My wife, Robin, and I enjoy welcoming people into our home. We often invite people over for dinner and dessert so that we can spend the evening with them and get to know them better. There is something we take real joy in when doing this.

In a way, this is our reprieve from an individualistic and isolationist culture. It is very easy to go through the day without having any significant interaction with anyone. There are times when our interaction with people is limited to a passing greeting or a discussion about weather or sports. While there is nothing inherently wrong with this idea of small talk, there is something significant missing from it--true fellowship. Of course, this is not a standard rule, as things like business lunches in a restaurant can be anything but true fellowship. But in opening our home and, in a sense, inviting people into our lives, we are also inviting them to a deeper level of fellowship.

The idea of feasting together is something significant from a biblical perspective as well. In the Garden of Eden already God gave Adam and Eve all the fruit of the trees and green plants for food, and they ate in his presence (Gen 1:29-31). Later, the many sacrifices offered by the Israelites would involve a meal (eg., Ex. 12). Jesus often entered people's homes to dine with them (Luke 19:1-10), and he provided thousands of people with a meal twice (Mark 6:30-44; 8:1-10). The Lord's Supper is also a meal, and when we partake of it, we are again feasting in the presence of the Lord (1 Cor. 11:23-26). And later, when Christ returns, we will all feast together again at the wedding supper of the Lamb (Luke 14:12-24, Rev. 19:9).

Eating and drinking together at the table of the Supper is representative of our communion with God. Many other times in Scripture as well the idea of feasting is linked together with the idea of communing with God, which is the deepest level of fellowship one can have. This communal aspect is what gives feasting together its rich meaning. When we sit down to share a meal together it is to be something deeper and far more intimate than small talk in the grocery store. Having people into our home leads to that, for we are right away allowing them to enter into something more intimate. To be in someone's home is to see them in their element, so to speak. That is where you can catch a glimpse of who they truly are, no matter how guarded they might be. Honest, real, godly, biblical relationships cannot begin on any level lower of fellowship lower than this. This is why Jesus entered into people's homes and why we feast at the table of the Lord in his house.

Furthermore, this is an opportunity to share the love of Christ with those who do not yet know him. This is for many of the same reasons--opening up with people on this level and building bridges by our fellowship allows us to start laying a foundation for what may someday turn into an opportunity to share to gospel with them. And in the event that we do not get to that point, we can hope that we at least planted the seed that will later be watered by someone else.

So, if you are in the neighborhood, let us know. We'd love to share a meal with you, welcome you into our home, and enjoy fellowship with you.