Yesterday I posted an article that encouraged hospitality even when the house was messy. Today, I want to follow that with another article on hospitality. This one is more Biblically thorough but also intensely practical. We don't often think of hospitality as part of our discipleship program, but this article provides strong support for that idea.
Prescribing Hospitality for Growth in the Christian Life
As biblical counselors, we’re always looking to suggest practical ways of living out what we believe. How often do we hear from friends and counselees (herein just “friends”) that they know what the Bible says, but are unsure what to do or how to connect doctrine with their struggles? In response, we typically remind them to remember God’s purposes for trials, to trust, to pray, and to fill themselves with God’s Word. All of which should be done. But most of us forget about Peter’s prescription of hospitality to a suffering people (
1 Peter 4:9) as a way to demonstrate faith even in the midst of persecution and hardship.
Hospitality offers a vital prescription for growth, because it touches so many aspects of how we live our lives. According to the New Testament we need to consider the needs of others, to share the gospel, to love, and to be intentional with our resources; hospitality provides a tangible way to practice all of that. This post aims to encourage counselors to understand hospitality biblically and to prescribe it as one way to help friends grow in Christ-likeness and connect belief with action.
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What Biblical Hospitality Entails
When prescribing hospitality to friends, a natural question will arise: what is biblical hospitality? Scripture shows that biblical hospitality consists of:
- Love for strangers and not just friends[2]
- An offer of care for those who cannot repay you in any fashion[3]
- Assistance to those who are truly gospel workers[4] while closing doors to false teachers[5]
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