Be Prepared

Colossians 3:18-4:18

In seminary I was taught that minsters were virtually the only professionals left who might arrive at someone’s home just to see how they were doing. A doctor wasn’t apt to drop by, nor a lawyer. Even a psychiatrist would be unlikely to make a house call just to see how things were. But it was still considered appropriate for ministers to arrive unannounced. Times have changed. I no longer consider it proper to stop by someone’s home unless they know I am coming, and usually well in advance. There might be exceptions, of course, but if I am concerned about someone my first recourse is normally going to be a phone call through which I may arrange a visit.

But here are Paul’s words to the Colossians. “Aristarchus my fellow prisoner greets you, as does Mark the cousin of Barnabas, concerning whom you have received instructions - if he comes to you, welcome him” (Colossians 4:10). It’s all rather mysterious sounding. For example I assume the instructions Paul mentions have to do with Mark and not his cousin Barnabas. And what exactly are those instructions? We don’t know, but we do know that Mark (or Barnabas) might simply arrive in Colossae (even Paul doesn’t seem certain) and if he does the church there is to be ready for him.

From the very beginning the church has held hospitality to be an essential part of its ministry. Welcoming one another has always been considered a Christ-like function of who we are. In the words of the the Boy Scout motto we believers are to be prepared, ready to greet one another, open to interruption or intrusion, happy to share whether it be our time or our possessions. Even strangers are to be made welcome as we are told in Hebrews 13:2. Our culture is continually turning in on itself, constantly adding distance between people often with the aid of technology. We can know more and more about someone while not really knowing them at all. But when we open our hearts and lives to one another we find the distance reduced and the barriers removed.

I am not apt to arrive unexpectedly at a church member’s front door. But I do believe very strongly that the church should be open to whatever and whoever God sends our way, be it Mark, Barnabas, or someone else. If they come, we should welcome them.

Prayer: Lord, open us to the unexpectedness of your community and your grace. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Taking Part

Hebrews 13:1-16

I have mentioned before how relatively easy it is to be a Christian in America. There are those who might dispute this assertion to some degree but the fact remains that I am free to attend (or not to attend) worship, free to pray (or not to pray) in the privacy of my own home, and free to speak (or not to speak) of my faith publicly. Nor is there an established religion in the United States. I consider myself richly blessed by the freedoms I enjoy. Our reading from Hebrews this morning, however, comes from a time when being a Christian was anything but easy, when it required commitment and resolve in the face of persecution and opposition. Read in this light Hebrews 13:3 is far from hypothetical. It is a real-life exhortation. “Remember those who are in prison, as though you were in prison with them; those who are being tortured, as though you yourselves were being tortured.” When these words were written Christians were in prison, Christians were being tortured. This was far from a matter of occasionally showing up for worship or deciding whether or not to tithe. This was hardly a matter of politicians comparing their religious qualifications while appealing to a fractured electorate. This was the stuff of life and death in the name of a Savior who himself was willing to die for our sake.

Here then is the challenge we face, to live the faith not as one of the things we do when it fits our schedule, but as those willing to be imprisoned or tortured for the sake of Jesus Christ. If and when we are able to make that type of commitment to the faith we may finally understand what the writer of Hebrews meant and may finally begin to get it. This is serious stuff that God is asking us to do.

Prayer: Lord, give us the courage and the strength to live as your people at all times. In Jesus’ name. Amen.