28th Sunday of Ordinary Time [A]

 


28TH SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME [A]


It’s the year 1924. Your name is George Mallory. Members of the press are surrounding you. What are they after? They want you to explain yourself: why are you setting out to climb Mt. Everest, the highest peak in the known world? Your sense is that they are reading too much into it. Therefore you offer an explanation that is simple and straight-forward: I’m climbing it because it is there. That’s your explanation. That’s how you operate if you are the famous explorer and mountaineer, George Mallory. 


Now, let’s pretend that it’s not 1924. We’re moving further back in time, to the eighth century BC. The mountain in question is not Mt. Everest; rather, we’re faced with a mountain that is shrouded in prophecy. We’re setting out to climb the mountain portrayed in the Book of Isaiah, chapter 25. If a member of the press were to ask you “Why?”, you’ll have to go beyond the George Mallory explanation. You don’t climb Isaiah’s mountain simply because it is there. This mountain is not content just to exist. It’s not just “there.”  It’s actually calling out to us. It’s appealing to us. We need to understand that THE banquet of ALL banquets is being served on God’s holy mountain (Isaiah 25:6). 


We’re being provided with a glimpse of the Kingdom. God and humanity are being brought together, in the same way that a bride and a groom are brought together on the occasion of their wedding liturgy. The invitations have been sent out——to each and every one of us. And we are in the process of responding. Does it matter, how we respond? Or is the fact that we are responding enough in itself? The indication in Matthew 22 is that we will want to do more than just show up. It’s not sufficient to merely be counted as a guest. This banquet has everything to do with the Kingdom. Where do you stand in relationship to this Kingdom? 


For example, have you been pledging yourself to this Kingdom? If so, the evidence should be clinging to you, much as a garment would cling to your body (see Matt. 22:12). But then again, maybe you’re feeling that you can’t be bothered. It’s not as if these moral standards should be applied to you! That’s for other people. Holy-rollers. Fanatics. If that’s your attitude, then brace yourself: the mountain is about to chew you up and spit you out. When ascending a mountain, you have to be prepared. As George Mallory will testify, you need the right kind of clothing; the right kind of footwear; you will need ropes and pulleys; you will need provisions; you may even need canisters of oxygen. 


Even then, the mountain might be too much for you. George Mallory will embark on his expedition—with great fanfare— but he's not going to return. Mt. Everest was the “bridge too far.”  What about us? Will the mountain featured in Isaiah 25 be a “bridge too far?”  We can say this: it depends. Ask yourself, where does the Kingdom rank in your life? Is it a central concern? Or is it more of an afterthought? If it’s an afterthought, then potentially you’re going to be chewed up. The mountain will chew you up and spit you out. On the other hand, if you are demonstrating a sincere commitment to the Kingdom, then the Lord will bless you with the gift of heavenly strength. The Apostle St. Paul insists: I have strength for everything (Phil. 4:13). “Everything” includes scaling what stands looming in front of you. You will possess the ability to scale that mountain—even if it has the very appearance of being……insurmountable. 

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