Jesus loved big meals, and he invited everyone to the table. In Luke 14, Jesus tells a story about a man giving a banquet and inviting his chosen guests. When the food is ready, a servant is sent out to tell those invited to come and eat.
When they all give reasons why they can’t come, the disappointed host sends the servant out to bring in the “poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.” The host decided to fill his table with strangers since those he invited wouldn’t come.
This is one of our congregation family’s favorite stories—one we live every Sunday as we bless the bread and wine. We say, “Jesus is the host of our table and freely welcomes one and all.” We remember that this is not our table and that we, too, are all welcomed guests. We recall the communion of saints, remembering those who have died and the generations to come. Around this table–the Lord’s Table–space and time disappear.
This message is adapted from “God’s Table: Room for All” written by Linda Daniels-Block in the January/February 2005 issue of Lutheran Woman Today (now Gather) magazine. The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity ends today, and we observe the Conversion of Paul.
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