Our brothers and sisters of the Jewish tradition annually observe Passover. It is the celebration of the Israelites exodus from Egypt and their freedom from bondage. At the feast of the Passover, or Seder, there are four cups of wine imbibed and a fifth cup is reserved for the prophet Elijah who is the honored guest of the Seder. Jews believe that Elijah will return to foretell of the coming of the Messiah.
I love Elijah. He’s the guy in the Old Testament who took on the prophets of Baal, was fed by ravens, and got to go to heaven in a whirlwind accompanied by a chariot and horses of fire. As if all of that wasn’t enough, God lets him appear with Moses on the mountain at the transfiguration of Christ. Peter, James and John are there and they want to just set up shop on the mountain. God, of course, had a different plan.
Tradition is great, especially something like the Passover that is filled with prophecy regarding the Messiah, Jesus Christ. But, I tend to want to look at things differently. Elijah has already gotten to do his thing. He probably won’t be showing up for dinner at my table even if I were to save him a glass of wine. Jesus Christ is here. Now. Aren’t we required then to look at things differently?
So, who will be showing up at my table for dinner? Who will be showing up at your table for dinner? I’ll tell you that at my house Larry is coming for dinner. We are all really excited about it too. We aren’t sure how we will communicate with him because Larry is deaf. I don’t know anything else about Larry. God knows everything about him though.
A year or so ago, God hit me over the head with a scripture I had never noticed. In Luke 14, Jesus is dining in the home of a Pharisee. Everybody is making a big deal about who is going to sit at the head of the table. Jesus gives them some advice about being humble and then he gives it, the challenge: “When you put on a luncheon or a dinner, don’t invite your friends, brothers, relatives, and rich neighbors. For they will repay you by inviting you back. Instead, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. Then, at the resurrection of the godly, God will reward you for inviting those who could not repay you.” Wow! Trust me; I’m not godly for inviting Larry to eat with us because he is deaf. I’m just literal and that happens to be someone who God put in my life. That’s really the point. Who is the Larry in your life?
As cool as Elijah is, he’s not coming to dinner. But, because of Jesus Christ, Larry is.
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Pray that people in our Community Groups would grow in love and concern for one another.
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