My atheist neighbor has been a better Christian than me.

The goal of all Christian/Non-Christian relationships is for us to declare the gospel to them through our actions and words... right?

Photo courtesy of Steve Snodgrass at flickr.com

Obviously, we're supposed to share the gospel with the world (Matt 28:19-20). But I'm beginning to think there's possibly a way to take the Great Commission too far. And before anyone builds a cross on which to crucify me for saying that, let me explain. 

A few weeks ago, my boss asked me if I'd be willing to preach on Hebrews 13:1-2. 

"Let brotherly love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares."

Since I never say no to preaching, I said yes. Normally I toss out the verses he gives me, and find ones I like better. But this time I decided to challenge myself and study a text that I'm less familiar with. And what I'm learning goes a little against my baptist background. 

Ancient neighbors

Verse two begins with a command for the church to, "not neglect to show hospitality to strangers." And the hospitality he's talking about is closely connected with Jewish culture. Back in the day, Jews were hospitable simply because it was part of their lives as God's people. Generosity, and sharing were simply a central part of their days. 

So if you were a Jew during the centuries B.C. and a traveler's path brought him across your door, then you'd naturally invite him in and prepare a meal for him. It's something you wouldn't think twice about. And the author of Hebrews seems to be reminding Christians in the early church not to lose that spirit of generosity.

My atheist neighbor

Today many Christians have lost the hospitable spirit. For the most part, people don't talk to each other. In neighborhoods like mine, you can enter and exit your house through the garage without having to breathe a breath of outdoor air. And that's frequently exactly what I do. 

Sometimes I feel convicted about that. There's a piece of my heart that cries out But I'm not sharing the gospel, or being the hands and feet of the church! So I make plans. I start thinking about all my relationships with people, and how I can squeeze Jesus into our next encounter, or even manipulate the situation so maybe they'll ask about Him. 

The only problem is, when that's my motivation, my generosity can at times become phony. I'll invite neighbors over for dinner, and be thinking When is the best time to cram Jesus into our conversation? 

At that point, my relationships with non-Christians become a means to an end. My friendships are just an angle in order to complete the Great Commission. It's like a prom date who tells his girlfriend he wants her to get in the back of his car so he an tell her how beautiful she is. 

My neighbor isn't like that at all. He doesn't even go to church. But within the first few months of him moving in, I mentioned that I was shopping around for a heavy bag for my home gym. His response was simple. He said, "Oh, dude. Come with me." and he grabbed a brand new heavy bag out of his shed and handed it to me. I asked how much it was so I could pay him for it, but he just waved his hand and kinda blew my question off, and motioned for me to take the bag. 

He was being generous and hospitable with no strings attached. And that's exactly the kind of love God's people should be showing to the world. We shouldn't be loving our neighbors solely in order to tell people about God's love. We should be loving our neighbors simply because we know God's love. 

What about you, what's the most hospitable thing anyone has ever done for you? Use the space below to leave your comment... or debate. Remember, I'm preaching about this this Sunday. If you see an arguable point, I want to know about it.

Thanks for reading,

Tim