**If this is the first time you are reading The Feast, check out the entry below this one 1st**
I begin my feast with Isaiah and Matthew. Why?
Isaiah intimidates me. The bitter herb of his words has been a challenge in the past. One doesn't "enjoy" or "find comfort" when they read "Their infants will be dashed to pieces before their eyes; their houses will be looted and their wives ravished." Somehow, those verses didn't make it into our lectionary...The taste has led me to avoid much of Isaiah, and most of the other prophets.
As for Matthew-I thought I'd pair a challenging and less familiar book with one I have read before. The story of Jesus in Matthew is like Crème Brule. You break into the textured, outer layer of 1st century culture and dive into the smooth words of forgiveness.
My meal from Isaiah certainly contained bitter herbs mixed with several chapters of somewhat bland commandments...as you read warning after warning given to ancient cultures, they begin to taste the same. However, the bite gave way to strong prophecy as I found a mix of familiar passages: "The virgin will be with child, and will give birth to a so, and he shall be Immanuel." There is much bitterness to lament, but out of the remnant, Jesus, Immanuel, God with Us, will emerge as our Wonderful Counselor, Prince of Peace. I also found some comfort hearing that the ancients struggled with the same bitterness and pain that we do. Pain, sin and death were as unpalatable for them as it is for us.
My second course of today's meal came from Matthew, a treat I was looking forward to. However, I was floored as I read the first 3 chapters and found it FILLED with prophecy from Isaiah and others. Yes, theologically I knew there was prophecy in Matthew. I'm sure I can find a seminary paper or two that I have written about this. However, I never inwardly digested these verses. From Joseph's dream "they will call him Immanuel" (1:23, found in Isaiah 7:14) to "prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him (3:3 found in Isaiah 40:3) to half a dozen other examples from Hosea, Micah and Jeremiah, the bitterness of Isaiah mixed with the sweetness of the Gospel to form an entirely new feast of promise.
I don't know who is reading this, but I know this is somehow connecting the Body of Christ. I will pray for your feast, for your daily bread, and ask that you pray for mine as well. Post any prayers you wish to share. Today, I pray for the Valparaiso University community, the Indiana KY Synod and all those who mourn Pastor Darlene Grega, who committed suicide this week. She is the 3rd Luther Seminary graduate whom I attended school with who has committed suicide in the past 2 years, all women. I don't understand why the Body of Christ, and the Body of Luther Seminary are broken in this way, but I pray that we will seek out those who are hurting and look at our community very carefully to understand what has gone wrong in the lives of so many.
Until tomorrow, Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread....
Pastor Tracy
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