The King’s Table

Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; and He will reign as king and act wisely and do justice and righteousness in the land. In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely; And this is His name by which He will be called, ‘The Lord our righteousness.’ “Therefore behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord, when they will no longer say, ‘As the Lord lives, who brought up the sons of Israel from the land of Egypt,’ but, ‘As the Lord lives, who brought up and led back the descendants of the household of Israel from the north land and from all the countries where I had driven them.’ Then they will live on their own soil.  Jeremiah 23:5-8 NASB

Are you eager for the day of His returning? 

The time of Advent is a season filled with not only celebration but expectation and hope of the return of Jesus the Christ. Last night Mike and I were talking about living each day with a real expectation of Christ’s return, asking ourselves are we longing for Jesus to return with His salvation, yet also His judgement? are we deeply, humbly prepared to walk away from the people we love, the things of this world and run to God…. 

The history of Christmas doesn’t begin with Jesus’ birth or pause with His crucifixion. Nor does the story end with the resurrected Saviour ascending into heaven. There is still one more chapter to come. A chapter where Jesus Christ isn’t painted as a humble babe in a manger or a bloodied king on the cross, the book of Revelation teaches Jesus Christ is the warrior King poised to conquer His kingdom’s enemies.

this coming Sunday, December 10th, will be the second Sunday of Advent and it celebrates the promise of Peace, the message of hope, of peace on earth spoken to the shepherds by the assembly of Angels.

However experiencing “peace on earth” was then and still is a difficult task.  Since before the coming of Christ, indeed since His birth, His death, resurrection, and ascension, mankind has  witnessed world wars, we have seen disease and famine not to mention personal testings and tribulations that each of us has faced as life crashes in …..  people sin against one another, violate one another, assault one another, and destroy one another (physically, emotionally, and psychologically). And for many this world raises intense questions about God and His Kingdom’s peace on earth.

Colossians 1:13-18 NASB For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.

Consider the fact that Jesus Christ came to reveal Himself as the prince of peace, the Way the truth the life - God became man and walked among His creation, and by His merciful love Christ’s sacrifice on the cross brings reconciliation to God, can we by Faith receive the truth?? The Lord is the conquerer of sin and death, and through His birth, life, death, burial, and resurrection, we are given the choice - and there is coming a day when we have run out of time to choose between eternal chaos and suffering or eternal peace and life, my friend now choose to follow Jesus, God is reaching out His strong hand to those who will grasp it and receive a place at the king’s table.

The Lord Jesus Christ is mighty, holy and all powerful. There are times of intimacy in which we call on Him as our Heavenly Father, as the One who relentlessly loves and forgives us. There are times when we allow our hearts to rejoice in the glory of knowing Jesus personally as our Savior and Shepherd. But we must also practice the discipline of worshipping Jesus the Christ as King, the Warrior King. He is the One we serve and lift up on high. We are not His equals, for He is God!