School of Life2013-2014

Foundations: Exploring the Foursquare Gospel (Fall and Winter)

Christ in Culture: Connecting Jesus to Life(Spring)

Pastor James WaltonNew Life Foursquare ChurchCanby, Oregon

Christ-Centered Hospitality

1 Jesus was a man known to enjoy good food. And good drink. And good company. In short, we serve a God who eats. In this lesson, we’ll talk around the issues of eating and drinking, dinner and party, mission and evangelism.

Some Thoughts on ModerationPaul would write to his congregation in Corinth - a place not known for moderation in any aspect of life - and encour-age them to:

" So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

1 Corinthians 10:31 ESV

Eating and drinking are explicitly linked to glorifying God; that is, our conduct around the table is seen as a form of worship. Let’s remember that food is far more than just nourishment, it’s woven into the fabric of our relationship with Jesus.

How Much is Enough?

The wisdom literature acknowledges the middle as the ideal place. When it considers the topic of wealth and posses-sions, the sage asks:

" " " give me neither poverty nor riches;

"" feed me with the food that is needful for me,

" lest I be full and deny you

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"" and say, “Who is the LORD?”

"or lest I be poor and steal

"" and profane the name of my God.

Proverbs 30:8-9 ESV

And when it comes to food, we read:

"Hear, my son, and be wise,

"" and direct your heart in the way.

"Be not among drunkards

"" or among gluttonous eaters of meat,

" for the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty,

"" and slumber will clothe them with rags.

Proverbs 23:19-21 ESV

Notice here that drunkenness and gluttony are warned against for strictly practical reasons: if your body is clogged with fat and your mind distorted with liquor, you won’t be a good worker and you’ll end up broke. The moral of the "parable isn’t that eating meat and drinking wine is bad, only that excess and lack of self control in this area carries " "significant consequences.

Many with the Christian community over the years have seen these warnings against food and drink and swung (very) far in the other direction, out of gluttony and into to asceticism. Asceticism is the rigorous practice of self-denial and self-discipline for religious reasons. The monks of the early medieval period were famous for their ability to " "deprive themselves in an effort to be found worthy of God’s attention. But this too, is a misguided theology that " "neglects a certain premise in Christianity: the body and the material world are not evils to be subjected by the mind and

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soul, rather they are gifts from God to be righteously "stewarded and gratefully enjoyed. Paul’s command to the wealthy Christians under Timothy’s care was

"As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy." " " " "(1 Timothy 6:17 ESV)

Because we live in a world which lives by the motto: “Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die” it’s easy for "Christians to rebel against all forms of showy consumerism. Be withdrawal from the world is equally dangerous as " "uncritical acceptance of it. The Christian’s position is not to decline rich food and drink, nor is it to make our belly our god.

Sidebar: The Peculiar Danger of Eating in America

America is a nation dying under its own weight. Obesity is on track to overtake smoking as the leading cause of pre-ventable death in our nation. Whenever the Western diet (high sugar, high fat, high processed foods) has been " "introduced into indigenous cultures previously unreached by McDonalds, obesity and all its attendant maladies quickly follow.

Since our population (ie: the number of people eating) doesn’t grow as fast as a food corporation’s profits need to grow, we are constantly introduced to new products and foodstuffs that we do not need. One (fairly out of date) "government publication stated that $7 billion was spent on food advertising in 1997, mostly focused on “highly " "processed and highly packaged foods ... Advertising "" "expenditures on meats, fruits and vegetables are " "negligible”*

http://ers.usda.gov/media/91050/aib750i_1_.pdf

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The problems are made worse by poverty, where the food that costs the least is also the least healthy for the body. The problems here are complex and difficult, and any " "answer that simply declares: “Eat healthier” or “Use this meal substitute” ignores the reality that for many " "low-income people, the nearest vegetable stand is miles away and there is simply no money for alternatives to "processed foods. There is a ripe mission field among the ""urban poor in this area, and something that ought to "command a great portion of the Church’s attention.

Of course, right behind the advertising industry comes the weight loss industry and beauty magazine machinery to "convince us we are hopelessly overweight - but wait! - there’s a magic pill/plan/diet/packaged food thing that will solve all your problems and get you looking like [insert hopelessly thin and endlessly Photoshopped model here]. It’s a mess. At the risk of stepping far outside by area of ex-pertise, I have found a voice of sanity in the author Michael Pollan*, whose mantra, “Eat Food, Mostly Plants, Not to Much” strikes me as sensible and doable.

Christian Liberty in Alcohol and " Dinner Guests

I grew up in an environment that considered the " "consumption of alcohol to be sin and most Christians I know I suspect would be a little uncomfortable inviting their atheist/gay/liberal/____________ neighbors out to "dinner. But the Bible not nearly as strict as some Christians assume it to be. To wit:

On the subject of alcohol, Scripture is generally positive in tone but well aware of the tremendous dangers of wine and strong drink.

* If you’re interested, The Omnivore’s Dilemma and In Defense of Food are good places to start.

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It is portrayed as being the cause of tremendous familial pain in the stories of Noah ("Genesis 9:21ff) and Lot ""(Genesis 19:32ff). In the wisdom literature, it is both a "danger that ensnares fools (Proverbs 20:1; 23:29-35) and a gift from God to bring tremendous joy to those who enjoy it responsibly (Psalm 104:14-15; Proverbs 3:9-10). Wine was a central part of the sacrificial system, and part of the "blessing promised to the Israelites in the promised land was that they would be able to eat of vineyards they did not plant (Deuteronomy 8).

In the New Testament, Jesus is called a glutton and a "drunkard (Matthew 11:19) and manages to turn over 100 ""gallons of water into excellent wine (John 2). At the very least, we have to acknowledge that alcohol was a part of ""Jesus life that He didn’t avoid. And of course, the symbolic action Jesus gave us to remember Him by until He returned was the consumption of bread and wine.

However, the New Testament is replete with " " "commandments to avoid drunkenness at all costs (Luke 21:34; Romans 13:13; 1 Corinthians 5:11, and many more). Thus, drinking is not a sin, but drunkenness certainly is. What’s more, the Bible enjoins Christians to abstain from drinking alcohol if it would “cause your brother to stumble” (Romans 14:21). So while we have the liberty to drink, we are sometimes called to restrain that liberty for the sake of another.

When it comes to the choice of dinner guests, Jesus sets a standard that will be difficult to follow, but in a way you do not expect. Jesus choice of table companions was a " "constant source of friction between He and the religious elite of His day. The moniker, “friend of tax collectors and sinners” (Matthew 11:19) was used as an insult to describe

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His penchant for visiting the tables of prostitutes and social outcasts. Jesus used table fellowship as an opportunity to create conversation and confrontation with the truth of His gospel. He was equally at home with the high-class and "low-brow, and loved each and met each at their own place on a faith journey.

Hospitality and MissionIf Jesus was such good friends with sinners, and they were comfortable enough to enjoy eating with Him, why have His followers so frequently failed in developing meaningful relationships with people who don’t know Jesus? It’s widely assumed that once a person becomes a Christian, it takes about three years before they have no non-Christian friends left. This is a tragedy, and something that cuts against the very reason we are followers of Christ, namely: to introduce others to Him. Some observations as to why this might be:

• Groupthink: everyone gradually conforms to the ethical assumptions of their environment. We tend to flock towards people who share our value systems, worldviews, and perspectives.

• Busyness: many faithful Christians have no neutral “third place” to meaningful engage nonChristians. For them, their “third place”* is the church, and happily dedicated multiple nights each week to serving church-related functions. While this helps the church, it necessarily means there is less time to develop meaningful relation-ships (especially over the dinner hour) with others in their neighborhood. The irony is that the very thing that Christians do to feel good about themselves (serve the church) can sometimes contribute to the isolation and irrelevance of the church within the larger community.

* “Third Place is a term coined by sociologists to describe anywhere that people freely assemble that is not their home (first place) or work (second place). Starbucks’ business model is built around being exactly that - the go-to destination for folks who want a cheerful, friendly place to socialize outside the home.

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• Religiosity: if our perspective on alcohol is overly-strict, we’ll never take up the invitation to grab a drink with a coworker after hours. The result is that we maintain our convictions, but sacrifice meaningful relationship with our colleague on their turf and their terms.

• Religiosity Part 2: If we’ve developed a finely tuned labelling system in which we divide people into groups of “True Believers” and “Heretics” we’ll never see people with the eyes of Christ and certainly not invite them over for dinner. The beautiful part of Jesus’ ministry was His availability and His compassion - He maintained availability to anyone who approached Him, and saw everyone (save the religious and self-important) with compassion. If we’re going to become like Jesus, we must be certain our holiness is matched by magnetism - yes, we must live distinct, unspotted lives in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, but also do so in a way that attracts, not repels, others.

Hospitality is the future of mission within the United States. We have lost our credibility on the street-corner soapboxes, our church are increasingly populated by people from other churches* and going door to door is the domain of salesmen and Jehovah’s Witnesses. What we do have is our food and our drink and our friendship. In doing so, we can glorify God with our meals.

Postscript: Various Pieces of Unsolicited Advice

• Limit your caffeine intake. We pretend like we’re not addicted, but we really are. If you can’t make it through the day without several cups of coffee, there’s something systemically amiss.

* Seriously, much “church growth” is people leaving one church to at-tend another. It’s rare to find a church - especially an established one - growing through conversions.

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• Be mindful of the foods that make you drowsy. For some its grains and carbohydrates, for others its proteins and meats.

• Practice the discipline of fasting. Nothing makes you more aware of your dependance upon food than fasting. Trying skipping two meals, then three. Do so once a month. Listen to your body, and make your body listen to you. And listen to the voice of Jesus getting you through it all. Fasting is not fun, but it’s worth it.

• Drink more water.

• Drink less soda.*

• If you choose to drink alcohol, by all means, don’t drink cheap beer.

• Eat more slowly. Mindfulness while eating increases enjoyment and creates stronger bonds between the people sharing the same food.

* I saw a graph once that charted obesity over the years. A massive spike came in the 1980s that corre-sponded to the development of high fructose corn syrups (a sugar alternative) and its use in soda.

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Key Points to Remember•"Eating and drinking has everything to do with worship.

•"Christians are called to enjoy the goods things of life (including alcohol if you so choose) with gratitude and moderation.

•"The practice of hospitality is the breeding ground for evangelism.

Reflection•"How’s your eating habits? What simple step could you take this week to improve them?

•"Who could you invite over to your house this month for a meal?

Further Reading• I’ve borrowed much of this thinking from Michael Frost’s

Exiles, especially chapter 7, “Exiles at the Table”