“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
