Luke 9 & 10 are about showing hospitality to Jesus and his messengers.  Soon after Jesus had set his course for Jerusalem he and his group, perhaps numbering nearly 100, came to a Samaritan village seeking overnight accommodations.  The village them turned away because Jesus was going to Jerusalem and not their worship center. Jesus would have nothing to do with the suggestion of James and John to rain a bit of fire on the village.  Instead they moved on.

At the beginning of chapter 10, Jesus sends out 70 or 72 others to heal the sick and proclaim the nearness of God’s kingdom.  Those who showed hospitality would be blessed with the messengers greeting of peace.  However, those who turned them away, though Jesus’ messengers would shake the dust of the town off their feet, would know that the kingdom of God had also come near to them.

Jesus sums up the reactions saying, whoever hears you is also listening to me and to my Father who sent me.  Whoever rejects you is rejecting me and the Father.

Jesus next encounters an expert in biblical interpretation, a lawyer.  Jesus tells the parable of the Good Samaritan to see if the man would hear and obey his word to “God and do likewise.”

Finally, Jesus comes to the home of Martha and Mary, where again we deal with the way to show hospitality to Jesus.  It turns out that serving him does not mainly mean busying ourselves with the usual affairs of hospitality, but to emulate Mary who sits at Jesus feet and listens.

There is an old prayer that advises  us to,  “read, mark, learn and inwardly digest” what Jesus has to offer.  We serve him because he first served us with his word.