Welcome to the Feast of Victory! Isaiah 25:6-9

(from Easter Festival service)...

Christ is Risen! He is risen indeed!
             Doesn’t that just fill you with joy? Christ is Risen! He is risen indeed! That is good news. That makes today a happy day! A lighthearted day! A day of peace.
            That’s what Easter tends to bring: peace. Most people do not work today— and maybe that includes you. No boss hands you a list of deadlines. No customer demands your immediate help. No co-worker irritates you. Today is quiet. What joy that brings! Quiet! The phone is not ringing. No text messages buzzing at you. No Facebook post to reply to. Stressful conversations are not on your mind, not even on your radar! In fact, perhaps you planned a perfectly peaceful family gathering. You’ll gather around a splendid Easter dinner, gorge yourself on honey ham, mashed potatoes and gravy, green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, and those addictive Pillsbury crescent rolls. The [grand]kids will hunt for Easter eggs. You’ll watch them, those innocent little faces bubbling with sheer joy. At the end of it all, you’ll sink into your plush, over-sized La-Z-Boy, close your eyes, and drift off to sleep. What joy Easter brings! What happiness! What peace!
            So, here’s the question: How long does that peace last? A year?... Six months?... One month?... One week?... One day?... Less than that?
            I’m going to assume that you do not have the luxury of stretching Easter out into a multi-day celebration. Chances are, tomorrow, you must resume all the things you put off today. That means, tomorrow you must work, and with it comes the stress of deadlines and irritating requests.
You have doctor appointments to make, appointments that only stress you out. The [grand]kids and family return home and the family grudge returns as well. It does not seem like peace remains too long, does it?
            So, what do you do? Where do you find peace— and not just temporary peace, but the deep-seated peace that puts your mind and heart at rest forever?
            God directs your attention to the only place where you find that real, lasting peace. Not just a peace he wants you to know, but a real peace in which believers throughout the ages have stood and one in which you get to stand today. Welcome to the Feast of Victory! Jesus has swallowed up death forever. Peace reigns for the people of God.
 
            In our Old Testament reading, God prepares just that for you: a feast! On this mountain the Lord Almighty will prepare a feast of rich food for all peoples, a banquet of aged wine— the best of meats and the finest of wines. Just imagine the scene. Standing high on a majestic mountain, away from the noise and busy-ness and stress and deadlines of life. Buffet tables stretch out before you as far as the eye can see. The finest of foods heaped on tabletops. The most expensive red wines opened just for you. Can you picture that? Imagine the absolute, complete satisfaction from indulging in such an extravagant feast! Your physical needs stuffed with emotional delight. Your body relaxes in sheer bliss. Your mind at peace— because all your stress has been answered; God has removed every single worry you will ever have.
            Do you see where this feast takes place? On this mountain… This is not a literal mountain like Mount Everest or Mount Olympus, some actual location you find God. Rather, “this mountain” pictures God wrapping his arms around every Christian and every Christian standing around God. A victorious God who stands over every trouble to satisfy your physical, emotional, and mental needs perfectly. No worry. No stress. No fear. That, my friends, is peace.
 
            The devil does such a tremendous job of dragging our eyes down from this majestic mountain scene. He drags our minds away from feasting on God’s promises. He lures our heart away from placing trust in God’s control. The devil pulls us back under this shroud, this covering, so that you (and I) cannot and do not see the peace that already exists with God.
            Instead, the devil wants you to find peace inside yourself. In your own trust. In your own choices. In your own efforts. Look around at your world. You turn on the nightly news and see school shootings. You watch riots and protests erupt as tensions between two groups escalate. You shake your head when hearing of people in powerful positions crossing physical boundaries. Lives are lost. Injustice spreads. Trust is broken— and where do many search for re-uniting peace? In social media #hashtag groups! In electing the “right” politician! In protesting for change! And while these are noble causes to address abuse, they are not the answers to trouble.
            Violence continues because hatred burns inside the heart. Physical boundaries will continue being crossed as long as people ignore God’s expectation of sex within the bonds of marriage. Arguments will rage on as long as selfish, self-centered hearts refuse to consider the needs of anyone else. If you hope to find peace for the troubles and stress of this life in your own efforts, you will be sorely disappointed. The reason peace escapes us is because of the sin inside of us.
            Sin not only breaks relationships with others, but it breaks a relationship with God. God says: The soul who sins will die (Ezekiel 18:4). In fact, [Your sins] have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear (Isaiah 59:2). Knowing that your (and my) choices deserve eternal death in hell gives no peace.
 
            Instead, God give you a real, lasting peace by raising Jesus from the dead. It seems so simple. A body once dead has returned to life. Yes, simple action, but profound truth. Because Jesus lives, you will live forever.
            You see, Jesus is born on Christmas Day to bring peace on earth (Luke 2:14). No, not world peace, but peace to you— in your life— on earth. Jesus brings real peace by living the life you (and I) have not. He is perfect. The sick approach him; he calls on God to heal. Soldiers arrest him; he places trust in God. Jewish people want him to be king; he sets his sights on opening the kingdom of heaven. Jesus is perfect, and in him is the perfect payment for our self-trust and despair.
            On the cross your sin (and mine) covered Jesus. Jesus is punished. Because he carries our sin, God turns away from him. Jesus is abandoned, cut off from the love of God. He suffers hell. Since he carries sin, he dies; the shroud of death covers him.
            For three days he lies dead, in a tomb. He looks like everyone else, people who live and die and remain dead. But, on the third day, everything changes. Jesus comes back to life! Yes, a dead body starts breathing. Heart beats. Brain functions. Muscles flex and move. Eyes open, see, and react. Jesus sits up, swings his legs over the edge of his rocky bed, stands up, and walks out of the tomb alive!
 
            So, what does the resurrection of Jesus Christ mean for you? First, The LORD Almighty has destroyed the shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers all nations, he will swallow up death forever. Jesus rips away your sins (and mine). If he ripped away your sin, then there is no more punishment. You are forgiven! You have peace with God!
            That means, you will gather on that mountaintop in heaven. You will stand in that great banquet hall with tables stretching out for miles in front of you. You will feast on the finest of foods and drink the finest of wines. Your body and soul will be completely satisfied as you stand in the presence of God. The resurrection of Jesus Christ brings you the peace of knowing you have eternal life!
            Second, The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces… from your face. He does that now. When cancer scares you and you feel crushed that you doubted God’s care, God forgives you. When you fight with your family and feel ashamed of the words you use, see Jesus step out of his tomb and say, “You are forgiven.” The debt is removed, canceled out, pardoned. You stand before God without guilt. God himself says this! [H]e will remove the disgrace of his people from all the earth. The Lord has spoken. Because Jesus lives to declare you forgiven, tears caused by sin are wiped away forever. You still live at peace with God. You still hold the peace of eternal life.
            Third, you have peace in life now. Even after Easter ends. Even when you return to the stress of deadlines and dreaded conversations. Even when you are unsure about safety in schools, shopping malls, or in your home. You have peace.
            Because Jesus has guaranteed your future, you can say, “Surely this is our God; we trusted in him, and he saved us. This is the Lord, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation.”
            God has become our God. This feast of victory does not only exist when you enter heaven; this feast of victory goes on now. God stands triumphant over every evil. He has secured your future. It means, you can trust his promises, his guidance. While you may not know the future, while you may grow stressed out over what the future might hold, remember this: Jesus lives! He lives to make heaven your home! He lives to bring you safely there!
            That means nothing will separate you from the love of your God. Not the stress of deadlines. Not the fear of cancer. Not the strife that comes from family arguments. Set your minds on the peace of knowing God is with you and God will keep his Word. He promised a Savior right when the world was created. He kept that promise. You can be sure that you may run to him in every time of need. You can be sure God reigns and rules now! Peace reigns for the people of God.
 
            I’m going to assume that you do not have the luxury of stretching Easter out into a multi-day celebration. Chances are, tomorrow, you must resume all the things you put off today. That means, tomorrow you must work, and with it comes the stress of deadlines and irritating requests.
You have doctor appointments to make, appointments that only stress you out. The [grand]kids and family return home and the family grudge returns as well. Yet, peace will remain.
            Jesus lives! He lives to be your life. To be it. Always set your attention to the life God has prepared for you. A feast of victory—victory over sin and death and the lies of the devil! Heaven open! Heaven is yours! God sees you reigning with him!
            Since this is so, you set your eyes on this glorious sight. Jesus lives to keep his Word. To comfort fears. To pardon guilt. To guide you through this life knowing where you are heading.      
            God directs your attention to the only place where you find that real, lasting peace. Not just a peace he wants you to know, but a real peace in which believers throughout the ages have stood and one in which you get to stand today. Welcome to the Feast of Victory! Jesus has swallowed up death forever. Peace reigns for the people of God.