Christian Hospitality Message 1

Introduction

One of the greatest opportunities to share Christ with another is through hospitality.

Oxford Dictionary defines Hospitality:

the friendly and generous reception and entertainment of guests, visitors, or strangers.

Hospitality is one of the easiest and enjoyable ways of building relationship and sharing Christ with another. And for us that have been the recipient of hospitality, we know that there is no stronger influence in our lives than when one goes out of their way to do something for you and me.

As your pastor, I have been the recipient of hospitality untold times and it never gets old. I have never once said that I did not appreciate the thoughtfulness of a kind act or gesture one showed toward me.

There are numerous OT narratives that exemplify for us how to show hospitality toward another and I truly believe it can be one of the strongest shoe ins to the heart of a lost person.

• a greeting with bow or kiss (Gen 18:2; 19:1)

• a welcome for the guest to come in (Gen 24:31)

• an invitation to rest (Gen 18:4; Judg 4:19)

• an opportunity to wash (Gen 18:4; 19:2; 24:32)

• a provision of food and drink (Judg 4:19; 19:5)

• an invitation to converse (Gen 24:33)

• a provision of security (Gen 19:8)

The Mosaic law records significant guidance in the treatment of neighbors and strangers living among the tribes of Israel. The Israelites were commanded to treat foreigners well because of their own background as foreigners in Egypt (Exod 22:21; Lev 19:33–34).

Exodus 22:21 ““You shall neither mistreat a stranger nor oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.”

They were to welcome their poor fellow Israelites into their homes (Lev 23:35). They were to celebrate festivals along with aliens who were living among them (Deut 16:11, 14).

Deuteronomy 16:11-14 “You shall rejoice before the Lord your God, you and your son and your daughter, your male servant and your female servant, the Levite who is within your gates, the stranger and the fatherless and the widow who are among you, at the place where the Lord your God chooses to make His name abide. And you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and you shall be careful to observe these statutes. “You shall observe the Feast of Tabernacles seven days, when you have gathered from your threshing floor and from your winepress. And you shall rejoice in your feast, you and your son and your daughter, your male servant and your female servant and the Levite, the stranger and the fatherless and the widow, who are within your gates.”

Lack of hospitality in other nations was condemned (Num 20:14–21; Deut 23:3–4).

Numbers 20:14-21 “Now Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom. “Thus says your brother Israel: ‘You know all the hardship that has befallen us, how our fathers went down to Egypt, and we dwelt in Egypt a long time, and the Egyptians afflicted us and our fathers. When we cried out to the Lord, He heard our voice and sent the Angel and brought us up out of Egypt; now here we are in Kadesh, a city on the edge of your border. Please let us pass through your country. We will not pass through fields or vineyards, nor will we drink water from wells; we will go along the King’s Highway; we will not turn aside to the right hand or to the left until we have passed through your territory.’ ” Then Edom said to him, “You shall not pass through my land, lest I come out against you with the sword.” So the children of Israel said to him, “We will go by the Highway, and if I or my livestock drink any of your water, then I will pay for it; let me only pass through on foot, nothing more.” Then he said, “You …”

Listen to Yahweh’s thoughts on such a matter:

Deuteronomy 23:3-4 ““An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter the assembly of the Lord; even to the tenth generation none of his descendants shall enter the assembly of the Lord forever, because they did not meet you with bread and water on the road when you came out of Egypt, and because they hired against you Balaam the son of Beor from Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse you.”

In the New Testament, Jesus urged hospitality to be extended beyond the confines of home and tribe, as illustrated in the parables of the Midnight Visitor (Luke 11:5–8)

Luke 11:5-8 “And He said to them, “Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves; for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; and he will answer from within and say, ‘Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you’? I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs.”

and the Good Samaritan

Luke 10:25-37 “And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?” So he answered and said, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’ ” And He said to him, “You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.” But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Then Jesus answered and said: “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw hi…”

Jesus Himself practiced hospitality

John 4:9 “Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?” For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.”

Ministering to the needy is clearly expected by God, as made evident in Jesus’ instruction regarding the judgment on the nations: feeding the hungry, quenching the thirsty, welcoming the stranger, clothing the naked, caring for the sick, visiting the imprisoned (Matt 25:31–46). Failure to offer hospitality incurs judgment (Luke 16:19–24). Jesus scolded Simon the Pharisee for being a poor host: no water for washing his feet, no greeting of Jesus with a kiss, and no oil for anointing his head (Luke 7:44–46). While Christians are generally urged to show hospitality (Rom 12:13; Heb 13:2; 1 Pet 4:9), they are discouraged from taking a meal or extending other hospitality to unrepentant believers (1 Cor 5:11), teachers of false doctrines (2 Tim 3:5; Titus 3:10–11), or intentional deceivers (2 John 7–11). Douglas K. Wilson

Douglas K. Wilson, “Hospitality,” ed. John D. Barry et al., The Lexham Bible Dictionary (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2016).

Tonight, you have heard me preach on this text before, but tonight we want to discect the text for the sake of hospitality. How is hospitality portrayed in this story?

Let’s break into this study by looking at the encounter Abraham had with the three strangers in

Genesis 18:1–15 NKJV

Then the Lord appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamre, as he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day. So he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing by him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the ground, and said, “My Lord, if I have now found favor in Your sight, do not pass on by Your servant. Please let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. And I will bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh your hearts. After that you may pass by, inasmuch as you have come to your servant.” They said, “Do as you have said.” So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quickly, make ready three measures of fine meal; knead it and make cakes.” And Abraham ran to the herd, took a tender and good calf, gave it to a young man, and he hastened to prepare it. So he took butter and milk and the calf which he had prepared, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree as they ate. Then they said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” So he said, “Here, in the tent.” And He said, “I will certainly return to you according to the time of life, and behold, Sarah your wife shall have a son.” (Sarah was listening in the tent door which was behind him.) Now Abraham and Sarah were old, well advanced in age; and Sarah had passed the age of childbearing. Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, “After I have grown old, shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?” And the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh, saying, ‘Shall I surely bear a child, since I am old?’ Is anything too hard for the Lord? At the appointed time I will return to you, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.” But Sarah denied it, saying, “I did not laugh,” for she was afraid. And He said, “No, but you did laugh!”

Hospitality is being:

Engaged

Genesis 18:1-3 “Then the Lord appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamre, as he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day. So he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing by him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the ground, and said, “My Lord, if I have now found favor in Your sight, do not pass on by Your servant.”

Hospitality begins with an engaged desire to offer up hospitality to another. Hospitality has to do with a “want to” spirit. Everything about the scene reflects that Abraham desired to engage with another. Abraham was on the desert. It was hot. He wanted some interaction with another. He was positioned at the door looking out and that stimulates a question for us tonight.

What are you looking for when you move about?

Matthew 13:15 “For the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, And their eyes they have closed, Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, So that I should heal them.’”

Dear church, we want to develop eyes and ears for opportunities to be the Lord’s hostess.

If we are not very careful, we can move about agenda drive rather than opportunity focused.

The Scriptures state that Abraham “lifited his eyes.”

Hospitality can be heaven opportunities.

Hebrews 13:2 “Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels.”

Thoughtful VV. 4-5

Genesis 18:4-5 “Please let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. And I will bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh your hearts. After that you may pass by, inasmuch as you have come to your servant.” They said, “Do as you have said.””

Oh dearly beloved, it was the heat of the day on the desert. We tend to think that Abraham did these things because it was a theophany. Abraham used what we call old fashioned southern hospitiality. Oh dear brother and sister, that is all we must do is old fashioned southern hospitality.

He saw a need and met it. We must ask the question and do a role reversal with the one God has placed us in front of. What would I want if I were in the other person’s shoes or the lack thereof?

When it is hot and dry nothing refreshes like water. I can imagine that when Abraham brought the water, not only was there something available to wash with, to cool or refresh with, but he suggested to rest under the terenbith tree. There must have been some form of lounging or seating to rest and rejuvenate under the tree. Simply putting the cool water on the head and body brought refreshment in that simple humble act. Furthermore, Abraham’s thoughtfulness was simply the fact he put himself in these three shoe’s and thought of what he would appreciate.

Look closely at verse 5 and then note what follows.

He created an expectation.

Genesis 18:5 “And I will bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh your hearts. After that you may pass by, inasmuch as you have come to your servant.” They said, “Do as you have said.””

Excellence VV. 6-7

Genesis 18:6-7 “So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quickly, make ready three measures of fine meal; knead it and make cakes.” And Abraham ran to the herd, took a tender and good calf, gave it to a young man, and he hastened to prepare it.”

He stated he was getting bread and water. NOte what he brought:

cakes, a tender calf of beef (a good Ribeye steak), butter for the cakes and milk. NOt only did Sarah his wife intervene and help, not only did he set the food before them, but he stood to meet every need as they ate.

Abraham and Sarah as host and hostess exceed the expectation of the guests. I read a story of a pastor that had left the LOuisiana Baptist State Convention coming back to the East normally along I-10. He wanted a change of pace, he was aging and as the convention got over at 8:00 pm, up until this point in his life he just bared it and drove on home. For safety measures, he had reduced the amount of night driving and decided to take a state highway back home to be a little more entertained and came into this small town with a diner and a hotel connected. He introduced himself to the hotel clerk and made small talk, the lady was so nice and before he was going to retire to his room, she asked him to sit down, brought him acoffee, poundcake and vanilla ice cream. The pastor mentioned the friendship that was established with the place and how many times in the future he stopped by because of how much he felt appreciated.

Think of your own testimonies for a moment. HOw have you followed up in your responses when someone has befriended you?

Matthew 6:11 “Give us this day our daily bread.”

Jesus taught this prayer. This prayer reminds us of the importance of helping others make the basic needs of life.

***Homebound Ministry****

How can we minister to our own?

Blessing VV. 8-15

Normally, we think of doing an act to be a blessing, but invariably we receive the blessing from our act.

Hebrews 13:2 “Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels.”

One year from that time, Sarah had a baby. Do you believe Abraham would have thought something would happen in this fashion? Yes, he trusted God would come through, but he was beginning to become weary wondering how it was going to happen. But, isn’t it interesting that Abraham kept taking the high road with other people.

Ill. tory of John Mac-Legendary Marine, gave a sound system