December 13, 2024 – A Bigger Table: Building Messy, Authentic, and Hopeful Spiritual Community

“…[Jesus] he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has bathed my feet with her tears and dried them with her hair. You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven; hence she has shown great love. But the one to whom little is forgiven loves little.” Then he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” But those who were at the table with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?” But he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” Luke 7:44-50

“This is the heart of the Gospel: the ever-expanding hospitality of God. Jesus, after all, was a carpenter. Building bigger tables was right in his wheelhouse. What struck me when I began to read the Gospel stories was Jesus’ table ministry, the way he so often used the act of sharing a meal, the act of breaking bread, as a way of letting people know that they were seen and heard and known and respected. With great regularity, Jesus used the common moments to incubate the sacred—everything becoming a sort of a living parable to illustrate the tangible reality of spirituality.” (Pavlovitz, John. A Bigger Table, Expanded Edition with Study Guide: Building Messy, Authentic, and Hopeful Spiritual Community (p. 78). Presbyterian Publishing Corporation. Kindle Edition.)

Jesus’ actions are a mix of contradictions. He eats with a Pharisee, one of the spiritual elites, but ministers to the sinners among the crowd. He does not just visit with and minister among the poor and the outcasts – he also accepts the invitation of the religious elite and wealthy members of the Jewish community. Jesus is, as Pavlovitz says, a “living parable of spirituality.” What could he mean? Well, as I can determine, Jesus lived the ministry he spoke. He walked the walk and talked the talk. He didn’t just say love one another, he demonstrated the many and various ways we can do the same through our acts of love and grace.

If the church of today wants to be at the center of spiritual growth, we need to find ways to do the same. If we are not genuine with our love and ministry, people will smell our hypocrisy. The stench of empty ministry and false Christianity is strong in our world today. When the woman anointed Jesus’ feet, the aroma of her love would have filled the entire house. Shouldn’t the aroma of our Christian love do the same?

Pastor Dave

December 12, 2024 – A Bigger Table: Building Messy, Authentic, and Hopeful Spiritual Community

“I learned a long time ago that the most God-honoring, most Jesus-reflecting act is to err on the side of loving people. When you simply accept those around you in whatever condition they come to you, the table naturally expands and relationship happens and God does stuff that you couldn’t predict or control.” (Pavlovitz, John. A Bigger Table, Expanded Edition with Study Guide: Building Messy, Authentic, and Hopeful Spiritual Community (p. 63). Presbyterian Publishing Corporation. Kindle Edition.)

It’s funny how little it takes to show people they matter and what a difference it makes in inviting them into meaningful community. Sometimes it takes simply welcoming someone into church and inviting them to sit with you in your pew instead of leaving them to their own searching. Kindness, it turns out, is powerfully disarming – and it is amazing how many people will come back to worship with people who have shown them kindness.

And yet it seems to be too difficult for many people these days just to accept people as they are. Too often we want to fix people who are not like us, at least that is the message we send when we condemn them or make them feel unwelcome. Christians are supposed to be open and welcoming. The example of Christianity I see on the Evangelical side is one of condemning and name calling. They are really good at seeing the speck in their neighbor’s eye while ignoring the log in their own. They are masters at casting the first stone at people they condemn as sinners. Must I remind them that we are all sinners who fall short of G-d’s glory.

My friends, if we want to be a stronger and wider and more diverse community of believers in the love and mercy and grace of Jesus, we need to expand our table and get into the work of kindness and welcoming, and out of the business of name calling and hate.

Pastor Dave