Be Thankful: He feeds us
Be Thankful: He feeds us
Psalm 23:5
"You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows."
Have you ever been hungry? Starving?
And then had someone prepare you a meal?
A few years back a buddy of mine completed a 40 day fast. He said it was one of the most difficult things that he had done. To come out of the fast he ate very small portions of fruit, but He said that the first bit had the most flavor that he had ever tasted in his life! A few days later we went out for Stake and Ribs (the first meat since the fast broke) and again, he was surprised by how much flavor he could taste.
Most of us...ARE STARVING!
We just don't realize it....
We are STARVING for God...for Christ!
Psalm 34:8
"Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!"
John 6:33-36
"'For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.' They said to him, 'Sir, give us this bread always.' Jesus said to them, 'I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe.'"
John 6:51
"I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh."
Right now, we have the Spirit of God as a guarantee...we also have the word of God!
The word of God is both drink and food to satisfy, to help us grow up and be strong.
1 Peter 2:2
"Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up to salvation-- "
1 Corinthians 3:2
"I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready,"
The milk to help us grow is the Gospel of Jesus Christ!
The solid food -- that is the stuff Theologians have been debating for Centuries!
My point is that God feeds us exactly what we need to grow strong! To grow strong in our knowledge of Him!
With God if we go hungry, it is not because He did not provide for us! It is because we have refused to take what has been offered freely!
God also offers this to us in the presence of our enemies!
Picture this scene:
You enter the palace dining hall and see the long elegant table. You look for a place to sit but see only chairs filled with your enemies. The guy who always stole your lunch money, the girl who cheated off of you and caused you to fail an important test...ect. Finally, you reach the opposite end and you see one spot left at the head of the table. You see a table marker that has your name on it, so you sit. Just as you sit down, the King enters the room! He walks up to the far end of the table with a silver platter in his hand. You are thinking, why am I hear? Why is the King embarrassing me in front of all of these people who don't like me? But the King passes by the guy who stole you lunch money and right by the girl who cheated off you your test...right by all of the people until He reaches you. He gently places the platter in front of you, takes off the cover to reveal....
This is that part that many miss! God not only prepares a table for us, but this table is prepared in the presence of our ENEMIES!!!!
We have a human emotion and response to our enemies...anger and revenge.
What greater statement from God, than to honor us in the presence of our enemies?
Romans 12:19-20
"Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, 'Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.' To the contrary, 'if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.'"
Why do we seek our own vengeance here?
Again...we must not fully trust God and what He says He will do!
Beloved: God PROMISES
1. To give us all that we need
2. To sustain us
3. Vengeance is His
Let us live our lives to these simple standards:
Matthew 22:36-39
"'Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?' And he said to him, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'"
In Christ,
David
Psalm 23:5
"You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows."
Have you ever been hungry? Starving?
And then had someone prepare you a meal?
A few years back a buddy of mine completed a 40 day fast. He said it was one of the most difficult things that he had done. To come out of the fast he ate very small portions of fruit, but He said that the first bit had the most flavor that he had ever tasted in his life! A few days later we went out for Stake and Ribs (the first meat since the fast broke) and again, he was surprised by how much flavor he could taste.
Most of us...ARE STARVING!
We just don't realize it....
We are STARVING for God...for Christ!
Psalm 34:8
"Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!"
John 6:33-36
"'For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.' They said to him, 'Sir, give us this bread always.' Jesus said to them, 'I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe.'"
John 6:51
"I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh."
Right now, we have the Spirit of God as a guarantee...we also have the word of God!
The word of God is both drink and food to satisfy, to help us grow up and be strong.
1 Peter 2:2
"Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up to salvation-- "
1 Corinthians 3:2
"I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready,"
The milk to help us grow is the Gospel of Jesus Christ!
The solid food -- that is the stuff Theologians have been debating for Centuries!
My point is that God feeds us exactly what we need to grow strong! To grow strong in our knowledge of Him!
With God if we go hungry, it is not because He did not provide for us! It is because we have refused to take what has been offered freely!
God also offers this to us in the presence of our enemies!
Picture this scene:
You enter the palace dining hall and see the long elegant table. You look for a place to sit but see only chairs filled with your enemies. The guy who always stole your lunch money, the girl who cheated off of you and caused you to fail an important test...ect. Finally, you reach the opposite end and you see one spot left at the head of the table. You see a table marker that has your name on it, so you sit. Just as you sit down, the King enters the room! He walks up to the far end of the table with a silver platter in his hand. You are thinking, why am I hear? Why is the King embarrassing me in front of all of these people who don't like me? But the King passes by the guy who stole you lunch money and right by the girl who cheated off you your test...right by all of the people until He reaches you. He gently places the platter in front of you, takes off the cover to reveal....
This is that part that many miss! God not only prepares a table for us, but this table is prepared in the presence of our ENEMIES!!!!
We have a human emotion and response to our enemies...anger and revenge.
What greater statement from God, than to honor us in the presence of our enemies?
Romans 12:19-20
"Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, 'Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.' To the contrary, 'if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.'"
Why do we seek our own vengeance here?
Again...we must not fully trust God and what He says He will do!
Beloved: God PROMISES
1. To give us all that we need
2. To sustain us
3. Vengeance is His
Let us live our lives to these simple standards:
Matthew 22:36-39
"'Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?' And he said to him, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'"
In Christ,
David
posted by Mark 1:17 at 8:21 AM
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