We recently had a fun conversation at brunch over Jesus’ parable of the Wedding Feast found in Matthew 22. One question that was asked was – Does your life reflect increasing habits of celebration? The question was asked because celebration was one of the most distinctive aspects of Jesus’ ministry… and the Kingdom of God as a Great Feast, a Wedding Banquet and a Supper are three primary living metaphors used to describe the activity of God’s Family (i.e. Us) as we demonstrate and declare the Good News of the Kingdom of God. In light of this, we believe that the spiritual discipline of celebration, or table fellowship, should inform our growth and spiritual formation. Alan Hirsh, noted Missiologist, regularly declares in his writings that ‘Party is Sacrament!’
Why do we Party? Parties are a vehicle of Mission. Our culture is becoming increasingly post-christian. Gone are the days where the goal of evangelism is to invite people to church. We no longer share the same values, beliefs, culture or language with our post-christian society. We can no longer expect them to come to us. ‘In the same way the Father sent Jesus, so we are sent into the world (paraphrase of John 2:21). WE are the SENT ONES… WE are the ones that GO. But where? I believe every neighborhood, every workplace, every grocery store, coffee shop, meal and party is now a pure missionary context. We must reckon with our identity as ‘sent’ ones. We are missionaries – let’s learn together what it means to live like it.
So where does a good missionary start in any and all contexts? Hugh Halter, missionary and pastor is helpful here, ‘They must start where the culture is and find ways to create neutral, enjoyable, space where humans can connect, identify, and learn the context of one another’s story. That’s how we contextualize the gospel.’ He goes on, ‘
