to work

We have a mission on earth, and when the time comes, we will leave. We have been invited to heaven, but we are also supposed to work here on earth for this purpose! The end is here, the world is broken! We must prepare ourselves for the Rapture. When you talk to people about heaven, you are inviting them to the wedding feast of the Lamb.

We must force ourselves to work. The cold will freeze us if we do not get up and become diligent. Even if our feet hurt, we must keep going. No matter what the problem, we continue to work for the Lord, by force if necessary.

„And from the days of Yohanan the Baptizer until now, the kingdom of the heavens suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.“ (Matthew/Mattithyah 11:12). The violence is not directed against other people, but against our own flesh, which always has a tendency towards comfort and the „easy way“.

The Lord will still send workers of all skin colours into the harvest, people with zeal and great gifts. We are therefore urged to shift up several gears in our journey so as not to be disqualified. For we are in a race:

„24 Do you not know that they running in a race course, all truly run, but one receives the prize? So run that you may seize it. 25 And everyone fighting in sports games is self-controlled in all things. Now they do it to receive a corruptible crown, but we an incorruptible“ (1 Corinthians 9:24-25). When you receive the Lord’s invitation, you must not make excuses, but start running!

Earthly work is important, but the Lord’s work is more important. Therefore, we must not neglect the Lord’s work. In the Gospel of Mattithyah, chapter 6, verse 33, we read: „But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you„.

For example, it is not wrong to leave an inheritance to your children. But it is better to leave a spiritual inheritance. The more you love the Lord, the better you can treat your wife and children, or the more you keep the commandment to honour your parents. For then the Lord will give you more wisdom.

Disqualification

à       If you are called to do a work but do not want to do it or are careless and lazy, the Lord will look for someone else. You can be saved at your death if you remain a child of Elohim, but you will not receive a crown, that is, a reward.

à       But if you are disqualified because you sin, you will not be saved either.

Unfortunately, the Lord is no longer the priority for today’s generation. Do we do the same for the Lord as we do for ourselves? We have pushed the Lord aside, and Yehoshua’s heart weeps and bleeds. The Lord says, „My child has so much grace, but what does he do for me?“

We should not always let other people do the work or think that others can do the job better. Germany should normally be much further along with the work of Elohim. Let us stop being lazy; now is the time.

The unity of Christians

In addition to personal faith in Elohim, one of the most important criteria for the success of Elohim’s work is the fellowship of believers. A wedding feast without other dear guests would also be quite boring.

„So then as we have time, let us practice good toward all, but especially toward those who are of the family of faith“ (Galatians 6:10).

Blessings in the brotherly community

In Psalm 133, we read how important it is to have genuine fellowship with brothers and sisters in faith during our journey on earth.

“1 A Song of degrees of David. Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity! 2 It is like the good oil upon the head, that goes down upon the beard, the beard of Aaron, that goes down to the opening of his garments; 3 as the dew of Hermon, that descends upon the mountains of Zion; for there YHWH commanded the blessing, life until eternity.”

Here we are talking about brothers and sisters in the Lord, not about fellowship with unbelievers. Where there is unity, there is the oil, which is the Holy Spirit, the anointing. That is the dew, the water, the Word. We must never ignore this important principle when it comes to the work of the Mashiah on earth. Through cooperation, the anointing flows and all the more souls can be won for heaven.

We also learn this in the Acts of the Apostles: „32 However, the multitude of those who had believed was one heart and one soul. And not one of them claimed that their possessions belonged to them alone, but all things were common among them. 33 And the apostles bore witness with great power of the resurrection of the Lord Yehoshua, and a great grace was on all of them. 34 Neither there was any needy among them, for all those who were landowners or homeowners sold them and brought the price of the things they sold, 35 and placed it at the feet of the apostles, and it was distributed to everyone according to their need.“ (Chapter 4:32-35)

No one here intends to establish a new doctrine based on this Bible passage and demand and proclaim the sale of all personal possessions! What the believers did at that time was in accordance with their own convictions, for we also read that they had great grace. The fact is, however, that there are no longer signs and wonders in the church today because everyone is looking out for their own interests. Sharing is no longer on the agenda. These verses should therefore serve merely as an example: this quality of the the first Christians’ community was remarkable and this unity can be seen as the basis for the evangelisation of many.

For this very reason, Satan is against unity. It begins in marriage, where this unity is essential. Incidentally, joint property is still a condition and also a consequence of a functioning marital relationship.

The curse of the destruction of community

There are several factors that destroy the community of believers. Satan has an easy time with our already corrupt hearts to achieve this goal. There are prejudices, jealousy, dishonesty, hypocrisy, slander, pride, misunderstandings, unforgiveness, sectarianism, greed and covetousness, and much more…[4]

The passage from 2 Timothy, chapter 3, verses 1 to 5, describes it aptly:

“But know this also, that in the last days times hard to bear will be present. 2 For human will be lovers of themselves, loving money, boastful, proud, blasphemers, rebellious to their parents, ungrateful, without religion, 3 without natural affection, without loyality, calumniator, without self-control, cruel, opposed to goodness and good men, 4 traitors, rash, puffed up with pride, lovers of pleasures rather than lovers of Elohim, 5 having the appearance of piety, but having denied its power. Keep away from them too!”

Here we read that people, even so-called Christians, are preoccupied with their own interests. Giving should be a way of life, not just something we do now and then to ease our conscience. However, if we are ungrateful, we receive everything from the Lord, but we do nothing for the Lord’s work, nor do we show gratitude to other people.

The back

The well-known Christian armour described in Ephesians chapter 6 offers us a beautiful reminder of how important brotherly fellowship is.[5] Practically all parts of the body are protected, except the back. Why? Your brother must cover your back. He is responsible for ensuring that no one stabs you in the back with a sword, and he protects your back. You have the same responsibility towards your brother. Therefore, you must never stab your brothers and sisters in the back; you must always pray for them!

The negative example of the end-time church of Laodicea

In verses 14 to 19 of Revelation 3, we learn that these „believers“ love the world more than the Word. These people are therefore described as lukewarm:

“14 And to the angel of the assembly of the Laodiceans write: These things says the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of Elohim: 15 I know your works, that you are neither cold nor boiling! I wish you were cold or boiling. 16 So because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor boiling, I am about to vomityou out of my mouth. 17 Because you say: I am rich, and have become rich, and haveneed of nothing, and do not know that you are wretched, and miserable, and poor, andblind, and naked: 18 I advise you to buy from me gold burned out of the fire, that you may become rich, and white garments, that you may be clothed, and that the shame ofyour nakedness may not appear, and anoint your eyes with eye-salve that you may see.19 I, if as many as I love, I rebuke and chastise. Therefore be zealous, and repent.”

Let us think back to the first excuse for not following the heavenly calling: the belly/stomach. This Christian congregation was apparently wealthy. They had food in abundance, but the Lord describes them here as poor in spirit. The congregation is spiritually blind. The Christians are negligent and do not eagerly do what they are told. Who, then, will be saved?

Personal prayer and outlook

From now on, your prayer should be this: „Lord, I do not want to be like the people of Laodicea. I want to invest as much in the Lord’s kingdom as I do in my own needs!“

Everything you do for the Lord will follow you into eternity. Your other earthly endeavours will remain behind; they will not make it to heaven. Only your works for Yehoshua will go there with you. Let us just think of the letters that Paul wrote to the churches out of love for the Lord and for his brothers and sisters. At that time, this man would never have thought that 2000 years later his letters would still serve to edify and exhort believers all over the world. To this day, we benefit from the works of our long-departed brothers. Which souls will benefit from your works of love?