10th November 2024 All Age All Remembrance Day Service

Hmm.

It's great to be with you today, great for those

who are joining us online, Cherry. And would you just

help me move the table out just for a moment, kay, m.

Hm hm.

Hm yes, Okay, this is going to be an interactive

Two of them, two of them, please, Eric, one either side.

You recognize this. It's a dining room table. It's been

laid up for two I don't know whether you when

you would be another black chair.

Thankay.

I don't know whether you have invited someone around for

dinner recently, but when you invite them around for dinner,

you prepare anybody who.

Lives in our house.

If we've got people coming around for dinner, between the

breaks in my day, maybe when I'm maybe when I'm working,

I'll take a break and I'll put something on the

table whilst I'm making my cup of coffee. So by

the time we get to the middle of the afternoon,

the table is already laid. I'm preparing the table from

in the morning. Now. If Julia's cooked, because she cooks

mostly in our house, not me, by the way, she

may have prepared a week before because she's done the

thinking about what am I going to buy? What am

I going to cook. Sometimes it might be prepared in advance.

And what I want to do today is I want

to bring to life. One verse in Psalm twenty three,

we already read it. Psalm twenty three, verse five says this,

you prepare a table before me in the presence of

my enemies. You anoint my head with oil. My cup overflows.

So there's no food here today apart from maybe some grapes.

But there is a table. And I'm going to live

this out as a prophetic act today. At any point

during the sermon, if you want to come and sit

in this chair here, please feel free to do so.

Just come and sit. I'm not going to just come

and sit, because what I want to firstly say is,

let's really get a grasp of this. There's a table prepared.

Someone's thought. It's not just oh, come and eat. It's

not let's lay the table. There's a preparation that's gone on.

And God says, there's a place for you at my table.

There's a place for you at my table. Now my

table is not I asked. I was talking to Letty

because I know she's great at these things. So she

added a few extra things like flowers, I hadn't thought

of flowers. It just makes that thing extra and special.

And I said to Letty, can you think of a

banqueting table. She immediately sent me a picture of Windsor

Castle with the King and the Queen and everybody and

everything was gold. It's the same way. We've been here

a month. We've just gone you know, we've gone through

a cycle. This is you know, yeah, whoosh, and we

get we're getting together things. You know, the worship band

were actually able to rehearse this morning. You know, there's

a lot of preparations. So I'm going to ask everybody

who has helped in any way, in any service since

we got here, whether it's loading cars, whether it's putting

out chairs, whether it's worship team, whether it's a ministry team,

would you stand right now just if you've if you've

had a go, if you've helped, would you stand.

Do I need to stop using something, gentlemen?

Okay, Father, thank you for these people who prepare a table,

Lord God, a table where we meet with you.

Father.

I pray that you'd help us Lord to do it better. Father.

We pray that this place will be filled one day

and there would be a banqueting table for all. So Father,

I pray for those who've blessed us with their service

in this first month, and we press into more and

we look forward to plugging other people in as we

are your church and your kingdom in this place today

in Jesus' name, Amen, give yourself a random applause. Thank you,

Thank you Church. It's you know, and there are still

things we need to improve.

You know.

They often talk about the first thirty days, the first

hundred days. There are things we still need to improve.

I already know some things that I want to improve

from this week.

Till last week.

But do you know what, when the table is laid,

then it's ready for the meal. And I thought I

would do this. In fact, does anybody want to volunteers?

Anybody want to come and light the candles? Anybody could

be fire, Come and light the candles for me, my friend,

Please don't set fire to the table. And I haven't

checked whether this will set the smoke of arms off.

I haven't checked that, but let's hope not. You don't

light the candles until people are coming, do you. I

did you know I might have laid the table at

two o'clock in the afternoon. But I wouldn't light the

candles at two o'clock in the afternoon, because what would

have happened By the time the guests get there. They

probably have burnt out. Thank you, my friend. So the

table is laid, and scripture says you prepare? Who's you

in this circumstance? What's this scripture saying you? Who is

you prepare? Is it us?

Are we preparing the table?

Now?

Who prepares the table? The Lord prepares the table. So

this seat is for the Lord. He wants to have

a meal with you. I notice this is a very

intimate table. There's only two. This is not you can

sidle in the back and just sit in the back

and watch. This is an intimate time. Now, where is

this table prepared? His table is prepared in the presence

of our enemies. Now, I don't know whether you've got

any enemies, but think about people maybe you don't like,

or you don't like to spend time with. Spend He

prepares a table. Now, I don't want to sit in

a round a table in front of people I don't like.

But he prepares a table in the presence of our enemies.

He wants to say, come and sit despite all the

other troubles that you have, or despite all the other

troubles that are going on, come and eat with me.

Now.

I don't know how good you are at focusing, But

do you know what you know? There are people who

you know. You'll come and sit here, and you'll be

thinking what am I having for lunch? Or who am

I seeing later? Or did I turn the iron off?

You'll be thinking all those kinds of things. And if

we were sitting genuinely in the presence of our enemies,

we really wouldn't be focused on the table. We'd probably

be looking over our shoulders, thinking, oh, my goodness, we're

going to jump on a bit. In Song of Solomon,

chapter two, verse four, it says this, and we sung

this as a chorus. He brought me to his banqueting table,

and his banner over me is love. The backdrop here

is love. This is a table of love. This is

a place where he wants to talk with us and

meet with us. Now, i'd like you. I don't know

whether you've ever been to a restaurant, or whether you've

been to a restaurant recently. Often when you might have

booked the table ahead and you go in and you

stand by the door and you wait for the matre

d to come and say yes, and you say, well,

I booked a table, and then he will walk you

through the restaurant. She will walk you through the restaurant

and take you to your table. I'd like you to

imagine a banqueting hall. Maybe this hall is completely empty,

or it's ten times the size, and right in the

middle of the hall is just this table. There are

no other tables, there is no other banquet laid there

before you, And so you almost want to go am

I meant to be sitting somewhere else, and this is

for you. Please come and sit, because this is an

intimate moment. God doesn't want a conversation with ten of us,

or twenty of us or one hundred of us. He

wants a conversation with you. That's why he brings you

to his banqueting table. That's why it's a table of luxury.

It's a table of abundance, because He's a God of abundance.

It's a table of more than enough, and it's laid

to provide for you, to feed you. And I'm not

just talking about physical feeding here. I'm talking about feeding

of our spirits, of our souls. You know I can

be full, and yet I can be empty. Do you

know that feeling I can be? You know I can

have eaten all that I need to eat. My tummy

is full, but I feel completely empty. And there are

other times when we can. If you've ever fasted, you

might know this feeling. You feel full, but your tummy

is completely empty. It goes on to say in verse

six of Some twenty three, let me read to you

from the message version now Psalm twenty three, verses five

and six. You serve me a six dinner right in

front of my enemies. You revive my drooping head. My

cup brims with blessing, your beauty and love. Chase after

me every day of my life. I'm back home in

the House of God for the rest of my life.

My cup overflowes. I did think about illustrating this today.

I did think about literally filling a cup and letting

it overflow on the floor, and I just thought, no, okay,

we're still building relationship with the college. But you get

the image if I filled this cup now, as a

polite brit when you fill a cup up, you fill

it to within an inch or so.

At the top.

You leave some space so that people when they carry

it don't spill things. Scripture says, I'm going to fill

to overflying to the brim, So don't be afraid. Don't

be afraid of that which I would bring. Does anybody

want to come and sit at this table? Do anybody

want to come and sit? Go on, Arash, you first,

You'll lead the way, my friend. You're a bold man

of God. Just sit and linger for a while. Don't

need to and Philippians four, verse nineteen says this, and

my God shall supply all your needs according to his

riches in Jesus, his riches in glory by Christ to Jesus,

my God shall supply all your needs, not just your wants.

We often say, but God, you haven't heard my prayer.

You haven't provided my wants the things that I would like.

But God says, I will supply all your needs, and

I will evidence that at a table like this.

Come and linger with me.

One of the things that will happen when you sit

at a table like this is you will be drawn

to the table. You won't sit back. And you can

see Arash is already sitting forward on his chair. He's

leaning into the table. You know, if the father and

I don't pretend to be the father, but I want

to personify this for you. If the father sits opposite

you at the table and suddenly we're eye to eye,

Suddenly we're looking at one another, Suddenly we're intimate, you know,

Arash is no longer. ARASH's not looking at my feet,

He's looking at my face. The Father wants you to

look at him. He wants you to realize that when

he hasn't answered your prayer, there are tears in his eyes,

not because he hasn't answered your prayer, but because he

sees your need. This banqueting table is full, full, full

of love. Amen, It's a table that's been set before.

You feel free to go whenever you want to raish.

You don't have to stay linger as long as you want.

But other people please come and sit at the table

for In John chapter nine, John chapter ten, verses nine

and ten, it says, I am the door. If anyone

enters me, he will be saved and will go out

and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal, kill

and destroy. I have come that you might have life,

and have it abundantly. This is a sign, a symbol,

a story of abundance. God provides more than enough. His

storehouses in heaven are not limited. He is not constrained

by who he is. He is only constrained by who

we think he is. In the story that in chapter fourteen,

there's a couple of things that I would like to

quote you. Look fourteen, verse one. Now it happened that

as they went into the house of one of the

rulers of the Pharisees to eat bread on the Sabbath,

that they watched Jesus closely. And then it came to say,

but when you were invited, go and sit down at

the lowest place, so that when he who invited you comes,

he may say to you, friend, come up higher. Then

you will have glory in the presence of those who

sit at the table with you. There is no other

place at this table. That's talking about a banqueting where

we are sitting. But here, just one place, one place

for you, one place for you to share, one place

for you to engage. Now, what would happen at the

end of the meal at the table? You've now eaten

and you've had your fill. What would happen at the

end of the meal, would you just get up and

go you finished your main course or you finished your dessert?

Or have six courses? As we got from the message version,

there's six courses. There'd probably be some pauses between courses.

What happens between courses at a meal? Hopefully, yes, we talk,

couldn't we? Hopefully it'd be a very awkward meal.

Now.

I think sometimes we come to the table with God

and we sit opposite him and we sit in silence.

Now I'm not saying we should be a chatterbox, because

there should be talking and listening, but there should be conversation.

Many years ago, forty years ago, I went to a

youth group and actually more than forty years ago now,

and one of the young ladies in the youth group

her dad was a wing commander in the ref and

so it was often away. But when he was ever

at home, he and his wife used to have date night.

Friday night was date night, and the two daughters had

to go upstairs and they had snacks and stuff, but

it was date night downstairs, and there was always a

table laid like this, and it was always with candles,

and it was always one to one. I think there

were conversations that happened around that kind of table. But

it's about you being intentional in relationship. When was the

last time you sat down with God in this level

of intimacy and just said, Lord, I want to chat,

I want to talk, I want to feast with you.

Some of you know I had. I tried to show

my wisdom today as the roads were closed and I

was thinking, this is going to be a disaster.

We're having this service.

And the police had closed the ropes, and I was thinking,

how do we get to church? And I went up

to the policeman and I thought I'd try and lay

down my cars and I said, I used to be

one of the police chaplains. Didn't have any power with

him at all. He said, I'm a police officer. I said,

I don't know that. But I did say to him,

how long is it closed for? He said nine thirty

to eleven thirty. I was thinking, oh, no, how's anybody

going to get here? And I said, and we just

had a chat, and I said, could you have a

chat with your sergeant please and just see whether we

can have some grace and favor here? And you all

got here somehow, so something happened. But you know what,

one of the things when I was a police chaplain

was I didn't know how to start the conversation. My

job was to visit every police station in Surrey. And

so I said to the former police chaplain, I said,

what'd you do? He said, my recommendation to you, Dave,

is that you linger with purpose and loiter with intent.

I couldn't work out how to do this. I'm not

very good at those kind of things. So I just

used to buy a box of donuts and walk in

and say, hi, guys, I'm Dave. Here's a donut. Can

I make you a cup of tea? All I was

doing was just trying to create something like this. All

I was trying to do is say let's have a chat.

You know sometimes although the images come and eat with me,

it's come and linger with me, Come and spend time

with me. We live in a world where we rush

table time. I mean, think about it. I'm not going

to I'm not. We're as bad as anybody else. But

how many times do you sit around the table together

to eat?

Yeah?

And please, if you live on your own, don't lay

two places. Lay two places and sit with the father

and have a conversation with the father. You know, there's

the only person who's going to see it as you,

so you don't need to worry about anybody going.

Don't need to worry about that.

I've got friends who lay an extra space at their

table every meal, and they say this is for Jesus,

but if somebody house happens to turn up, they can

have it.

And so they were already expecting.

Some of the table. How many chairs should we put

out on a Sunday here? We should always put at

least ten more than we had last week, Always ten

more than last we had last week, you know. And

when this hall is full, then we'll move to a

bigger hall. He brought me to his banqueting table, and

his banner over me is love. Let me close things together,

as I want to read from the amplified.

Version, till I put the amplified version in. No, I didn't, okay,

which case I won't be from the amplified version. Let

me go back to Psalm twenty three, verses five and

six in the New King James, the last two slides,

you prepare a table before me in the presence.

Of my enemies. There's peace around this table. There's love

around this table. Come and sit and eat and drink

with him. Because you anoint my head with oil, my

cup runs over. And what comes from this table. We

then read on in verse six. Surely goodness and mercy

shall follow me all the days of my life, and

I will dwell, I will stay, I will remain, I

will linger in the house of the Lord forever Church.

It starts at the table. Come and eat with him.

I'm absolutely sure that if you ever came and sat

at this table, you would not sit back like this,

Because if there's someone sitting in this chair, then I'm

talking to them. I'm not talking to anybody else. I'm

only talking to them. It doesn't matter about the other

people around, the enemies, the trouble, the strife. I'm looking

at them because this is an intimate place to get

to know the Father better, and he wants to get

to know you better. He brought me to his banqueting table,

and his banner over you.

Is love.

I'm going to encourage you throughout the rest of the service.

I'm going to leave the candle's lit If during worship

you just want to come and sit at either one

of these chairs, please feel free to do so. I

think there's a prophetic act that I'm encouraging you here.

You can watch the table from afar, or you can

come and linger in his presence. So I'm going to

ask the worship team to come back up. I'm going

to pray as they come. Is that okay?

Letty, Yeah, Let's bow our heads as I pray as

they come, as we sung, I'm coming back to the

heart of worship.

Worship happens around a table. Worship happens by looking into

the eyes of the Father, looking into his heart, knowing

his love for us. Let's get our eyes off his

feet and where he's been, and let's lift our eyes

as says and psalms, lift our eyes to the hills

from whence came our help, lift our eyes up and

look into his face. I want us to know and

understand that we see a reflection of ourselves. As we

look into the eyes of God, we see a glimpse

of ourselves and the struggles we go through. And as

we linger in his presence and we let go around

the table, love will flow, Provision will come, The Father

will smile, Tears may be shared, but joy will arise

From Jesus amen