SMALL GROUP DISCUSSION

- What are the similarities between biblical parables and worldly fables? How are they different?

- In the parable that Jesus tells in Matthew 22:1-14, how would you describe the character of the king? Who does the parable king represent?

- How would you describe the character of the people who first received the king's invitation? Who do they represent? Do you think the people of our time are as wicked as these people described in the parable?

- The king responds to this first group of people with righteous anger. If the king represents God the loving Father, what does this also reveal about him?

- After the king in the parable dispenses justice on the first group, he invites a new group of people to come to the feast. Who do these people represent, and why are they worthy of invitation?

- What is does the "wedding garment" represent in Matthew 22:11-12? When the king questions the man without a wedding garment, what does the man's response reveal about him?

- How does the gospel of Jesus Christ help us make sense of Matthew 22:14?