The Banquet Table at Sayville, L.I., N.Y.
When 72 Macon Street, Sayville, L. I., N.Y. was a Shrine to all the world, and throngs of visitors made pilgrimages there every day, a great feature was the Banquet Table, which for a period of years was spread as a free gift to mankind, many times each day from morning until the late hours of the night, to accommodate the throngs who came from far and near to hear the Words of Him Whose fame has reached the ends of the earth.
Since that time, duplicates of this great Banquet Table have spread throughout the world, wherever the Name of FATHER DIVINE is called, and the Abundance that flowed so freely in Sayville, has now been extended universally. But there is one particular reproduction of this Table that is more like Sayville than any other, and that is in the beautiful new Home of FATHER DIVINE in Bridgeport, Connecticut, better known as the Bridgeport Kingdom. In fact the whole establishment has been referred to as a reincarnation of Sayville, although 72 Macon Street is still operated as one of FATHER'S private homes, and the same Abundance freely flows there.
On Sunday, February 18th, at the Bridgeport Kingdom, the same expression as that of Sayville took place, when throngs from New York and New Jersey filled the building, and the Banquet Table was set many times over, up until ten o'clock in the evening. It was the occasion of a Public Meeting that filled the Kingdom Auditorium and Dining Room and also a large Hall at 521 Hallett Street, where FATHER Personally appeared during the late afternoon. Before going to the Meeting in the Hall, however, FATHER Personally served two Tables at which the Services lasted for many hours while songs of praise and testimonies of thanksgiving came forth and FATHER poured forth His Words that are Spirit and Life.
At the second of these Tables, the song was sung,
'Lead me, lead me, FATHER, lead me lest I stray, FATHER lead me lest I stray, Gently lead me all the way.'
To this FATHER responded Personally, as follows:
Good health, good will and a good appetite, and a-full and a-plenty to supply, yea, sufficient to satisfy every good heart's desire. At this particular juncture I rise to say, I heard you say and I heard you sing, 'FATHER lead me lest I stray.' I said, don't say it unless you mean it, for if you continue to sing it I will bring it forth into expression in your experiences, and you cannot prohibit it. You said, 'FATHER, lead me lest I stray. Gently lead me all the way.'
It has long since been said, 'As many as are led by the Spirit of GOD, they are the Sons of GOD.' Your request was to the Fathership Degree, the EVERLASTING FATHER, the Prince of Peace 'FATHER, lead me.' If you say it and mean it, saying it sincerely, it will contact the heart, it will permeate, it will saturate, it will penetrate your very being, and will cause you to be led by the Spirit of GOD, and 'As many as are led by the Spirit of GOD, they are the Sons of GOD.' When you become manifestedly to be the Sons of GOD, you are under CHRIST'S control, for it has long since been said, 'Sons and Daughters, give ME your hearts,' and when GOD has control of your heart, the body is brought under His Jurisdiction, and you cannot prohibit yourself from being led by the Spirit, for it takes control, and moves, and leads you beyond your personal control.
Therefore I say, don't say it unless you mean it. I am telling you what it will do for you, and not only what it will do for you, but what it will do to you. It will influence you, and cause you to lose control of yourself, for this Spirit and this Mind is Omnipotent. Being Omnipotent, it is Omniscient, having the Wisdom and Knowledge and Understanding to use Itself, which is this Power. It will bring all of the nations of the earth collectively, yea, even universally, into subjection to this CHRIST that we are advocating, and they too, as well as you, will come to this recognition, GOD alone shall Reign, and GOD alone shall have Dominion.
Do you not see it being fulfilled this day in your hearing? You can see them coming from the East and the West. They are coming from the North and from the South, and they are sitting down with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, in the Kingdom of your GOD. Their bodies, their minds, their spirits, and their souls and all, are being brought into subjection to GOD, and they are now under His Control.
Long since, GOD said these words through the mouth of David, the Psalmist, 'The LORD Reigneth, let the multitude of the isles be glad.' Do you not see the isles, particularly all of the islands of our present history, being brought into subjection? Brought into subjection to this great Teaching, as being termed this Great Teacher? To this Message of Salvation, this Light, and this Understanding, all are being brought into subjection, and they are willing and ready, for it has long since been said, 'In the Day of My Power, My People shall be willing.'
They are coming to this realization, the LORD in reality is reigning, no longer merely in imagination in some mythological Heaven, but 'The LORD Reigneth" in reality, on earth in the midst of the people. That is the mystery the world could not understand until I brought it to their conscious realization in this last, yea, in this present time.
For this cause the nations of the earth are rejoicing, and each and every individual that is willing and ready to do so, can feel the spirit of GOD'S Presence. This is so far-reaching, it is convincing to the human mind, causing even the mortal mind to be converted unto GOD. It is indeed wonderful! Truly might Isaiah have said, 'And the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto Thee.' Do you not see that it is fulfilled this day? All of the nations of the earth, they are seeking this blessing that you possess, and they will come to their rightful inheritance, the same as you, yourselves. You are enjoying it, for you have entered into the Kingdom of Heaven, where the Tree of Life is blooming. It is the place that was spoken of by the composer in one of his original compositions saying,
'On the other side of Jordan, In the sweet Fields of Eden, There is a Tree of Life a-blooming. There is rest for the weary, There is rest for you.'
They are coming to this place in consciousness wherein you stand. You are in the sweet Land of Canaan, on this side of Jordan, in the sweet fields of Eden, and here 'is a Tree of Life a- blooming, here is rest for the weary,' right here 'is rest for you.'
On this side of Jordan, you heard ME say the other day, we are in the sweet Field of Eden, which is in the Garden of Eden from whence man was driven. You have entered back into the Garden of Eden. That is the mystery of the Composition. Although you had sung it hundreds and hundreds of times, you did not understand it. You thought it was some place over in Egypt, or some place in the Holy Land. It, the Sweet Field of Eden, here is a Tree of Life a-blooming, here is rest for the weary; here is rest for you, when you shall have entered into this state of consciousness, when you shall have come up out of the Land of Egypt; that sinful state of expression subject to that which was termed the D-v-l, as being called Pharaoh in the land of Egypt in the parable. When you crossed the Jordan and entered the Canaan Land, you found the fruit was plentiful there. It was plentifully growing there, in the parable, and it is plentifully growing here, mentally and spiritually, in this mental state of understanding, in the Sweet Fields of Eden on this side of Jordan, where the Tree of Life is blooming and there is rest for you.
Have you not found rest for your soul? The half has never yet been told, but the mystery of it is in this Parable of Jesus as it was spoken "Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest; take My Yoke upon you and learn of Me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and thou shalt find rest for thy soul." I can see that you have found that rest the "rest that did remain to the People of GOD," for it was the rest on this side of Jordan, in the sweet Fields of Eden, the place from whence Adam was driven. You have entered into this state of consciousness, and you can take and eat and live Forever. That is why we believe in Eternal Life over here; it is because you have got back to the Garden of Eden and you have a right to the Tree of Life.
When Adam was driven from the Garden of Eden, GOD put a Cherubim to keep the way of the Tree of Life, lest Adam would put forth his hand, and take and eat, and live forever; but Jesus died, humanly speaking, Christianity speaking. Humanly speaking, Christianity speaking, Jesus died that you might have the right to Life, and if He died that you might have the right to the Tree of Life, the Cherubim has been taken away. GOD put the Cherubim to keep the way of the Tree of Life, lest Adam would put forth his hand and take and eat and live forever, for he was driven from the Garden of Eden. But since CHRIST came in the Name of Jesus, He has given you a happy admittance back into the Garden of Eden, whereby you can partake of the Tree of Life and eat and live Forever.
Then I say, in this Land of Canaan where the Tree of Life is blooming, here is rest for the weary; here is rest for you, on this side of Jordan in the sweet Fields of Eden. You have gotten back to the Garden of Eden again. You have the right to the Garden of Eden now. For this purpose CHRIST came in the Name called Jesus, to redeem man and give him his rights, from whence he had fallen. The Cherubim has been taken away from the Tree of Life, and now you are eating in this sweet Land of Eden, on this side of Jordan where the Tree of Life is freely blooming.
"Here is rest for the weary; here is rest for you." "If it were not so, I would have told you." For this cause, it being true, I would not tell you it was not so, but I am telling you it is so. It has been proven for the last four or five years especially. It has been proven universally not only individually and collectively among a few but it has been proven universally, that it is on this side of Jordan, in the sweet Fields of Eden; here is a Tree of Life a-blooming; here is rest for the weary; here is rest for you.
Thousands and thousands of you, having heard of this message of Love and Salvation expressed and brought to fruition through This Individual as a Tree of Life for the people those of you that have partaken of the Words that I have given, those of you that have eaten of this Tree of Life, you are now Living; for every one of you received your healing, mentally, spiritually, and physically. Then I say, it is indeed Wonderful! I think I had better stop! (Please don't stop, FATHER," pleaded the hearers.) Did you not receive your mental, physical and spiritual healing? ("Yes, FATHER," came back fervently.) You believed it, and you received it. You believed that this was the Tree of Life a-blooming. And believing, you received and you received your real healing, for your spirit, soul, and mind.
That is what is stirring up the Nation, and those of every nation, language, tongue and people that will come unto ME sincerely believing, they are healed of all of their diseases, and they can take and eat and live Forever. That is why I say, don't say it unless you mean it, for if you continue to say it, you may get the contagion. Catching this contagion, you will be caught up in the Spirit of it, and you will be just as radical, and filled with as much fanaticism, as I AM. That is what is the matter! Through this "radicalness" and through this fanaticism and ignorance, as it may be termed, it heals your spirit, your soul, your body, and your ;mind, and causes you to realize that you can take, and eat, and live Forever. I thank you.
PEACE, EVERYBODY! There is a Message that I would like to give, as I have concluded these few brief remarks just a little thought I wish to leave. If you will but gaze upon that which seems to be so insignificant as ME! Peter and John, after the descension of the Holy Ghost said, "Silver and gold have I none," or have we none, whichever, "but look on us." It was a standard of unfoldment to be looked upon. With or without consideration, through their gazing upon that perfect conviction and realization of the actual materialization of the CHRIST Consciousness, it produced a perfect healing or a perfect cure in the system of the individual that gazed upon the two.
Marvel not at these sayings, neither at these things, because of MY Speech, insignificant as I may appear to BE; but remember, this is the Fount of GOD'S Omniscience, producing and bringing into outer expression as it is flowing so freely for each and every individual all of GOD'S intelligence, to meet every emergency and to satisfy every good desire. As I AM, so can you be. You need not have a letter of the English alphabet. Just recognize the Ever-presence of the CHRIST, dial in on this Fundamental, and you will contact effectually the Divine Consciousness in your subconscious mind the Well of GOD'S Omniscience and it will be a never-failing Fount flowing freely from all of the Omniscience of Him that Liveth Forever.
Take these thoughts into consideration. I have lifted up a Standard for this People, that they might come to this recognition, and substantiate themselves in this recognition, that "CHRIST is rich and all you need. Do you not see it! You have no record of MY having anything after the manner of men saving that which I bring into existence and into outer expression by this great Omniscience that is flowing from this Infinite Fount. As a Sample and as an Example I came. Dial in on this Principle, and you as individuals will have the victory over all adversities, and over all limitations, over all handicaps, over all adverse and undesirable conditions, and you will not have to fret nor worry concerning your ignorance, or not being educated, or anything of that kind, for the Spirit of MY Mind and the Mind of MY Spirit is the GOD of Omniscience, and will reveal His Mysteries to His People, I thank you.
PEACE, EVERYBODY! At this particular juncture I must conclude, as there are others who desire to eat. Those of us that have dined will pass out and allow others to come forward, for there are many that could not be seated at the Tables heretofore. Just before I conclude, I just wish to say, we are still advertising lost and found articles in the Lost and Found Columns of the New York News, the weekly paper, and also the World Echo, the weekly paper, the papers that carry My Message unselfishly. These are the papers that we are reading. There are many lost and found articles of value we are advertising. There are some diamond rings, pins, purses, and other things, small change, and different sums of money, as much as one hundred and fifty dollars in one sum, in cash money, being advertised. The owner of this sum has not called for it. If anyone thinks he has lost some, let it be known by identifying it, and they can have it for the asking.
Many of these lost and found articles of value, and others of less value, are advertised in the papers. If you will just let us know if you can identify them, you can have them for the asking, without compensation. We are not doing it for compensation, we are doing it to create and arouse the spirit of honesty in the hearts and minds of this People, for the Spirit of Honesty, which is the Spirit of CHRIST, is the only thing that will give you the victory. So long as you are dishonest, you will be limited from some point of view.. :You will be getting and wanting, and lacking and losing, but if you will be honest, competent, trustworthy and true to others as well as unto yourselves, you will be abundantly blessed and naught can be taken from you. Aren't you glad!
Take these thoughts into consideration and live in this recognition, and I will be with you as you go down from this Place. Now, as I afore said, we are going to the public hall. I think I have announced it heretofore, at 521 Hallett Street. All are welcome to attend the public meeting, as it is a very large hall. I will be there, and I will be here, and I will be filling this dining room and also this building, and filling the lecture auditorium, and I will also be at the other hall at the same time. You have declared that I fill all space and am absent from none. We will arise and go hence, and give others a chance to come forward, that have not dined. I thank you.
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