I have a firm conviction that God is into eating and drinking together.
Whenever there is something done by God for the first time in scripture it calls for us to take note because it sets a precedence. Jesus could have done any miracle as his first miracle, but he chose to turn water into wine.......so the party could continue! Read it in John 2:1-12.
Many preachers try to over-spiritualize this event – especially those who think drinking wine (alcohol) is a sin. Now, I am not a proponent of drunkenness, but to say drinking is a sin because it could lead to drunkenness is like saying surfing the web is a sin because it could lead to porn addiction....anyway, I digress.
God is into parties! His kingdom is a party. And on behalf of all the crusty, old religious preachers out there I apologize for how the opposite has been presented through church. Not sure how preachers miss this in the Bible. You see the Bible is full of PARTY! God is into parties - religion is scared of parties.
God loves it so much he made it mandatory in the Old Testament. I like the sounds of that - MANDATORY PARTY!
In Deuteronomy 14 According to Jewish law all Jewish families were to come to Jerusalem each year. They were to bring with them one-tenth of all the money they had earned that year. Could you imagine, one-tenth of the gross national product of an entire nation gathered in one city? For a party! Now you might think that the money should go to building orphanages or helping the homeless or building bigger mega-churches or paying down the national debt, but no. God wanted them to blow it all on the most epic party! And here's the great part, It didn’t matter who you were, you were invited to the party. The rich, the poor, the young, the not so young, the lame, the strong.... everyone!
This reflects God’s heart. He is not an overbearing ogre with a big stick! He is the host of a giant party. And he wants everyone to join! Look at all the other instances where Jesus eats with people: A couple of the biggest party ever thrown in Matthew 14:13-21 and again in Matthew 15:34:29-39, of course the night before his death Jesus ate and drank wine with the disciples, and after his resurrection Jesus fries up some fish and chips on the beach for his boys (John 21:1-14). In Luke 14 Jesus speaks of the Kingdom of God as a feast. He compares the Father as the one throwing the party. Again the heart of Jesus is for us to find whomever will come to the party.
I know this is not the view of church or God’s kingdom that most people have. Well I want to do my part to turn the tide on the misconceptions out there, so I humbly submit to throwing parties. The church and movement I belong to has a healthy Theology of Party and you would really have to come see our churches in action.
My wife and I and a couple friends owned a cafe and wine bar in the downtown of our city for 4 years. One of the events we threw was called "the Table". We sold tickets or bought tickets for friends and invited them to party with us. We joined all the tables together to form one long table - the entire length of the cafe. I wanted people to not just feel welcome, but a part of the family. We had talented chefs create full course themed meals and we served delicious wine and we ate and talked and laughed for hours. I was amazed how people we barely knew began to warm up, stay long and share their lives and some we have become great friends with.
Jesus came into the thick of a culture deep in fear, rules and regulations – a culture who thought God’s kingdom was clear in their mind and his first miracle was to make sure the party did not die.
See, God is about people, not theology.
Even in the last book of the Bible Jesus confirms his passion for feasting together with us. Revelation 3:20 says, "Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me." He doesn't say if you open the door he will share all the wisdom of the ages, or endow you with a Masters in Theology, or grant you three wishes. He says we will eat together.
Someone once said the meal table is the birthplace of culture.
At our table we want to create a Kingdom party culture...... there's reserved seat for you.
Cheers!
