Today, our Gospel continues with Jesus speaking to the chief priests and elders about the kingdom of heaven. He again uses a parable so they can better understand his teaching. Two weeks ago, his story was about the two sons and their responses to their father’s command to go to work in the vineyard. Last week, he talked about the tenants’ response to the master of the vineyard.

Today, Jesus’ parable is about a wedding feast and a king inviting guests to the celebration.

Who enjoys getting an invitation to a party? Whether it’s an informal party, like a birthday, Super Bowl, or retirement party, or something more formal, like a wedding, I think we all like to be invited. Maybe you like hosting parties and inviting people to share in a joyful moment in your life.

There are different responsibilities depending on whether you are hosting a party or attending as a guest. As a host, you must prepare your house or pick a suitable venue, decide whom to invite, and choose the type of food and drinks to serve. In informal situations, you may ask your guests to bring some food or drinks with them.

If you are a guest, you may need to get a gift and perhaps some new clothes, or sign up to bring a dish. My wife tells me we should always bring something, so I asked if I could bring an empty dish for leftovers. She just shakes her head.

As a guest, the first thing you need to decide is whether you are going to attend. If you feel it is an important event, you may rearrange your schedule so you can be there. If it is not important to you, you may go out of obligation, or you may come up with an excuse to avoid it.

If you invited many people to your important celebration and most of them declined your invitation or simply decided not to show up, it’s safe to say you would be very disappointed or hurt, right? Maybe even angry.

You may say to yourself, “Didn’t these people know how important this celebration was?” If you asked them why they did not accept the invitation, you would get many excuses or reasons. It might even cause a fracture in your relationship with them.

Today, Jesus is telling us about the Father’s invitation—the most important invitation we will ever receive. It’s an invitation to a deep relationship with him. Yet why do so many people reject his invitation or show up unprepared?

As Isaiah describes in the first reading, the feast God has planned for us is beyond our imagination. He uses the image of rich food and choice wines. Beyond that, this is a feast where sorrow and death are gone forever. It is an image of comfort and hope. That feast is heaven, where God wants us to be.

If God, who created us and knows us better than we know ourselves, offers such a gracious invitation, why do so many reject it? We think our lives revolve around us. Our work or activities become more important to us than what will happen after we die. Jesus warns us where that attitude will lead.

An invitation we send or receive from someone is for a one-time event. If we miss it or don’t go, that event will never happen again. Thankfully, God’s invitation is not a one-time offer. He invites us daily to have a relationship with him. How do you respond?

You know, the awesome thing about God’s invitation is that it is open to all people. Just as the king sent out different servants to remind or invite people, God is asking you to invite others—to tell them what God has planned for those who believe in, trust, and follow his Son, Jesus. It is just as important to tell them what will happen if we ignore and reject his invitation.

Accepting the invitation is important, but it’s not enough simply to say yes. If we are not prepared, we are like the wedding guest without the proper garments.

If thinking about heaven seems difficult or too far off, how about starting with God’s invitation to Mass? It is the closest thing to heaven on earth for us as Catholics. It’s where we give glory and praise to God, encounter Jesus, and receive all of him in Holy Communion.

You have come today, and that is wonderful. You should be commended for accepting the invitation. I would like you to consider a few questions in silence after I’m finished, or take them with you to reflect on this week.

Holy Mother Church says we must go to Mass on Sunday, but do you come to Mass out of obligation, or because you get to go and want to be there?

Do you prepare your mind and heart to receive God’s Word at Mass?

Do you bring your wants, your needs, and your whole self—mind and body—and place them on the altar, offering them to God along with Jesus, who offered himself to save us?

Do we truly believe in and humbly accept Jesus, who enters us in Holy Communion?

If you take time with those questions and answer them honestly, you will have a better understanding of your relationship with God. Ask God for the wisdom, courage, and humility to surrender to his will for you. It may be difficult, but the reward is more than we can imagine. It’s never too late to start, but don’t wait.

Just like the king who wanted the palace filled with people to celebrate the wedding of his son, God wants heaven to be filled with people who love and trust in him and follow his commands.

You have accepted the invitation. The next step is to prepare yourself to enter the heavenly feast.