Sobremesa ii... Let’s eat!
Our obedience to the Gospel includes making disciples. So where is the recipe? “Everything you need is in the Bible,” they said. Hmm… this instruction manual doesn’t seem too well organized. But then, our own efforts to come up with the mother of all instruction manuals continue to fall short. Why?
Making disciples is not a method… it’s not a catechism class. Enthusiastically transmitting great information doesn’t make it happen. I’ve tried… it’s like trying to make water sit up straight.
The constant in the disciple-making equation is not how we take a stand for truth… or how fantastic our teaching is on Sunday.
It’s about relationships… how do we strike up new ones… how do we grow them… how do we preserve them… how do they become part of our walk with Jesus?
It has to start with embracing people—all kinds of people—like Jesus did. Building long-term relationships has to be preserved as our primary goal. I can tell right away if you enjoy being with me or if you are trying to sell me something. I’ll bet you can tell the difference, too. Are you truly loved or are you a notch in someone’s belt?
So again… relationships are the medium for discipleship. Once we own this as our mantra, we start seeing what it could look like in our own corner of the world.
It’s worth another look at Jesus and one of his go-to methodologies…
SOBREMESA… ‘sew-bray-may-sah’… sobre (over) and mesa (table)
Never underestimate the potential in a meal or a cup of coffee.
How did the Lord’s Supper end up being a thing? Jesus planned for it. It came out of a crucial hour, a looming darkness, the intimacy of a core group of followers… woven together by an overriding purpose. Out of a moment that could have easily been overrun by fear and panic emerged a divine example of calm, a graphic illustration and a promise of eternal hope.
I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom. Matthew 26:29 (ESV)
If he were walking about this frantic, thirsty wasteland we call home and country today, what would Jesus do? He might just say… “Let’s eat.”
Who knows where it might lead…