20 September, 2024
Search

A Table for All People

by | 14 January, 2020 | 0 comments

By Stuart Powell

Have you ever wondered if Jesus would eat a meal at your house? Have you ever imagined yourself living in a first-century village in Galilee the day Jesus came to visit? Would you have been bold enough to ask a miracle-working prophet to join you at your table?

I think if I had the courage to ask, Jesus would have accepted the invitation. Why do I think that? Because Jesus had a reputation among the pious in Judea. The Gospel writer offered a glimpse of how the Jewish leaders summarized Jesus’ social standards: “Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, ‘This man receives sinners and eats with them'” (Luke 15:1, 2; English Standard Version).

Jesus did not let the barrier of moral failures dictate his fellowship standards. He would not conform to the Pharisees’ standards to determine with whom he ate. Jesus assessed every person he encountered as worthy of his attention. He passionately desired to have fellowship with each person he met . . . even those Pharisees who condemned his liberal welcoming practices.

Jesus has the same standard today. This is the table of Jesus’ fellowship. It is a table for all people. Jesus alone determines who is welcome to eat and drink. Every believer who surrendered to Jesus’ grace is invited to share in the emblems of remembrance—the loaf for his body, the cup for his blood. Jesus gave everything in his sacrifice so that all people would have the choice to follow after him . . . and the opportunity to eat at his table.

Stuart Powell lives outside of Terre Haute, Indiana, where he serves with the North Side Christian Church.

Stuart Powell

Stuart Powell lives outside of Terre Haute, Indiana, where he serves with the North Side Christian Church.

0 Comments

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Latest Columns

Re-becoming a Child of God

by

What is a child of God? I certainly identified myself this way, but I defined it through my service and leadership in the church. But what happens when the titles are transferred? What happens when the gift set has no place to be plugged in? How can I be a child of God without the things that I’ve used to define me as one?

The Solomon Foundation Doesn’t Just Believe in this Movement, We Believe in You!

by

There is no doubt that we at The Solomon Foundation really believe in this movement and that we put our resources and energy to work every day to help the person in a hard and resistant urban environment, the ministry volunteer in a rural church virtually invisible to the world outside of its community, the preacher trying to figure out how to connect more effectively to the community while lifting up the name of Jesus, and the church leadership wanting to reach out to new communities through multi-site. We don’t just believe in this movement; we believe in you! 

New Discoveries on Medical Care for Transgender Youth

by

Gender dysphoria is real. To treat them with anything less than compassion is not Christian. What is up for debate is the efficacy of the current practices in transgender healthcare for youth. Recently, England released a scathing review that challenges the established gender affirming care model.

Rules of Engagement

by

Faced with the inevitability of conflict, how should Christians conduct themselves? What are our rules of engagement? With Scripture as our frame of reference, here are some, but certainly not all, of the rules. 

Follow Us