Hebrews 13:1-2

Intro:

In the midlands of England. A Father boarded a train with his 23 year old son. They sat fairly close to an older couple. The boy said to the dad, “Eeeee Daaaad I hear the wheels of the train as the train took off. Over the intercom it was announced that Stoke-on-Trent was the next stop.” The boy repeated the intercom… “next stop! Stoke-on-Trent this is a south bound train to Birmingham.

The older couple sitting near by looked visibly annoyed.

The boy continued to talk about all the sounds of the train and repeated every intercom message.

When the older couple went to get off they said to the Father of the young man. “Why don’t you take your son to see a good doctor.”

How do you think that made that dad feel?

I’ll tell you at the end of my sermon what the dad said back to them.

But I want you to think of a time when you did not feel welcome somewhere. Did you go back?

Read Hebrews 13:1-2

Hebrews 13:1–2 ESV

Let brotherly love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.

Brotherly Love

Turn to the person next to you and say you my brother. Or you my sister. If it is your spouse that is ok because it is also true in heaven they will be your sister or brother.

Hebrews ((1) Continuing in Love (13:1–8))

φιλαδελφία is defined as “the love that characterizes siblings.” Christians have been brought into the family of God and are a part of his “household” (Heb 3:6).

Why is this important?

Because a church that does not love each other is not a church where new people will feel comfortable.

Tell the story of walking home from church in college with someone else’s family and it being super awkward.

Were you ever at your friends house growing up and their mom and dad were fighting. I was 10 times more awkward than when you mom and dad were fighting.

Have you ever been at someone else’s family function and there is obvious tension. Did you want to stay or go home?

People can sense conflict. God has given humans that ability to help us survive. We need to be a church that loves each other. Look around the room for someone you don’t talk to much. Think of a way this week you can show brotherly love to them.

Hebrews ((1) Continuing in Love (13:1–8))

The Greek noun philoxenia, (lit.) “love of strangers,” means hospitality to strangers

Hebrews (1) Continuing in Love (13:1–8)

Travel was difficult in the first century and inns were not always the safest place to be. To open one’s home to a travelling stranger evidenced brotherly love and was considered a high virtue by Jews and Gentiles alike. Mutual support among the early Christians would have been vital for maintaining the solidarity of new believers as well as aiding in the missionary expansion of the church.599

Hebrews ((1) Continuing in Love (13:1–8))

Verse 2 begins with another imperative which reads (lit.): “hospitality do not neglect.” The imperative conveys the notion of not forgetting to do something. Stated positively, the author is exhorting the readers to remember to practice hospitality.

Do not neglect could be translated don’t forget. Tie a string on your finger or set an alarm on your phone to remember to be hospitable to strangers.

I think if would be biblical for us to think of someway we can remind ourselves to show hospitality.

Like I set an alarm on my phone for 10:25 and that reminds me to look and see if there is a visitor I can talk to at church today.

1 Timothy 3:2 CSB

An overseer, therefore, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, self-controlled, sensible, respectable, hospitable, able to teach,

I find it interesting when people talk about who would make a good elder and they say something like you know they are in management at their company. The have a lot of people under them. They are good at telling people what to do. Like that is what we are told in God’s word to look for.

Give the church a concierge at a 5***** hotel. Or someone who manages 4 air bnbs with 5***** ratings. We should look for people who are hospitable. People who work in the service industry.

in the next verse it says they are not to be bullies but gentle.

The NET Bible First Edition Notes Notes for 13:2

This is a vague allusion to people described in scripture and extra-biblical literature and may include Abraham and Sarah (Gen 18:2–15), Lot (Gen 19:1–14), Gideon (Judg 6:11–18), Manoah (Judg 13:3–22), and possibly Tobit (Tob 12:1–20).

The word angle can also mean messenger or evangelist.

Story of the 11 year old boy who came in to buy an ice cream Sunday. rode his bike and dug in the coin pouch to find all of his change.

50 cents for a Sunday and 35 for plain ice cream.

His server did not show him very good service. The boy may have been an angle at least I hope that the waitress got the message that God had for her that day.

Make people who don’t feel like they belong, feel like they belong, because God has made a way for us all to belong.

Hospitality is in the heart of God is it in your heart?

It is actually a sin to make a strange feel strange in a church.

Well you want to know what the dad on the train said to the older couple who told him that he should take his son to see a good doctor?

You want to know what that dad said to those rude inhospitable people?

He said actually that just what we were doing … we just got back from the doctor’s they have installed Cochlear implant in my son’s ears and this is the 1st time in his life he has been able to hear these sounds.

We need to make people feel welcome because they maybe hearing the welcoming message of the gospel for the 1st time.

It is a sin to make a stranger feel strange in church.

After Benediction....

When we make people who feel like they don’t belong feel like they do belong we don’t just serve them we serve Jesus.