God Loves Experiencing Our Hospitality

Scripture
(Genesis 18:1-3 ESV) ¹And the LORD appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. ²He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing in front of him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth ³and said, "O Lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant.

Observation
God visits us personally, physically. Probably much more frequently than we realize, God takes on our local cultural garb and guise so He can pay us visits. He never removes Himself from being our judge, but sometimes He gives us experiences that serve as valuable reminders. The author of the letter to the Hebrews reminds people to be continually practicing brotherly love, particularly in showing hospitality to strangers. Why? Because when doing that, the writer continues, many people have unknowingly entertained angels. That's nice, but what is even more important, many people have unknowingly entertained the Lord Himself. That's what Jesus explained in Matthew 25.

• (Hebrews 13:1-6) ¹Let brotherly love continue. ² Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. ³ Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body. ⁴ Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous. ⁵Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you." ⁶So we can confidently say, "The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?"
• (Matthew 25:34-40) ³⁴Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. ³⁵For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, ³⁶ I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.' ³⁷Then the righteous will answer him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? ³⁸And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? ³⁹And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?' ⁴⁰And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.'

Application
God certainly doesn't need our shade, our food, or our water. He's self-sufficient. But He delights, apparently, in experiencing our hospitality. Realizing that He sometimes disguises Himself as a needy person certainly compels me to be both cautious and generous with how I treat others, especially strangers. We've even managed to twist mercy into selfishness. Jesus explains that in Luke 6:34-48:
 ²⁷"But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, ²⁸ bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. ²⁹ To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either. ³⁰ Give to everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not demand them back. ³¹And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them. ³² "If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. ³³And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. ³⁴And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. ³⁵But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. ³⁶ Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful."

1. God visits us personally, physically, and in a culturally familiar disguises.
2. God disguises Himself as someone in need of our mercy, hospitality, or compassion so we discover and prove for ourselves who we are.
3. God gives us freedom to figure out for ourselves how to be hospitable and compassionate, how to organize our lives--demonstrating both grace and righteousness are not easy to figure out.
4. God judges us, not from the outside, but from opportunities He gives us to demonstrate our love--to let us pass judgment on ourselves for good or for bad.

Prayer
Lord, You are merciful and gracious. I know, because Your Word is trustworthy and You have filled my life with good things. You were justified in doing otherwise, but through Your cross, You justified Your mercy. I fear that by nature, I'm selfish, but I go on record, now, of declaring that I'd like You to help me become merciful and generous, like You. I trust You with that.

(Romans 5:7-9) "For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God." Thank You!