Feasting Without Fear
by Jonathan Daugherty

Maybe some of us think that that was then and this is now. Maybe some of us don’t know how good and right it is to feast before the Lord until we oblige an invitation to attend one. Maybe some of us believe that feasting would be a good thing, but don’t know where to start.

When we feast before our Lord in peace and thanksgiving, we kill two obnoxious birds with one stone. The inefficiency of diligently and carefully prepared meals hits the bird of modernism and the delighting in lawful physical pleasures hits the bird of gnosticism.

There are better reasons for feasting than the Super Bowl. We are the ones who have something to celebrate about; we are the ones who have excellent reason to rejoice. We celebrate with all strength and body. We are a rich people, rich in heritage and rich in possession, and we share with each other and love one another. There is also finer food to share than Super Bowl munchies.

We want to feast before the Lord. And one reason some folks of Saint Peter Church have found to throw a feast is for the blessing of a new covenant child and his baptism. We hold this event highly. We acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins. We believe this is as important an event as a wedding and is as good a reason for celebration. So, it is by no mistake that the baptismal feast is much more like the wedding supper than the baby shower. This is because the wedding supper, or reception, may be one of the last remaining vestiges of ancient and medieval feasting, not counting any television events.

After tears of joy stream down into the beards of ministers and fathers at the administration of the sacrament, we still have worshipping to do as we feast before the Lord until tears of laughter burst from all smiling eyes. We sing and laugh and dance. And we know so even the next morning.

Let there be greetings, prayers, stories and toasts, and laughter and tears ofjoy. Let the head of the house stand on a chair and tell his guests the reason for the gathering. Raise a glass and tell the story of a thankful heart for the bounty of blessings from above.

Let there be breaking of bread. Spread the table. Kill the fatted calf. Serve up the good fruits of labor and blessing. Share with your beloved guests some of the goodness God has so graciously granted to you as steward. Fill the bellies of friends and neighbors with your family favorite, fried chicken. Or roast a whole hog or three. Even if you serve hot dogs, just remember that you want to serve your best. Quick and easy are not the objectives in serious feasting.

Let grateful hearts be gladdened. Bring the wine up from the cellar that you’ve been saving. The good stuff. And let it flow. If it’s a really special feast, you’ll serve your finest mead. Or maybe if you are a Sproul it should be that special IHS homebrew.

Let there be music. Let festive melodies and rhythms echo through the hollow. May the hills and mountains clap along to joyous tunes. May the sounds ring in the halls. Even if it’s recorded, play music. Sing new songs and old.

Oh, and let there be dancing. Kick up your heels. Cut a rug. Raise the dust of the ground with your light and happy feet. Enough of this well-I-don’t-dance-but-our-children-will-someday stuff. This is a time for young and old to be jigging and reeling. This is a time for serious merrymaking.

Let the neighbors hear you. If you can barely see the smoke rising from your nearest neighbor’s chimney from your own place, understand that that doesn’t mean you have to work harder, that means you have to play harder. Let them wonder what you’re so happy about. Or, better yet, have them over. Invite them to celebrate, too. Let them in on the truly blessed event. Let them in on the joy and celebration and gratefulness. Then you can ask them if you may use their pasture for spill-over parking.

Here are a couple of things to be careful of if you’d like to throw your own feast. Make it an event. Let’s face it, this feasting, in our day and time, is culture rebuilding and restoration. The word feast even sounds medieval or ancient. The idea is, at least, foreign to our contemporary anesthetized rush-about culture. So, what I mean when I say to make it an event is to give it a beginning and an end. Resist the temptation to turn the planned celebration into a convenient stop-by-and-grab-a-bite-on-your-way-to-soccer-practice open house. Another thing to be careful of is not to spend beyond your means in order to keep up. For example, some households have been blessed to have musicians in the family, others have to pay professionals, and others yet have fine record collections.

Rebuilding a feasting culture is going to require some diligence. It may mean taking up and leaning to play the mandolin. It may mean digging a wine cellar. Or, it may mean raising an extra hog in the spring.

Don’t party like it’s 1999; feast before the Lord like you mean it. Like God has given you a son or daughter and has brought him into His kingdom. Like He is blessing your household and His. Let us learn well to feast boldly. Here’s to God’s great gifts, the good life, and good friends. Here’s to being fruitful and multiplying. Here’s to God’s many, many blessings.