Five Practices of Fruitful

Congregations

Bishop Robert Schnase

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Radical Hospitality

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“Welcome one another, therefore, just as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.”

Romans 15:7

Scripture

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Jesus welcomed

Prostitutes, Children, Zealots, Lepers, Women, Sinners,Pharisees, Sadducees, Tax Collectors, Business people, Demon possessed Those needing healing, even YOU

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I John 4:10-11

“This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. “

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Deuteronomy 10:18-19

“He ensures that orphans and widows receive justice. He shows love to the strangers living among you and gives them food and clothing. So you, too, must show love to strangers, for you yourselves were once strangers in the land of Egypt.”

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Hebrews 13:2

“Don’t forget to show hospitality to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it!”

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In America

In most communities, 40 to 60 percent of people have no church relationship. A majority of our neighbors on the streets where we live do not know the name of a pastor to call when they face an unexpected grief.

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Early Methodists

John Wesley and the early Methodists practiced hospitality in ways so radical in their day that many traditional church leaders found their activities offensive. Wesley preached to thousands on roadsides and in open fields in order to reach coal miners, field laborers, factory workers, the underclass, and the poorest of the poor.

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Radical Hospitality

Congregations that practice Radical Hospitality demonstrate an active desire to invite, welcome, receive, and care for those who are strangers so that they find a spiritual home and discover for themselves the unending richness of life in Christ. Radical describes that which is drastically different from ordinary practices, outside the normal, that which exceeds expectations and goes the second mile.

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Radical Hospitality

Radical Hospitality in our personal walk with Christ begins with an extraordinary receptivity to the grace of God. In distinctive and personal ways, we invite God into our hearts and make space for God in our lives. We say Yes to God and open ourselves to the spiritual life.  We accept God’s love and acceptance of us.  We receive God’s love and offer it to others.

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Questions

How do people hear about your church?

Is there a consistent plan for welcoming visitors who attend any church ministry?

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Questions

What is one activity your group or class could do, which, if done with excellence and consistency, would have the greatest impact on fostering a culture of Radical Hospitality in your congregation?

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Radical Hospitality

Group Activity: Walk through the parking lot and building as if visiting for the first time. Talk about what you see, what you smell, what you hear, what you notice that is welcoming and inviting and helpful, and what you find confusing or uninviting or forbidding. Imagine moving through the building from the point of view of a child, a teenager, a mother with a baby, and a person with a disability.

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Romans 12:13

Always be eager to practice hospitality.