Scripture: Luke 14:23-24
Then the master said to the slave, “Go out into the roads and lanes, and compel people to come in, so that my house may be filled. For I tell you, none of those who were invited will taste my dinner.”
Thought for the Day: I’m going to say something that isn’t very smart when it comes to pastoral job security, but here it goes: Jesus isn’t talking about bringing people into the church. This is a passage often quoted out of context to encourage people to bring others to church. Jesus is referencing, not the church, but the Kingdom of God. He is looking to make citizens of a new reality in which love and forgiveness are the core values. Now the church can be an embodiment of the Kingdom, or what some might call an outpost of God’s reign. This is a wonderful model of church life, but let us not fall into the trap of simply growing the church in hopes of maintaining an institution. Through our words and actions, we are to invite others into the growing dominion of grace where lives are transformed, outsiders find welcome, hate vanishes, justice is made manifest, and love rules supreme.
Prayer: O Creator God, may the reign of your mercy and love find an outpost in my church. Empower our mission on the frontiers of loneliness, injustice, greed and hate. We ask such things in the name of Christ. Amen.
