“On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine, of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined. And he will swallow up on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations.” (Isaiah 25:6-7)
In our gospel reading this week, Jesus likens the Kingdom of God to a wedding feast. Isaiah uses a similar image to describe the Kingdom of God in terms of a great banquet in which all the redeemed take part. He uses that image to describe heaven as a place in which there is great rejoicing and bliss for those there experience no physical, emotional, or spiritual hunger or thirst such as they may have endured in their life on earth. There is also no shame or guilt for all sins are forgiven. The banquet celebrates the comfort, peace, and freedom from pain, strife, anxiety, fear, and worry that comes from being in the presence of the Lord. Who would not want to be there?
Isaiah speaks of the veil that covers all people. This veil is the fear of death as well as the veil of sin both of which weigh heavily on the hearts of all people causing many to lash out with violence and angry words. This veil covers those who are bigoted and racist as well as many of those who cry out against it. So many feel the oppressive and horrible weight of that veil of sin and death but either do not understand its essence or else refuse to acknowledge its reality for it lies in the heart of every individual. Consequently, human beings cannot remove it.
Isaiah’s words ought to provide comfort to us all including those crying out for justice for the oppressed. The Lord invites all these to His heavenly banquet, a victory celebration. As with every victory there is a winner and a loser. The losers are those who are not redeemed, those who have rejected Christ’s offer of grace and mercy. They reject the Lord in favor of gorging themselves without limit in this life. These will miss out on the eternal joy Isaiah describes, the glory of God and the wonders with which He blesses His chosen ones. While here we still mourn for the lost for many of them will be those we love and admire, those celebrities and leaders we extol as well as our friends and family. Thus we must make every effort to ensure that these will not miss that heavenly feast. We must preach the gospel of salvation in Jesus alone not just in words but in deeds that demonstrate the saving power and love of Jesus. We must do this in spite of the hatred and violence which they spew out at us.