Special Service - World Refugee Sunday: Belonging Begins with Hospitality | Zach Wylie

Welcome to ECB's weekly sermon podcast. ECB is

an international church in Bangkok, Thailand

with dozens of nationalities worshiping together.

We invite you to connect with us from wherever

you are through our website, ecb .asia, or our

mobile app. And now we pray that you are blessed

by this week's sermon. I want to propose to you

today that belonging begins with hospitality.

And if belonging begins with hospitality, I've

got a question. Who belongs at God's table? See,

today, and over the course of this next week,

churches and communities around the world are

recognizing World Refugee Day. Many people, when

you hear words like refugee and asylum seeker

and displaced person, you might think of something

like a statistic or maybe a headline or politics

and borders and crises happening somewhere else.

But before we talk about refugees, I want us

to talk about something that every human being

longs for. What do you think it is? Anyone? Belonging.

Belonging. Because if we're honest, every single

one of us knows what it feels like to be an outsider.

I want you to put your hand up if you moved from

a country outside of Thailand to come here. How

many of you moved countries to come to Thailand?

Put it up. Hold it up high. Raise your hand.

Look around. That's a lot of us. Now, don't put

it down. Be good students. Now, keep your hand

up if you remember what it felt like those first

few weeks and months. If you're like, I still

know that feeling. It's there. A new culture.

Sorry, I spat. A new language. New customs. New

systems. New relationships. Maybe some of you

are like, no relationships. Put your hands down.

I don't know if you remember what it felt like

to try to figure out where to shop. How things

worked, who to trust, where you fit. You were

looking for something called belonging. Now imagine

that same feeling, except you cannot go home.

Imagine that same uncertainty, except your future

remains unclear. Imagine that you move not because

of opportunity, but because of necessity. And

so today and over this week, we remember those

around the world that are living in that reality.

And more importantly, we remember a God who welcomes

strangers, a God who invites outsiders to his

table, a God who turns strangers into family

because belonging begins with hospitality. And

I think no one demonstrates hospitality better

than Jesus does. And so if you've got your Bible

or on your phone, maybe it's here, you can flip

to Luke chapter 14. And we're going to look at

Luke 14 · chapter mention

what Luke tells us through Jesus as he reflects

on something that he did. So there's a dinner,

there's a table, there's a question. And before

we get to the parable itself, I think we need

to understand what's happening in this room right

now. Not here, but in the story. Luke chapter

Luke 14:15–24

14, verse 15 to 24. So Jesus is attending a dinner

hosted by a prominent Pharisee, which I think

is crazy in and of itself. So he's hanging out

with a really deeply religious person who understands

all of the rules, the do's, the don'ts, what

it is that you think makes you a right, good

person. And he's at this dinner with a prominent

Pharisee, and his story isn't so much about food,

because it's going to be about belonging, but

the story is about status. It's about those who

get the invite. It's about those who deserve

a seat at the sable. I'm so sorry, my voice is

loud. But in fact, I would suggest to us today

that... In this story is one question that kind

of hangs over the entire chapter. And the question

is what I began with. Who belongs at God's table?

And the religious leaders, I did it again, think

they know the answer. The respected people in

this story think they know the answer. And the

people with status, they think they know the

answer. But Jesus is about to challenge almost

everything it is that they believe because earlier

in this chapter before we get here, Jesus heals

a man that everybody else had overlooked. And

then as he's at the dinner, he notices that guests

are competing for the best seat in the house.

And so in Luke 14, 13 to 14, he then turns to

the host and he says, when you give a banquet,

Invite the poor. Invite the crippled. Invite

the lame and the blind. And maybe in this room

this doesn't sound particularly shocking because

you're like a really good person. But at this

time, in that place, it would have been shocking

because hospitality in that culture at that time,

it was transactional. So you invited people who

could repay you, people who could help you, people

who could increase your status, give you some

good face. But Jesus introduces something in

this moment which is entirely different, a kingdom

hospitality, a grace -filled hospitality, a hospitality

that creates belonging. And so one of the guests

says, verse 15, I hear it like this, blessed

is the one who will eat at the feast in the kingdom

of God. I don't know why I used an English accent

to try to sound pretentious, but I feel like

that's what it would have sounded like. And so

at first glance, it might sound a little bit

spiritual, but I wonder if Jesus hears something

underneath the statement. Something like, well,

of course I'm going to be there. We're God's

people. We're the insiders. We belong. And that's

when Jesus tells this parable. He says, a certain

man was preparing a great banquet and invited

many guests. And at the time of the banquet,

he sent his servant to tell those who had been

invited, hey, come, everything is now ready.

Just pause here for a moment. This, the banquet

is ready. The feast, all of the food is being

prepared. The host has done all of the work.

The invitation goes out. The guests have contributed

nothing. That's the gospel right there in a really

great picture image. The welcome to us comes

before there's any kind of performance. The invitation

comes before there's any kind of achievement.

Grace comes before there's any kind of response.

And God doesn't say, clean yourself up and then

get to the party. No, no, no. He says, come.

And so think about the whole of the story of

scripture. If you've never read it before, from

front to back here, again and again, God creates

space for people to dwell with him. It starts

in the garden, then it moves to the ark, and

then it hits the tabernacle, and then the temple,

and then Christ, and then the church, and then

one day we talk about new creation. And so the

story in scripture is all about God making room

for his people. Because hospitality is at the

very heart of God. And every single heart longs

for what only God can ultimately provide. A space

to belong. A place at his table. A place in his

family. A place in his kingdom. But then, Something

surprising happens. The invited guests begin

to make excuses. One has purchased land, which

is a little bit crazy. He's like, hey, I got

to go check on my land that I just bought. Like,

wouldn't you check on your land before you buy?

The other one's like, yo, I've got some great

oxen that I need to go look at. I'm like, okay,

so you bought the oxen and now you're just going

to go look at the oxen? That's a bit of an interesting

story to me. Another one's got some family commitments.

But what's interesting here is that Jesus doesn't

just describe bad people. He's describing distracted

people. See the field, this work that they've

got to go to. It's not sinful. The business isn't

sinful. The marriage isn't sinful. The problem

is, and I'm going to repeat this because I think

it's worth repeating, is that sometimes good

things become more important than the invitation

of the king. sometimes good things become more

important than the invitation of the king. And

I think that might be one of the greatest dangers

for us, that the greatest threat to following

Jesus is not rebellion, but distraction. So we

become busy. We get a little bit comfortable.

We get a little bit successful. And we're occupied

with really good things. And somewhere along

the way, the invitation of the king becomes less

important than everything competing for our attention.

Binu, nice to see you. We move to this next part

of the story, which is really cool. The outsiders,

they're invited. So the story here kind of like...

takes a shocking redirection. And in the story,

the owner of the house becomes angry and he orders

the servant, go out quickly, go out quickly into

the streets, into the alleys of the town and

bring in the poor, bring in the crippled, bring

in the blind, bring in the lame. And if you're

like, Didn't you just say that? Yeah, I did.

Because that's what was just appearing a few

verses later. Jesus had mentioned them earlier.

These are the very people who are often overlooked.

These are the people that we assume they don't

belong. These are the people who could never

repay the invitation. And these are the people

that the king invites. Why? Because the kingdom

of God is not built on reciprocity. It's built

on grace. See, the world says, invite people

who can give you something back. And then the

kingdom says, welcome people because you're welcomed.

And so the invitation expands even further to

the roads, to the country lanes, to the outsiders,

the unexpected, the forgotten, and the people

that nobody imagined sitting at the king's table

are invited. And I think while I was reading

this and preparing, I was like, I've got to be

careful. Because it's easy at this point in the

story then to immediately begin to think about

somebody else like all those. Like, oh, maybe

a refugee, maybe an asylum seeker. I think he's

talking about displaced people, migrants, the

marginalized. And I think that there's truth

in that. But before we think about them, Paul

forces us to think about ourselves. And in Ephesians

Ephesians 2:12

chapter 2, verse 12 and 13, we're reminded that

we were the strangers. He says this, remember,

Paul. Right into the Ephesians. Remember that.

At that time, you were separate from Christ.

You were excluded from citizenship. You were

like a foreigner without hope, without a God

in the world. But now in Christ, Jesus, you who

were once far away, have been brought near by

the blood of Christ. Who's Paul talking about?

This is interactive Sunday. Who's he talking

about? He's talking about us. He's not talking

about someone else. He's talking about us. We

were the strangers. We were the foreigners. We

were the outsiders. We were far from God. And

yet Christ brought us near. And before we ever

welcomed anyone else is Christ who welcomed us.

And the cross then is God's ultimate act of hospitality.

In that moment, Jesus didn't just invite people

to his table. He gave his life right there so

that there would be a place for us at the table.

And so that brings us back to the question that

I began with. Who belongs at God's table? So

according to Jesus, not just the insiders, not

just the successful, not just the respectable,

not just the religious. but anybody welcomed

by Christ. See, hospitality creates belonging.

And because Christ welcomed us, we are welcome.

I want to invite our way team and some fancy

sign holders to help bring this from 30 ,000

feet right down to this moment. We spent the

last few minutes talking about God's table, and

we're asking a simple question. Who belongs at

God's table? And so the invitation, it's wider

than most of us realize. And the welcome is also

bigger. Lindsay, over to you. Thank you for the

sign. Am I here or there? I think you're after

James. Okay, thank you. Hi, good morning. I'm

Lindsay. I serve with our Displaced People Support

Ministry here at ACB, and that includes refugees

and asylum seekers. I've always felt called to

global work, but I didn't know exactly what that

would look like. I studied global health and

was certified in maternal and child health. And

then when I came here with my husband, Jonathan,

we welcomed four kids into our family. Now the

issues that we had seen before... that called

us to global work we saw through the eyes of

a parent. World Refugee Day is recognized globally

each June. A refugee is someone who had to flee

their home country and cannot return safely for

fear of persecution. The theme of this year's

World Refugee Day is belonging begins with hospitality.

This fits so well with ECB's mission for everyone

to belong, become, and be. The people on stage

with me walk alongside displaced people, and

we're going to look at some numbers. I'm so much

a numbers person, but behind the numbers are

people, and these people have families, stories,

skills, hopes, and fears. Let's remember that.

Our first number is the global population. There

are about 8 .2 billion people in the world. have

been forcibly displaced. Thank you. Zooming in

to Thailand, there are about 72 million of us

living here. Next, of the people living in Thailand,

about more than 87 ,000 of those are displaced

people. Thanks. Zooming in, we're going to look

at our own ECB family. Here, there are more than

1 ,200 people that are part of our community.

And of those, more than 100 are displaced members

that are connected here. These people are not

strangers. They're part of our family. To put

that in perspective, it's about 1 in 12 of us

had to flee and cannot return to our home country.

The numbers that we saw got smaller as we zoomed

in, but the opportunity got greater. Do we just

learn the numbers, or do we invite these family

members to the table? You may have noticed a

bookmark this morning on your chair. It's not

someone else's. It's for you. We pray that it

reminds you to pray for displaced people, but

also that it encourages you to ask God how he

would have you respond. Belonging begins with

hospitality, and we all have a role to play.

Thank you. Statistics matter. Thanks, Lindsay,

for caring about numbers. Because you said it,

behind every one of those numbers is a person.

People matter to God. And so before we move on,

I'd like us to do something together. And this

might feel a little bit unusual, but I think

it'll help us see something important. So I'm

going to push two questions together in order

to create a safe space. Number one, put your

first finger up. Put your second finger up. When

I tell you, if you are number one, which is an

asylum seeker, a refugee, or a displaced person,

that's number one. I'm going to ask you to stand.

Not yet. Number two, this is you. If you're a

close friend of someone who's an asylum seeker,

a refugee, or a displaced person. So on three,

if you're an asylum seeker, a refugee, a displaced

person, would you stand? And if you are a close

friend, Of somebody who is an asylum seeker.

A refugee. Or a displaced person. Would you stand?

I will stand. One. Two. Three. Stand. Yeah. Okay.

We're going to go a layer deeper. Stay standing.

If you know. Don't sit down. If you know someone.

Somewhere in the world. who has been displaced

from their home because of war, because of persecution,

because of violence, because of disaster or conflict,

would you stand as well? Do you know somebody

somewhere else? Okay. I want you to look around.

Like, really look around. Take a moment. Look

to your left. And look to your right. Look in

front of you, look behind you. What do you see?

I think we see something that maybe we rarely

talk about. We're more connected than we realize.

So the reality is, you can sit down, that this

isn't just somebody else's story. This is actually...

Our story. This isn't just somebody else's problem.

Because these aren't strangers. They're friends.

They're life group members. They're volunteers.

They're neighbors. They're parents. They're students.

They're children. They're co -workers. They're

people who are worshiping beside us and in front

of us. They're people who are made in the image

of God. People who are loved by God. People who

are invited to God's table. And that brings us

back to that question that we've been asking

this morning. Who belongs at God's table? According

to Jesus, I think probably more people than we

realize. The kingdom is a bit surprising in that

sometimes it forces us to come face to face with

the reality that the kingdom is actually bigger

than our categories. It's bigger than our assumptions.

And the kingdom, is always making room. And one

of the beautiful things about ECB is that many

people who once felt alone have begun to feel

that they've found a place of belonging. And

they've found a place of belonging not because

ECB is some sort of picture -perfect oasis. But

we're a group of people who realize that Christ

has welcomed us. And so we're trying, we're attempting

to learn how to welcome other people. And we're

going to hear one of those stories now in a video.

A story of belonging, somebody who found family,

a story of discovering a place at the table.

And so as you listen, I want you to consider

two questions. Who helped me belong? And who

am I helping belong? Hello everyone, I come from

Somalia. When I arrived in Thailand, I finally

felt safe, but I still felt like a stranger and

alone. When I came to ECP, people welcomed me

with kindness. They helped me find friendship,

support, people who truly care about me. Their

encouragement gave me strength during difficult

times. Because of this community, I no longer

feel alone. I feel like I have a family here,

people with kind hearts who care for and support

one another. This church helped me feel that

I truly belong. And I wanted to leave you with

this verse, Matthew 25, 35. I was a stranger

and you welcomed me. Thank you. Well, I love

that. Simple. like straight to the point, I was

a stranger and you welcomed me. See, something

like that, it's powerful because belonging is

powerful. Every human longs for that. We want

to be known. We want to be accepted. We want

to be heard. We want to know that there is a

place for us. And when we find belonging, something

begins to change inside of us. What I like is

as I read the scripture, I'm reminded that belonging

was actually never meant to be a place that was

like the finish line. It's like I arrived. I

belong. I'm seen. I have family. It was meant

to be the starting point. And if you look at

families and friendships and the church and certainly

the kingdom of God, we see that Jesus doesn't

just invite people to come and belong, but he

invites people to become. And so if we go back

to that first question, who belongs at God's

table? The answer that emerges is anybody who's

been welcomed by Christ. But then another question

comes from that. What happens after they belong?

What happens after somebody finds a seat at the

table? What happens after somebody experiences

grace? And what happens after somebody becomes

part of the family of God? And scripture shows

us transformation, growth. formation and discipleship.

And that's what the early church looked like.

And so if we go to Acts chapter 2, we see that

Acts 2 · chapter mention

the disciples devoted themselves to the apostles'

teaching and to fellowship and to the breaking

of bread. You notice what happens after the people

come to faith. I like this. They didn't just

like keep attending. But the Bible says they

devoted themselves. They gathered and they learned

and they prayed and they worshipped and they

shared life together and they served one another.

They were becoming something. Or maybe perhaps

more accurately, they were becoming someone.

A follower of Jesus. People who are shaped by

the Spirit. People who become more like Christ.

And they don't simply attend church. They don't

simply just believe certain things. But they

are transformed. And what I like, again, about

the Bible is we're introduced to these people

called disciples, which is another word for student.

Somebody who follows somebody. And they're a

perfect example. Think about who Jesus invited

for a moment. If you've read it, you're like,

oh yeah, I know. And if you didn't, then don't

be surprised. Fishermen. Tax collectors, political

zealots. Do we have any of those in the house

today? No? Okay, but you're invited too. People

with flaws, people with baggage, people who were

often totally misunderstood and people who misunderstood

Jesus. Jesus welcomed every single one of them.

And he didn't just leave them where he found

them, which some of us would be okay with that.

Like great savior. Yup. Lord in control of my

life. Nope. Jesus taught them. He challenged

them. He corrected them. He encouraged them.

And then he sends them. And over time we see

that he transformed them. And so for us, that's

what discipleship is. And that's why belonging

matters so much because transformation. rarely

happens in isolation. If you've ever experienced

growth in your life, it's likely because you've

been in relationships with people. There's been

a community. This transformation often happens

around tables. It happens when people begin to

walk alongside each other. It happens when people

pray together, when we serve together, when we

learn together, when we worship together. It

happens when we make room for each other. And

I think, Again, as I was preparing, I think that's

why I love the vision of ECB so much. Do you

remember what it is? Making disciples for global

impact. Because we don't just want you to come

and attend. That's not what this is about. We

want people to belong, yes. But we don't simply

want people to come and belong. We want people

to become. to become more like Jesus, to grow

in faith, to grow in your character, to grow

in love and obedience and in purpose. And what's

cool is that as we begin to experience belonging,

it begins to create becoming. And this happens

because Christ is changing us. And so we are

transformed. And transformation, if you look

at your own life or just like a plant, It doesn't

happen all at once. And it's not like grow, grow,

grow, grow. And then something comes. I mean,

it usually happens like one step at a time. One

relationship at a time. One act of obedience

at a time. One day at a time. And so the next

story that we're going to hear is a story of

becoming. A story of somebody discovering that

following Jesus is not just about finding a place

to come and belong. That was good. but it's also

about becoming the kind of person that God created

them to be. And so as you listen to the story,

I want you to consider this question. How is

Jesus changing me? It's the journey of moving

from who I was to who God is calling me to be.

This is my story from suffering to contentment.

Three and a half years ago, I came to ECB, not

realizing that God was already at work in my

life. As I listened to his word, my heart began

to stir, and God taught me to trust in his providence.

There was a time I felt lost. Without certainty,

without a place to truly belong. But in Christ,

I found more than hope. I found a home. Through

serving in church, the Holy Spirit changed my

heart, teaching me humility and giving me a deep

desire to know God more. Through studying and

growing, my life has been filled with truth and

joy. Today, I stand. transformed and content,

not by what I have done, but by what God has

done in me. And he used this church, this family

that has loved me, supported me and encouraged

me to show me that in Christ, I am no longer

lost. I belong. Thank you, ECB, this wonderful

community of brothers and sister in Christ. One

of the things I really like about that testimony

is that it reminds us that transformation doesn't

happen alone. It points to the community. It

happens through relationships and in community.

It happens because somebody makes room at a table,

somebody reaches out, another person listens,

and somebody begins to walk alongside another.

And so God changes lives through people. I like

that. He uses imperfect people. He uses willing

people, people who choose the love, people who

choose to welcome, people who choose to walk

with others. Over the last number of years since

my wife and kids have been at ECB, I've come

to appreciate that so much of what ECB does is

not alone. God's brought partners to come alongside

us as a church who faithfully serve, who advocate

for, who walk with displaced people every single

day. And one of those partners is Life Raft International.

Many of you might know them. Many of you may

have volunteered with them. Many of you may have

prayed for them. Many of you may have supported

their work. Some of you in this room are advocates.

And today I've invited our sister, Yvette Rivera,

to join us. And she's going to share with us.

I've asked her to share three simple things.

Help us understand. Offer us a little bit of

hope to see hope. And help us understand how

ordinary followers like you and me can participate

in what he's up to. Can you welcome Yvette as

she comes? Good afternoon, church. I'm really

happy to be here. I've been leading Life Raft

for quite a few years. I've been here since 2012.

And one of the things that sometimes we forget

about refugees is that they come to a new country

in search of safety. It's not because they're

looking for a better life or they want something

new or different. They're looking for safety.

Staying back home means that they risk their

life and the life of their families. And refugees

that are coming to Thailand, they come to the

surprise that Thailand doesn't recognize refugees.

So that means that they don't have access to

some of the basic needs like medical, education,

the right to work. So that's very complicated

to be able to live a normal life when you don't

have access to some of those basic things. And

when I meet refugees, one of the things that

I'm reminded is that they have God -sized problems.

And it's encouraging in the sense that we have

to cling to God to be able to find ways to support

and to walk alongside our refugee friends. So

once they're here and not having that recognition,

it means that there is a fear of arrest. So they

don't have the fear of persecution in the sense

of where they left home, but there is a fear

of being arrested. And that can be very paralyzing

here. One of the powers of the church is community,

is friendship, is relationship, what we're talking

about today. And when I first came here, one

of the first refugees that I met, he came by

himself and he came to one of our church gatherings.

And we started talking. He never mentioned that

he was a refugee. And after the service, I invited

him to come to dinner with us. And he told me,

sis. I want to go, but I don't have money to

pay for my meal. I was like, oh, don't worry

about that. We got you. So he came and he had

dinner with us. And from that moment, this beautiful

journey of seeing a church love and embrace him

was so impactful. It reminded me why it's so

important for us to walk with people and in a

deep way. As he built relationships, people started

giving him opportunities to build skills and

highlighted a specific skill that he was good

at. And he devoted himself years in doing that

well. And he was known here in Thailand for that

skill. And people go to him and looking for support.

And he ended up leaving Thailand through that

skill that he developed. And there are two things

that I observe and I've seen in other families.

The first thing is that everything about him,

it was a reminder that he didn't belong. He wasn't

Asian. He couldn't blend in. He barely spoke

English. And throughout eight years, I saw him

build this beautiful confidence. He would walk

the streets of Thailand, of Bangkok, as if he

owned it. Very confident. And that confidence

wasn't rooted in people welcoming him first.

It was rooted in the knowing that he belonged

to God. That he, his home, was God himself. And

I believe that this sense of belonging has to

start there. It has to start with this. Because

think about it. We belong. To the creator of

all things. That's incredible. And I ask God

to show me. What does that mean every day that

I am a child of God? There's a freedom that comes

in knowing that. And the second thing in his

life that impacts me. Is the power of walking

with people who see you. Who say, hey, you're

really good at this. And gives you the opportunity

to grow that skill. to build it, and to launch

you into it. And that's the power that we have

as a church, that we're able to walk alongside

our friends, not trying to fix the problems,

because as I said, they're God -sized problems,

but we seek to the one who can fix it, who can

walk with us in the journey. And the beautiful

thing is that I get to see God's work in it,

that starting... From when he came to Thailand.

And things were so hard. So bleak. But then see

that journey. Of where he is today. You could

only say glory be to God. Because it is him who

opened that door for him. And he uses us. His

people. To do it. It's not alone. It's through

us. And we've been partnering with ECB for 12

years. This room is filled with people that I

love. And that I've built friendships with. And

I'm deeply thankful for the beautiful ways that

you embrace and love refugees here. And there

is an invitation to continue to do that. We have

refugees. Not only those who are Christians and

have been persecuted. But we also have refugees

who don't know Jesus. That they're rejected because

they're an ethnic minority. They're rejected

because of their faith. And then they come here,

thinking negative things about Christians. They

come to a community that loves them, that cares

for them, with no agenda. And it's impactful.

And my prayer is that we continue to be that

church so that they can see how good God is.

And there's an open invitation for you guys to

be involved and get to know some of our refugee

friends and be able to serve. And I see how us

living out our faith with courage. impacts them

and they're able to see how good God is. So thank

you for the partnership. Thank you for loving

so well. And I will be, Rachel and I will be

outside to talk to you guys. So thank you. Awesome.

Thank you. Informational, yes. Inspirational,

yes. Invitational, yes. When we're done, you

can head downstairs, walk through the courseway.

There are tables on the left -hand side. And

you can think. And then you can act and consider

how you might be able to engage. See, transformation

spreads. One person welcomes another. One life

impacts another. One disciple helps form another

disciple. And so as we've been asking that question,

who belongs at the table, we see that anybody

who is welcomed by Christ belongs. And we ask,

what happens when people belong? Well, we see

that God begins to transform them. And then we

arrive at this final question, which is, what

do transformed people do? Do they simply stay

seated at the table? We've arrived. Do they simply

enjoy the blessing that they've received? Do

they consume? Or does something else begin to

happen? And again, Scripture is clear. People

who have begun to be welcomed actually become

people who begin to welcome other people. It's

this natural outflow. People who have been transformed

begin to help transform other people. People

who have been loved begin loving others because

God's plan isn't simply to just welcome people.

His plan is to send people. Let's listen to his

words in Matthew chapter 25 and then Romans 15

Matthew 25 · chapter mention

when Paul talks to us. Matthew 25. Some of you

might have heard this one before. He says, I

was hungry. You know this one? I was hungry and

you gave me something to eat. I was thirsty and

you gave me something to drink. I was a stranger

and you invited me in. Some of you could keep

on going. But if we stop there for a moment,

notice what Jesus does not say. He doesn't say,

I was a stranger and you noticed me from across

the room. He doesn't say, I was a stranger and

you agreed with me. He didn't say, I was a stranger

and you felt sorry for me. He says, I was a stranger

and you welcomed me. So for us, hospitality has

to be more than awareness. Hospitality is an

action. It's making room. It's opening our lives

and it's reflecting the heart of God. And so

the gospel is the story of God making room for

people who never expected a seat at his table.

And I think that when that truth begins to grip

our hearts, something shifts, it changes. We

stop asking, what can I get? And begin to ask,

who can I welcome? We stop asking, well, who

belongs in my circle? And we begin asking, who

might God be inviting me to make room for? Because

welcomed, People become welcoming people. Romans

Romans 15 · chapter mention

chapter 15 says, Accept one another then, just

as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise

to God. I like this. Paul doesn't say, Hey, hey,

hey, hey, accept one another so that Christ will

accept you. No, he flips it. He says, Christ

accepted you. Therefore, accept one another.

And so the gospel always comes first. Grace always

comes first. Hospitality always begins with God.

And because Christ has welcomed us, we welcome

other people. Because Christ has transformed

us, we help other people grow. Because Christ

has sent us, we go. See, hospitality creates

belonging and belonging creates becoming and

becoming. It leads to being. And being leads

us to welcome other people. Because of Christ,

we are sent. So in God's kingdom... People always

become participants. We become contributors and

servants or ambassadors might be a word. People

who were once welcomed become those who welcome.

People who were once served become people who

serve. People who were once invited become people

who extend the invitation. And the next story

is a story of that, a story of being and purpose

and service, a story of somebody that discovered

that God's invitation doesn't end at the table.

It begins there. This is a story of a lady who

left a nation where she was experiencing persecution,

and she arrived in Thailand with nothing physically

to give. She finds a church. She begins a discipleship

journey on her own, belonging, becoming. And

then she approaches her own community to see

what kinds of challenges or needs exist there.

And they help her come to an understanding that

there are certain ages within the refugee community

that don't really have access to education because

of their age and their status. And she says,

I'm an educator. I can help with that. And so

she begins serving those within her own community

who have been denied access to education. And

so for me, what a beautiful picture of the kingdom

of God. Not somebody just sitting on the sidelines

being defined by some sort of label. Not just

people known only by their circumstances. but

people using their gifts, serving other people,

building God's kingdom, reflecting Jesus. In

church, this is what happens when hospitality

does its work. Hospitality creates belonging.

Belonging creates becoming. Becoming leads to

being. I'm going to preach for another 20 minutes

until you say it, okay? And being. It leads us

to welcome other people because welcomed people

become welcoming people. And I think that's more

than just like a nice phrase and we'll get hats

and sell them to everybody later. But this is

discipleship. This is the gospel. This is the

kingdom of God. And so take a look back for a

moment at where we've come from this morning.

We began with the question, who belongs at God's

table? Not just the outsiders. Sorry, not just

the insiders. Not just the respectable people,

not just the religious, not just the successful,

but the invitation goes to the poor and the outsider,

the forgotten, the overlooked, the people that

nobody expected. And then Paul reminds us that

we were strangers, we were foreigners, we were

outsiders, and yet Christ brings us near. And

then in Acts chapter 2, we're reminded that belonging

Acts 2 · chapter mention

isn't the destination, it's the beginning. God

welcomes us and then he transforms us. And then

Matthew 25 reminds us that transformed people

begin living differently. They welcome, they

serve, they make room, they extend the same kind

of grace that they've received. And so all of

that brings us to this moment. I want to invite

you to reflect on a few questions. If we are

welcomed, if I'm welcomed, how has Christ welcomed

me? If I am transformed or I'm being transformed,

who is God changing me to be? How is Christ changing

me? And if we're sent, who is God inviting me,

inviting you to welcome? I recognize that not

all of us may be called to the same thing, but

every one of us is invited to do something. Throughout

the morning, we've talked about this idea of

belonging. We've talked about the idea of becoming.

We've talked about the idea of being. We've talked

about hospitality. We've talked about God's invitation.

We've talked about making room for other people

because Christ made room for us. And so I want

to leave you with three simple responses. See,

some of us, some of us are called to give. We're

here to support ministries, organizations. Maybe

we can support people who are faithfully serving

displaced communities here in Bangkok. Maybe

people that are around the world. And so giving

is one of the ways that we make room for other

people. Not all of us can go and do something,

but all of us can participate. The second one

is this idea of grow. Say it with me, grow. Some

of us need to grow. Maybe today, is an invitation

to learn to build a relationship with another

person. To learn somebody else's story, to pray

differently, to step outside of your comfort

zone, to move from sympathy to relationship,

to move from knowing about people to actually

knowing people. So perhaps the next step for

you is simply to grow. And then there's others

of you that are in this room that might be called

to go, to serve, to volunteer, to mentor, to

walk alongside somebody, to join what it is that

God is already doing. And the invitation isn't

to go to pretend to be some sort of rescuer.

No, no. It's to go because you've been welcomed.

And welcomed people become welcoming people.

And so the invitation from Jesus to us today

is to not simply attend the banquet. It's to

help extend an invitation. It's to help make

room at the table. Because one day, there will

be people from every tribe, every tongue, every

nation gathered around one king. And until that

day, this is good, we have the privilege of helping

people find their place at his table. So whether

your next step is to give, to grow, or to go,

take a step. Take a step because Christ made

room for you. He made room for us. And now we've

got an opportunity to make room for others. Thank

you for tuning in to the ECB Sermon Podcast.

Whether near or far, if you are looking for community

or are in need of prayer, we welcome you to engage

by sending us an email to If God is calling you

to support our ministries, you will find giving

options on our website. And remember to join

us next week. God bless you.