9 Show hospitality to one another without grumbling.
35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,
A second serving gift in the New Testament is hospitality. It is not in the gift lists, but we get it again in Romans 12:13,
Seek to show hospitality; or again in 1 Peter 4:9—the passage about these speaking and serving gifts—Peter says,Show hospitality without grumbling.It is something that is twice required of elders in the qualifications for the elder. Hospitality.Now, what do we mean by hospitality? Do we mean a plate at the table on the Lord’s Day after worship? Well, certainly that is part of it and it can be an important part. But hospitality is more than that. The Greek word means the love of strangers. The love of strangers, not just our family—to have your family or your friends in your house is not hospitality in the New Testament sense. It is a great thing to do; we should all do it, but you cannot say,
I am being hospitable, because I had my aunt around for supper yesterday evening.Hospitality is love of strangers, care for strangers, welcoming strangers into our homes, providing a friendly atmosphere, being open, and being accepting, so that visitors feel relaxed.And dear readers, today there are lonely people—Christian and non‑Christian people. The gift of hospitality is valued and needed. We all have homes, and we all have food, and we all have chairs. We can all talk to people. Sometimes we are selfish and lazy. Sometimes we think,
I do not want to spend a Lord’s Day afternoon talking to people I hardly know. I would rather just come home and have a good time with my family.But it is a marvellous gift. It can be the sphere for evangelism. It is a wonderful way of talking to people about the Christian faith. It can encourage people in so many ways. Our Lord says, of the day of judgment, that he will say to the faithful servants,I was a stranger and you took me in(Matthew 25:35).How many strangers have you had in your home in the name of Jesus Christ in the last six months? Whoever received one such in his name, receives him. The serving gift. It can be a very enriching gift. When my wife and I think back to the people we have had in our home in the earlier days, we remember what a blessing it was to our children to meet all these people, listen to them, and get to know them.1
Edward Donnelly
13 Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.