WHOSE TABLE?

“They shall enter into my sanctuary,
and they shall come near to MY TABLE to minister unto me”
(Ezekiel 44:16).

I wonder what kind of table you have in your home? Is it round, square, or rectangular? Is it old or new? It doesn’t really matter what it looks like. The real question we have to ask ourselves is: who does our table belong to? Is it my table? Or is it the Lord’s table?

If God dwells in our home, it is God’s table.

Did you know that God loves tables? Before there were ever tables on earth, God had a table in eternity. When talking to his disciples one day Jesus told them about His table in heaven and said to them: “That ye may eat and drink at MY TABLE in my kingdom” (Luke 22:30). God ordained a table for Himself on earth which was placed in the Holy Place in the tabernacle, and later in the temple. He also wants a table that belongs to Him in your home.

Everything changes when you understand your table belongs to God. It changes how you conduct your meals. It changes what you do at your table. We feed our bodies, but God is present to feed our souls and spirits.

We notice four wonderful things about the table in the above Scripture:

1. WE HAVE TO COME

We have to COME to the table. We have to ENTER into His sanctuary. We have to understand that our table is a sacred place because it is God’s table. When we understand it is God’s table, we won’t want to miss being at the table to meet with Him.

We cannot taste the delights of God’s table unless we come to the table. How many precious hours families miss together because life’s programs stop them from sitting at the table together. They may be good activities, but they deprive us from the best.

2. WE HAVE TO COME NEAR

God reminds us to come NEAR to Him. God doesn’t want us to be far away from Him. He doesn’t want everything else in the world to captivate our hearts. At the table we come near to one another and near to God. He wants to be present at your table with you. Invite Him to come and expect Him to be with you.

3. WE HAVE TO COME TO HIS TABLE

It’s not our table, but HIS TABLE. If it was our table, we could perhaps forget about it, but because it is His Table, we must be faithful to come to it.

4. WE HAVE TO MINISTER TO HIM

God reminds us that the table is where we MINISTER UNTO HIM. God had His table in the Holy Place in the tabernacle. Every single day the twelve loaves of bread sat upon the table. Every week the priests placed fresh bread on the table. Then, they ate the loaves that had been sitting in the Lord’s presence, fellowshipping with God and one another. Even though they had been sitting for seven days the Mishnah tells us that they were still hot and fresh.

The table was never without bread. It was called the “continual shewbread” (Leviticus 24:5-8 and 2 Chronicles 2:4). Even when they traveled to a new place the continual bread could never leave the table (Numbers 4:7). It was also called the “presence bread,” and the “bread of faces” because the bread, which is a type of Christ, reveals so many of His attributes and character.

God always has bread on His table. It’s there every day for us. It never runs out. We never have to go hungry in our souls and spirits. Therefore, at our table each day, at the end of the meal, we open God’s precious Word and read it. It ministers to us and to our children. It prepares them for life. It prepares them to face the world. We cannot do without it or we starve spiritually.

Not only does God minister to us by filling us with His eternal bread, but we minister to Him as we pray and praise Him together. He waits for us to minister to Him at the table. As mothers, we also have the privilege of serving God at His table in our home by lovingly preparing meals and gathering our family to a fresh and bountiful table, naturally and spiritually.

Don’t vacate God’s table. He waits at His table in your home to meet with you, to feed you, and to have fellowship with you.

Be encouraged,

Nancy Campbell

PRAYER:

“Thank you, Father, that You love tables.  Thank you for wanting to be part of our table, which is truly Your table. Help us as a family to be faithful to come to Your table daily to feast with You and with one another. Amen.”

 

AFFIRMATION:

The table is our trysting place,

To meet with God and see His face,

To join together with each other,

Brothers, sisters, Father, Mother,

To talk and laugh, share our goals,

And fill our tummies and our souls.