“Then they said to each other, ‘We’re not doing right. This is a day of good news and we are keeping it to ourselves. If we wait until daylight, punishment will overtake us. Let’s go at once and report this to the royal palace.'” 2 Kings 7:9
The Syrians had surrounded the capital of Israel and the people inside were starving and desperate. Unknown to the Israelites, the Lord had sent the Syrian camp fleeing. Beyond the city walls, out in the desert, the Lord spread out a rich banquet. Thing is, nobody knew it. And so, the famished people continued to eek out an existence on tree bark and bird dung.
The lepers, realizing they had nothing to lose, ventured outside the city. When they wandered into the empty camp of the enemy, they found the tents filled with food and treasure. They began to stuff their faces as well as their pockets with booty. However, the more they feasted, the emptier they felt. They were only able to completely enjoy their stumbled-upon banquet when they turned, ran and told the good news to their starving neighbors.
The pleasures of God are never private pleasures. They are, as Dr. John Piper says, “always shared, public, and communal.” The joy we experience in our salvation is true, radiant and sincere only when we share it with others. The writers of the Bible say, “Let us exalt his name together.”
The apostle John served many a banquet plate up to others, calling them, “my joy and my crown.” John doubled his joy whenever he brought someone new to the good-news table. My motive in writing this book is the desire to double my joy by passing the plate of God’s blessings to as many people as I can.
The banquet of God’s blessings will taste sweeter if you invite someone to take a seat next to you. What aspect of the gospel can you share with someone today? Pass the platter to a person who’s hungry… and experience the joy!
Show me people who are hungry, Lord, and I will show them to the banquet table.
