Psalm 23:5, You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
All around us our enemies try to persuade us how God “doesn’t exist,” they mock our Lord Christ, they twist and misinterpret Scripture for their evil agendas, they redefine sin and even outright reject the reality of sin. Why they are so hostile toward a God they claim doesn’t exist is a mystery; they belong to the Devil. They already crucified our Lord, so now all they can do is hate us and annoy us with their incessant blabbering.
In their presence, Christ prepares His table with His body and blood for us to partake for the forgiveness of sins. This drives our enemies crazy. Their irrational unbelief cannot stand our reasonable faith. Let them hate us. Let their hatred screech as banshees of the Devil. For what can they do against Christ’s Church? They can mock, criticise, misunderstand, even persecute, but Christ’s Church shall always stand.
Let us never be afraid, then. Let us continually gather before the Lord’s Table as their screeches accomplish nothing. For at the Table Christ prepares forgiveness as a foretaste oof the greater Feast to come; and let us continue baptising as He anoints our heads with holy oil and overflows our cup with His Spirit of mercy.
The Lutheran Column 