Why Do We Potluck?

Introduction

Illustration: What do we do every time we get together to celebrate, holidays parties etc. Eat food together. Probably the most common first date is a meal.

Why do we do that? Have you ever given it much thought? Not only do we eat together a lot as a culture in general, but even as a church we are often finding reasons to eat together. In fact through the fall-winter-spring we here at Fredericton Christian Church are in the habit of having a potluck on the third Sunday of every month.

Throughout this summer we’ve been taking a look at the different things that we do as a church and asking the question, “why?” Because it’s easy to do the things that we do simply out of habit or because it’s the way that it’s always been done, but we want to be intentional disciples who do what God calls us to do. So I thought it would be good this summer to take a look at how we can justify from the Bible the things that we are in the habit of doing.

Now with previous subjects like prayer, baptism, preaching, singing, there was no real worry that I wouldn’t be able to find a Biblical reason for doing them. But what about Potluck? Is there a biblical reason to do potluck, or is it just an excuse to exchange some delicious food?

Now to be honest this sermon is about more than just potluck. I mostly called it “Why Do We Potluck?” because I thought it was funny. It’s about sharing in fellowship over a shared meal. You won’t find a verse of the Bible saying “though shalt have church potlucks,” though that would be a fine eleventh commandment. Yet you do find a lot of meals. A lot of people eating together. I’ve already mentioned in previous sermons that a lot of the holidays that God commands the Israelites to observe throughout the law are centered around week long feasts. Sharing hospitality meals is a huge part of the culture of the Bible. But what if I told you that there are a number of occassions in the Bible where people share meals with God Himself?

Consider Genesis 18:1-8

Genesis 18:1–8 CSB

The Lord appeared to Abraham at the oaks of Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance of his tent during the heat of the day. He looked up, and he saw three men standing near him. When he saw them, he ran from the entrance of the tent to meet them, bowed to the ground, and said, “My lord, if I have found favor with you, please do not go on past your servant. Let a little water be brought, that you may wash your feet and rest yourselves under the tree. I will bring a bit of bread so that you may strengthen yourselves. This is why you have passed your servant’s way. Later, you can continue on.” “Yes,” they replied, “do as you have said.” So Abraham hurried into the tent and said to Sarah, “Quick! Knead three measures of fine flour and make bread.” Abraham ran to the herd and got a tender, choice calf. He gave it to a young man, who hurried to prepare it. Then Abraham took curds and milk, as well as the calf that he had prepared, and set them before the men. He served them as they ate under the tree.

At first Abraham doesn’t realize that God has showed up for lunch, but that’s exactly what happened. Abraham shared a meal with the very God who created the universe. That’s pretty neat. Yet that’s not the only time someone eats with God. In fact, did you know that the entire nation of Israel was called to share a meal with God?

Let’s take a look at Deuteronomy 14:23-26

Deuteronomy 14:23–26 CSB

You are to eat a tenth of your grain, new wine, and fresh oil, and the firstborn of your herd and flock, in the presence of the Lord your God at the place where he chooses to have his name dwell, so that you will always learn to fear the Lord your God. But if the distance is too great for you to carry it, since the place where the Lord your God chooses to put his name is too far away from you and since the Lord your God has blessed you, then exchange it for silver, take the silver in your hand, and go to the place the Lord your God chooses. You may spend the silver on anything you want: cattle, sheep, goats, wine, beer, or anything you desire. You are to feast there in the presence of the Lord your God and rejoice with your family.

This sheds a new light on all the meals and sacrifices that the Israelites were commanded to participate in in the Old Testament. They were basically inviting God to sit down to dinner with them. So it’s no surprise then that when Jesus shows up He does a lot of eating with people. He even gets called out for eating with tax collectors and sinners. And in all four gospels we see the story of Jesus miraculously feeding over 5000 people. One of His final acts before going to the cross is to share a meal with His twelve closest disciples.

Inviting God to the Table

So I think you might be able to anticipate where I’m going with this. From the very beginning the church dedicated itself to four things in Acts 2:42

Acts 2:42 CSB

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to prayer.

Fellowship and breaking of bread? Sounds like they ate some meals together to me. Now when we eat together I believe there is something profound and subtle that happens. I think we are more likely to let our guards down and open up and bond with one another. The thing is though, that for me at least it’s easy to spend a whole meal talking about shallow things. To talk about the weather, your sports team, politics (even though your not supposed to.) But never get to the deeper things that we share as disciples of Jesus.

So my challenge to all of us and especially to myself, is to invite God to sit at your table this morning. By actually sitting around tables and sharing potluck this morning we have an immediate opportunity to practice the application of this sermon.

Maybe some of you don’t need to hear this as much as I do, but I want all of us to ask ourselves this: When was the last time you asked someone else in the church how their relationship with Jesus is going right now? How their prayer life is? Whether they are well in their soul?

Let’s ask ourselves if we know each other’s testimonies. If not, than let’s ask each other to tell the stories of how Jesus changed our lives. Let’s take what could be mundane conversations that serve only to build bonds into spiritual conversations that invite God to our table and help to build us together as the body of Christ in the kind of fellowship that surpasses any kind of friendship in the ordinary sense.

Let’s move from doing potluck to share meals to doing potluck to share Christ, to share life. We’ve talked about how others have shared meals with God in the past and how we can be intentional to do the same in the present, but the Bible also tells us that all these meals we eat are in anticipation of a feast to come. Because as followers of Jesus we believe that He is coming back, and that there will be a resurrection of the dead and a judgement of all people. And when He comes back there will be a marriage ceremony between Him and the church culminating in a feast. We find this in

Revelation 19:6–9 CSB

Then I heard something like the voice of a vast multitude, like the sound of cascading waters, and like the rumbling of loud thunder, saying, Hallelujah, because our Lord God, the Almighty, reigns! Let us be glad, rejoice, and give him glory, because the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his bride has prepared herself. She was given fine linen to wear, bright and pure. For the fine linen represents the righteous acts of the saints. Then he said to me, “Write: Blessed are those invited to the marriage feast of the Lamb!” He also said to me, “These words of God are true.”

So then amongst the list of things we do as a church now believe it or not sharing food together is one of the ones we will be doing for eternity. Plus we can be reasonably certain that we can’t overeat and make ourselves sick in the afterlife. I don’t have a Bible quote, but I assume it’s true.

Conclusion

So as we sit around these tables and share a meal I challenge all of us to ask a big question to someone sitting around the table. Don’t be afraid to get uncomfortable. Ask someone how they came to know Jesus. How their prayer life is going. What they’re reading in scripture right now. Let’s take this potluck and turn it into real fellowship with each other and with God.

Let’s pray.