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Good Shepherd Lutheran Church Marks of a Frontline Shepherd August 3, 2003 |
"H" Hospitality |
Sermon Title: “What’s up HOSS? - Learning to Sweat Like Abraham”
Bible Text: Genesis 18: 1-15
Grace and Peace be unto you from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
Today, our theme reminds us that we all interact with other people in this world. Today’s message is not rocket science, Let me begin by saying that as we come across other people in our daily lives we always have choices in how we behave. Would you agree? Same is true for the church. We always have choices on how we behave. We must ask how will we behave?
I forget who the person was, but there was some person in college who greeted everyone they met with the words - “What’s up Hoss?” It didn’t matter if it was a guy or a girl - it was always, “What’s up Hoss?” I don’t know whether that person was trying to be John Wayne, someone from Bonanza, or somebody else. I just found the whole greeting to be utterly stupid (which I admit is a judgmental statement). Who greets anyone like that? Hoss! But today - I suggest to you that there are two responses that we can have toward people - both begin with HOSS.
The first HOSS word is HOSTILITY. Without getting into a laundry list and a session which drags us down in the dirt, we recognize that hostility is a choice that many make in their daily life. There are certainly the obvious outright forms of hostility which can be downright scary, but I also believe that there are countless subtle forms as well. Some of the subtle forms we will be very familiar with. Perhaps we show our indifference to others. We ignore. We can roll our eyes when someone is talking to us. We can display sarcasm. In this Internet age, even our emails can be filled with subtle forms of hostility. We can put others down or gossip. All of these are hostility when we really think about it. Hostility doesn’t build other people up nor does it help us.
Another way to respond to people in daily life is with the 2nd Hoss word - HOSPITALITY. It’s this 2nd behavior that we seek to model as a congregation and as individuals. Biblical hospitality is counter-cultural and it works against all the forces of hostility! Biblical hospitality looks at the other person as a mysterious person who needs to be valued, even if conventional wisdom says otherwise.
When you are asked to think about hospitality - what images come to mind? For some, hospitality is taking someone’s coat or serving coffee, juice and cookies. For businesses, hospitality is providing quick and efficient service. To have the reputation of being hospitable means that you will likely get good references and repeat business. But, hospitality is way more than politeness and pleasantries. It is going the extra mile to truly honor the other.
Biblical hospitality is more than just trying to instill a series of actions. It’s about instilling a certain mindset. The bible is loaded with stories of hospitality. Virtually all these stories show people who feel obliged, and even honored, “to nourish and protect travelers who find themselves in hostile environments.” (1) Lets look at Abraham
We must begin by saying that Abraham is not exactly the youngest guy in youth group any more. Abraham is 99 years old!. At one point, God made a promise to him that his family would live out a great mission - his descendants would be as numerous as the stars in the sky and they would “bless the world”. Year in and year out, there was one major problem. He remained childless. The God given Mission can’t be realized without children. For Abraham, that was a source of constant pain.
So, he’s living in the desert. It’s the heat of day and thus we find Abraham where you would expect- in the shade under his tent. Yesterday was a disgustingly muggy day here in Metro DC, but I’m sure it pales in comparison to the heat of the desert. Suddenly 3 strangers appear. Abraham sees them and almost without thinking makes a choice. It’s not a choice to show hostility. Rather, he moves out of his comfort zone and into action.
Look at his actions. It’s the heat of the day. Abraham pleads for them to sit down and rest while he goes the extra mile. The picture is of this 99 year old guy feeling extremely privileged for the opportunity to serve others. The text shows him almost giddy with excitement, running around getting everybody involved, his community- busy at work in the heat of the day. He quickly gets the servants involved. His wife Sarai is summoned into action. Water is brought, bread is made, Abraham brings milk, he brings a choice calf to be slaughtered and then prepared. He serves the meal to them and stands by watching as these three partake.
When I picture this scene, I picture Abraham sweating like crazy. He is a gracious host who treats these 3 other people not as an intrusion, but rather as a privilege to serve.
But, look further because hospitality is not just a one sided thing - it’s a dynamic encounter. As Abraham stands there after all his efforts, the tables are turned as one of these strangers speaks. Even though Abraham doesn’t know who it is, we learn that it is God in disguise. In disguise, he tells Abraham that next year he will have a son. Abraham never says a word. Sarah, Abrahams wife overhears this and laughs to which the stranger says, “Is anything too hard for God?”
Recognize what that child meant- the child was the promise that the mission to bless the world would continue. It would not halt with Abraham’s death. In extending hospitality, Abraham learned that the God-given mission would continue. Had he not shown hospitality, who knows whether that mission would have gone on. Maybe the mission would have passed Abraham completely by.
As we sit here in the 21st century, I can tell you that I have no doubt that in extending hostility; mission and purpose will never be found. In extending hospitality, people, like Abraham, will discover mission and purpose. You want to know why sharing hospitality is cool? Sharing hospitality is really cool because in extending hospitality, God will often reveal himself. Throughout scripture, people are told to welcome the stranger, show hospitality and care to others, for to ignore those opportunities are prime opportunities to meet the divine. To ignore these opportunities is to really miss out. I know that reaching out to a stranger or a newcomer may take you out of your comfort zone, but isn’t life about growing. Some of life’s greatest growth occurs when we are willing to step out of our comfort zone.
Our call as a congregation and as individual Christians is to be models of hospitality, not hostility. Garrison Keillor once said that “our job as Christians is to make people feel at home in the world- nothing more nothing less. We make people feel at home in the world.” (2) We need to be especially mindful of that as a congregation. Consider the fact that last Sunday was the lowest Sunday of worship attendance this summer. We had 343 people in worship and 43 of those were non-members (or guests). That number is higher on many weeks. We need to extend hospitality with energy and enthusiasm.
Every single person who steps foot in this building is a person on a journey. More and more I believe that each one of us encounters forces in daily life that seek to wear us down. We come to this place seeking to be restored, strengthened, and told that we matter. We come and receive communion, where Jesus is the host and we experience his hospitality. When you receive the bread and wine this morning, I want you to know that Jesus is telling you that you matter, you are valued, you have a purpose, and you have a mission to bless this world- not show it hostility.
People come into this place and they are hungry for a message that touches their heart and soul. They are looking for authentic community. Our call is to sweat like Abraham, not out of nervousness, but rather because it is a privilege to serve other people. You may remember me saying before “the church is the only institution in the world that exists for those who are not members.” It doesn’t mean that members don’t count. It simply means that we are called to always look out and trying to include others in a glorious mission.
Show hospitality. Amen
Notes
from
Anchor Bible Dictionary, “Hospitality”
to hear Keillor, go to www.mpr.org and click on programs. Enter
“Prairie Home Companion.”
I am almost certain that this quote aired on the 4/19/03 show during the “News from Lake Wobegon” Segment.