Eating is a very intimate act. In the Middle East it is even covenant making. I was told by one friend after sharing a meal with him, “because I have eaten with you, I will die for you.” Suffice to say I was both honored and speechless. The Lord God has always dined with his people and made feasts to commemorate his covenants and intimacy between His people and Himself.
The first major feast God partakes with Man is one in which the entire Godhead, The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit appear to eat with Abraham and tell him Sarah shall conceive a son:
“And the LORD appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing in front of him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth and said, “O Lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant. Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree, while I bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on—since you have come to your servant.” So they said, “Do as you have said.” And Abraham went quickly into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quick! Three seahs of fine flour! Knead it, and make cakes.” And Abraham ran to the herd and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to a young man, who prepared it quickly. Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared, and set it before them. And he stood by them under the tree while they ate.” (Genesis 18:1-7)
Here Abraham feeds the Lord Trinity! Can you imagine feeding your Creator?! Most incredible is that God appears as the Three Persons who are One God.
The next major divine feast isn’t Passover, but one where Moses and the Elders not only see God, they eat with him!
“Then Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel climbed up the mountain. There they saw the God of Israel. Under his feet there seemed to be a surface of brilliant blue lapis lazuli, as clear as the sky itself. And though these nobles of Israel gazed upon God, he did not destroy them. In fact, they ate a covenant meal, eating and drinking in his presence!.” (Exodus 24:9-11)
It should be noted Moses and the Elders had sprinkled the Blood of the Sacrifice on themselves and this allowed them to come near to God, which foreshadows that the Lamb of God, Christ Jesus’ blood sprinkles us and we may come close to Him always!
We see a progression, Abraham fed the Lord, here the Lord feeds the Elders.
We then come to the Last Supper where God Incarnate eats the Passover Meal with His Disciples. Here Jesus the Lord reveals that the New Covenant foretold by The Prophet Jeremiah (Jeremiah 31:31-33) is now taking place through Him.
“Then came the day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover.” “Where do you want us to prepare for it?” they asked.
He replied, “As you enter the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him to the house that he enters, and say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ He will show you a large room upstairs, all furnished. Make preparations there.”
They left and found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover. When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.” After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among you. For I tell you I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it,(M) and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you. But the hand of him who is going to betray me is with mine on the table. The Son of Man will go as it has been decreed.But woe to that man who betrays him!” They began to question among themselves which of them it might be who would do this.” (Luke 22:7-23)
Notice this time the Disciples go and prepare the meal for the Lord Jesus Christ. We see a cycle, where God has a meal prepared for Him and He prepares a meal for his followers and friends. This is reciprocal, and interpersonal relating, God isn’t expecting us to make the feast all the time for Him, nor does He always make a feast for us; it is fluid and can be either.
After Our Lord Jesus Christ rises from the dead he has a breakfast meal of fish with his disciples, this time it is a balance, they catch the fish that Christ commands into the nets and they cook and eat together. The Lord Jesus even serves them bread and fish, when at the Last Supper they served Him:
“When they got out on land, they saw a charcoal fire in place, with fish laid out on it, and bread. Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.” So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, 153 of them. And although there were so many, the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” Now none of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and so with the fish. This was now the third time that Jesus was revealed to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.” (John 21:9-14)
Finally, there is a Wedding Supper that awaits us if we endure to the end, and will take place after Christ’s Second Coming:
“Then I heard again what sounded like the shout of a vast crowd or the roar of mighty ocean waves or the crash of loud thunder: “Praise the Lord! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns. Let us be glad and rejoice, and let us give honor to him. For the time has come for the wedding feast of the Lamb, and his bride has prepared herself. She has been given the finest of pure white linen to wear.” For the fine linen represents the good deeds of God’s holy people.” (Revelation 19:1-8)
“The Parable of the Wedding Feast
And again Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his Son, and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come. Again he sent other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who are invited, “See, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast.”’ But they paid no attention and went off, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his servants, treated them shamefully, and killed them. The king was angry, and he sent his troops and destroyed those murderers and burned their city. Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding feast is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore to the main roads and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.’ And those servants went out into the roads and gathered all whom they found, both bad and good. So the wedding hall was filled with guests. “But when the king came in to look at the guests, he saw there a man who had no wedding garment. And he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ For many are called, but few are chosen.” (Matthew 22:1-14)
From Abraham to Christ’s Return, God dines with His people. For when we feast there is intimacy, enemies seldom can stomach eating together, while loved ones can increase one’s desire to break bread. Dining is universal, all humans of all races eat, and so its also welcoming, that God will sit and participate in actions we all know so well and need to do. The Lord feasting with His people shows he is a an intimate God, one who is close to us and desires to share in the essential and pleasurable act of feasting. It is a fad cry from stoic paintings of an angry god or of a king on a throne who is distant. Yes the Biblical evidence shows us those depictions are false, that God Almighty wants to sit down and have supper with everyone one of us! Enjoying all our favorite delights! That is the God we serve! One who will cook for you and who you can cook for! Think about how natural that feels, of when you’ve cooked for those you love or have had a meal made for you by one who loves you! If neither experiences have been applicable to you, then you shall enjoy a first, where the Creator dines with His Creation! Where your Maker makes a meal for you! Amen.
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