A Seat At The Table

“THE TABLE YOU WEREN’T SURE YOU BELONGED AT

I don’t know if you’ve ever been invited somewhere and you thought, “I’m not supposed to be here.”

Maybe a nice dinner… a wedding… a banquet… something where everybody else looked sharp, polished, put-together … and you walked in feeling like the odd one out.

I got invited to a function one time where I didn’t read the dress code correctly. Everybody else was in jackets and ties… and here I was in what I thought was my “good” shirt … which meant basically it didn’t have a hole in it or a big stain on it and I ironed it in the dryer.

I remember sitting down, and looking around, thinking:

“Man… somebody made a mistake. I do NOT belong here.”

And isn’t it funny… A lot of people walk into church feeling the same way?

They Think;

• “I’m not spiritual enough.”

• “I’ve messed up too much.”

• “I’ve failed God too many times.”

• “I haven’t prayed enough.”

• “I’m too broken.”

• “God probably doesn’t want me here.”

But church that’s why something like Communion matters. Communion is God saying: “You DO belong here. You have a seat at My table.”

Communion isn’t about you being worthy.

Communion is about Jesus being willing.

Advent is the season where God comes close…

And Communion is the moment where God sits down with us.

I’m excited… Let’s get into this. (Read Luke 14:15-22)

THE INVITATION IS PERSONAL

Luke 14:16–17 “A man prepared a great banquet and invited many…”

This isn't a mass email… This isn’t a generic flyer… This is a personal invitation.

The host prepares the table… and He sends out a servant to: “Tell them it’s ready. Come take your seat.”

God does not wait for you to climb your way up to Him.

God comes down to meet you … In a manger, on a cross, and in the Spirit — and He says:

“You are invited. Come sit with Me.”

You may feel like you haven't earned it, You may think you’re too messed up.

But the invitation isn’t based on how you feel — It’s based on Who He is.

And He is the kind of God who invites the hungry, He invites the hurting, He invites the imperfect.

You don’t have to deserve the seat. You just have to accept the invitation.

EXCUSES KEEP PEOPLE FROM THE TABLE… NOT SIN

All the people in the parable refuse the invitation…

But not because they were sinful.

Not because they were wicked.

Not because they were unworthy.

They refused because they were distracted.

• One was too busy with land

• One with business

• One with relationships

And the truth is:

Most people don’t miss God because they’re too sinful.

They miss God because they’re too distracted.

We live in a world where the urgent pushes out the important.

Where the temporary pushes out the eternal.

But Communion calls us back to this truth:

Don’t leave your seat empty. Don’t let life talk you out of the invitation of grace.

Because the host has already prepared everything. The table is set...The meal has been paid for...The invitation has been sent. All that’s left is for you to come… to just show up…

GOD FILLS THE TABLE WITH THE UNEXPECTED

Luke 14:21–23 The master says: “Go quickly into the streets and alleys… bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.”

In other words… “Go get the people who never thought they’d be invited.

Go get the ones nobody else wants.

Go get the broken, the hurting, the ashamed, the forgotten.”

Why? Because God likes filling His table with people who feel unworthy.

Church, hear me: Communion is not a trophy for the perfect — It’s nourishment for the broken…

It’s for the discouraged… It’s for the weary... It’s for the sinner who wants to come home... It’s for the person who says, “Lord, I need You.”

When you come to the table, you're not saying, “I’ve got it all together.” You’re saying,

“Jesus — You are enough.”

COMMUNION IS WHERE HOPE SITS DOWN WITH US

Read 1 Corinthians 11:23–26

Advent begins with hope … and Communion reminds us where hope comes from.

The bread says:

“My body was broken so you could be made whole.”

The cup says:

“My blood was shed so your sins are forgiven — fully, completely, eternally.”

Communion isn’t just remembering.

Communion is proclaiming:

He came once — as a baby.

He comes now — by His Spirit.

He’s coming again — in glory.

Communion is where the manger, the cross, and the Second Coming all meet us at one table.

This meal whispers:

“Hope is here.”

“Hope is alive.”

“Hope has a name … And that name is Jesus.”