Repeatedly in the scripture, we are called to love each other extravagantly and to express that love through extending hospitality. Incarnational hospitality emerges from love, but it is also a discipline, one that requires practice and pursuit.
There will be a time for most of us when we are not used to this practice and not good at it. We must spend time being “consciously incompetent” and, as Peter instructs, not grumbling about it. In Hebrews, we are pointed towards who we are to share hospitality with – the stranger. Everyone from people of different nationalities, backgrounds, beliefs, etc., all the way to just someone in your life who you do not know very well.
The concept of hospitality in the ancient Middle East was built around the semi-nomadic nature of the cultures in the address. It was considered that those with wealth owed those who were travelling significant hospitality. This was not just grudgingly offered, but was actively sought after, backed by the promise of divine blessings. This was a core moral tenet that extended to the Egyptians and Romans as well.
The story of Abraham under the trees of Mamre was the central passage on this topic for the Jews, and Abraham was the model for hospitality even in the New Testament. In 1 Kings, we see from the story of Elisha that the hospitality we are called to is not contingent on our resources. It is the act of inviting in that communicates the value we place on the other.
In Matthew, the level of that value is put on a much grander scale. The divine favor from pagan gods is replaced by the very person of Christ. In an echo of Abraham’s experience (and, conversely, that of Sodom and Gomorrah), we are told that everyone we show (or do not show) hospitality is, in a fundamental way, Christ himself. And seen another way, we ourselves were strangers to Christ and the Kingdom of God, and were shown hospitality in the most dramatic way possible.
Now, we are strangers to the world, and are called to do as Christ did. We show incarnational hospitality so that others will see Christ in us. We are representatives of Christ and his kingdom. Our hospitality shows others what that Kingdom is like. We have tensions with this, especially here in Seattle where we simply do not have a culture of hospitality. We have shifted hospitality to organizations and can divert the burden of today’s wanderers and nomads to society as a whole and off of us individually.
We are so often “too busy” to show hospitality. But that busyness is itself a reason to do so, and we should budget our time so that we can give (and receive) hospitality. There are fears associated with hospitality beyond these. We fear being exposed or embarrassed. We fear being taken advantage of or otherwise victimised. We fear awkwardness or disappointment.
We should be honest about these fears and clear about our boundaries. Authenticity goes a long way towards negating our fears. We can also start slow, and begin with small steps as we build our skills and comfort.
Family and children can be another barrier to hospitality. Not just for the usual fear of strangers, but the busyness they bring, their own discomfort with strangers or vice versa. Again, the answer here is to bring them in to the process of hospitality, to engage them in showing love to others.
Inviting in is the loving pursuit of bringing strangers into an environment where they encounter Christ’s kingdom. It is a way to live out the gospel and fulfill the Great Commission. We must place the the eternal value on the stranger that God does, and recognize that when we show hospitality, we are demonstrating the very love of God.
– Sermon Notes, Jeff Krabach, Seed Church, Lynnwood, WA