In the Ancient Near East the practice of hospitality moved beyond relational embrace to holistic care. It was a moral commitment that involved compassionate care and generosity for the “other,” especially someone far from home. Food, shelter, and physical well-being are signs (and outcomes) of hospitality. With this in mind I like to think of hospitality as solidarity with neighbors, including strangers, expressed by a mutual relationship of faithful presence, compassion, and generosity where we come together in the struggle for dignity and human flourishing.

Back to Jesus. With the inbreaking of God’s kingdom a new way of understanding what it means to be human has been announced. With God as Provider there is no limitation of resources. With God as divine Homemaker anyone can find a home. But this conviction must be enacted and practiced among those who confess it.

So Jesus mandates his followers to, “Love your enemies! Do good to them. Lend to them without expecting to be repaid. Then your reward from heaven will be very great, and you will truly be acting as children of the Most High, for he is kind to those who are unthankful and wicked. You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate.” Luke‬ ‭6‬:‭35‬-‭36‬ ‭NLT‬‬

About this text Dr. John Koenig observes, “the underlying faith expressed is that God takes an active part in generous relationships between humans, more than covering any “losses” incurred by the one who extends aid. But those who choose the life of greedy accumulation over the life of sharing cut themselves off from God’s abundance.” (New Testament Hospitality: Partnership with Strangers as Promise and Mission, 37.)

What followers of Jesus have to decide is do we believe God can cover any potential “loss”, and then some, when we take this kind of hospitality serious enough that we become reliant on God’s abundance?