Sitting at the Banquet Table of God
I read something today that started my mind thinking. It was so well stated that I couldn't help but agree. Then of course God gave me a lot more to chew on, as He always does. See what you think.
"It's not that Christians want to shove Jesus down your throat, but man if YOU KNEW. If you knew how he can transform you, how he can take away all that bitterness, that sorrow, that hurt, that depression, and anxiety. We boast about our Lord because HE is Mighty!"
Have you ever walked into a restaurant and the smell of the food immediately made your mouth water. Maybe you had never been there before and others had told you how great the food was, and you were there to taste the goodness. Sharing Jesus is much like that. For Christians who have a closeness with Jesus unlike any other relationship in their life they want others to know what it is like.
"Taste and see that the Lord is good;" Psalm 34:8
If you think of life like a banquet table and the things of life that we pile on our plates to try to satisfy us deep down inside you can see how empty they really are. They are so empty in fact that we pile our plates high day in and day out with the same fare, and many are still empty inside once they have feasted. The end of these things is death. None of it offers eternal significance or security.
Now it is time to do some major imagining!
Imagine Jesus as the cuisine at our lifelong feast.
Imagine Jesus as the appetizer. This is the Jesus you hear about through friends. Just enough to get you to hunger for more and draw you to the table.
Imagine Jesus as the soup course. You meet him face to face and turn your life over to him. He warms you completely. That warmth brings you peace and joy. You have found something rare indeed. The soup is the beginning of your journey to know Jesus.
Imagine Jesus as the vegetable course. The natural cleansing of the word of God on your life, flushing out the lies and preparing you to receive meat that will nourish and sustain you in all areas of life.
Imagine Jesus as the meat course. Solid, savory, flavorful, filling, nourishing, strengthening to your very core. Jesus is the word of God. The more you read his word the closer you become to the Lamb of God who takes away your sin and creates a new creation. The more you partake the stronger you become and the more satisfied your life is, lacking nothing.
Imagine Jesus as the bread course. He is the bread of life. Whether you prefer crescent rolls to pecan twirls, everybody loves bread. Baking bread is a comforting smell. Jesus' bread basket is always filled with enough comfort and love to go around. It never comes down to fighting over the last roll in the basket.
Imagine Jesus as the wine. The blood he shed for your sins cleanses the soul and keeps us in constant fellowship with God.
Imagine Jesus as the water. He said that he is the living water. You will never thirst again when you drink the living water. Nothing of this earth quenches quite like the living water of God.
Imagine Jesus as the dessert course. It is truly a Heavenly dessert. We long for it. We save room for it. We are excited to see it. The dessert is call Eternity with our Lord. The entire meal is building to that final dessert - heaven. The sweetness of an eternity at the feet of Jesus cannot be compared to anything in this world. The more of the meal we eat the more hungry we become for dessert!
Having fun yet? Honestly, when God gave me these thoughts, I was laughing and thought "It was here all along. It is just like God to put this together for us."
Remember there are millions of starving souls. Some might be outwardly overweight but they are all starving for the only meal that satisfies deeply. They are starving for Jesus. So when you consider all of the rave reviews we give to things of this earth, remember that the only review that has a life altering effect is the one where we review what the Savior has done for us.
This free gift is worth more than anything money can buy.
It takes little to no effort to share it and has been changing lives for centuries!
One final thought, if a person walks in to Morton's Steakhouse where the food is amazing and they order a peanut butter sandwich, that is ultimately their choice and their loss. All you can do is recommend the prime rib and hope they choose wisely.
John 6:35-36 "Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe."
John 7:38 "Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.”
1 Peter 2:2-3 "Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good."
Revelation 19:19 "Then the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!” And he added, “These are the true words of God.”
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