What is HOSpitality?
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Hospitality is allowing the truth of the gospel to reshape the way that we engage with our neighbors.
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“Which commandment is the most important of all?” Jesus says something that brings surprise, simplicity and clarity to the question: “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” What an interesting answer. The most important commandment are these two commandments. Love God. Love others. One of the main ways we love God is by loving others.
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To love your neighbor, you must know your neighbor. The Gospel is spread by the abnormal love displayed through believers and followers of Jesus. The love we display to our literal neighbors, to our coworkers, to our ‘enemies’, and others is a display of the love that Jesus has showed us. “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” – Romans 5:8. No matter how “far” someone is from God, no matter their beliefs, no matter their political alignment, no matter their list of sins, we open ourselves to know them, serve them and love them for their good.
One of the main ways we love our neighbors is through our homes:
Our Earthly Home | Our homes are not just places of retreat but opportunities for invitation. God has planted us in neighborhoods, in jobs, and in other environments to be a beacon of light and a picture of hope. “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden” – Matthew 5:14.
Our Church Home | Our local church is not just a place for believers to gather, but also to be a witness to the watching world of the grace, mercy, glory, and truth of God. We use the environments to be a bridge for people to experience the gathering of the family of God and “the pillar and foundation of the truth” – 1 Timothy 3:15.
Our Eternal Home | Many of our neighbors are currently not joining us in our eternal home. They are invited, but many of them have not heard that good news. This is the culmination of our hospitality: that through our listening ears, our homes, our presence, our care, and our words people would come to believe the truth of their need for a Savior and that true life really does come on the other side of knowing Jesus.
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“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” Matthew 16:24. Loving our neighbors will take us intentionally dying to ourselves, our desires, our personalities, our budgets, etc. for the good of other people. Hospitality is not convenient for us but it is loving for others.
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Our role is to serve God by serving our neighbors in practical and relational ways. Find specific ways to do thus through our Hospitality Resources on this webpage.
Loving our neighbors
There are plenty of ways for us to love our neighbors. The best way is to start somewhere.
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Take time to write a list of your neighbors around where you live. Whether you live in an apartment, a cul-de-sac, a town house, or a house that resembles this map, take time to think about the 8 homes that are closest to yours. Note information like:
The names of the people in these homes
Some simple, but relevant information about the person (ex: they drive a red car, they have three kids, they leave very early each morning)
Some in depth information about the person (ex: they miss their grandkids that live in another state, they dream of being a nurse, they have a condition that keeps them mostly inside)
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It can be daunting to approach your neighbors. Maybe you are introverted, maybe you have some assumptions about your neighbors, maybe you don’t want to be rejected, maybe you think they might start expecting much out of you, maybe you think that your house, clothes, or possessions are not ‘nice enough’ etc. We must release the spirit of fear by naming it and embrace the confidence we receive from Jesus.
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One of the first ways we can love our neighbors is by praying for our neighbors. We start with their names and then as we learn more about them, we pray specifically for them. Start by naming a prayer for one of your neighbors.
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Your home is a gift from God not just for you but for others. There are plenty of creative ways to use your home to serve others. You can use your kitchen to bake cookies for your neighbors and drop them off. You can use your table to host a dinner for some neighbors. You can use your grill to make some burgers and drop a dinner off. You can use your freezer to freeze some popsicles to share with the kids around the neighborhood. You can use the dining chairs you want to rid of as a gift for a neighbor that might need them. To be specific, name the part of your home you can use, the neighbor(s) you want to serve, and when you will do this.
bridging the gap
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” – Matthew 28:19-20
This is a call for all believers, not just those in vocational ministry. The pastor’s role is to shepherd the flock of the local church. The role of evangelist is one given to all believers. Here are some tips for bridging the gap.
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The first step in all of this is actually knowing your neighbor. Not knowing them just so you can check off the box of ‘sharing the gospel’, but knowing them for the sake of knowing them. Get to know a few on your box list really well. One of the greatest ways to get to know someone is to listen well. If you spend all your time talking, people will skip on much of what you say. If you spend much of your time listening people feel heard. Know your neighbors by listening to them.
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Your unbelieving neighbors are sinners and so are you. They will not vote like you. They will not talk like you. Their love life probably does not look like yours. They will not parent like you. No matter how much of a heathen they may seem like, you should serve them. Remember this one thing: “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” - Romans 5:8.
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We all talk about the things that we love the most. Your new truck, the basketball game, our kiddos, the gift we recently got, our spouses, our jobs, etc. If you want to talk about Jesus more with others, run to him and remember why you love him in the first place.
“In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins” – 1 John 4:10.
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You can read a technical description of the Gospel here
Refresh yourself on the truth of the Good News. And train yourself on how to share this truth in your language. You do not need to memorize a script. You just need to consistently remind yourself of why you are in good standing with God.
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If you want to share truth with others, then you need to be constantly receiving truth from God in his word. Read your word daily. You also need to stay connected to a body of local believers. Go to church weekly. And lean on both as ways to invite your neighbors to interact with the truth of God. Invite them to read the word or join you at church. The worst they will say is no. And if you already know them well, they shouldn’t make the relationship awkward.
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You have no power over anyone’s soul or heart. But God does. Love people. Share truth. Pray consistently and specifically. Trust God.
“I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.” – 1 Corinthians 3:6.
other hospitality ideas
As we love our neighbors, we continue to find new and creative ways to be the light of Jesus where he has planted us. Here are some ideas:
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Set a date, get some tables and food, recruit a team, print our invitations, and throw a block party for your neighbors to connect and get to know each other. You can use this as a resource:
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Use these tools and the neighbor list for your workplace, your typically weekly routines (sports, classes, grocery stores, etc.), and start serving your neighbors around the city that you consistently see.
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Set a routine (weekly, bi-weekly, monthly) to have people over for dinner. This could be neighbors, people from the church, coworkers, etc.
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If you need help with something that your neighbors might be able to assist with, ask them for the sake of connecting with them. Maybe you need an egg for a recipe, a ladder to get on the roof, or an extra set of hands carrying something. Allow your need to open the door for connection.
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If you are already doing something, (going on a walk, joining a church event, making a fire, etc.) invite a neighbor to join.
hospitality worksheet
We created a Hospitality Worksheet to help you work through how to practically practice Hospitality in your life. The goal of this worksheet is to give ideas and direction for how to use your home, your time, and your presence to serve your neighbor. For the Gospel to impact our neighbors we must be willing to die to ourselves for their good. This packet will give you handles on how to bring that to reality.
additional resources
If you want to know more about the practice of hospitality, here is a compiled list of helpful resources. Because this list has many options, it can feel intimidating on where to start. Our encouragement is just to start somewhere. Pick one that seems appealing and start there.
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The Gospel Comes with a House Key by Rosaria Butterfield
The Art of Neighboring by Jay Patbak and Dave Runyon
Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara
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A Man Called Otto
New neighbors can change a lot about the neighborhood, even the grumpy widower.
Instant Family
The power of home is put on display as a couple foster three children.
Remember the Titans
A leader, a united vision, and football transforms the way this town sees and treats others.
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Neighborhood Block Party Kit
Host as You Are | Practicing Hospitality as a Family
10 Things You Should Know about Christian Hospitality