Uncommen: Freely GivenSample

Hospitality

Jesus offers radical hospitality as He gave of Himself to others freely. “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they will with me.” (Revelation 3:20). Zacchaeus experienced a life-change with a visit by Jesus. “Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.” (Romans 12:13). Hospitality is love for strangers. As translated from the Greek word “philoxenia,” this application could include potential enemies, strangers, or possibly soon-to-be friends. It was not just friends and relatives but those in need, as shared by Apostle Paul.

Those who surrounded Jesus found the truth in the hard-hearted. Others found peace and freedom, and the shamed were covered in grace. Through a simple invitation to join others around the table. There is power in that invitation. Eating and drinking with others make it easier to proclaim the gospel and share Jesus’ love. Tim Chester explains, “In the ministry of Jesus, meals were enacted with grace, community, and mission.” Food opens the door to grace the message of Jesus and begins to define the community surrounded by His Grace and the mission to become unified through His blood. We are one race, the human race. We begin to understand and get to know those who do not look like ourselves.

Getting to know those who do not look like us does not have to begin with an expensive overseas mission trip. The mission field in our backyard is overlooked and ignored because it is not glamorous enough to serve inside our community. Those in need are silently hidden in plain sight and neglected. They are seen as a threat to the community because of their cultural differences. Luke shared Jesus’ mission as “the Son of Man came eating and drinking,” Jesus meets others in their moments of need without discriminating against their socioeconomic status.

Chester shares, “we can make community and mission sound like specialized activities that belong to experts.” It can be as simple as extended grace around the table. Jesus made it simple. He came to eat and drink. Building relationships with anyone open to Him. Kathleen Norris shares, “true hospitality is marked by an open response to the dignity of each and every person.” Everyone deserves dignity. “God created us with dignity,” shares John Perkins. We cannot give others dignity, but we can affirm their dignity by acknowledging their presence. We may look different, yet we come from the same seed.

Uncommen Questions:

Have you ever thought about the mission field within your community?

Are you willing to meet “the other” in your community?

Uncommen Challenge:

We challenge you to seek an opportunity to serve within your community, to find real needs and not just perceived needs that maintain dignity and show the love of Christ.