Holy Strangers

"Abraham looked up and saw three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he hurried from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground." Genesis 18:2

Holy Strangers
By Rev. William Dohle

I was taught, growing up as a kid, to never talk to strangers.

My mother would always say: "If a stranger comes up to you and wants you to go in his car, run the other way. If a stranger talks to you, ignore him. If a stranger gives you a piece of candy, refuse it."

Wise words to be sure.

Sadly in our society, if harm is to come to you it will most likely come through someone you know already or even a close relative. Few crimes are caused by "strangers." It's your family you have to watch out for!

Of course it is wise to be cautious of strangers, especially as children, but as adults, ignoring, avoiding, and being afraid of strangers isn't the best of way to live. For starters, avoiding strangers prevents you from experiencing life in any other way other than the way you are use to. If you were afraid of strangers at school, chances are you'd have no friends. Life requires a little risk.

In Scripture we learn strangers bring something else too. They bring the face of God with them. Ancient people had a rule called the "law of hospitality," which states that one must welcome the guest and show hospitality to the stranger on the off chance that God himself has come to visit.

This very thing happens to Abraham, who is met by three visitors, three strangers. Abraham shows them the hospitality that is their due.

Upon seeing them, Abraham exclaims: "If I have found favor in your eyes, my lord, do not pass your servant by. Let a little water be brought and then you may all wash your feet and rest under this tree. Let me get you something to eat, so you can be refreshed and then go on your way..."

But that's not all Abraham does. He instructs Sarah to bake some bread. He heads out to the herds and chooses the best calf for their evening meal. He brings them some food and sets down beside them to eat. He becomes their host, offering up the very best of himself to them.

Abraham doesn't avoid them, ignore them, or exclude them. He doesn't give them what is left over. Instead, Abraham gives them his very best and offers to them all that he has.

Though I hesitate to offer up this plan of service to us today, given the scope of our world's need, the same premise applies all the same. We are surrounded by strangers. And they are precisely the strangers we are called to minister to. There are strangers at the grocery store, at the post office, and all around the city. There are strangers even at work, at school, and on the streets. There are strangers who need just a smile to warm their day or a kind person to take time out to talk to them. There are strangers in more need than we can fulfill, but who could still use an acknowledgment from us. There are strangers you'd appreciate a visit or a card. Anything that might tell them that they are special.

And, like the strangers who visited Abraham that day, God resides amongst strangers amongst us too. In words that echo this story, Jesus tells a parable where the strangers are welcomed, and the righteous are surprised at what they have done!

"I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me."

No one expected Jesus would be residing in those strangers. Do we? Do we see the possibility that the strangers we avoid, ignore, and fear might just be our Lord Jesus Christ coming to us as God came to Abraham in these three visitors? Are we ready for such a surprise? That God could be present...here?!

May we join the righteous in surprise and wonder at all the places our Lord meets us each and every day.


God of the wanderer and stranger, you come surprising us with your presence in the faces of ordinary people around us. May we minister to them as we would minister to you, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.