The City of Union is affectionately known as "The City of Hospitality." But what does being hospitable really look like? Hospitality is nothing new, and being hospitable is certainly a spiritual characteristic - actually a command that Christians must embrace as we welcome those coming to faith in Christ. Our graciousness and hospitality to those outside our circle is what attracts people to the gospel that we profess. So what does all this mean? "Ground your service and love in hospitality."
1 Peter 4:7 - "The end of all things is near; therefore, be alert and sober-minded for prayer."
First, let's look at where Peter is coming from with his declaration that "the end of all things is near" so that no one has the idea that he was some sort of crazy end times prophet kind of guy and to protect his credibility since he wrote this letter nearly 2,000 years ago. Peter shared later in his writings (2 Peter 3:8) that the Lord's timetable is different from our own - "With the lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day." We have to remember that God's timeline is based on eternity to eternity to keep this ins perspective. For these early New Testament writers, Christ's resurrection and ascension was seen as the beginning of the final days. When we consider what was taking place in their world, these words don't seem so "out there." And while no one knows then the Lord will return, keep in mind that every day is one day closer.
Hospitality played a key role in the spread of the gospel when the church was beginning to flourish. When traveling to new areas, people were at the mercy of others. They didn't have hotels to stay in, they often stayed in homes of caring people in the town. But now times have changed. The nature of hospitality runs counter to the fact that we like our own personal space and privacy, and we don't like to share what we consider most personal which for many of us is our homes.
To live lives of hospitality, we must begin with prayer. When we pray, we recognize that we are incapable of doing on our own. So how should we pray:
1. Pray that God would help us see ourselves as stewards. The reason that many of us struggle with hospitality is that we see ourselves as owners - our house, our time, etc. But we must remember that we are owners of anything, rather stewards of God has given us to use for His kingdom.
2. Pray that God would help us confront our Greed. We hoard resources for our personal use, making us reluctant to share with anyone. We grow spiritually because God uses our hospitality to confront the greed in our hearts and make us more like Christ.
3. Pray that God would bring us opportunities. We should ask God to open our eyes to the needs around us - those with no place to go, no food to eat, no friends to confide in. When we pray for opportunities to show hospitality, we'll be surprised at how many we'll find.
1 Peter 4:7 - "The end of all things is near; therefore, be alert and sober-minded for prayer."
First, let's look at where Peter is coming from with his declaration that "the end of all things is near" so that no one has the idea that he was some sort of crazy end times prophet kind of guy and to protect his credibility since he wrote this letter nearly 2,000 years ago. Peter shared later in his writings (2 Peter 3:8) that the Lord's timetable is different from our own - "With the lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day." We have to remember that God's timeline is based on eternity to eternity to keep this ins perspective. For these early New Testament writers, Christ's resurrection and ascension was seen as the beginning of the final days. When we consider what was taking place in their world, these words don't seem so "out there." And while no one knows then the Lord will return, keep in mind that every day is one day closer.
Hospitality played a key role in the spread of the gospel when the church was beginning to flourish. When traveling to new areas, people were at the mercy of others. They didn't have hotels to stay in, they often stayed in homes of caring people in the town. But now times have changed. The nature of hospitality runs counter to the fact that we like our own personal space and privacy, and we don't like to share what we consider most personal which for many of us is our homes.
To live lives of hospitality, we must begin with prayer. When we pray, we recognize that we are incapable of doing on our own. So how should we pray:
1. Pray that God would help us see ourselves as stewards. The reason that many of us struggle with hospitality is that we see ourselves as owners - our house, our time, etc. But we must remember that we are owners of anything, rather stewards of God has given us to use for His kingdom.
2. Pray that God would help us confront our Greed. We hoard resources for our personal use, making us reluctant to share with anyone. We grow spiritually because God uses our hospitality to confront the greed in our hearts and make us more like Christ.
3. Pray that God would bring us opportunities. We should ask God to open our eyes to the needs around us - those with no place to go, no food to eat, no friends to confide in. When we pray for opportunities to show hospitality, we'll be surprised at how many we'll find.
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