Do What Matters | Habit #12

Do What Matters | 13 Holy Habits That Can Change Everything

Habit #12 | Welcoming All

We can all gather at God's Table.

Scriptures | Luke 14:15-24

Our Holy Habit for this week is Welcoming Others, and we begin with noticing that Jesus ate with all kinds of people. 

...Jesus went to eat in the house of a prominent Pharisee... Luke 14:1 

Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with him and his disciples...When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” Mark 2:15-16

Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” Luke 5:31-32

Question 1 | You don’t have to have heard the sermon from Sunday, but if you were in church, watched online, or listened to the podcast, what stuck with you?

Question 2 | An important cultural point: People in the time and culture of Jesus believed that EATING = ENDORSEMENT. Meaning, if you shared a meal with someone, you shared values with them. They believed that you only eat with people you agree with, and if you did not agree with them you should not eat with them. 

Jesus did not teach this, in fact he did the opposite of this and ate with all kinds of people. (Pharisees and Tax collectors in the Biblical example above). It’s OK to use your imagination with this question: What impact do you think this had on the so-called “good people” like the Pharisees? What impact do you think this had on the “bad people” like the tax collectors? What impact do you think this had on the watching world, the people who saw Jesus eat with different people? What impact do you think this had on the disciples?

Question 3 |  By eating with all kinds of people, Jesus welcomed all kinds of people. His goal was not to endorse this group or that group, but to earn the right to be heard, to care for people and ultimately to change people, to heal them and call sinners to repentance (Luke 5:31-32). Compare yourself to Jesus’ example. How do you do this, or not do this? Do you seek out like-minded people to enjoy their company and avoid misunderstanding? Do you seek out differently-minded people for the sake of blessing them and earning the right to be heard? Get specific.

Question 4 | There are many ways to welcome others. Jeremy challenged us to give away two “You’re Invited” cards to welcome others to Circle, one to a friend, and one to a stranger. Who did you give your cards away to? What was that experience like for you?

Question 5 | Last week you were given a homework assignment (read below). Finish by reporting on last week's homework assignment. 

Take a few moments as a group and have everyone open up a Bible to the index. Look at all 66 books. See if you can find a book that you don’t know very much about. Then go home, do research on the book, and see if you can come back next week with the book name, type of writing, and subject. Come back next week and share what you learned!