WEBVTT 00:00:00.820 --> 00:00:10.000 Good evening, everybody. Glad that we could join together today. My name is Tommy. If we haven't met, hopefully we'll get a chance to do so after the service. 00:00:11.140 --> 00:00:16.660 But as we've gathered here this week, we are in a season in the church calendar called Lent. 00:00:17.519 --> 00:00:26.179 This is a time of preparation for Easter. It's a time when Christians reflect together on who we are in the Lord, who the Lord is calling us to be, 00:00:26.179 --> 00:00:31.719 and the centrality of the cross, why we need the cross, the death and resurrection of Jesus. 00:00:31.980 --> 00:00:38.019 And so even as we're doing that as individuals, we're also doing this corporately as a church body. 00:00:38.500 --> 00:00:42.560 We're thinking together about who we are now, who the Lord is calling us to be. 00:00:42.719 --> 00:00:48.239 We're reflecting on our identity as a church community in a place like Washington, D.C. 00:00:48.840 --> 00:00:53.240 And so as we've been doing that, we've been looking at this statement up here. 00:00:53.240 --> 00:00:56.460 And this is what we believe captures who we are as a church. 00:00:57.219 --> 00:01:00.240 As a church, we seek the flourishing of Washington, D.C. 00:01:00.900 --> 00:01:09.260 by building gospel-centered communities that practice generous hospitality, spiritual formation, and missionary faithfulness in every neighborhood. 00:01:10.000 --> 00:01:15.960 Now, some of you are here and you've been a part of this church, and you know that from time to time we need to reflect on who we are 00:01:15.960 --> 00:01:19.439 so that we can move forward with greater clarity and unity. 00:01:19.439 --> 00:01:24.819 But even if you're here and you're not a Christian, or maybe you're just visiting and maybe you don't even plan to come back, 00:01:25.399 --> 00:01:30.859 this is still relevant because this is what we believe captures not only what we're called to be, 00:01:31.019 --> 00:01:37.459 but a lot of this is what we believe represents or reflects what the Christian faith is all about in general. 00:01:37.859 --> 00:01:42.359 And so we've been looking over these weeks at parts of this in greater detail. 00:01:42.359 --> 00:01:45.859 And so this week we come to our three core values. 00:01:46.319 --> 00:01:51.980 These are what you see, generous hospitality, spiritual formation, and missionary faithfulness. 00:01:52.000 --> 00:01:57.400 These are the three values that we want to infuse everything that we do as a community. 00:01:57.539 --> 00:02:01.840 And again, we believe that these all reflect what Christians are called to in general. 00:02:02.159 --> 00:02:06.359 So this week we're going to be reflecting on the first of these values, generous hospitality. 00:02:07.079 --> 00:02:10.199 And what does it mean that we practice generous hospitality? 00:02:10.199 --> 00:02:16.259 And we need to spend some time on this because I think there's a lot of misunderstanding around the concept of hospitality. 00:02:16.659 --> 00:02:23.079 I know that when I say generous hospitality, that makes many of us think of throwing expensive dinner parties. 00:02:23.199 --> 00:02:26.719 And that's not in fact what the Bible means when it talks about hospitality. 00:02:26.939 --> 00:02:31.519 So we're going to get into this, we're going to look at what the Bible actually means when it talks about hospitality. 00:02:31.780 --> 00:02:38.620 And what we'll see, among other things, is that hospitality is a very important, vital principle. 00:02:38.620 --> 00:02:40.840 It's a value that runs all the way through Scripture. 00:02:41.460 --> 00:02:44.719 That God's people are called to practice hospitality. 00:02:45.819 --> 00:02:50.800 And this is the foundation for Christian approaches to social justice. 00:02:51.920 --> 00:02:59.780 All of the teaching on social justice that we have in Scripture is really rooted in a robust understanding of hospitality. 00:03:00.420 --> 00:03:03.939 And I hope to make that connection as we move forward together. 00:03:03.939 --> 00:03:09.020 So all of our readings that we just heard focus on this theme, but we're going to really look at two of them. 00:03:09.219 --> 00:03:13.060 We're going to look at Deuteronomy 10, and then we're going to look at Hebrews 13. 00:03:14.060 --> 00:03:18.340 And they will show us that generous hospitality is three things. 00:03:19.180 --> 00:03:24.460 That it's a heart posture, that it's a mindset, and it's a lifestyle. 00:03:24.719 --> 00:03:27.460 A heart posture, a mindset, and a lifestyle. 00:03:27.639 --> 00:03:28.300 Generous hospitality. 00:03:28.879 --> 00:03:31.020 So let's ask the Lord to lead us into His Word. 00:03:31.020 --> 00:03:40.480 Our Heavenly Father, we recognize here that if we are merely here to consider the words and reflections of human beings, 00:03:40.600 --> 00:03:43.260 then we really have no hope, and there is no power here. 00:03:44.060 --> 00:03:47.580 Our great hope now is that we would be able to sit at Your feet, 00:03:47.860 --> 00:03:52.280 and that You would illuminate Your Word for us, that You would speak Your Word. 00:03:52.280 --> 00:03:57.560 Lord, the same Word that brought all of this into existence at creation, 00:03:57.719 --> 00:04:02.240 that You would now use Your Word to recreate us from the inside out, Lord. 00:04:02.740 --> 00:04:05.560 For our good and for Your glory, in Your Son's name we pray. 00:04:05.780 --> 00:04:06.060 Amen. 00:04:07.560 --> 00:04:13.639 So as we're talking about generous hospitality, the first thing I want you to see is that it is a heart posture. 00:04:13.639 --> 00:04:18.479 It flows out of a heart posture, and that heart posture is love. 00:04:20.000 --> 00:04:22.839 The generous hospitality flows out of a heart posture of love. 00:04:23.519 --> 00:04:28.019 Now we need to do a little more clarifying here, because I know that when I say the word love, 00:04:28.620 --> 00:04:32.060 we think of an emotion. 00:04:33.159 --> 00:04:33.479 Right? 00:04:33.539 --> 00:04:39.939 And that's because we live in a society that is greatly influenced by romanticism and individualism. 00:04:39.939 --> 00:04:45.480 And so when we think about love, we think about the feeling of love, the emotion of love, 00:04:45.600 --> 00:04:50.060 the deep desire, the longing, the aching for another person. 00:04:50.160 --> 00:04:54.319 We think of that romantic sense of love as desire for another. 00:04:56.240 --> 00:05:00.899 So love is all about my emotions, my desires, my longings and affections. 00:05:01.300 --> 00:05:04.720 And the point I want to make is this, is that that is almost the exact opposite 00:05:04.720 --> 00:05:08.439 of what the Bible means when it talks about love. 00:05:08.439 --> 00:05:12.480 For Christians, love is not primarily an emotion. 00:05:14.160 --> 00:05:16.139 It's a posture of the heart. 00:05:17.199 --> 00:05:22.860 It's an orientation of the heart that says you are more important than I am. 00:05:23.240 --> 00:05:29.540 That your welfare and your blessing and your flourishing is the higher priority. 00:05:30.360 --> 00:05:35.180 That my interests and my preferences take a back seat to what's best for you. 00:05:36.019 --> 00:05:37.519 Meaning the whole community. 00:05:37.519 --> 00:05:41.779 That's what love, biblically understood, is all about. 00:05:41.939 --> 00:05:44.620 So it becomes the lens through which I see everything. 00:05:44.979 --> 00:05:50.039 If I have a heart posture of love that says your welfare is my primary interest. 00:05:50.519 --> 00:05:55.259 That affects how I see my money and my house and my stuff. 00:05:55.399 --> 00:05:55.560 Right? 00:05:56.459 --> 00:06:03.259 I begin to see all of the stuff that I have as a means of making sure your needs are met. 00:06:03.259 --> 00:06:06.839 As a means of making sure you're blessed and that you're flourishing. 00:06:08.519 --> 00:06:12.560 And that way of seeing my stuff in that way, the biblical word for that is stewardship. 00:06:13.980 --> 00:06:17.620 I see myself not as an owner of my stuff, but as a steward. 00:06:18.360 --> 00:06:22.920 And I'm meant to use it in ways that bless and benefit the community. 00:06:23.360 --> 00:06:23.539 Right? 00:06:23.540 --> 00:06:30.680 So a heart posture of love enables me to see all that is in my life as a steward. 00:06:30.860 --> 00:06:32.319 To be used for the blessing of the community. 00:06:32.600 --> 00:06:36.280 Now I'm reiterating that because it's really important that we get that principle. 00:06:37.600 --> 00:06:40.040 And that applies to everything. 00:06:40.040 --> 00:06:49.200 And Hebrews 13 actually is a striking example of what this principle looks like when it's applied to everything. 00:06:49.920 --> 00:06:53.560 So if you look at Hebrews 13, it gives us a principle. 00:06:54.379 --> 00:06:56.120 Let brotherly love continue. 00:06:56.460 --> 00:06:57.640 Love as we've just talked about it. 00:06:57.780 --> 00:06:58.820 Love for the community. 00:06:59.960 --> 00:07:01.100 So that's the principle. 00:07:02.160 --> 00:07:05.300 And then there are several applications of that principle. 00:07:05.300 --> 00:07:09.439 So in other words, the author of Hebrews is saying, let brotherly love continue. 00:07:09.699 --> 00:07:11.680 For example, do these things. 00:07:11.840 --> 00:07:16.420 And I want you to see these, and it's striking how they don't seem to fit together at all. 00:07:17.720 --> 00:07:21.480 At first it says, here's how to let brotherly love continue. 00:07:21.860 --> 00:07:23.280 Show hospitality to strangers. 00:07:23.420 --> 00:07:24.360 Don't neglect to do that. 00:07:24.800 --> 00:07:26.840 You say, okay, well that sounds like a loving thing to do. 00:07:27.860 --> 00:07:29.100 Remember those who are in prison. 00:07:29.280 --> 00:07:30.160 Yep, that makes sense. 00:07:31.120 --> 00:07:33.300 Remember and care for victims of mistreatment. 00:07:33.300 --> 00:07:34.500 Mistreatment, right? 00:07:34.540 --> 00:07:39.139 This is victims of all kinds of injustice or oppression or inequality, right? 00:07:39.220 --> 00:07:42.900 So all of these are concerning social justice, right? 00:07:43.520 --> 00:07:45.020 So let brotherly love continue. 00:07:45.379 --> 00:07:46.460 Seek social justice. 00:07:47.100 --> 00:07:48.540 So all that makes sense. 00:07:49.540 --> 00:07:51.780 But then look at the next statement. 00:07:53.139 --> 00:07:53.939 Honor marriage. 00:07:55.280 --> 00:07:55.580 What? 00:07:56.960 --> 00:07:58.439 Don't commit adultery. 00:07:59.519 --> 00:08:02.680 Avoid sexual immorality, which is any kind of sexual, 00:08:02.680 --> 00:08:06.740 contact or sexual intimacy outside of a covenant marriage. 00:08:07.180 --> 00:08:13.439 And you look at this and you say, well, what in the world does sex have to do with social justice and hospitality? 00:08:14.100 --> 00:08:18.560 Is this just a random list or is this another example of Christians being obsessed with sex 00:08:18.560 --> 00:08:20.220 and just talking about it all the time? 00:08:20.300 --> 00:08:25.019 What in the world does this have to do with brotherly love or social justice? 00:08:25.019 --> 00:08:28.819 And in order to make sense of this passage, you have to come back to the principle. 00:08:28.979 --> 00:08:29.659 What is the principle? 00:08:30.859 --> 00:08:35.600 Love means putting the needs of the community and what's best for the community first. 00:08:36.899 --> 00:08:37.240 Right? 00:08:37.340 --> 00:08:41.659 So in the case of hospitality and social justice, well, this makes sense. 00:08:42.759 --> 00:08:42.899 Right? 00:08:42.899 --> 00:08:47.740 See, we live in an individualistic, materialistic, consumerist culture. 00:08:48.459 --> 00:08:56.120 And because of that, we are shaped to and we are influenced by that to think about our money and our homes 00:08:56.120 --> 00:08:59.899 and all our resources primarily in terms of self-gratification. 00:09:01.100 --> 00:09:04.659 You know, what I need, self-fulfillment, self-gratification, my own pleasure. 00:09:04.779 --> 00:09:04.980 Right? 00:09:04.980 --> 00:09:08.220 But the principle of love would say, no, no, no, no. 00:09:08.259 --> 00:09:12.879 We need to think about this stuff primarily in terms of how does it benefit the community. 00:09:13.159 --> 00:09:17.139 So not about what blesses me, but what are the needs out there. 00:09:17.639 --> 00:09:17.759 Right? 00:09:17.840 --> 00:09:19.080 Show hospitality to the stranger. 00:09:19.220 --> 00:09:20.300 Bring the stranger in. 00:09:21.159 --> 00:09:21.300 Right? 00:09:21.399 --> 00:09:22.820 Care for those people who are in prison. 00:09:22.980 --> 00:09:26.440 Care for victims of injustice or mistreatment. 00:09:26.560 --> 00:09:27.820 So that makes sense. 00:09:27.920 --> 00:09:28.120 Right? 00:09:29.680 --> 00:09:33.980 And if we're honest, a lot of times when we think about hospitality, 00:09:33.980 --> 00:09:36.600 it's not so much blessing the community, 00:09:36.840 --> 00:09:41.120 it's much more the kind of Martha Stewart entertainment industry approach. 00:09:41.240 --> 00:09:42.560 It's much more about us. 00:09:42.580 --> 00:09:44.080 I want you to be impressed with my decor. 00:09:44.519 --> 00:09:46.360 I want you to be impressed with my cuisine. 00:09:48.980 --> 00:09:52.779 But what this is saying is that the core principle, the heart posture, 00:09:53.139 --> 00:09:55.440 sees our stuff as a means to bless other people. 00:09:55.440 --> 00:09:58.800 So it doesn't matter if you serve beef bourguignon or bologna sandwiches. 00:09:59.580 --> 00:10:02.560 The goal, beef bourguignon is really good. 00:10:03.019 --> 00:10:03.860 But it doesn't matter. 00:10:04.659 --> 00:10:09.639 Because ultimately the goal is blessing and serving the community. 00:10:10.019 --> 00:10:12.980 And, you know, the word for hospitality is actually phyloxenia, 00:10:13.759 --> 00:10:15.420 which means love for the stranger. 00:10:16.019 --> 00:10:18.200 So this doesn't mean inviting your friends over. 00:10:18.279 --> 00:10:21.200 This means inviting people into your home who you don't know. 00:10:22.279 --> 00:10:23.480 It's for their welfare. 00:10:23.800 --> 00:10:26.240 And when we do these kinds of things, when we care for those in prison 00:10:26.240 --> 00:10:29.060 and care for victims of injustice and mistreatment, 00:10:29.259 --> 00:10:30.420 we're building up the community. 00:10:30.519 --> 00:10:31.480 So all of that makes sense. 00:10:31.480 --> 00:10:33.060 That's the principle of love applied. 00:10:33.879 --> 00:10:37.940 So then what does this have to do with marriage and sex and adultery and all that stuff? 00:10:39.180 --> 00:10:43.600 Well, amazingly, the author of Hebrews applies the same principle here too. 00:10:45.100 --> 00:10:46.120 Think about our culture. 00:10:46.120 --> 00:10:54.360 In a culture of romanticism and individualism, we tend to think of sex primarily as we do our stuff, 00:10:54.460 --> 00:10:56.120 as we do our homes, as we do our money. 00:10:56.299 --> 00:11:00.539 We think about it through the lens of self-gratification, self-fulfillment. 00:11:01.080 --> 00:11:01.220 Right? 00:11:01.220 --> 00:11:02.740 What's good for me? 00:11:02.840 --> 00:11:04.740 My pleasure, my preferences. 00:11:04.920 --> 00:11:11.540 And so we've come to think of sex as a right to which we are entitled for self-expression and self-fulfillment. 00:11:11.539 --> 00:11:19.599 But a heart posture of love, in the same way that it reorients how I see my money and my house and my time, 00:11:20.120 --> 00:11:24.919 it reorients the way I see my own body and my own sexuality. 00:11:24.919 --> 00:11:33.939 And it reorients me to begin to think about my body and my sexuality primarily in terms of what is best for the whole community. 00:11:34.579 --> 00:11:36.240 Not just what I might prefer. 00:11:37.599 --> 00:11:44.179 And so if you think about it, sex outside of a covenant marriage negatively impacts the community. 00:11:44.379 --> 00:11:44.479 Right? 00:11:44.539 --> 00:11:46.559 It results in broken marriages. 00:11:47.139 --> 00:11:49.299 It results in the breakdown of family. 00:11:49.480 --> 00:11:49.639 Right? 00:11:49.919 --> 00:11:51.759 In broken families. 00:11:51.860 --> 00:11:53.919 It results in single-parent homes. 00:11:53.919 --> 00:11:56.339 It results in unwanted pregnancies. 00:11:56.500 --> 00:11:57.719 It results in orphans. 00:11:57.839 --> 00:11:58.019 Right? 00:11:58.219 --> 00:12:00.620 And there's a negative impact on society. 00:12:01.459 --> 00:12:07.819 And by contrast, when you have stable covenant marriages, those form stable families. 00:12:08.639 --> 00:12:17.719 And those stable families then become capable of either conceiving or adopting children and raising them in a stable community. 00:12:18.399 --> 00:12:23.379 And they have a mom and a dad, an extended family, and a network of support that gives them consistency. 00:12:23.919 --> 00:12:24.839 And allows them to grow. 00:12:24.839 --> 00:12:26.500 That's what's best for kids. 00:12:26.620 --> 00:12:26.799 Right? 00:12:27.699 --> 00:12:29.500 And it doesn't just apply to kids. 00:12:29.839 --> 00:12:32.240 Families, stable families, are able to care for the sick. 00:12:33.179 --> 00:12:35.240 They're able to care for the aging, the elderly. 00:12:36.299 --> 00:12:39.860 They're better positioned in some ways to care for the poor in their midst. 00:12:39.860 --> 00:12:45.800 And what you have is essentially this fact. 00:12:46.080 --> 00:13:01.980 There's no society on earth, definitely not ours, there's no society on earth that is capable of caring for all of the children and all of the sick and all of the elderly unless families bear the brunt of that responsibility. 00:13:02.320 --> 00:13:06.300 No society in existence can afford to care for all those people. 00:13:06.299 --> 00:13:09.240 We need stable families to do that. 00:13:10.219 --> 00:13:10.339 Right? 00:13:10.459 --> 00:13:12.339 So you see the contrast here. 00:13:13.359 --> 00:13:13.500 Right? 00:13:13.699 --> 00:13:22.139 In our culture's understanding of love, love is the reason that we have sex with anyone we want. 00:13:22.240 --> 00:13:22.399 Right? 00:13:22.519 --> 00:13:23.779 It doesn't matter if you're married. 00:13:23.859 --> 00:13:30.339 If you're married and you're trapped in this dull marriage and you meet the love of your life, that in many people's eyes is justification. 00:13:31.599 --> 00:13:32.919 Well, you love that person. 00:13:33.159 --> 00:13:34.319 That's your true love. 00:13:34.320 --> 00:13:42.240 Love becomes the kind of unassailable absolute truth that we can use to justify really sleeping with whoever we want. 00:13:43.400 --> 00:13:50.680 And you see the contrast where in our culture love is the reason we have sex with people, whoever we want, regardless of marriage. 00:13:50.879 --> 00:13:57.260 But biblically speaking, love is actually the reason or one of the primary reasons that we don't do that. 00:13:58.000 --> 00:14:01.640 Because when we talk about love, we're talking about love for the community. 00:14:01.639 --> 00:14:04.199 We're talking about what benefits the common good. 00:14:04.559 --> 00:14:10.500 So we keep sexuality within the context of a covenant marriage because we believe that's what's best for society. 00:14:10.659 --> 00:14:11.699 It's best for kids. 00:14:11.840 --> 00:14:13.159 It's best for future generations. 00:14:14.439 --> 00:14:17.220 So this is, by the way, why we announce the bans of marriage. 00:14:18.059 --> 00:14:25.179 You know, we do this archaic thing in this church where if somebody's getting married through our church, three weeks before we begin to announce the marriage. 00:14:25.179 --> 00:14:29.679 And we say if anybody has any reason why these two should not be wed, it's your duty to come and talk to the pastor. 00:14:29.779 --> 00:14:30.439 Why do we do that? 00:14:31.079 --> 00:14:38.000 Well, because we believe that a huge dimension of a marriage is not just the fulfillment of that couple, but it's the benefit of the community. 00:14:38.159 --> 00:14:47.179 So we're giving you an opportunity to come up and say whether or not you think this wedding, this union, is going to actually be good for the community or not. 00:14:47.179 --> 00:14:49.659 So that's what the bans of marriage are all about. 00:14:49.819 --> 00:14:54.259 It's an orientation toward marriage and sexuality that prioritizes the common good. 00:14:55.620 --> 00:15:00.879 So this is the principle that generous hospitality flows out of. 00:15:00.939 --> 00:15:01.699 Does that make sense? 00:15:02.579 --> 00:15:07.099 A heart posture of love that says the welfare of the community is primary. 00:15:07.279 --> 00:15:12.419 It's radically running against the individualism that so defines our culture. 00:15:13.120 --> 00:15:15.039 That's the first thing, a heart posture of love. 00:15:15.039 --> 00:15:20.980 The second thing, the second aspect of generous hospitality is it's a mindset. 00:15:21.879 --> 00:15:22.799 It's a mindset. 00:15:24.000 --> 00:15:33.759 In Deuteronomy chapter 10, looking at the other text now, you have the situation where through Moses, God is essentially renewing his covenant with Israel. 00:15:34.819 --> 00:15:39.459 And this passage really gets at the heart of what it means to be in relationship with God. 00:15:39.639 --> 00:15:40.959 And I just want you to listen to what it says. 00:15:42.579 --> 00:15:43.439 Verse 14. 00:15:43.440 --> 00:15:51.900 Behold, to the Lord your God belong heaven and the heaven of heavens, the earth with all that is in it. 00:15:52.580 --> 00:16:02.320 Yet the Lord set his heart in love on your fathers and chose their offspring after them, you above all peoples, as you are to this day. 00:16:02.540 --> 00:16:03.560 Now what's that saying? 00:16:03.559 --> 00:16:06.399 All of this is God's. 00:16:06.559 --> 00:16:06.919 Everything. 00:16:07.179 --> 00:16:11.839 Heaven, the heavens, in the heavens, in the heavens, the earth, everything in it, it's all his. 00:16:12.019 --> 00:16:14.079 And yet, God chose you. 00:16:15.839 --> 00:16:18.000 He set his love on you. 00:16:19.119 --> 00:16:24.579 It's not that you were just so adorable and ridiculously cute and endearing that God fell in love with you. 00:16:24.580 --> 00:16:27.500 You didn't deserve it. 00:16:28.040 --> 00:16:30.220 You were ignoring God and the world that he made. 00:16:30.360 --> 00:16:32.480 You were living as though there was no such thing. 00:16:33.300 --> 00:16:36.060 And God, nevertheless, set his love on you. 00:16:36.560 --> 00:16:37.480 He chose you. 00:16:37.800 --> 00:16:38.680 He set you apart. 00:16:38.800 --> 00:16:39.480 That's what it's saying. 00:16:40.860 --> 00:16:42.360 And then it goes on, verse 18. 00:16:43.200 --> 00:16:44.379 Here's what God is like. 00:16:44.379 --> 00:16:51.639 He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing. 00:16:52.019 --> 00:16:52.740 And then verse 19. 00:16:53.120 --> 00:16:57.559 Love the sojourner, therefore, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. 00:16:57.679 --> 00:16:58.580 So what is this saying? 00:17:01.500 --> 00:17:03.279 God is a God of justice. 00:17:04.759 --> 00:17:09.539 He cares about the fatherless and the widow and the sojourner. 00:17:09.799 --> 00:17:10.880 And who is the sojourner? 00:17:10.960 --> 00:17:11.500 What does that mean? 00:17:11.500 --> 00:17:13.980 Well, it really means anybody without a community. 00:17:14.380 --> 00:17:15.380 Or a family. 00:17:16.120 --> 00:17:17.320 People who don't belong. 00:17:18.080 --> 00:17:19.200 For whatever reason. 00:17:20.140 --> 00:17:20.300 Right? 00:17:20.580 --> 00:17:22.180 So what does that make us think of? 00:17:22.240 --> 00:17:24.280 Well, people without homes and families. 00:17:24.400 --> 00:17:24.820 The homeless. 00:17:25.040 --> 00:17:25.180 Right? 00:17:26.500 --> 00:17:26.980 Refugees. 00:17:27.600 --> 00:17:27.840 Right? 00:17:27.880 --> 00:17:28.860 This is talking about refugees. 00:17:29.060 --> 00:17:30.000 This is talking about immigrants. 00:17:30.900 --> 00:17:31.080 Right? 00:17:31.340 --> 00:17:34.440 But it's also potentially talking about people in this very room. 00:17:36.080 --> 00:17:37.180 People who are lonely. 00:17:37.940 --> 00:17:39.160 People who have no friends. 00:17:40.240 --> 00:17:42.860 People who are surrounded by strangers. 00:17:42.859 --> 00:17:44.859 People who feel like outcasts. 00:17:45.779 --> 00:17:47.000 People who don't fit in. 00:17:47.179 --> 00:17:48.699 People who fall through the cracks. 00:17:48.859 --> 00:17:50.039 People who have been rejected. 00:17:50.279 --> 00:17:52.859 People who, for whatever reason, don't feel like they belong. 00:17:54.159 --> 00:17:55.819 It's talking about all of those people. 00:17:56.059 --> 00:18:00.839 And this is saying that God is the kind of God who not only sets his love on people, like us, 00:18:00.839 --> 00:18:07.299 but he finds the people who don't fit in, the outcasts, the refugees, the immigrants, and God says, I care about those people. 00:18:08.859 --> 00:18:11.319 I am the kind of God who cares about those people. 00:18:12.379 --> 00:18:13.859 And then what does it say about us? 00:18:15.439 --> 00:18:19.019 He says, care for the sojourner, love the sojourner, for you were once sojourners. 00:18:19.019 --> 00:18:20.160 What's that reminding us? 00:18:20.319 --> 00:18:22.779 The only reason that we're not homeless. 00:18:22.940 --> 00:18:24.539 The only reason that we're not refugees. 00:18:24.920 --> 00:18:28.819 The only reason that we're not immigrants who have been forced to relocate somewhere else. 00:18:28.859 --> 00:18:33.619 The only reason that we have friends or community or education or any of the things that we have. 00:18:33.660 --> 00:18:36.900 The only reason is because of God's grace. 00:18:37.639 --> 00:18:41.200 It is a sheer gift of grace that we have what we have. 00:18:41.240 --> 00:18:42.440 We like to think that we earned it. 00:18:43.299 --> 00:18:46.759 We like to think that we worked hard and got good grades and all of that. 00:18:48.080 --> 00:18:52.759 But all of the opportunities that even allowed that to be a possibility, those are things that we didn't earn. 00:18:52.840 --> 00:18:53.720 They were given to us. 00:18:53.759 --> 00:18:54.660 It's a sheer gift. 00:18:55.380 --> 00:18:59.160 That you were born with the genes that you were born with, into the family that you were born into. 00:18:59.980 --> 00:19:01.360 It's all a gift of grace. 00:19:03.039 --> 00:19:04.820 So this is the second point, okay? 00:19:05.059 --> 00:19:11.480 Generous hospitality flows out of a heart posture of love, and it flows out of a mindset of grace. 00:19:11.480 --> 00:19:15.799 A mindset that says, everything that I have is a gift. 00:19:17.519 --> 00:19:18.640 Everything is a gift. 00:19:18.779 --> 00:19:20.160 I don't deserve any of it. 00:19:20.240 --> 00:19:21.319 It's all a gift. 00:19:22.900 --> 00:19:29.180 So Deuteronomy 10 is saying, love the sojourner because grace alone has kept you from being a sojourner. 00:19:29.900 --> 00:19:32.620 It's sheer grace from the Lord. 00:19:33.700 --> 00:19:36.079 And I want to make a point about this before we move on. 00:19:36.079 --> 00:19:49.039 This is what sets Christian hospitality and the Christian approach to social justice apart from other approaches to justice that are prevalent in our society. 00:19:49.039 --> 00:19:55.319 Because we live in a time and place, thankfully, is really good, where lots of people care about justice. 00:19:55.759 --> 00:20:00.679 Lots of people care about social justice and bringing greater equality to the world. 00:20:00.680 --> 00:20:04.900 Lots of people, I think everybody here is passionate about that. 00:20:06.180 --> 00:20:07.940 But the Christian approach is unique. 00:20:08.519 --> 00:20:16.299 Because many people in our society, although they care about justice, the only weapon that they have to motivate justice is guilt. 00:20:16.299 --> 00:20:17.299 Right? 00:20:17.299 --> 00:20:18.299 Right? 00:20:19.119 --> 00:20:32.559 The theory is if you can make people feel guilty and feel a sense of shame over their privilege, then eventually you can motivate them to behave and to live with greater justice. 00:20:33.240 --> 00:20:33.399 Right? 00:20:33.559 --> 00:20:35.639 So it's a means to an end. 00:20:36.339 --> 00:20:42.440 You guilt people, make them feel bad and guilty about their privilege, and then produce justice as a result. 00:20:42.440 --> 00:20:48.660 But the problem is guilt is powerless to actually transform people. 00:20:50.299 --> 00:20:52.640 Oh, guilt can make people conform. 00:20:53.920 --> 00:20:58.559 People will conform if they feel guilty to reduce that sense of guilt. 00:20:59.360 --> 00:21:01.279 But guilt cannot transform people. 00:21:01.380 --> 00:21:02.420 It can't change hearts. 00:21:02.420 --> 00:21:12.600 There's an interesting illustration of this that comes from a man named Shelby Steele, who's an African-American scholar at the Hoover Institute at Stanford, 00:21:12.600 --> 00:21:15.400 who recently wrote an opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal. 00:21:15.600 --> 00:21:17.380 And he's talking about white guilt. 00:21:17.640 --> 00:21:25.519 And what he's talking about is the fact that guilt has major limits in its ability to bring about true justice. 00:21:25.740 --> 00:21:27.580 And I'll just read a snippet from this piece. 00:21:27.579 --> 00:21:57.559 He says, 00:21:57.579 --> 00:22:10.399 So what's he saying? 00:22:11.179 --> 00:22:13.539 He's saying there are real problems in the world. 00:22:13.699 --> 00:22:14.679 Racism is real. 00:22:14.799 --> 00:22:15.819 Injustice is real. 00:22:15.899 --> 00:22:17.599 The plight of immigrants and refugees is real. 00:22:17.679 --> 00:22:18.779 Those are real issues. 00:22:19.720 --> 00:22:22.939 But guilt isn't actually producing genuine compassion. 00:22:22.940 --> 00:22:26.759 It's producing conformity. 00:22:27.400 --> 00:22:30.240 People are terrified of being stigmatized. 00:22:30.640 --> 00:22:33.259 But there's no actual love there. 00:22:33.519 --> 00:22:35.840 And so it can't actually bring about true justice. 00:22:36.059 --> 00:22:37.380 Just the pretense of it. 00:22:37.380 --> 00:22:46.560 So he says this whole guilt-driven justice movement in our culture isn't really about compassion and justice. 00:22:47.560 --> 00:22:49.160 It's about moral authority. 00:22:50.000 --> 00:22:54.720 It gives certain people the ability to claim moral authority over other people. 00:22:54.720 --> 00:23:02.720 And you see that happen on social media every single day with people shaming each other over this or that issue du jour. 00:23:04.220 --> 00:23:04.779 Right? 00:23:04.900 --> 00:23:09.740 So this is the same thing, by the way, that you see happening in Jesus' day with the Pharisees. 00:23:09.740 --> 00:23:15.359 The Pharisees used guilt and shame to motivate people to follow God's law. 00:23:16.299 --> 00:23:18.539 And Jesus hated it and spoke against it. 00:23:18.620 --> 00:23:22.259 Because it just produces a kind of external conformity. 00:23:22.900 --> 00:23:24.720 But it doesn't produce heart change. 00:23:25.359 --> 00:23:29.720 But we see the same thing today in the kind of guilt-driven social justice world. 00:23:29.859 --> 00:23:32.539 It's just a new form of Pharisaical thinking. 00:23:33.240 --> 00:23:34.460 And it doesn't work. 00:23:34.460 --> 00:23:37.579 So guilt can force people to conform. 00:23:37.940 --> 00:23:40.880 But only grace has the power to transform. 00:23:42.299 --> 00:23:43.360 Why is grace different? 00:23:44.019 --> 00:23:49.460 Because it doesn't just produce resentment or shame or self-hatred or regret. 00:23:50.200 --> 00:23:51.620 It produces gratitude. 00:23:52.860 --> 00:23:58.079 When you believe that all that you have, your education and your family and your connections and all of that privilege, 00:23:58.079 --> 00:24:04.299 when you first recognize that all of that is a gift, that you didn't deserve it, that you can't repay it, 00:24:05.319 --> 00:24:09.740 when you realize that that was just given to you, it produces gratitude. 00:24:11.920 --> 00:24:18.160 And it moves your heart to want to be generous to other people, to want to extend that same grace. 00:24:20.100 --> 00:24:20.600 Right? 00:24:20.700 --> 00:24:28.100 So generous hospitality is the product of a heart posture of love that says the community comes first. 00:24:28.099 --> 00:24:33.439 And it's the product of a mindset of grace that recognizes all that I have is a gift. 00:24:34.740 --> 00:24:37.839 And therefore, I am bound, I am compelled to be generous. 00:24:39.419 --> 00:24:40.659 Because I didn't deserve it. 00:24:41.199 --> 00:24:42.500 And yet it was given to me. 00:24:43.519 --> 00:24:43.679 Right? 00:24:43.680 --> 00:24:47.039 And so when those things come together, that heart posture and that mindset, 00:24:47.640 --> 00:24:54.640 when they come together in your life, they produce, the third point, a lifestyle of hospitality. 00:24:54.799 --> 00:24:56.779 They result in a lifestyle of hospitality. 00:24:58.539 --> 00:25:00.259 So hospitality is a lifestyle. 00:25:00.259 --> 00:25:07.259 The author of Hebrews says, do not neglect to show hospitality, meaning we should do it regularly and continually. 00:25:08.119 --> 00:25:10.599 And then Paul says something similar in Romans 12. 00:25:10.759 --> 00:25:13.900 He says that we should pursue hospitality continually. 00:25:14.240 --> 00:25:16.420 It should be an ongoing part of our lifestyle. 00:25:16.420 --> 00:25:19.060 So this means it's not just Saturday night, once a month. 00:25:20.720 --> 00:25:22.039 Invite a friend from work night. 00:25:22.860 --> 00:25:23.019 Right? 00:25:23.100 --> 00:25:24.700 It's not just a Saturday night once a month. 00:25:24.759 --> 00:25:28.060 It's not just something that we do when we go to this or that program that we're involved in. 00:25:28.180 --> 00:25:34.800 It's our entire orientation to our time and our stuff and our week and our house and even our own bodies. 00:25:34.840 --> 00:25:36.980 It's the way we think continually. 00:25:39.019 --> 00:25:41.600 So I want to get practical here with the few minutes that we have left. 00:25:41.660 --> 00:25:44.860 What does this actually look like lived out? 00:25:44.859 --> 00:25:47.879 And I want to just define it very clearly. 00:25:47.979 --> 00:25:56.579 What we're talking about when we talk about generous hospitality, this heart posture of love and mindset of grace that produces a lifestyle of hospitality. 00:25:56.740 --> 00:25:57.219 What is that? 00:25:57.519 --> 00:26:10.719 Well, it simply means opening up your day planner and your home and your wallet and your life to invite people in who wouldn't normally belong there. 00:26:11.619 --> 00:26:12.000 Right? 00:26:12.000 --> 00:26:18.140 So not necessarily your friends and the people you naturally connect with, but people who wouldn't normally belong there. 00:26:18.220 --> 00:26:19.859 You're inviting people in. 00:26:20.460 --> 00:26:20.980 Strangers. 00:26:21.839 --> 00:26:22.400 Outsiders. 00:26:22.779 --> 00:26:24.119 You're inviting them in. 00:26:24.119 --> 00:26:31.819 You know, Henry Nowen says that hospitality makes it possible for strangers to cast off their strangeness. 00:26:32.700 --> 00:26:33.960 I love that. 00:26:33.960 --> 00:26:34.400 Right? 00:26:34.400 --> 00:26:34.880 Right? 00:26:35.559 --> 00:26:42.960 What greater gift could you give somebody than to create an opportunity where they no longer have to feel strange or outside? 00:26:44.319 --> 00:26:50.120 You create an opportunity where they can feel like they've been welcomed in and that they're a part of something and that they belong. 00:26:51.400 --> 00:26:51.819 Right? 00:26:51.819 --> 00:26:55.119 So this is what generous hospitality does. 00:26:55.980 --> 00:26:58.819 And when we say generous, we simply mean going above and beyond. 00:26:59.279 --> 00:27:00.579 Doing more than the basic. 00:27:01.079 --> 00:27:02.720 Being preemptive and proactive. 00:27:03.039 --> 00:27:07.859 You know, in ancient times, if you were traveling, you couldn't just book a hotel and stay at a hotel. 00:27:08.759 --> 00:27:14.859 When you came to a city, your only hope of having a place to stay was if somebody in the city were to welcome you into their home. 00:27:14.919 --> 00:27:16.939 You had to rely on their hospitality. 00:27:17.279 --> 00:27:18.059 Well, how did it work? 00:27:18.500 --> 00:27:22.700 Well, if I came to a city and nobody knew me, they don't know what my intentions are. 00:27:22.980 --> 00:27:25.180 I could be there to sack the city and try to take over. 00:27:25.279 --> 00:27:27.740 They have no idea what my agenda might be. 00:27:28.420 --> 00:27:31.200 So etiquette required me to wait outside the gates. 00:27:32.200 --> 00:27:32.980 So I would come. 00:27:33.019 --> 00:27:33.779 It's the end of a long day. 00:27:33.860 --> 00:27:34.500 Sun's going down. 00:27:34.580 --> 00:27:35.080 I'm tired. 00:27:35.180 --> 00:27:35.580 I'm weary. 00:27:35.660 --> 00:27:36.080 I'm thirsty. 00:27:36.160 --> 00:27:36.600 I'm hungry. 00:27:37.600 --> 00:27:39.700 And I come and I have to wait outside the gate. 00:27:40.380 --> 00:27:45.539 And I have to just hope and pray to God that somebody in that city comes outside the gate. 00:27:45.539 --> 00:27:47.720 Finds me. 00:27:48.440 --> 00:27:50.720 Takes my hand and welcomes me into their home. 00:27:51.779 --> 00:27:52.180 Right? 00:27:52.240 --> 00:27:54.579 So it requires a preemptive love. 00:27:54.680 --> 00:27:55.539 A preemptive. 00:27:55.839 --> 00:28:00.359 In other words, I have to be willing to leave, come out of the city and meet that person. 00:28:00.460 --> 00:28:00.639 Right? 00:28:00.740 --> 00:28:02.180 You can't wait for them to come to you. 00:28:02.299 --> 00:28:04.740 And there are a lot of people waiting outside the gate. 00:28:05.879 --> 00:28:08.420 And what this means is that we have to be generous and proactive. 00:28:08.559 --> 00:28:10.519 We have to come out of our friend group. 00:28:10.519 --> 00:28:12.759 We have to come out of the clique. 00:28:13.619 --> 00:28:18.440 We have to come out of the small group of the same six people that have been meeting together for ten years. 00:28:18.960 --> 00:28:19.259 Right? 00:28:19.299 --> 00:28:20.799 We have to come out of our group house. 00:28:21.139 --> 00:28:23.180 We have to come out of our college friends. 00:28:23.599 --> 00:28:25.000 Like, whatever that is. 00:28:25.680 --> 00:28:27.660 That you have to come outside those gates. 00:28:28.400 --> 00:28:35.139 Because I guarantee you in a city like this, there are people right outside the gate praying to God for an invitation in. 00:28:35.140 --> 00:28:38.680 So we have to be generous. 00:28:39.740 --> 00:28:42.259 And we want this to be a value that infuses everything. 00:28:42.740 --> 00:28:48.340 And that's why we specifically focus on ministries like DC 127 doing foster care and adoption. 00:28:48.840 --> 00:28:52.000 This is why we specifically focus on ministry to refugees. 00:28:53.780 --> 00:28:59.040 This is why we want in, as time passes, to build a growing ministry of mentoring youth. 00:28:59.240 --> 00:29:01.320 This is why we want to do ministry to the homeless. 00:29:01.319 --> 00:29:03.899 This is why we want our church to be doing these things. 00:29:03.939 --> 00:29:06.659 Because these are ministries of hospitality to people who need it. 00:29:08.519 --> 00:29:17.539 But aside from all of those things, I just want to end by giving you a few ideas of things that you can start doing right now that are not going to cost you any money. 00:29:17.879 --> 00:29:19.659 They're not going to cost you any time. 00:29:20.359 --> 00:29:23.039 So these are things that you can start doing right now. 00:29:23.119 --> 00:29:24.319 I'll just give you three real quick. 00:29:24.319 --> 00:29:26.159 The first is this. 00:29:27.179 --> 00:29:33.759 Learn to notice and to respond to the lonely in our midst. 00:29:35.139 --> 00:29:38.460 Do not be fooled by external appearances. 00:29:38.939 --> 00:29:44.220 If anybody is here and they're new, it's your first few times coming. 00:29:44.740 --> 00:29:49.599 To walk into a room like this full of people like this and to not know anybody is terrifying. 00:29:49.960 --> 00:29:51.339 It's terrifying for me. 00:29:51.339 --> 00:29:54.939 I get used to knowing a lot of people when I go to church. 00:29:55.019 --> 00:29:59.039 And then when we travel and we go to other churches and I walk in and all of a sudden I don't know anybody. 00:29:59.339 --> 00:30:01.279 I feel like this big. 00:30:01.679 --> 00:30:02.259 I'm terrified. 00:30:02.419 --> 00:30:06.459 And normally I would just go to the corner as fast as I can and hope that nobody notices me. 00:30:07.179 --> 00:30:09.980 By the end of the service, my wife knows everybody in the room. 00:30:11.119 --> 00:30:13.019 And she introduces me to a couple of those people. 00:30:13.059 --> 00:30:14.459 But I get terrified in that setting. 00:30:14.500 --> 00:30:15.220 And most people do. 00:30:16.119 --> 00:30:16.220 Right? 00:30:16.319 --> 00:30:18.240 There are people right here who need to be welcomed. 00:30:18.240 --> 00:30:21.359 We want Advent to be the most welcoming place in the city. 00:30:21.660 --> 00:30:27.380 We want everybody when they come through the doors to be warmly welcomed and embraced and given every opportunity to become part of our community. 00:30:27.579 --> 00:30:33.099 But we can't do that unless every member and every regular attender sees themselves as a host. 00:30:33.980 --> 00:30:42.200 That means when you're here, if you call Advent your home, that you, when you see somebody you don't know or you see somebody that comes in that might be new, 00:30:42.900 --> 00:30:46.680 that you go up and welcome them as though they were coming into your own home. 00:30:46.680 --> 00:30:53.660 And only when we're all doing that are we going to be able to be the kind of welcoming, hospitable church that I believe we're called to be. 00:30:53.720 --> 00:30:54.440 That's the first thing. 00:30:54.680 --> 00:30:56.180 Oh, another thing that really helps with that. 00:30:58.400 --> 00:30:59.720 Be here on time. 00:31:01.120 --> 00:31:01.460 Okay? 00:31:01.700 --> 00:31:02.039 Listen. 00:31:03.259 --> 00:31:04.880 How do you know a newcomer at Advent? 00:31:05.440 --> 00:31:06.940 Because they're here at 5 o'clock. 00:31:07.279 --> 00:31:07.539 Okay? 00:31:10.060 --> 00:31:11.380 Just be on time. 00:31:11.460 --> 00:31:13.360 That's not going to really cost you any money. 00:31:13.359 --> 00:31:17.099 It may change up your routine by about 15 minutes. 00:31:17.699 --> 00:31:19.259 Some of you 20, 30 minutes. 00:31:19.799 --> 00:31:19.939 Okay? 00:31:20.399 --> 00:31:21.379 But just be on time. 00:31:21.439 --> 00:31:25.279 If you want to be hospitable, just show up at like 4.50, 4.55. 00:31:27.199 --> 00:31:31.639 And just be here to welcome people when they show up, naively thinking that we start at 5. 00:31:32.719 --> 00:31:33.799 So that's the first thing. 00:31:33.899 --> 00:31:34.059 Okay? 00:31:34.259 --> 00:31:35.019 Second thing. 00:31:35.019 --> 00:31:37.960 Be willing to open your home. 00:31:38.839 --> 00:31:48.460 Be willing to free up some time to invite people in, to serve them a meal, to sit and hear their story, and to create an opportunity for friendship. 00:31:48.619 --> 00:31:51.460 This is how strangers become friends and friends become family. 00:31:52.660 --> 00:31:52.819 Right? 00:31:52.980 --> 00:31:54.440 Be willing to share your table. 00:31:54.680 --> 00:31:56.099 Again, it doesn't have to be beef bourguignon. 00:31:56.579 --> 00:31:57.019 It could be PBJs. 00:31:57.019 --> 00:32:02.200 You know, one of my great memories from grad school is I wasn't married. 00:32:02.319 --> 00:32:02.980 I was lonely. 00:32:03.099 --> 00:32:04.039 I really wanted community. 00:32:04.400 --> 00:32:09.339 And I had a number of friends who I started to get to know, and most of them were married and had kids. 00:32:10.019 --> 00:32:13.440 And occasionally, from time to time, they would invite me to come have dinner. 00:32:13.740 --> 00:32:23.779 And I would walk in, and my greatest memories were not times when they invited me and all the fine china was set out and everything, the candles and the music was playing and all that. 00:32:23.779 --> 00:32:31.460 But I most loved the times when I just got invited to come over, and I came in, and there were kids, and it was chaotic, and there was just stuff everywhere. 00:32:31.720 --> 00:32:34.680 And they just sat me down at the table, and they said, well, tonight we're having Cheerios. 00:32:35.420 --> 00:32:41.859 And they would just plunk down a bowl of Cheerios or a PBJ, and I would just sit there, and the kids, and we would just all eat it together. 00:32:41.940 --> 00:32:42.119 Right? 00:32:42.139 --> 00:32:42.759 And it was chaos. 00:32:43.000 --> 00:32:44.440 That meant so much to me. 00:32:45.160 --> 00:32:50.160 Because I realized it's not about you trying to impress me or show me how good you are at entertaining. 00:32:50.779 --> 00:32:53.180 You actually just want me to be a part of your life. 00:32:53.920 --> 00:32:56.519 And it meant so much to me, some of my best memories. 00:32:58.500 --> 00:32:59.480 That's all it takes. 00:33:00.519 --> 00:33:02.480 Just, yeah, there's a pile of laundry in the corner. 00:33:02.599 --> 00:33:02.960 Come over. 00:33:03.200 --> 00:33:04.399 Let me give you some SpaghettiOs. 00:33:05.839 --> 00:33:07.379 Do people even eat SpaghettiOs anymore? 00:33:09.299 --> 00:33:14.480 But I would take a bowl of SpaghettiOs offered in love over beef bourguignon any day. 00:33:14.879 --> 00:33:15.240 Right? 00:33:15.279 --> 00:33:18.480 Because that's what we really want and need, to know that somebody else cares. 00:33:19.500 --> 00:33:19.859 Right? 00:33:19.899 --> 00:33:21.799 So just be willing to open your home and your time. 00:33:21.799 --> 00:33:24.379 Last thing, and this is not from me. 00:33:24.539 --> 00:33:30.259 I was talking to a guy named Dave Runyon a couple of weeks ago, and he was telling me some things that they've done in their church, and I thought they were interesting. 00:33:30.599 --> 00:33:34.839 He's written a book about it, and so I just thought I would share this with you in case it's of help to you. 00:33:34.839 --> 00:33:37.039 So there's a slide I'm going to ask you to put it up here. 00:33:37.959 --> 00:33:39.259 This is called a block map. 00:33:39.679 --> 00:33:41.039 The concept is very simple. 00:33:42.339 --> 00:33:43.000 You're here. 00:33:44.199 --> 00:33:44.720 Got that? 00:33:44.799 --> 00:33:45.879 So this is where you live. 00:33:46.240 --> 00:33:47.159 It could be a group house. 00:33:47.220 --> 00:33:47.899 It could be an apartment. 00:33:48.059 --> 00:33:49.299 It could be wherever you live. 00:33:49.299 --> 00:33:50.119 This is where you live. 00:33:50.659 --> 00:33:53.720 And chances are, if you live in D.C., you have people who live around you. 00:33:54.119 --> 00:33:54.339 Right? 00:33:54.339 --> 00:33:56.720 So this could be the apartment in front of you or behind you. 00:33:56.779 --> 00:34:01.339 This could be the house or whatever semi-detached unit, whatever you live in. 00:34:01.720 --> 00:34:04.059 There are physical neighbors around you. 00:34:05.039 --> 00:34:06.019 The idea is simple. 00:34:06.500 --> 00:34:11.400 What if when Jesus said, love your neighbors, he actually literally meant our neighbors? 00:34:12.319 --> 00:34:13.619 What if that's what he meant? 00:34:14.400 --> 00:34:14.559 You know? 00:34:14.559 --> 00:34:19.880 So just assume for a second that he wasn't being metaphorical and that he just literally meant our neighbors. 00:34:21.739 --> 00:34:25.059 All I'm asking you to do, I'm not asking you actually to love your neighbors. 00:34:25.539 --> 00:34:28.019 That's just advanced Christianity craziness. 00:34:29.320 --> 00:34:30.940 Just don't even worry about that. 00:34:31.059 --> 00:34:31.279 Okay? 00:34:31.320 --> 00:34:32.299 We'll talk about that next year. 00:34:33.059 --> 00:34:36.119 All I want you to do is just learn their names. 00:34:37.059 --> 00:34:38.299 Just learn their names. 00:34:38.920 --> 00:34:39.900 And then use them. 00:34:40.699 --> 00:34:40.880 Right? 00:34:40.900 --> 00:34:41.860 So I'm horrible with names. 00:34:41.940 --> 00:34:43.360 I can't even get my kids' names right. 00:34:43.360 --> 00:34:46.120 Stop it. 00:34:46.220 --> 00:34:46.860 Yeah, I just can't. 00:34:46.880 --> 00:34:47.740 I can't even get it out. 00:34:48.019 --> 00:34:48.740 I'm horrible with names. 00:34:49.000 --> 00:34:50.920 And so what I do often is I say, hey, man. 00:34:51.240 --> 00:34:51.880 What's up, dude? 00:34:54.539 --> 00:34:55.760 I mean, with my kids. 00:34:56.180 --> 00:34:57.880 But also with other, you know, hey, how you doing? 00:34:57.940 --> 00:34:58.300 What's up? 00:34:58.320 --> 00:34:59.440 What's going on, man? 00:35:02.180 --> 00:35:03.280 I'm horrible with names. 00:35:03.680 --> 00:35:07.820 What I'm asking you to do and what I'm doing as well, just learn the names of your neighbors and use them. 00:35:07.880 --> 00:35:08.920 So it's not, hey, man. 00:35:09.360 --> 00:35:10.380 It's, hey, Mike. 00:35:11.380 --> 00:35:14.840 And then maybe the next time it's, hey, Mike, did you see the game last night? 00:35:15.640 --> 00:35:20.039 And then maybe the next time it's, hey, Mike, how did you do that to your house? 00:35:20.059 --> 00:35:21.320 I love what you did with the gutters. 00:35:21.400 --> 00:35:21.619 Who did? 00:35:21.700 --> 00:35:22.940 Can I get your contractor? 00:35:24.340 --> 00:35:27.780 And then maybe the next time it's like, hey, Mike, we're grilling out back. 00:35:27.780 --> 00:35:29.860 You want to come and have a burger and hang out? 00:35:30.860 --> 00:35:31.860 And so on and so forth. 00:35:31.900 --> 00:35:32.580 And that's how it happens. 00:35:32.640 --> 00:35:33.540 Just learn their names. 00:35:33.740 --> 00:35:35.800 So what I want you to do, you have an insert in your bulletin. 00:35:36.380 --> 00:35:38.500 Just take that, take it home, put it on your fridge. 00:35:39.000 --> 00:35:42.960 And take a marker and just write the names on that sheet. 00:35:43.120 --> 00:35:43.800 And just learn. 00:35:44.080 --> 00:35:45.700 And then look at that and memorize it. 00:35:45.720 --> 00:35:47.400 And the next time you see those people, just use their name. 00:35:48.220 --> 00:35:49.120 That's all you have to do. 00:35:49.340 --> 00:35:50.040 Nothing else. 00:35:50.200 --> 00:35:50.860 Just do that. 00:35:51.540 --> 00:35:52.660 And just see what happens. 00:35:53.080 --> 00:35:53.960 That's hospitality. 00:35:54.240 --> 00:35:55.340 That's generous hospitality. 00:35:55.679 --> 00:35:59.639 That's saying I'm going to take the first step in seeing if we can't get to know each other. 00:36:01.760 --> 00:36:03.199 So learn the names of your neighbors. 00:36:03.400 --> 00:36:06.500 So all of this, just kind of want to draw it together because we're out of time. 00:36:07.780 --> 00:36:10.460 Generous hospitality means having a heart posture of love. 00:36:10.960 --> 00:36:11.960 The community comes first. 00:36:13.159 --> 00:36:15.039 It means having a mindset of grace. 00:36:15.039 --> 00:36:19.139 All that I have is a gift, and that motivates me to give generously out of what I have. 00:36:20.260 --> 00:36:23.019 And then thirdly, those two things together produce a lifestyle. 00:36:23.960 --> 00:36:24.940 Of hospitality. 00:36:25.079 --> 00:36:26.179 It affects everything we do. 00:36:26.380 --> 00:36:27.340 And why do we do this? 00:36:27.420 --> 00:36:29.260 What's the great motivator for all this? 00:36:30.159 --> 00:36:30.980 It's the gospel. 00:36:31.179 --> 00:36:35.699 Because listen, the gospel is God's ultimate hospitality to the world. 00:36:35.880 --> 00:36:37.220 Look at what Jesus Christ did. 00:36:37.500 --> 00:36:38.519 Heart posture of love. 00:36:39.340 --> 00:36:46.880 From his very first moments on this earth, Jesus prioritized our well-being over his own. 00:36:47.599 --> 00:36:53.119 In every decision he made, he was putting us and the glory of his Father ahead of himself. 00:36:53.960 --> 00:36:55.300 Heart posture of love. 00:36:55.500 --> 00:36:56.340 Mindset of grace. 00:36:56.639 --> 00:37:02.059 From the very beginning, Jesus intended to give us everything even though we deserve nothing. 00:37:03.220 --> 00:37:05.940 And then finally, a lifestyle of hospitality. 00:37:06.360 --> 00:37:08.440 Jesus literally spent his life. 00:37:10.300 --> 00:37:11.599 Literally gave it up. 00:37:12.139 --> 00:37:13.159 Literally spent it. 00:37:13.159 --> 00:37:19.579 So that those of us who were outsiders because of our sin. 00:37:19.699 --> 00:37:21.759 Those of us who were cast out of the presence of God. 00:37:22.759 --> 00:37:26.559 Could be welcomed in not only as servants or acquaintances. 00:37:27.379 --> 00:37:29.099 But as family members. 00:37:29.420 --> 00:37:32.059 In the family and the household of the Lord. 00:37:32.859 --> 00:37:34.559 God's ultimate hospitality. 00:37:34.559 --> 00:37:42.739 So let us be practitioners of generous hospitality in response to the ultimate hospitality that came through Jesus Christ. 00:37:43.199 --> 00:37:43.840 Let's pray. 00:37:43.840 --> 00:37:44.440 And let's pray. 00:37:44.440 --> 00:37:45.340 Let's pray. 00:37:53.620 --> 00:37:54.340 Let's pray. 00:37:54.579 --> 00:37:56.960 Let's pray. 00:38:05.000 --> 00:38:05.240 Let's pray. 00:38:05.240 --> 00:38:05.320 Let's pray. 00:38:05.320 --> 00:38:05.360 Let's pray.