By Linda Johnson
"Jesus has a table spread where the saints of God are fed, He invites his chosen people, "Come and Dine." A song written in 1906 by Charles B. Widmeyer which is a well-known hymn. It was inspired by John 21:12 when Jesus, walking along the seashore said, "Come and dine..." The words to the song and the Bible verse were both contained in our pastor's sermon.
"What do people need?" said Pastor Josh. An innocent enough question. Of course the obvious answer is food, water, and shelter. But innocent-looking questions do not result in obvious answers in a preacher's sermon. And neither did it this time. He spoke of manna in the wilderness and God's willingness to feed his people. He spoke of God--a God who fulfills our needs. And, he spoke of Jesus being the bread of life.
"Yes," he said, "life is like an all-you-can-eat buffet. But whose table are you going to eat from?" There are really only two buffets. One which is presided over by Jesus and the other which is presided over by Satan. One buffet serves eternal life and the other serves sin. You can have just as much as you want from either table. But, know this, it's not possible to eat from both tables.
Satan's table serves worldly pleasures--parties, good times, nights out, money, weekends pursuing personal interests, big houses, boats and many other pleasures. There's a downside too. Satan is subtle. All of this sounds good. But remember one thing: if this is the table you want to eat from, the end result is death and hell. Satan is no fool. He knows what it takes to punch your ticket for his destination--the lake of fire.
Jesus' table serves the bread of life. Yes, Jesus offers salvation to those who show up at his table. But it is so much more. John 3:36 says we have everlasting life. That means that it starts now, in the present. There are other verses that speak of everlasting life too (John 4:14, 5:24, 6:27, 6:40, 47). In a nutshell, God gave his Son as the redemption price for sin to clear the pathway for those who believe to enter into everlasting life (read John 3:16). But you can't just stop here.
We also have eternal life. John 17:3 says that life eternal is knowing God and his son Jesus. We know God by having a close, personal, intimate relationship with Him. Studying the Word builds our relationship with God. It teaches us to have faith in God, to believe what he says. Like Pastor Josh stated--serving God (having that relationship) is not just a one-time thing. Keep that close relationship with God by prayer, the Bible, songs, testimonies, letting our light shine, keeping relationships with Christian brothers and sisters, and belonging to church.
"Jesus has a table spread where the saints of God are fed, He invites his chosen people, "Come and Dine." A song written in 1906 by Charles B. Widmeyer which is a well-known hymn. It was inspired by John 21:12 when Jesus, walking along the seashore said, "Come and dine..." The words to the song and the Bible verse were both contained in our pastor's sermon.
"What do people need?" said Pastor Josh. An innocent enough question. Of course the obvious answer is food, water, and shelter. But innocent-looking questions do not result in obvious answers in a preacher's sermon. And neither did it this time. He spoke of manna in the wilderness and God's willingness to feed his people. He spoke of God--a God who fulfills our needs. And, he spoke of Jesus being the bread of life.
"Yes," he said, "life is like an all-you-can-eat buffet. But whose table are you going to eat from?" There are really only two buffets. One which is presided over by Jesus and the other which is presided over by Satan. One buffet serves eternal life and the other serves sin. You can have just as much as you want from either table. But, know this, it's not possible to eat from both tables.
Satan's table serves worldly pleasures--parties, good times, nights out, money, weekends pursuing personal interests, big houses, boats and many other pleasures. There's a downside too. Satan is subtle. All of this sounds good. But remember one thing: if this is the table you want to eat from, the end result is death and hell. Satan is no fool. He knows what it takes to punch your ticket for his destination--the lake of fire.
Jesus' table serves the bread of life. Yes, Jesus offers salvation to those who show up at his table. But it is so much more. John 3:36 says we have everlasting life. That means that it starts now, in the present. There are other verses that speak of everlasting life too (John 4:14, 5:24, 6:27, 6:40, 47). In a nutshell, God gave his Son as the redemption price for sin to clear the pathway for those who believe to enter into everlasting life (read John 3:16). But you can't just stop here.
We also have eternal life. John 17:3 says that life eternal is knowing God and his son Jesus. We know God by having a close, personal, intimate relationship with Him. Studying the Word builds our relationship with God. It teaches us to have faith in God, to believe what he says. Like Pastor Josh stated--serving God (having that relationship) is not just a one-time thing. Keep that close relationship with God by prayer, the Bible, songs, testimonies, letting our light shine, keeping relationships with Christian brothers and sisters, and belonging to church.
