Radically Ordinary Hospitality

Luke 10:29-37

Very few non-profit organizations tend to truly be non-profit anymore. The CEO of Boys & Girls Clubs made $2.3M in 2024 while the CEO of the Red Cross earned $1.3M. Goodwill CEOs can make $800k/yr (Paddock Post). While I have no problem with people being paid what they are worth, it can seem a bit shocking to see how these nonprofits and even ministries can afford to pay such outrageous salaries to one person (Erieri). It begs the question of what that organization truly values. Is it service to the community or is it donations? It can be really easy if one isn’t careful to flip the switch and be all about profit while looking like a sacrificial servant.

There was a lawyer back in Jesus’ day who cared about making sure people saw the best in him, happy to provide even Jesus with affirmation for answering correctly questions concerning the law; but Jesus saw through those empty words and told him a story about being a neighbor that chilled him to his bones. It ought to do the same to us today.

We are beginning a series that is going to look at the idea of radically ordinary hospitality (The Gospel Comes with a House Key): what does it mean, what does it cost, and what is the point of living this way. Jesus talks about this lifestyle in numerous places (like what was read earlier) and is repeated a lot through the NT, showing how significantly important true, intimate hospitality is to the formula for sharing the gospel and making disciples who make disciples. What we see in Luke 10 is that the merciful love of Jesus is not a trite phrase, but a costly calling. This isn’t something you can offer lip service to but only shows in a truly sacrificial life. This is what we were called into.

You are Called to the Hospitality Lifestyle

This is certainly no easy thing to implement into your already busy life, but if this is not a part of your life, you might need to question if your faith is real. This is the key challenge Jesus threw at the lawyer. Sure, the guy knew all the right things, and being a lawyer, most likely followed the law well. But the gospel of Christ isn’t about checking off all the right boxes, it is about the priority of your heart. Who are you deep inside? People who are truly changed by the sacrificial love of Christ will in turn offer that sacrificial love to others. Accepting Christ into your life isn’t about getting into heaven or gaining help and power to make it through life (though it includes all that and more). Accepting Christ into your life is about connecting and aligning with the King who is defined by His mercy in His mission to seek and save the lost. Mark 10:45 – the Son of man came not to be served, but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many. The focus of Christianity isn’t about what we receive, it is about what is given through us. True Christianity is about living the sacrificial love of Christ out in our lives, which is how we show to be His witnesses.

Radically Ordinary Hospitality is Costly

Hospitality is a key way Christ recommended to us to witness His love. Look at the story; the hero isn’t the leader who passed by and crossed the street(notice the hero is the rejected one), but the one who spent his own money, used his own time, and gave of his own resources to ensure another person’s survival. There was no reimbursement or lawsuit. It was sacrificial love, for a stranger, nonetheless. This requires physical work, cost (financial, risk, time, etc.), and ultimately the love of Jesus. Only with His sacrificial love in us can we turn it around to give away. The highest executive in the Salvation Army earns $150k. This allows the organization to dedicate at least 82% of its total expenses to program services as opposed to administrative salaries (Google 1, Google 2). There are organizations like the Salvation Army make a point to put their resources into the community as opposed to their administration’s bank accounts.

Next Steps

I’m not asking you to live on 10% and give 90% of what you have to ministry. I’m not even asking you to give or give more in this message – what I’m asking you to do is to realize, accept, and step into the costly calling of sacrificial love in Christ. I’m asking you to be intentionally focused on giving the merciful love of Jesus to whomever crosses your path. That is Radical Ordinary Hospitality.

1. Pray with a friend and brainstorm how you can live out merciful love in your community. Then implement an idea; give it a try!
2. Connect with the unchurched–opportunities are all over (MoWheels)
3. Invite someone over for dinner. Doesn’t have to be a fine china situation, but love someone else by sharing your home and your food.

If you’ve read our impact report you know that we aren’t able to give that high of a % back into our community – at least yet. We still have some ground to cover, but it is a huge focus of ours. Will you sacrifice to give the merciful love of Jesus to your community?