As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.” He called out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Those who led the way rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. When he came near, Jesus asked him, “What do you want me to do for you?” “Lord, I want to see,” he replied. Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God. Luke 18:35-43

So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way. When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” Luke 19:4-5

“Lord, I want to see!”

Sit with those words for a minute.

What do you sense in these words? Desperation? Hope?

Separated by status and ability, the blind man and Zacchaeus still had one thing in common: they wanted to see. And they were willing to do somewhat desperate things to do so.

Have you ever felt this longing in your heart? A desperation to see that only Jesus could fulfill? Whether you have 20/20 vision or you need glasses or contacts, all of us have a spiritual blindness that needs to be cured.

Listen to “Amazing Grace” today. If you are open to it, sing along. If you are a follower of Jesus, ask him what blindspots he is trying to shed light on in your life.

By Jessica Rust

Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.” Luke 14:12-14

I don’t think I would want to be at this dinner party. Not only do the Pharisees try to trap Jesus, the guests are clearly scrambling to define their social status by where they get to sit. In response, Jesus tells several pointed parables. It all sounds deeply uncomfortable.

In between parables – one on humility and one implying that not all who are invited to God’s kingdom banquet will accept – Jesus turns and gives an extra set of instructions to his Pharisee host.

“When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”

Don’t seek your own prominence based on who accepts your dinner invitation or what you receive in return. Give honor to those who would not normally be honored in this society. Pursue heavenly blessing, not earthly reward. Who knows if Jesus’ Pharisee host listened to his instruction, but we have the opportunity to.

This week, invite someone to join you for an activity or meal who it feels like a stretch for you to invite. Yes, we’ve suggested you extend invitations about every week of this series. But extending invitations is at the heart of hospitality and building a bigger table. Like a muscle that needs to be worked in order to strengthen, extending invitations is a skill that, for many of us, needs regular practice before it becomes second nature.

By Jessica Rust

“Woe to you experts in the law, because you have taken away the key to knowledge. You yourselves have not entered, and you have hindered those who were entering.” Luke 11:52

If someone asked you, “what does it take to follow Jesus?” What would you say? Would you tell them they need to confess Jesus as their Lord and savior? That they need to start going to church? Maybe that they need to read their Bible and pray every day? When it comes down to it, what is at the heart of following Christ?

Maybe someone has said to you that to really be a Christian, or at least a good Christian, you need to listen to the right music, stop watching certain movies, read the right Bible translation, or dress a certain way.

What does Jesus say to those who would follow him? Does he tell them, “follow me, but first get your act together”? Or does he simply invite them to be his disciple first and life change follows?

Like the Pharisees and experts in the law, we can take good things and turn them into essential things. We can take beneficial and important and even lovely things about following Christ and turn them into burdens and hurdles for those who are trying to figure out who Jesus is and if he’s worth the cost of discipleship. Today, brainstorm a list of what is essential about being a Christ-follower. What does Scripture say is essential? Rejoice that God has given us a way to know and follow him and ask him to help you make that way clear for others, and not put stumbling blocks in their path.

By Jessica Rust

One thing I ask from the Lord,

    this only do I seek:

that I may dwell in the house of the Lord

    all the days of my life,

to gaze on the beauty of the Lord

    and to seek him in his temple. Psalm 27:4

Some of us, whether through practice or temperament, may find it easy to be in Jesus’ presence. Others might struggle. Being present with Jesus and listening for his voice, especially when we have the opportunity to be distracted by so many things, takes practice. Here are some suggestions for being present with the Lord. Try one today.

• Picture yourself sitting at the feet of Jesus, like Mary did. What is he saying to you?
• Meditate on Scripture. Psalm 27 is a good starting point.
• As much as possible, get rid of distractions- including your phone. Seek out silence and solitude, even if it’s only for 30 minutes.
• If you are someone who finds it difficult to spend consistent time with God and enter into his presence, it’s worth asking yourself why- and asking the Holy Spirit to reveal to you why this might be. Is it because you’re busy? Is it because you don’t know what to do? Are you afraid he doesn’t want you there until you change something about yourself? Challenge yourself to process through this struggle.

By Jessica Rust

He replied, “You give them something to eat.” They answered, “We have only five loaves of bread and two fish—unless we go and buy food for all this crowd.” (About five thousand men were there.) But he said to his disciples, “Have them sit down in groups of about fifty each.” Luke 9:13-14

“We have only five loaves of bread and two fish…” Looking out over this crowd, hearing Jesus’ instructions to feed them, how hopeless and confused must the disciples have felt! They saw what they had, but they also saw how little they had. They were much more aware of what they lacked and how much more they needed. How many times have you looked at your life and seen the same thing? Whether it’s a physical need, like food or finances, or an emotional need, like strength, or hope, a scarcity mindset often causes us to react in fear and self-protection.

But where the disciples saw scarcity, Jesus knew the abundance that would be provided. The five loaves and two fish becomes enough to provide for over 5,000. The little we have is an opportunity to see God provide.

Read this story again, and imagine yourself as a disciple. What does the crowd look like? How does it feel when Jesus asks you to provide something to eat? How do you respond to him? Now ask yourself, what is Jesus asking you to give that you feel like you lack? Ask him to increase what you have so that he will be glorified. Look for ways that Jesus is showing you abundance where you saw scarcity this week.

By Jessica Rust

When the apostles returned, they reported to Jesus what they had done. Then he took them with him and they withdrew by themselves to a town called Bethsaida, but the crowds learned about it and followed him. He welcomed them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who needed healing. Luke 9:10-11

Sometimes I need a break from people. As an introvert, the more time I spend around people, especially large groups, the more intentional I need to be to have time alone. It is in this alone time that I can refresh, recharge, and breathe a little so that the next time I’m around people I have the energy and resources to respond well.

I would imagine the disciples feel similarly at the start of this story. They have just gone out to minister to the towns around them. They’ve had some amazing experiences, seen God work, and, probably, they are tired. And just when they want more rest, here come the crowds. The crowds who follow Jesus everywhere. The crowds who are always hovering after him: asking, pleading, listening, wanting healing and miracles and the Kingdom to come now.

If I was one of the disciples, I would be seriously hoping Jesus turns and says, “not now, come back later!” But instead, he welcomes them. The Gospel of Mark says he didn’t just welcome the crowd but had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd (Mark 6:34). Jesus doesn’t just accept their presence, he loves them, sees them as they are, and responds to their need.

What do we do when the way of Jesus asks us to have compassion when we don’t want to? Because we do have to admit, there will be times where we just don’t to be like Jesus and turn and have compassion. We would rather go on our own way to use our time and resources the way we want.

A starting point is to remember that we, too, are in need of compassion. We are broken, fallen people in need of grace. Always. Even when it looks like we have it together. 1 John 4:19 reminds us that “we love because he first loved us.” We show compassion because we, too, were shown compassion and grace. Compassion, like love, hope, peace, joy, and so many other things, ultimately isn’t sourced in our hearts because we’re good people with an unending supply. We receive compassion for others as an outpouring of the Spirit because of what Christ has done for us. Spend time with the God of compassion this week asking him to forge compassion the next time you see someone you would rather send away, or turn away from.

By Jessica Rust

Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.” Luke 7:44-47

When you host someone at your home for a meal, there are certain customs and hallmarks that make you a good host and make your home inviting. This differs from culture to culture, and even from region to region in the United States, but here are a few that I can think of: offering to take their coat, offering something to drink, or striking up conversation while you wait to eat so there is no uncomfortable silence. To offer these signs of care and welcome reinforces that your guest belongs in your home and you are glad they have come. Not to offer these signs of welcome and care would probably make your guest uncomfortable and indicate that at the very least you’re indifferent to their presence.

Jesus’ culture had customs of hospitality as well, and the story makes clear that Simon invited Jesus to his home without offering these customs. Jesus came to dinner yet received no water to wash his feet, no oil for his head, and no kiss in greeting. You have to wonder why Simon invited Jesus over, yet withheld hospitality from him when he arrived. It is hospitality in name only: an extended invitation without the grace or generosity of real hospitality.

We can easily shake our heads at Simon for being such a begrudging host, but how many times have we shown begrudging or ungenerous hospitality? Maybe it was a guest you really didn’t want to have at your home. Maybe it was how you received a new person at church. Maybe it was the lack of space you made for someone in a conversation. When it comes to hospitality and welcome, most of us have room to grow.

List some basic elements of hospitality. What makes you feel welcome at any kind of gathering? How do you make space for others to feel welcome? How can you become consistent in offering those things?

By Jessica Rust

“I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” Luke 5:32

Jesus, if you read the Gospels, loved a good dinner party. All over Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, you can find him eating, celebrating, questioning, and even telling stories about the dinner parties of others. This was so prominent in his ministry that he was even criticized for it.

The Gospel of Luke, especially, has Jesus’ dining experience as a key theme because Luke wants us to notice and understand who Jesus ate with. In biblical culture, who you invited to your table- and whose table you were invited to- said so much about who you were. Jesus ate with Pharisees, but he also met with tax collectors and “sinners” around a table. Jesus’ vision of hospitality and belonging took what was acceptable and threw it wide open. This summer, you are invited to learn how Jesus makes space at the table, and to go do likewise.

Sit at your own kitchen table. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you ways you can be hospitable this summer and even to expand your understanding of what hospitality can look like. Ask him to bless you with opportunities to share community with others in creative ways, as well as the courage to say yes to those opportunities.

By Jessica Rust