The Invitation

Scripture.   Luke 14: 1, 7-14 

14 One Sabbath, when Jesus went to share a meal in the home of one of the leaders of the Pharisees, they were watching him closely. 

7 When Jesus noticed how the guests sought out the best seats at the table, he told them a parable. 8 “When someone invites you to a wedding celebration, don’t take your seat in the place of honor. Someone more highly regarded than you could have been invited by your host. 9 The host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give your seat to this other person.’ Embarrassed, you will take your seat in the least important place. 10 Instead, when you receive an invitation, go and sit in the least important place. When your host approaches you, he will say, ‘Friend, move up here to a better seat.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all your fellow guests. 11 All who lift themselves up will be brought low, and those who make themselves low will be lifted up.”

12 Then Jesus said to the person who had invited him, “When you host a lunch or dinner, don’t invite your friends, your brothers and sisters, your relatives, or rich neighbors. If you do, they will invite you in return and that will be your reward. 13 Instead, when you give a banquet, invite the poor, crippled, lame, and blind. 14 And you will be blessed because they can’t repay you. Instead, you will be repaid when the just are resurrected.”

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Weddings were a little different in Jesus’ time. I mean, we would never think we were supposed to be at the head table, unless we were in the bridal party.  But then, men and women ate separately at the wedding feast.  Instead of the bridal party sitting at the head table, it was reserved for honored guests, the men with the highest status in that community.  In modern terms it would be like going to a banquet for your work, sitting at the table closest to where the speakers would be, and being asked to move because only the people on the program and special guests like the mayor or something are supposed to sit there.  Embarrassing.  Better, Jesus said, to be humble.  Sit at the farthest table and then you will be invited to take a more favored spot.  I kind of like the farthest table, actually.  Then if the speakers are boring no one notices if I sneak out.

That parable is more about humility than about being a good guest.   If you think you are all that, you will be brought down.  Better not to seek recognition than to demand more than you are due.  I don’t care that much about my status as pastor, usually.  Most of the time I’m happy to be known just as Maria, foregoing the title entirely. There are exceptions - like when I go to events intended for pastors and it is assumed I am the church secretary because I am female. Then I get fussy about being accorded my proper title and recognition.  But usually, not so much.  

Further, Jesus says, don’t invite people who will repay your hospitality by inviting you to a meal at their home.  Instead, invite the people who cannot repay you - the poor, the homeless, the sickly.  Then, Jesus said, you will receive your reward at the end, when the just are resurrected.  This is also kind of about humility.  No bragging about what important people actually accepted your invitation to an event you are hosting - because people do, you know.  You might say to someone, “Are you coming to my thing?  Because this celebrity or otherwise important person is going to be there!”  You, as host, get all kinds of status points for enticing that important person to your event.  Also, you will get invited to other cool events in return.  But if you invite only those who have no status, and who cannot possibly invite you to anything, who cannot in any way repay your hospitality, your soul benefits instead of your social standing.  This is true hospitality. 

According to an article in The Christian Post, the Disciples of Christ is on track to lose half of its membership in 10 years. The writer, using statistics from the office of the Disciples General Minister and President, said that “worship attendance fell 11 percent, going from about 139,000 in 2017 to about 124,000 in 2018, and baptisms declined by 13 percent, from approximately 4,300 in 2017 to approximately 3,700 in 2018. . . He added a disclaimer that the denomination switched to an online reporting format and as a result, a smaller number of congregations submitted a report.” “The reported numbers represent a steep decline from 2000, when, according to the Association of Religion Data Archives, the Disciples had approximately 820,000 members." (Michael Gryboski, The Christian Post, August 25, 2019)  

You had best believe that this article ignited quite the firestorm on social media!   A whole raft of people piped up to say “My church is growing!”  and “But wait!  We started all those new churches!  That whole 2020 Vision thing.  What about that?”  Others said, “Yeah, and so is everybody else.  This is not news. It’s really not as bad as it is being presented.”   But, yes it is as bad as it sounds.  The overall statistics for average church attendance for Catholic, Mainline, and Evangelical denominations nationwide show something like 17.7% of the population actually shows up for church, although some 40% of people say they attend regularly.  (This is the difference between actual numbers provided by church bodies in the United States and what people tell pollsters on the telephone.  Because people talking to pollsters on the telephone want to sound better than they are - it’s called the halo effect and it really messes with the accuracy of statistics.)   For example, I was on a call as Police Chaplain the other week, and I was told by the family that they had been unable to reach their pastor so they asked the officers to call a chaplain.  When I spoke with their pastor a few days later, he had never heard of them. This happens a lot.  At Bringing Neighbors Together events we ask attendees whether they attend church and if so, which one.  More often than not, the pastor of the church they claim to be part of never heard of them.  And trust me, the churches in Selma are not so big that the pastors don’t have a pretty good idea of who is showing up at their church on Sunday or Wednesday or Saturday or whatever.  So we need to keep in mind that even if someone tells us they belong to this church or that one, that might not mean that they actually show up or feel really a part of that congregation. 

Oftentimes congregations will say, “We must grow!  We want young families with children who can contribute financially to our budget and who will be involved with all the ministries of the church, especially boards and teams.”  There are two problems with this.  One, young families with children usually are struggling to make ends meet and can’t give that much to the church and they have no spare time beyond the demands of work and family.  And two, this is exactly the opposite of what Jesus is telling his host at that dinner.  Don’t invite people who can return the favor, or repay your hospitality in some way.  Instead, invite those who can’t.  So, yes, we need young families with children, and no money, and no time.  And high school students who come without their parents.  And young adults  - students and people who are just starting their careers.  And homeless people.  And people on fixed incomes.  And anyone else who needs a church home.  An actual family to be part of.  

Our mission as Christians  is not to add to the bottom line of our budget.  Our mission as Christians is to bring people to Christ, to help the lost find their way, to help the helpless.  Our mission as Christians is to help those who did not have a home to find one - literally, yes.  But especially spiritually.  Our mission is to seek out those who for whatever reason have felt that they did not belong in their church or any church and show them that they are indeed welcome in this place.  

I knew a nice young man who worked hard at his minimum wage job but had no place to live because he could not afford rent.  He had very few belongings and all his clothes were work clothes.  I invited him frequently to come worship with us, and he always answered, “I would, Pastor.  But I can’t come to church dressed like this.”  And no matter how hard I tried to convince him that his clothes did not matter, his mind was made up.  He would not feel right coming into the house of God in dirty work clothes.   You see, he thought of church as being like that head table Jesus was talking about, where all the most important people sat, and where people like him were not welcome.    He had no clue that church could be a family.  He was not alone.  Lots of people think of church as country club, as a place where their outward appearance and social status mattered. 

Several weeks ago we had an event where we asked questions like, “What do you like best about First Christian Church.”  Overwhelmingly, the answers to that question included words like Welcome, Acceptance, Inclusion, Family, Love, and It feels like Home. 

Next week is Back to Church Week.  And while I understand that the primary focus of this day is to invite people who claim First Christian Church but don’t show up with any regularity, I urge you to invite anyone you think needs a home.  A church home.  A family who will welcome and accept and include them.  Even if they say they “belong” to another church but mostly stay home on Sunday mornings.  Because in this place, at this Table, in these seats, hospitality as Jesus defines it is the general rule.  In this place, there is enough room, there is enough bread, there is enough love, for everyone.