Feast Of The Presence

Our final Charles Wesley hymn in this Trinity Week, brings us to banquet, to feast. Indeed, this hymn reminds us of the grace we have been given to banquet with the Holy Trinity.

The Singing and Reading

Jesus, we thus obey, Thy last and kindest word; Here in Thine own appointed way, We come to meet Thee, Lord. Our hearts we open wide, To make the Saviour room; And lo, the Lamb, the Crucified, The sinner's friend, is come. Thy presence makes the feast; Now let our spirits feel The glory not to be expressed, The joy unspeakable. With high and heavenly bliss, Thou dost our spirits cheer; The house of banqueting is this, And Thou hast brought us here. Now let our souls be fed, With manna from above, And over us Thy banner spread, Of everlasting love.

Think on these words - whether you sing them, read them, or listen to them read to you, in faith and believing. We carry on in that with which we are being garnished.

Our Garnishing

We are looking at the meaning of the word garnish, as all the things God said that should adorn and be an integral part of His temple. When Solomon built the temple, this is one thing we are told. He adorned the temple with precious stones. And the gold he used was gold of Parvaim. 2 Chronicles 3: 6. He garnished the temple of the Lord to the pleasure of his God. May all of us who are the Lord’s temples, receive in spirit and in truth, fresh new revelations about the state and condition of the Lord’s house.

Seeing and Returning

When, through the prompting and conviction of the Holy Spirit, we are made aware that we are not being obedient to our Lord’s last and kindest Word, as He appointed, we come to realise that our temples are not adequately garnished or outfitted with the requirements of our Lord. It is in this obedience that we always and ever must come to meet the Lord.

Even now, Holy Father, in this moment of community, as we come to meet You, as You have appointed, we ask for Your forgiveness. The truth is that we have not obeyed You in this way. We have not known feasting which must garnish, adorn and make Your temples fit, right and pleasing to You. Holy Lord Jesus, we return with open hearts to give You all the room, for You, Father God’s Crucified Lamb, You, the sinner’s only Friend, are come. You come because it is Your Presence that makes the Feast. Amen!

Pause for a moment and note the Presence. Are we not in the Presence of God the Holy Spirit, for God is Spirit? Are we not in the Presence of God the Father, for He is the One who came incarnate in Jesus, to save His children? Are we not in the Presence of Jesus, God the Son, who is our Redeemer and Friend? O yes, my fellow believers, the Presence of our Triune God makes the feast.

Signing and Resourcefulness

The signing here reminds us of what the Holy Spirit signs in us. Indeed, He is the One signing. It is His signature on the parchment of our lives, which makes us God’s living, pleasingly garnished temples. Listen to this well-known Scripture passage. The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Romans 8: 16. As children of God then, are we not His earthly dwelling place? Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body. 1 Corinthians 6: 19 – 20.

Signed with the Holy Spirit’s signature then, we confess that we are not our own; we belong to God and it is thuswise, that our uplifted and Holy Ghost fired spirits feel inexpressible glory and unspeakable joy. Only God’s children then receive all the resourcefulness necessary to be able to access, possess and profess such high and heavenly bliss, which cheer our spirits.

We are given heavenly privileges, to be brought to the banqueting house, where our souls are fed with heavenly manna and our saved lives are spread over with God’s banner of everlasting love. Father, Son and Holy Ghost, One in Three and Three in One, just as all can see when someone has an open umbrella covering him or her, so too it is with Your banner of everlasting love. May Your banner of love over me be so real and visible, that others will see and want to personally know You for themselves. Amen!