* * * * * * * *
This glorious prophecy is in the course of fulfilment all around us;
but to us individually it may be as if God had not been faithful to
His Word. We may have no appetite for spiritual enjoyments, no
craving for spiritual blessings (Col. ii. 18, 19). In this case, so
far as we are concerned, this feast will have been spread in vain
(Luke xiv. 18). If any man is conscious that for him the Gospel has
no attractions, if he can listen to this prophecy without a glow of
thankful joy, let him cry mightily to God for that new heart without
which all that God's wonderful compassion has moved Him to do for our
race will leave him still unblessed (H. E. I., 4090).--_Samuel
Thodey._
This beautiful passage may be taken as presenting some of the
principal aspects of the establishment of Christ's kingdom upon the
earth. It expresses in a most lively manner the feelings of hope and
joy which the Gospel is naturally fitted to call forth, and it
unfolds the Saviour's work to us under the ideas of a _feast,_ a
_revelation,_ and a _victory._
+I. The Gospel speaks to men of a feast.+ It assumes that they are
spiritually destitute, in actual danger of perishing, and it tells
them of a feast. 1. A feast _provided for all_ (ver. 6). Christ came
not for the exclusive benefit of Jew or Gentile; He came for _man_
(Luke xix. 10). He invites all to share in the blessings He has
provided (Luke xiv. 16), and declares that the invitation will not be
given in vain (Matt. viii. 11). 2. _A feast of the best things._
Suggested here by the richness and flavour of wines long preserved.
We are apt to miss the truth that the blessings which the Gospel
offers are of the richest quality and of the highest value
conceivable; we act as if it required us to give up a certain good
for a doubtful and visionary one. This accounts for the eagerness
with which men seek first "the world," regarding "the kingdom of God"
as something to be made room for after all else has been obtained
(H. E. I., 5006, 5007).
+II. The Gospel is a revelation to men of God's gracious purposes+
(ver. 7). A thing may be a mystery to us in two ways: because it is
beyond all human comprehension; or, because though it is
comprehensible a veil rests upon it. In the former case the mystery
must ever remain what it is; in the latter, the covering has only to
be removed, and the mystery is at an end. The morning dispels the
mystery of the night. So the Gospel discloses eternal truths of which
man has no suspicion (Eph. iii. 2-12). The central, supreme
revelation of the Gospel is Christ; and this is so because in Him
God, who had dwelt in thick darkness, stands manifestly before us
(John xiv. 9; 1 Tim. iii. 16; H. E. I. 855-857, 2241-2243). In Him,
too, man is for the first time disclosed to himself; for the first
time he catches a glimpse of his nature, of his relation to God, of
his glorious possibilities.
+III. The Gospel speaks to man of an eternal victory.+ _"He will
swallow up death in victory;"_ or "He shall utterly destroy death for
ever." Here we have suggested to us the crowning work of Christ
(2 Tim. i. 10; Heb. ii. 14). In Him the believer has the promise and
pledge of a final and glorious triumph. 1. _How great, then, should
be our confidence even in the midst of the deepest affliction!_
Doubts, fears, temptations threaten to destroy us; but with Christ
strengthening us, our conflict leads to certain victory. He who has
conquered will make us "more than conquerors." 2. _With what
assurance, therefore, should we approach the hour of death itself!_
By Him who leads us on, death has been vanquished and captured. Hence
death is one of our possessions (1 Cor. iii. 21-23). Death, as in the
old time men thought of it, no longer exists; for the Christian it is
swallowed up in victory (H. E. I., 1611-1614).--_William Manning._
The parable of the Great Supper (Matt. xxii. 1-14) illustrates this
prophecy. Consider--
+I. The Founder of this feast:+ "the Lord of hosts." _Hosts_--all
creatures in the universe, rational and irrational; subject to His
inspection; under His control; designed for His glory. What think you
of the Founder of this feast? What feast ever had such a Founder? It
is a feast worthy of its Founder. How wonderful that He should
condescend to provide a feast for the world!
+II. The nature of the feast.+ Not only the best, but the best of the
best; bountiful supply; rich variety.
+III. The persons for whom this feast has been prepared.+ All may
partake of it; only those are excluded who exclude themselves. 1. Are
you making excuses? Will your excuses stand the test of the day of
judgment? You must partake, or perish! Delay not; for, as far as you
are concerned, the feast will soon be over. Not now too late; "yet
there is room." 2. Are you participants? What present blessings; what
future glories! Bless the Founder's Name. Seek to bring others to the
feast.--_Henry Creswell._
I. THE AUTHOR OF THIS FEAST. Not a prodigal, squandering the fruits
of the industry of others. Not a conqueror, satiating admirers with
spoils unjustly acquired. Not a pompous Ahasuerus, whose only design
is to set forth his own grandeur. God, moved with compassion for
rebels against His authority; spreads a rich feast that they may not
perish.
II. THE SITE OF THIS FEAST. _"In this mountain."_ It is in the
everlasting Gospel this entertainment is prepared. In coming to
Christ for the pardon of our sins and the salvation of our souls, we
come "unto Mount Zion, the city of the living God, the heavenly
Jerusalem." The figure of a "mountain" denotes the _elevation,
security,_ and _publicity_ of the Gospel feast. 1. Its _elevation._
In coming to it, we leave all that is debasing behind. 2. Its
_security._ In coming to it, we reach a place where we may rejoice
without fear (Luke i. 71-75). 3. Its _publicity._ It is our own fault
if we do not see it and reach it.
III. THE RICHNESS OF THIS ENTERTAINMENT. _"A feast of fat things, of
fat things full of marrow."_ Carnal images that set forth spiritual
truths. In the Gospel, and in the Gospel alone, is found that which
satisfies the hunger of the soul and fills it with delight.
IV. THE GLADNESS OF THE ENTERTAINMENT. _"A feast of wines on the
lees, of wines on the lees well refined."_ A figure founded on the
influence of wine on the human system (Ps. civ. 15). The Gospel, when
rightly understood and cordially embraced, makes a heavy heart light.
What can raise men's spirits so high, or make them so truly cheerful,
as a sense that all their sins are forgiven them? The joy of a
literal "feast of wines" is transient, and after the midnight revel
come days of unpleasant reflection, reproach, and melancholy. But the
joy of the Gospel is pure and permanent.
V. THE EXTENSIVENESS OF THE ENTERTAINMENT. It is "unto all people."
Other entertainments may be confined to the rich, the great, and the
noble; here all such distinctions are done away. Christianity is a
universal religion, designed to redeem and gladden the whole world.
Its invitations are extended to all (Prov. ix. 1-5; Rev.
xxii. 17).--_William Reeve, M.A., Miscellaneous Discourses_ (pp.
229-237).
I. THE FEAST. The blessings of the Gospel are compared--1. To "fat
things full of marrow." What are they? Complete justification,
adoption, the sustaining confidence of being an object of God's
everlasting love--a love which had no beginning and shall have no
end, union with Christ (and all that great truth implies), the
doctrine of resurrection and everlasting life. These are a few of the
"fat things full of marrow" which the King of kings has set before
His guests. 2. To "wines on the lees well refined"--symbols of the
joys of the Gospel; such a sense of perfect peace with God, the sense
of security, communion with God, the pleasures of hope, of hope that
falls far short of the reality. The description of the wines--"wines
on the lees well refined"--reminds us that the joys of the believer
are ancient in their origin,[2] that they are most excellent in their
flavour and aroma, and that they are pure and elevating in their
nature. The joys of grace are not fantastical emotions, or transient
flashes of meteoric excitement; they are based on substantial truth,
are reasonable, fit and proper, and make men like angels (H. E. I.,
1082, 3052, 3053).
II. THE BANQUETING HALL. _"In this mountain."_ There is a reference
here to three things, the same symbol bearing three
interpretations:--1. The mountain on which Jerusalem is built. On a
little knoll of that mountain--Calvary--that great transaction was
fulfilled which made to all nations a great feast. 2. The Church.
Frequently Jerusalem is used as a symbol of the Church of God, and it
is within the pale of the Church that the great feast is made unto
all nations. 3. The Church of God exalted to the latter-day glory.
Then shall the glory of the Gospel be unveiled more clearly and
enjoyed more fully than at present.
III. THE HOST OF THE FEAST. _"The Lord of hosts."_ 1. The Lord makes
it, and makes it all. It is utterly improper for us to bring anything
of our own to it; the Lord provides even the wedding-garment in which
we are to sit at it, and no other will be allowed. 2. Only the Lord
of hosts could have provided what man needed. But He has done it, and
done it effectually. 3. As the Lord of hosts has provided the feast,
it is not to be despised. To despise it will show our folly, and
involve us in great guilt. 4. As He has provided all the feast, let
Him have all the glory.
IV. THE GUESTS. _"For all people."_ For all, irrespective of
national, social, intellectual, or even moral differences. The
declaration, "for all people," gives hope for all who wish to come.
Between the covers of the Bible there is no mention of one person who
may not come, no description of one person who may not trust in
Christ. To him who trusts Christ the whole feast is open, there is
not a blessing of which he may not partake.--_C. H. Spurgeon,
Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit,_ No. 846.