Week 2: Got Fish?
April 18, 2021
Primary Text: Luke 24:36b-48
Big Idea of the Message: Transformation begins, not with evidence or reasoning, but with simple fellowship around a table.
This week's passage picks up where last week's left off. Jesus has just shown physical proof of his resurrection to the disciples & yet still they were "disbelieving." Despite this, Jesus asks to share a meal with them. The prerequisite of Jesus' fellowship wasn't belief, wasn't agreement, and wasn't devotion. Jesus sat with them at the table and ate, a symbolic gesture in the first-century Jewish culture of acceptance and union.
Around a table, we see each other not as ideologies or enemies, but as humans. Around the table, we share radical hospitality and grace. Around a table, we are equals, partaking of the same food and the same drink. And after rising from the table, we are more likely to be open and inclusive of those whom we might not have been so willing to accept before we sat down and supped together.
When we invite our friends, our neighbors, and our enemies to join us at the table, perhaps we are giving the most powerful witness to the resurrected Christ that is possible--on that will certainly transform hearts and lives for the better.
Discussion Questions:
Primary Text: Luke 24:36b-48
Big Idea of the Message: Transformation begins, not with evidence or reasoning, but with simple fellowship around a table.
This week's passage picks up where last week's left off. Jesus has just shown physical proof of his resurrection to the disciples & yet still they were "disbelieving." Despite this, Jesus asks to share a meal with them. The prerequisite of Jesus' fellowship wasn't belief, wasn't agreement, and wasn't devotion. Jesus sat with them at the table and ate, a symbolic gesture in the first-century Jewish culture of acceptance and union.
Around a table, we see each other not as ideologies or enemies, but as humans. Around the table, we share radical hospitality and grace. Around a table, we are equals, partaking of the same food and the same drink. And after rising from the table, we are more likely to be open and inclusive of those whom we might not have been so willing to accept before we sat down and supped together.
When we invite our friends, our neighbors, and our enemies to join us at the table, perhaps we are giving the most powerful witness to the resurrected Christ that is possible--on that will certainly transform hearts and lives for the better.
Discussion Questions:
- What memories come to mind when you think about gathering around the table? Holidays? Family gatherings?
- Think of a time when you were welcomed to the table of a friend. How did that experience impact your relationship? Did you feel welcomed? How did they extend hospitality to you?
- Jesus often chose to share a meal with his followers. These instances reinforce the importance of relationships in the Kingdom of God. Jesus, the son of God, sat at a table with others, ate the same food that they were eating, and talked with those he cared about. How can we represent this side of Jesus better?
- There is a saying that goes, "They won't care what you know, until they know that your care." Discipleship & relationships take time and investment. Who are the people that invited you to the table and invested in your relationship with Jesus? Who are the people that you need to invite & invest in?