Culture of Invitation - WEEK 2
Corrie and I are big fans of inviting people over to our home. One of the ways we "entice" people to be a part of our gatherings is food! We figure that if the food is good then a crowd is bound to join us for fun at our place. In fact, we've been doing this so long that most people just ask: "what are we eating?" or "what else to I need to bring?"
As I began to think about our invitations, I began to wonder what the "culture of invitation" looked like in the eyes of the Father.
Isaiah 55 says this…
“Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money,
come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.
2 Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food.
3 Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David.
4 Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples.
5 Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know, and a nation that did not know you shall run to you, because of the Lord your God, and of the Holy One of Israel,
for he has glorified you.
come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.
2 Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food.
3 Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David.
4 Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples.
5 Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know, and a nation that did not know you shall run to you, because of the Lord your God, and of the Holy One of Israel,
for he has glorified you.
6 “Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near;
7 let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.
9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
7 let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.
9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
The truth of the Kingdom… the truth of what we have today is SO GOOD that we should want to invite everyone to join in what we've found in Jesus.
Look at how Zechariah (3:10) puts it in his book…
"In that day, declares the Lord of hosts, EVERY ONE OF YOU will INVITE his neighbor to come under his VINEYARD and under his fig tree."
So exciting to think that as we create this culture, we have something special to invite people to.
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