Your Table is Ready
Today we are starting a short series in the book of Psalms. We will be looking at the three Ps of the psalms: Provision, Protection, and Promotion. So, let us start this off provisions.
“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever.”
Psalms 23:5-6
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The opening of this verse tells us two things: first, how God wants to look out for us and see that we are comfortable and cared for; second, how God wants to deal with our enemies.
You know the feeling when you go to a restaurant and they seat you at the table, where everything is laid out for your dining experience? Well, the opening verse in our scripture should give you that same warm feeling, knowing that God has prepared something marvelous for you. He has prepared the table and set the atmosphere that you need not do anything but ask for your hearts’ desires.
Now, in looking at this preparation of the table we only imagine an actual table set before us, but we are taking about God’s table preparation, and it is much more than our imaginations. So, if I may, allow me to us my imagination as I think God would see this preparation. To do so I will need to take you back to the creation of the heavens and the earth. God created everything man would need before he created man…this was the table preparation for mankind. This preparation is about the reality of being able to sit with Christ Jesus and enjoy a meal with Our Shepherd amid all our enemies – which are: the world, the Devil and ourselves.
Again, in looking our God’s provisions in this setting of the table we might still be short-sighted. We are only thinking of the food, but what about our dining attire? God provides for that as well.
I clothed you in embroidered cloth and gave you sandals of badger skin; I clothed you with fine linen and covered you with silk. I adorned you with ornaments, put bracelets on your wrists, and a chain on your neck. And I put a jewel in your nose, earrings in your ears, and a beautiful crown on your head.
Thus you were adorned with gold and silver, and your clothing was of fine linen, silk, and embroidered cloth. You ate pastry of fine flour, honey, and oil. You were exceedingly beautiful, and succeeded to royalty.
Ezekiel 16:10-13
The materials listed here are items, in ancient times, that a groom would give to his bride. The bible tells us that Christ Jesus is the groom, and we are His bride, and it tells us that Jesus wants to come and have dinner with us.
In this we have the figurative material provisions for the nation Israel and consist of some of the finer things, but these verses speak to us as well. Remember that Israel is the modal God used to show His power, Love, grace, and mercy. So, He is showing us how he prepared a table for the nation Israel, as He will do for us. Now come to Him in prayer and submit your requests. Your table is ready.
Through the shed blood of Jesus on the cross we are given access to these finer things. By the pain He endured on the cross we are healed and brings us to the table dressed in fine apparel ready to enjoy a fine feast prepared by the Master.
Our opening verses tell us that Our Shepherd will make it possible for us to eat a meal of blessing while our enemy’s watch. That means that we can enjoy a meal of blessing – of peace, joy, love, faithfulness, kindness and all the other fruits of the Holy Spirit right amid all our enemies – the world, the flesh, the Devil and all his demons. We can enjoy a festival amid all that being around us.
The Apostle Paul tells us that on the Cross:
Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.
Colossians 2:15
In that same vein of thought, we are to understand this morning that Jesus prepares for us a festive meal in the very presence of the things that seek to harm us. His reason for doing so is to let them and us know that they have been disarmed. That all they can do is to watch Jesus serve us happiness, joy, peace, kindness, tranquility, health, wholeness, favor, and blessings.
Jesus makes our enemies sit on the outer edges of the scene and watch everything unfolds before them. They must watch as we fill up our souls with heaven’s delights – with heaven’s blessings, anointing and favor. With the fruit of the Holy Spirit.
And they are appalled. They are in shock. For no demon, especially the devil, can comprehend this meal. They do not understand how the Lord God Almighty can sit down with us at a meal He prepared and share it with us – even though we have sinned. But that is what God’s forgiveness accomplishes. That is what grace enables and provides. In our own righteousness we are not worthy of such a meal, but the LORD provides it for us just as the Prodigal Son’s Father welcomed his son back home and prepared a feast for him.
Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching. Assuredly, I say to you that he will gird himself and have them sit down to eat, and will come and serve them. And if he should come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants.
Luke 12:37-38
In this Jesus is pointing us back to what the Holy Spirit had inspired King David to write – “the LORD prepares a table before me in the presence of my enemies”.
The devil is sitting there raging because he thought he had you. His demons are sitting around there fuming because you are eating at God’s feast while they are starving. The world is sitting there upset, fuming, and starving as well. But you do not have to starve – The Good Shepherd has prepared and is ready to share a wonderful meal with you – a meal He both prepared and paid for by His sacrifice on the cross – just for you and for me.
Just as we are given the buzzer gizmo at a restaurant to let us know when our table is ready, or wait to hear our name called, we too must be watchful for God’s call to our prepared table.
So, I tell you, your table is ready.
Now let us look at how God wants to deal with our enemies. He does not want them to die, but wants them to see our greatness, to see the good things that He wants to give us. He wants to display His splendor on us to the shame of our enemies.
Frank Sinatra said, “The best revenge is massive success.” Therein lies the beauty of God caring for us in the presence of our enemies, displaying the success He brought about after we accepted the sacrifice of the shed blood of Jesus; a success that overrode the wishes and thoughts of our enemies who hoped we would fail. God wants to bless you while your enemies are there as spectators who are mourning that their plans over you did not come to pass. Do not pray for the enemy to die, let them be alive so that they can see that none of their plans could stop the promise of God in your life. God could have killed Pharaoh before the Israelite left Egypt, but He decided to let Pharaoh see the freedom of the Israelite so that Pharaoh would know that no one can stop what He wants to do for His children.
The Devil knows that he cannot take your food from you but if he can, he will try to trick you to leave the table that is prepared for you.
He will do his best to bring up a chair and whisper things into your ear(s) like:
• You do not really belong here.
• You are not worthy enough to stay at this table.
• You and I both know that you are a phony, a hypocrite – you are evil.
• When God finds out what you have done recently, He will remove your chair and take away your food.
• You are old, you are ugly, and you are stupid.
• You are afraid of me, aren’t you? You do not think just because Jesus is sitting across the table that you can defeat me, do you? After all you are mine!
Know this, he cannot take our food, our blessings or anything else, unless we allow him, or God permits it. He cannot stay at the table unless we allow him.
We have this wonderful thing called – FREE WILL. Again, that is what happened in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve decided to misuse their free will. They did not have to obey the Devil. They did not have to put the flesh over the spirit. They had all the food in the world to eat. They did not have to eat the forbidden fruit, but they listened to the devil, who told them that they were missing out on something special. Do you know this person, the one who grabs everything that is free, whether they need it or not?! That is what Satan wants you to do…leave the table to go after useless things.
We never have to listen to the Devil. We never have to allow him to come at our table. We never have to allow the World to have a seat either. We never have to allow fear and all its cousins to bring up their chairs as well – Worry, anxiety, depression, doubt, greed - the names could go on and on. They were never invited. We never have to make the mistake of welcoming them at our table. We never have to talk to them or listen to their insults, accusations, or threats. They are nothing – we are sharing a meal with the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Jesus will never invite them. Jesus tells us that perfect love casts out things like fear and when we are in the presence of Jesus we are in the presence of perfect Love.
Now let us go back to verse 5 of our opening scripture and look at that perfect love.
“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over.”
Psalms 23:5
In the ancient Middle East, the honored guest would be anointed with olive oil that contained perfume, to show how that were respected and loved. This is the love Jesus shows us by anointing us with His blood, showing us that we are accepted, respected, and loved. IN Jesus’ perfect love we are going to need a bigger cup, because our cup runs over. God’s provisions are abundant, and we cannot possibly take it all in, which is what God says in Malachi 3:10… “If I will not open for you the windows of heaven And pour out for you such blessing That there will not be room enough to receive it."
So, when we accept that seat at the table and bring our cup that is not big enough for the goodness of God, we realize His goodness and mercy is forever with us, and because of it we want to remain seated with He for all our remaining days. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever.
Your table is ready.
