Introduction:
A. Bishop
Schnase once told the story of going around visiting churches when he first became Bishop and nobody knew him.
B. He went to a certain church and sat down.
C. In a little while, an elderly lady came up
and kind of looked him over from
head to toe and finally said, “You are sitting in
my seat!”
D. He kind of chuckled thinking she was
joking! She says, “No really! My family has been sitting in this pew for 50
years!”
E. He gets up and moves.
F. During the service, he is introduced, so
after the service, the little
old lady comes up to him and says, “If I’d known who you were, I wouldn’t have had you move!”
G. The Bishop said to that and his point was,
“Should it have made any difference?”
1. He was a stranger in their mist.
2. She did one of the most unwelcoming things
she could have down to a
visitor!
3. She made him feel that there wasn’t really a
place for him here!
Trans: She was anything but radically hospitable to
a stranger! Today we will look at the second sermon in the series, “Five Practices of Fruitful
Congregations,” which is the first
practice, “Radical Hospitality.”
Prayer
Romans
15:7-13
I. Vibrant,
fruitful, growing congregations practice Radical
Hospitality.
A. Members
focus on those on the outside with as much
passion
as they attend to the nurture and growth of those
already here.
1. When I go on vacation, sometimes we try to go
to a
church in the area. Such was the case one year.
2. We looked online before we went and found one
of our sister UMC churches
in a town near where we would go camping.
3. We
went to church that Sunday. We arrived
in our
clothes dressed for camping,
shorts etc.
4. We were greeted at the door by the greeter
and given
a bulletin. They kind of had that in place. But we weren’t
asked for names or anything like that.
5. We
went in and sat on the left side a couple seats
from the back.
6. The
pastor was making his rounds visiting with
people, but stopped before he got
to us and never
spoke to us. He got as close as a couple pews ahead
of us.
7. Nobody else spoke to us before church.
8.
Church started and they had their hand
of fellowship
as many of our churches do. I
expected, being
visitors, we’d be flogged during
this time, but not
really the case.
a. Donna was on the end of the pew, and one guy came up and slapped her on
the shoulder rather
hard and said something that
seemed a little
off the wall for someone you
were just meeting.
b. I saw a lot of visiting among themselves.
c. Finally, the people directly behind us spoke
to
us and asked us if we were
visiting, and we
told them we were camping at
the nearby park.
Good for them; they spoke to
us!
9. Church ended, and we walked out to the lobby.
Nobody else really spoke to
us. Donna went to the
bathroom, Amanda and I stood
around in the lobby. I
tried my best deer in the
headlight look. Nobody
came around and spoke to us. The pastor again,
didn’t even come around. I watched him visiting
with regular church folks, but he
never came to us!
10. When we got home, I looked up online and found the pastor’s email and told him I was a pastor and had visited his church last Sunday on vacation. His reply was, “I wish you had told me who you were so I could greet you!”
11. Like the Bishop said earlier, I thought, “should it have made a difference? Do you only greet visiting pastors?” It seemed to me it would be more important to greet a stranger in your mist who was not a pastor.
B. Extravagant
Hospitality describes a genuine love for
those not yet a part of the community
of faith.
C. The
Extravagantly Hospitable Church sees themselves as a
part of the community to serve and not
be served.
Ajust as the Son of Man came not
to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.@
Matt. 20:28
D. They realize they were once strangers and
were welcomed
to the
community of faith by someone.
E. They realize
that Jesus takes welcoming seriously: for I was
hungry
and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a
stranger and you
welcomed
me, Matt. 25:35 (read vs. 34-35)
F. John
Wesley practiced Radical Hospitality by going out
into the streets to preach to people
who were not welcome
in the church of his time!
II. Hospitality
requires seeking a culture of hospitality that extends into all the ministries
of the church.
A. It
means coming to grips with the questions: Why do
people need Christ? Why do people need the church? Why
do people need this particular
congregation? (Adam
Hamilton, ALeading
Beyond the Walls.@)
B. Importantly,
it means becoming a school of love where
people learn from one another how to
love every time the
church gathers.
C. The
majority of our neighbors do not know the name of a
pastor to call when they face an
unexpected grief; it is
reaching out in love to them.
III. Why Radical?
A. Radical
intensifies.
B. Those who exhibit Radical Hospitality are
restless
because they realize so many people do not
have a
relationship with a faith community and
with God! They
want to do something about it!
C. Radical
Hospitality shapes all we do; Aall pray,
plan,
work so that their specific ministries
with children ,
missions, the facility, worship,
music, and study are
done with excellence and with special
attention to
inviting others in and helping them
feel welcome.@
1. Are our children’s ministries done with
excellence;
do we insure a safe place for
their children. Do we
go the second mile to be sure our
workers are safe;
that is what Safe Gatherings is
all about.
2. Do
we have a nursery for children who might visit
with small children? Is it kept clean or does it
smell? This sends an unintentional message as to
whether we want to be a church for
people with small
children.
3. Do
we have something for all ages: older adults,
younger adults, all ages of
children, singles, etc?
How can we plan for that?
4. Does
the grounds look inviting and kept, but yet, it
is evident that we are willing for
it to be used for ministry? Do we jump on someone who brings food or
drink in the sanctuary? That is again one of the
most uninviting things we can do
to outsiders!
5. As
I mentioned last week, it is very hospitable to
talk to visitors one on one and to
get to know them;
don’t let anyone come and go and
not be talked to,
but do we single visitors out in
front of everyone?
This is done many places with good
intentions to
make people feel welcome, but as a
visitor,
when
you just want to blend in for that first visit
and see how things go, it is very
uncomfortable for
the pastor or someone else to
point at you and say
it is good to have so and so! Don’t get their name
with the intent of calling them
out. A personal
welcome
and conversation by individuals is very
hospitable! Calling them out in front of everyone
is not!
6. Is
our service positive, well planned, and the music
done with excellence and with in
mind the folks who
are not here? Or do we just do it like we like it?
7. So is the music such that people who are
unchurched
can relate to it?
8. Do we explain things so that they know what
we are
doing?
9. Is there signage so that people can find
their way around; if someone
seems to be looking around, will people
stop and help them, show them around, sit
with them, or invite them out to
lunch?
10.
Do we tell them when to stand and when
not to stand?
Is the Lord’s prayer written in
case they do not
know it?
11. Is there parking left up close, or do visitors
have
to walk clear across the parking
lot to get to the
doors of the church? This is why I
usually try to
park on at least the second roll
back!
12. Are there seats left open in the back so that
they
can walk in relatively unnoticed,
or do they have to
walk up in front of everyone?
13. All these things are about Radical
Hospitality!
D. Members work with a heightened awareness of
the person
who is not present!
IV. Radical
Hospitality stretches us, challenges us, and pulls out
of us our utmost creativity and hard
work to offer the welcome
of Christ.
A. Churches that practice Radical Hospitality
don=t
just have
ushers and greeters but they have ...
1. Ushers that don=t just
point, but they escort.
2. They don=t just
pass out papers, but they make people feel at ease.
3. They take note of names and introduce them to
the pastor and to others.
B. Churches that practice Radical Hospitality do
not just
communicate with their members but they try
to figure out
ways to communicate with their community.
C. Churches that practice Radical Hospitality
realize it
takes us all extending the welcome and
everyone gets on
board to offer Radical Hospitality. The pastor will be a
part of this, but they realize it isn’t
just the pastor.
Conclusion:
A. A church changes its culture or “practice” one
person at
a time. Is our “practice” one of Radical
Hospitality?
B. Radical Hospitality begins with a single
heart, a growing
openness, a prayerful desire for the
highest good of a
stranger.
C. It
begins when one person treats another respectfully and
loves the stranger enough to overcome the
internal
hesitations to invite that person into
the life of
Christ=s church.
D. It calls for personal responsibility!
1. We tend to think if we
could just get the right
program or strategy.
2. We think if the pastor
would just do this. If the
staff would just do this.
If only they didn=t do
this.
3. But Radical
Hospitality calls us to move from AIf
they@ to If I.@
4. It invites us to ask
ourselves, AWhat if I really
began to extend Radical Hospitality?@
E. Bishop
Schnase’s book asks, AEvery
member of the Body of
Christ is the fruit of someone=s
ministry and
faithfulness. Who is the fruit of yours?@
F. People are searching
for churches that make them feel
welcomed and loved, needed and accepted. What can we do
together to be that kind of congregation? What can we do
individually to be that kind of congregation?
G. Fruitful congregations
are not ones who stumble onto the
right program! Fruitful congregations are ones who
practice Radical Hospitality!
Prayer
of Confession
Service
of Communion
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