Let the heirs beware

Matthew 8 includes a story of the profound faith showed by one outside The Faith, a pagan centurion, who sought the Christ for healing of his dying servant. Here is part of the passage:

Matthew 8:10 When Jesus heard him, he was amazed and said to those who followed him, “Truly I tell you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith. 11 I tell you, many will come from east and west and will eat with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, 12 while the heirs of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” 13 And to the centurion Jesus said, “Go; let it be done for you according to your faith.” And the servant was healed in that hour.

Jesus warns that the chosen practitioners and supposed heirs were not the only ones to sit at the table. More so, many of them would not be invited at all. In contrast, reviled outsiders will take their place.

The message remains for us as Christians. We have been called, and chosen. But that doesn't mean that we won't be surprised by who will sup at the end of the age.