Lectionary 22(C)
Sunday, September 2nd, 2007click here for past entries
Loving God, you come to us in many different ways – sometimes even through a friend or stranger. Help us to recognize you wherever we meet you and to rejoice in the good gifts that we receive from your hand; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Abraham sat by the entrance of his tent in the heat of the day (Gen. 18:1-8). He was staying by the oaks of Mamre in the land of Canaan. He looked up, and there were three men approaching – strangers, travelling on the road. Abraham immediately jumped up and ran to meet them. He bowed down to the ground and urged the men to come to his tent and rest awhile, and to have a meal and be refreshed. As soon as the men have agreed, Abraham rushes around giving orders for bread to be made and a calf to be prepared. Once the meal is ready, Abraham stands by as the men eat. He is there, ready to serve them.
Later that same day, two of the men approach the city of Sodom (Gen. 19:1-3). Abraham’s nephew, Lot, is sitting by the city gate, and immediately runs to greet them and bows down before them, just as Abraham did. Lot insists that they must come to his house and stay there, and after he persuades them, he makes a feast for them at his home. As it turns out, these men are angels – messengers from God.
Did either Abraham or Lot know who these men were when they greeted them and offered them hospitality? Genesis never tells us for sure. However, the writer of Hebrews doesn’t think that they knew, for we read there about those who “have entertained angels without knowing it” (Heb. 13:2).
We might think it very strange to hear about somebody rushing around and making a feast for some strangers who have just walked up. However, hospitality is of the utmost importance in Middle Eastern culture. Showing love to strangers is also part of the Old Testament law, for by doing so the people would remember how they lived as strangers in the land of Egypt (Deut. 10:19). Just imagine if Abraham and Lot had been rude to the angels who came to visit! It would have been the same as refusing to receive God himself.
The whole story of the visit of the three men to Abraham is actually very interesting. Genesis makes it clear that it is actually “the Lord” who is visiting Abraham, but the Lord shows up in the form of these three men, or angels, or messengers. Some of you might remember seeing the icon of the Holy Trinity before. This icon actually comes from the Genesis story about this visit with Abraham. Many of the earliest Christians looked at this story from Genesis and saw there one of the earliest revelations of the Trinity – of one God in Three Persons. You might notice, though, in the icon, that it is no longer Abraham who is hosting the feast. Rather, it is purposely painted so that it is an open table where Christ is the host and we are the guests.
At God’s table, all of us are invited and are welcome. We are there among “the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind” (Lk. 14:13), for all of us have the same status at God’s table. The meal itself is very costly – not for us, but for God. The meal is made up of bread and wine which becomes for us the body and blood of Christ. The meal costs God the life and death of his Son, Jesus. But what a gift for those of us who come in faith to receive Jesus and new life and forgiveness from God’s hand.
We are there as God’s guests – the ones who cannot possibly repay our host. We – who do not like to be beholdin’ to anyone – are nevertheless beholdin’ to God. That is simply the way that God does things. God is gracious and generous. God knows that we could never, ever overcome the power of sin in the world, or in our own lives, so Jesus simply did it for us. God loves us that much! God wants us there at the heavenly feast! And that person beside us – whether we know them or don’t know them – whether we like them or don’t like them – God loves them just as much and wants them at the feast, too.
We started out today by thinking about Abraham and Lot, who entertained angels without knowing it. It is a good opportunity to ask ourselves what our own approach is to strangers. One aspect of this is how we react when somebody comes to worship here whom we haven’t met before. Do we whisper to those whom we do know and point and say, “Who’s that?” – or maybe even say it loud enough that everybody around can hear? Do we simply ignore them and talk to other people? Do we look at them with suspicion and say, “Hmm. I wonder what they want?” Or, do we welcome them as an important guest and say, “Make yourself at home! My name is Abraham, your servant. Welcome!”
It is an interesting challenge to us in these days of fear and suspicion to treat each and every person as if that person is Jesus. After all, we hear Jesus saying to us in the gospel of Matthew, “just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me” (Mt. 25:40). Our challenge is to see Jesus in the people we meet and to treat them with the same honour that we would give to Jesus. Our challenge is to welcome each person as if they might be an angel – or maybe even Jesus himself.
There are some young men in the area who first showed up at the door of the church while the youth were having their 30 hour famine this year. These young men came to the door and rang the doorbell and asked if they could come in to pray. They left their shoes at the door, came in to pray in the sanctuary and then left again. Since that time, they have shown up every so often when I am here at the church. They simply come in quietly, always leaving their shoes at the door and kneel down to pray here. They are always respectful but never interested in talking. They are simply looking for a holy place for prayer.
I seem to recall that after the youth famine, there was at least one conversation where somebody commented that they wouldn’t have let them in. After all, how do you know if they’re dangerous or not? Well – the truth is that you don’t know, but do we prevent people from coming here to pray just in case they might be dangerous? Do we treat everybody who shows up at the door with suspicion or with hospitality?
Now, granted, there are people out there who are dangerous. There are people who cannot be trusted and who will take advantage of you if they get the chance. We certainly need to be aware of that and to watch for signs of danger. But there are also people out there who are truly seeking God, and who are looking for Christian community, and who know that they need to worship and to receive forgiveness and new life from God’s hand. As the Scriptures teach us, “you will know them by their fruits” (Mt. 7:16)!
Certainly every person who shows up at the door is not going to be an angel, just as every person who shows up is not going to be dangerous. To know the difference can be a challenge and takes some discernment on our part and some trust in the Holy Spirit. Still, it is true that every person in need is to be treated as if they are Jesus, and every person whom we meet is loved by God and redeemed by God, just as we have been.
It is not only us who have been invited to the feast. It is not just the “respectable” people who have been invited to the feast. God invites all who are ready to come and all who know their need. May we be willing to extend that same invitation to others. Amen.
Lectionary 22(C) Hebrews 13:2 September 2, 2007 Luke 14:1, 7-14 St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church Pastor Lynne Hutchison Moore
(c) 2007 Lynne Hutchison Moore All Rights Reserved
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