Two Questions to Consider:
- Why is it that we can talk more about the latest gossip on social media, than we can talk about what God is doing in us, through us, and around us?
- Why can we share more on recent news events than we can on the stories that Jesus told?
Sermon Notes/Slides
At first, rivales described neighbors, those who lived along a rivus (stream) together. But eventually, the neighbors couldn’t get along with each other.
Within a rivalry, there is an object, a desire, a status, a position that is desired – and the story we are told is that there is not enough to go around. The backstory to the word rival is one that shows how neighbors became enemies over something they perceived couldn’t be shared.
The rival story is about not having enough river to go around. It’s about not having enough status to share. It’s about our selfish desires being enflamed. But God’s story is that there is always enough provision to share – that there is enough status for all to have! Chris has commanded us to love our enemies. And love looks like actions. Paul described what it looks like in Romans 12.
The word ‘hospitality’ services from hostess (‘guest, host, stranger), which itself derives from hostis (stranger, enemy)—our english word ‘hostile’ comes from hostis.
The first step in returning from rivals to rivales – from enemies to neighbors – is to hear one another’s stories through practicing hopitality. Learning how to live into a rhythm of BLESS with those around us – breaks down the barriers that seek to separate us.
