Isaiah 25:6-9 … “On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wines, of rich food filled with marrow, of well-aged wines strained clear.” vs. 6
As the people of God have looked toward the future, prophets like Isaiah have painted vivid pictures of the magnificent banquet that will be prepared for us by the Lord. This feast of victory will provide the best food imaginable, rich goodies with high caloric content that we’ve learned to exclude from our diets. And there’ll be wine for all, well-aged top shelf wines that we’ve tasted only on special occasions. And the best news of all that it will be for all people! No one is going to be left out–it’s a feast for sinners and everyone is welcome. What the prophet envisioned isn’t at all like the heaven pictured by medieval artists and narrow-minded preachers. And what’s even better news is that the new life spells the end of death. The shroud of sadness that casts a pall over our earthly existence will be destroyed, and the hope of resurrection will be a reality for all people. While that inclusive view of eternity may be different from the dualistic version that has been drummed into our heads in the course of our religious education, it’s really only what we might expect from our ever-loving and compassionate Creator. As it was in the unity of our beginning, so it will be in the unity of our ending. In Christ all is made whole!
Thought for the Day: Why is the heavenly banquet such a powerful metaphor?
0 Comments