Joy From The Worship Banquet Table Christian Joy Seekers Joy From The Worship Banquet Table

There’s Within My Heart A Melody Feasting on the riches of His grace, Resting ‘neath His sheltering wing, Always looking on His smiling face; That is why I shout and sing!

Find Joy In The Worship Of God Psalm 63:3-5 – “Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, My lips will praise You. So I will bless You as long as I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name. My soul is satisfied as with marrow and fatness, and my mouth offers praises with joyful lips.” Marrow and fatness???

Worshiping With NO Heart Isaiah 29:13-14: “Then the Lord said, ‘Because this people draw near with their words and honor Me with their lip service, but they remove their hearts far from Me, and their reverence for Me consists of tradition learned by rote, therefore behold, I will once again deal marvelously with this people….’”

Duty Worship Vs. Heart Worship Duty worship lacks love. Duty worship lacks feeling. Duty worship lacks gratitude. Heart worship loves God. Heart worship shows emotion. Heart worship overflows with thanksgiving.

Why Does Worship Get Bland? Jeremiah 2:11-13 – “…My people have changed their glory for that which does not profit. Be appalled, O heavens, at this, and shudder, be very desolate,’ declares the Lord. ‘For My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, to hew for themselves cisterns, broken cisterns that hold no water.’” Why settle for a tiny sip when you can have a big gulp?

When We’re Starving For God Sometimes we seek for all the wrong things. Home. Family. Friends. Job. Television. Fast food. Tablet. Smart phone. Vacation. Retirement. These satisfy only earthly desires. Not spiritual ones.

Eventually Our Souls Cry Out For God Psalm 42:1-3 – “As the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God; when shall I come and appear before God? My tears have been my food day and night, while they say to me all day long, ‘Where is your God.’” Have you ever felt that painful emptiness?

We Long To Be Filled “How sweet are Your words to my taste! Yes, sweeter than honey to my mouth! Psalm 119:103 “Wisdom has…prepared her food, she has mixed her wine; she has also set her table…. ‘Come, eat of my food and drink of the wine I have mixed….’” Proverbs 9:2, 5

So Why Do We Practice Spiritual Dieting? Are we afraid of over-eating on the word of God? Are we afraid of over-indulging in heartfelt worship and praise of our Lord? Are we so afraid to feast on the riches of His grace that we bottle our hearts up and starve them into submission?

Feasting On Jesus John 6:53-56 (following the miracle of the loaves and fishes) – “So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him.”

The Heavenly Banquet Anticipating The Messianic Kingdom Isaiah 25:6 – “The Lord of hosts will prepare a lavish banquet for all peoples on this mountain; a banquet of aged wine, choice pieces with marrow, and refined aged wine.” Matthew 22:1ff – parable of a wedding feast. Luke 13:28 – “In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but yourselves being thrown out. And they…will recline at the table in the kingdom of God.”

God Gives All And Demands All John 3:16 demonstrates the depth of God’s giving. Mark 12:30: “And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.”

Let The Feasting Begin John 4:13-14 – “Jesus answered and said to her, ‘Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again; but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.”