God Works Through Hospitality

Introduction

LV Sessions

Series Review

Hospitality is the simplest way to change the world. Hospitality is not throwing dinner parties. Hospitality is inviting someone into your life in Christ. (That assumes you are living as a Christian Monday-Saturday).

Hospitality is not about entertaining but caring for others’ needs—let’s put the hospital back in hospitality.

If you want to make a difference for Christ, keep it simple. Devote yourself to prayer and be wise in how you interact with unbelievers. Be the first Christian they actually like.

This week: God works through hospitality. God does amazing things when we make ourselves available to him.

Narrative (1 Kings 17:7-24)

Scene 1: During a drought, God tells Elijah to leave Israel, go to Zarephath in Sidon, and stay with a widow God has directed to supply him with food. Elijah comes to Zarephath and asks the widow for food and water, but she tells him she only has enough for one meal; yet Elijah promises her that God will provide—and he does.

Scene 2: The woman’s son gets sick and dies, and she brings him to Elijah. Elijah stretches himself out on the body and prays for the boy, God brings him back to life, and the woman professes faith in God.

Big Idea

God sustains life and God gives life. God preserves life and God imparts life.

And in this story, he does this through hospitality.

God works through hospitality to sustain and give life. God provides for the needs of his people through the hospitality of his people. God restores hope to his people through the hospitality of his people.

Implications

When God calls you to show hospitality, it’s not always from a place of abundance.

Explanation

God told the widow to show hospitality to Elijah (v. 9), even though she only had enough food for one final meal (v. 12).

This whole story is strange. This woman wasn’t a Jew, didn’t live in Israel, and didn’t worship God (v. 12).

She didn’t have enough food for herself, let alone for Elijah. But God is about to do something incredible in her life.

God calls her to show hospitality, not from an abundance but from scarcity. And when she obeys, God sustains her life. Her flour and oil never run out.

Sometimes God calls you to act not out of an abundance but out of your own scarcity. When he does, you are forced to rely on him to provide—and that grows your faith. “Give us this day our daily bread…”

Illustration: I saw this in Guatemala, when people invited us into their homes and cooked us tortillas, even though they were living on one meal a day. And their faith in God blew my mind.

Application

I hear this comment all the time: “I can’t practice hospitality. My house is too small. My home is a mess. It’s not fixed up nice. I don’t have the money to throw a dinner party.”

God sustains life. When God calls you to do something, he provides everything you need to do it. So, turn off HGTV, stop scrolling through social media feeds, and invite someone into your real life—not your Instagram life. Trust the God who sustains life to provide what you need to do what he says.

One of the most powerful things you can do is identify with someone in their need and intercede for them in prayer.

Explanation

Tragedy struck this widow’s home when her son became sick and died (Hebrew, “there remained in him no breath”) (vv. 17-18).

Here she was, doing what God told her to do, in her poverty, barely surviving, and her son dies.

People often think of God when they experience tragedy.

“God is punishing me because of my sin!”

“God is unfair! I don’t deserve this!”

The truth is, none of us deserves this: [breathe].

When someone thinks of God, they often turn to the people they associate with God (v. 18). Are you someone people associate with God?

When someone comes to you, one of the most powerful things you can do is identify with them in their need and intercede for them in prayer (vv. 19-21).

This is what Elijah did with the dead boy (vv. 19-21). This is what Jesus did with us. He identified with us in our need by being born as human being in humble circumstances, living a human life, and dying a sinner’s death—even though he didn’t deserve it.

How do you identify with someone in their need?

Actually listen to them.

Put yourself in their shoes.

Acknowledge their suffering.

Suspend judgment.

Be available but don’t be a know-it-all. “I’m here for you” is better than “Have you tried…”

Intercede for them in prayer. To intercede means to put yourself in the place of the person and plead with God on their behalf.

Illustration: God works through our prayers. Chris & Lydia’s story…

Application: Look at what happened when God answered Elijah’s prayer (vv. 22-24). God brings life out of death, hope out of despair, joy out of mourning, and faith out of unbelief.

Conclusion: Let’s Practice

Respond with reflection and song

Practice praying for one another.