Many years ago I read an amusing article that reminds me of a key part of what we celebrate here at the Lord’s Table.  It was by a writer who had gone on a long and arduous journey to Guyana in South America.  His group faced many hardships with the jungle and the Amazon river, but he said it was all worthwhile when at the end of their journey they waded into the upper waters of the Amazon to see the largest water lily in the world. That lily traps very large insects in its petals and releases them the following night.

 The reason I laughed was that I often stopped on my relaxing lunchtime strolls through the Botanic Gardens to see that very same Victoria or Amazon Lily (Victoria Amazonica).  There was no need for an arduous journey, someone from the Gardens has already endured that for us.

 That’s similar to how many people approach God with a difficult journey of searching, like long pilgrimage, or involvement in exotic religions, or performing deeds of great sacrifice, or even self-torture in times past.  But efforts like that do not bring us closer to God.  Why are we tempted to such great effort?

I suggest it is to put ourselves at the centre of things, so we can then decide where God is and who he is.  It is the old temptation of Adam of wanting to be like God, to be the one in control.

 We don’t need to search for God, for we are the ones who were lost, not God.

But here we celebrate that God has already found us, and is very near to us, waiting for us to turn to Him.  He reached out to us through Jesus, who took the penalty for our sin on himself on the cross at Calvary.  Jesus has restored us to God’s righteousness.  All we need to do is simply believe and trust in what he has already done for us.

Romans 10:9 reads, ‘if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved’.

God has come to us.  He is not distant or remote, for He has sent his Spirit to live in us, that we may live a new life in Christ.  As Jesus said in Luke 17:20, “The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is within you.”

 Jesus invites you to this meal. You don’t need to be a member of this or any church, for Jesus reaches out to you wherever you are placed in this journey of life.  All you need is a willingness to know him more, and to live the wonderful life he has prepared for you.