A Journey to Restored Tables

A Table of Healing

A lot of life happens around the table. Every culture embraces the act of gathering for a meal as a way not just to eat but to engage in meaningful exchange. Whether it’s a birthday or funeral, whether we are sharing bad news or good, whether it’s joy or sorrow, we gather around the table. The same is true of Jesus. Jesus never seems to turn down an invitation to eat. He eats with sinners He has just forgiven. He eats with new disciples who invite all their old friends to a party. He eats with crowds who are following him to hear him preach. He eats with His friends on the evening before His arrest to prepare them for what is coming. He even eats with His enemies, who are trying to trap and attack Him. His approach to each meal is different, but His goal is the same: to reveal to people who He is, why He came, and to invite them to enter His Kingdom.

The Gospel of Luke records eight meals Jesus ate with people before His crucifixion. In this study, we will look closely at each meal, ask ourselves what Jesus was trying to teach, and see if we need to learn that lesson as well. Along the way, we will hopefully learn how to follow in Jesus’s footsteps and use meals as significant opportunities to engage with others in meaningful ways. The first meal we are going to study has everything: a new disciple, a big party, Jesus celebrating with sinful people, and disgruntled hyper-religious people wagging their fingers. Through the meal, Jesus shows us who He is, what He came to do, and how He goes about His job. He invites everyone to change how they think about things and to start following Him. Hopefully, as we study this, we will be reminded of these truths and be challenged to embrace our role as His followers.