“…Practice Hospitality.” -Romans 12:13
“Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.” -1 Peter 4:9

Hospitality has been a characteristic of God’s people through the ages. More importantly, it is a reflection of God’s character and His heart. Hospitality translated literally is ‘the love of strangers.’ It is about having an open-ness to others and a willingness to help them and meet their needs. It is about welcoming people and showing them honor and respect.

In Genesis 18:2-8 we see an example of the importance of hospitality in the ancient near east. We know the guests were angels because we are reading the story, but Abraham and then Lot did not; they simply practiced the priority of hospitality. This story is remembered in Hebrews 13:2 when it says that we are not to, “forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.” There is a transcendent element to hospitality – we never know fully what we are doing or what is going to happen as a result.

In Matthew 25:31-46 Jesus teaches that at the judgment one of the factors considered is our response to the ‘stranger,’ and our willingness to be open and to help. To serve the stranger is to serve Christ. Again, there is more going on than we know.

There are two layers to hospitality; the stranger we don’t know, and then those that we do know. Romans and 1 Peter appear to refer to our openness to those we know. But these two overlap in our practice and our decision to honor and serve others. We don’t stop welcoming simply because we know someone.

We are to practice hospitality in our homes. There are barriers that we experience to livng this way. There is fear – some of which is legitimate. We need to wise in how we open our homes to people. There is shame – we may not think our house is neat enough or nice enough. And we might just be too lazy to practice hospitality. There are many things which hinder us.

We are also to practice hospitality in our church; to be open to others and to welcome them. It is true that there is a certain distance between the believer and unbeliever which will always be there. The believer is ‘In Christ’ and the unbeliever is not. But that in no way needs to keep us from welcoming and serving the ‘outsider’ and inviting them into our lives – and more importantly into God’s Kingdom. The presupposition is that people matter and are important to God, and so are important to us.

There are three questions that we need to ask ourselves:

-Do we really believe in the power of the Gospel to save, to change and set free. Have we experienced it ourselves, and do we have confidence in this ‘treasure’ that we declare.

-Do we believe in the church as God’s idea and God’s program. Are we convinced that God uses his people gathered together to worship and serve Him, and to make a difference.

-And lastly, do we believe in our church, North Shore Baptist Church, and that it is being used by God to impact others and will continue to be used by God. If we believe that we will have no hesitation to invite and welcome others to join us in our pursuit of God.

This time of year is especially difficult for many. We feel our dreams deeply during the holiday season, but also sense the vacuous nature of our lives apart from God. There is real opportunity for Christians to reach out to others and show hospitality to those who do not know God. This is such an important time to show God’s love to those who have never experienced the Gospel. May we truly be a welcoming, inviting, hospitable church – thus reflecting the very character and heart of God.

Pastor Tim, December 9, 2007