From Pastor Biar’s Pen 

This is the Feast

While the obvious point of celebration of Easter is Christ’s resurrection and the fullness of the Gospel message which it conveys to us, one of the smaller side benefits that the Church gets to enjoy is the return of the Hymn of Praise. It is traditionally omitted from the liturgy in order to reflect the somber and penitential aspect of the Lenten season, only to come back with roaring organ on Easter Sunday as we return to a time of joyful exuberance and can once more belt out the A-word at the top of our lungs. Since I’ve been the pastor here, I’ve also made the decision to replace the usual Gloria in Excelsis with This is the Feast for the Easter season; let’s talk about why.

In theological terms, this is a new hymn – having been written just about a century ago in 1918 – which was designed as an occasional replacement to spice up the liturgy as much as we Lutherans are allowed to spice things up. While the Gloria focuses on the Incarnation, divinity, and ministry of Christ – taking its texts from Luke 2 and John 1, This is the Feast is based on the completion of His work by using the words of St. John’s Revelation. The focus shifts to the place of honor Christ has in His glorification after ascending to the Right Hand of the Father having accomplished the salvific work as the Lamb who was slain to “set us free to be people of God.” Rather than a future-tense prayer that He will give us mercy as we have in the Gloria, [1] it gives us a past tense look at how we will celebrate on the last day knowing all of these things have been accomplished. 

So, in singing it in the Easter season, we are reminded that His declaration that “It is finished” endures from then until eternity, that we who are in the family of God through His Church have the promise we will join in the great marriage feast of the Lamb as He is eternally joined with His bride, the Church, as foretold by Isaiah and John. Our sin has been taken away, our seats are reserved in the banquet, for His victory over Sin, Satan, and Death stands now and always, never fading away. His kingdom is as immortal as we are now destined to be through His work on the Cross. 

God’s Blessings,
Pastor Biar

[1] Don’t get me wrong, that is important

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