What Are You Doing Under The Table?

September 16th, 2023

by Bro. Craig Amenell
09/16/2023

John 21:12 - “Jesus saith unto them, Come and dine.”

Dogs are interesting creatures. We are told they are man’s best friend. I would have to say that I agree with that statement and would call myself a dog person. However, if you were to come over to my house for dinner you would be shocked if one of my dogs sat down next to you in a chair and ate directly from the table. Why, they are my best friend. Probably because that is not a dog's place.

At best, the dog should stay under the table during mealtime. Why would they be content with that when the prepared meal is on the table above them? Because at least from there, they can snag scraps that fall from the table. Even the Syrophenician women in the gospel of Mark knew that “the dogs under the table eat of the children’s crumbs” (Mark 7:28). That is why dogs are always excited to see children go to the dinner table.

As much as I like dogs, I am thankful that I am not one and get to have a seat at the table when it is mealtime. I have the opportunity to partake of a full hot freshly prepared meal anytime that I decide to avail myself of one. I don’t have to settle for the crumbs that fall from the table.

In like manner when it comes to feeding the spiritual man, I am thankful I have an invitation from the Master to “come and dine.” I don’t have to settle for what others drop here and there. I have God's full Word to dine on. As we sit at the table and open the Word it supplies all the food our soul could ever desire. Thankfully this kind of food we can eat as much as we want and there are not any negative consequences.

Knowing this to be true, tell me why do we so often find ourselves like dogs waiting for crumbs to be dropped to us? Perhaps the crumbs are found in a few verses from a little devotional book or sweet words of truth falling from the pulpit as the Preacher serves the Word of God. If in those moments, like our dog, we get a taste and know that it is good, why do we just settle for the crumbs? No one is going to look at us funny if we jump out from under the table and start to devour all the food God's Word has to offer.

Unlike a dog that depends on its master to serve a meal to get fed, we do not have to wait for the church doors to open to get our spiritual food. If your spirit is hungry you can dine on the Word any time. The Christian does not have to wait for a designated mealtime.

God's invitation to get nutrients from His Word is a standing invitation. Unlike sneaking to the fridge between meals or opening the pantry at night, reading God's Word is always spiritually acceptable. After all, most of us would get pretty hungry and moody if we only ate Sunday morning, Sunday night, and Wednesday night.

God's Word is like a 24-hour all-you-can-eat buffet that is the quality of Texas de Brazil. If you don’t turn your card from the green side to red and continue to linger there, God will serve you up more tasty strong meat than you will know what to do with. The good thing is unlike most buffets, God lets you take a doggy bag to go so that you can meditate on the food while you're away from a meal. Every time that we eat a meal to the satisfying of our belly may we be reminded that the inner man would like a meal to the satisfying of the spirit. Don’t wait for the dinner bell to ring because it doesn’t need to, God's Word is always open for business. Don’t starve yourself by settling for crumbs. Get out from under the table and partake of the manna straight from heaven.