We continue our walk with Jesus through Holy Week by hearing his words on Tuesday of the week. Jesus did a great deal of teaching on Tuesday, some to bring the self-righteous Pharisees back to repentance and some to show the grace of God in calling formerly hopeless sinners like us to be his own. Here is one of Jesus' Tuesday parables from Matthew 22:

Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come. Then he sent some more servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’ 
“But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city. 
“Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. Go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’ So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, both good and bad, and the wedding hall was filled with guests. 
“But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. ‘Friend,’ he asked, ‘how did you get in here without wedding clothes?’ The man was speechless.
“Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ 
“For many are invited, but few are chosen.” 

Prayer: Heavenly Father, I thank you that in your undeserved love for me you have called me to be your own. You found me in my distress, you knew me and still do, you made me your child, and you clothed me with Jesus' righteousness. Help me to never take my greatest blessing for granted. Don't let the cares of this life and my own sinful nature lead me to self-righteousness, but help me always to see Jesus' sacrifice, and that his perfect sacrifice makes me worthy in your eyes. In his name I pray. Amen.