Jesus For Dinner
Daily Devotion for Lent | Thursday, March 21
“Tell the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says to you, Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with My disciples?’”
Luke 22:11
Have you ever thought what it would be like to have Jesus over for dinner? Just imagine the storm of cooking and cleaning that would go on! You’d want to have everything perfect—a table beautifully set up, dishes and utensils and napkins and serving dishes… It would be a lot of work. But it would be worth it, wouldn’t it?
One family in Jerusalem had this experience at Passover time. Jesus was planning to eat His last supper with His disciples, and they needed a family in Jerusalem that would be willing to take them in. It must have been a family with a large home; Jesus and His disciples meant thirteen people for dinner, even if none of His other followers came. Where would they put them all?
It was common in that country to build extra rooms on the flat roofs of the first floor. That’s apparently what this family had done, and they furnished it with a table and dining couches or cushions enough for all the men to be comfortable. They probably supplied other things, like the basin and towel Jesus used to wash His disciples’ feet; it’s likely that they shared their cooking—special family dishes served at holiday time. And of course, there was clean-up. Someone had to do the dishes!
This kind of hospitality is something we’re never going to be able to give to Jesus—or is it? After all, He did say “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these My brothers, you did it to me” (Matthew 25:40). You yourself probably enjoy showing hospitality to others, whether at home or as part of a joint effort at church. Perhaps you invite people who are lonely, or people who are hungry or homeless or far away from home. Perhaps you are reaching out to refugees or to international students. Perhaps you take a casserole to a family with a new baby, or buy toothpaste and toilet paper for the local homeless shelter. If so, you are showing hospitality to Jesus. What an honor to be able to do so!
THE PRAYER
Dear Lord, help me to show care to others for Your sake and in Your name. Amen.
REFLECTION QUESTIONS
- Is there a special time when you celebrated with family or friends that shines in your memory? Tell about it.
- Are you involved in showing hospitality, or have you done so in the past? How?
- How can you make your heart a place of hospitality for Jesus and His people?
Brought to you in partnership with Lutheran Hour Ministries – lhm.org/lent
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PEOPLE OF THE PASSION Lenten Devotions 2019
Centuries before Christ, God was preparing the way for His Son’s arrival. From mankind’s original sin through the children of Israel’s on-again, off-again obedience, God was faithful, honoring His promise to Eve (Genesis 3:15), which first pointed to Jesus. In People of the Passion, we see God working through the lives of ordinary people to achieve His ultimate aim: our salvation. There are prophets, priests, and kings, servants, soldiers, and civilians—each with a role in the high drama of Christ’s passion. Readers may see themselves in some of these people—ordinary individuals who, like us, need a Savior.
Lutheran Hour Ministries (LHM) is a Christian outreach ministry supporting churches worldwide in its mission of Bringing Christ to the Nations—and the Nations to the Church.