Jesus often spoke in parables which felt like to many that he was talking in some sort of code. Jesus never intended to hide his wisdom or keep spiritual truth from the listeners. Rather, Jesus wanted people to lean into what he was communicating and think through what it meant for their own lives.

In today’s parable Jesus tells the story of a man planning an elaborate party only to have his invited guests back out of attending. The man then opens up the invitation to those no one expected to ever invite.

The purpose of the parable is to help the listener to understand that God has invited everyone to follow him and actively be a part of his Kingdom.