During my senior year of college, I would eat Chick-fil-A every Monday night for the entire year.  It was a tradition with my friends, Tate, Alex, and Timothy.  And, let me tell you, it was the most nourishing meal of my week. Despite all the food being deep-fried and dipped in sugary sauce, I would walk away much healthier.  Because I would walk away filled with hope.

That may sound extreme, but sitting in the Chick-fil-A booth for that hour was impactful for me. It wasn’t the waffle fries or even the exemplary customer service (my pleasure).  It could have been any other restaurant other than Chick-fil-A. What brought me hope was finding, for the first time, a friendship in Christ. 

Meals are profound.  They are a universal space for connecting with others.  It is in life’s grandest moments that you share a meal: the holiday feast, the birthday or graduation party, the welcome home, the first date, the wedding date.  And, it is in life’s most precious moments that you share a meal. “Think about your kitchen table,” said Tim Chester. “What dramas have been played out around this simple piece of furniture? Day by day, you’ve chatted with your family, sharing news, telling stories, and poking fun. Values have been imbibed. Guests welcomed. People have found a home. Love has blossomed.”

Christ Church College students are currently studying the Gospel of Luke. In this Gospel more than any other, there is a vibrant number of stories where Jesus shares meals with others.  Robert Karris concludes: “In Luke's Gospel, Jesus is either going to a meal, at a meal, or coming from a meal.”  I find it perfectly fitting that God, who graciously gives us meals, would so desire to share them with us in His incarnation.  It was one of His purposes on this earth. Jesus says, “The Son of Man came eating and drinking…” (Luke 7:34). Jesus transforms many of these meals to teach His disciples about His radical love for sinners.

In fact, it is after a meal with tax collectors in the house of Levi that Jesus receives the title “a friend of sinners.” After this scene in Luke 5, the Pharisees grumbled at Jesus’ association with those of such low reputation. They were the voice of condemnation at the time, pushing sinners deeper into exclusion from God and community. They were also the voice of self-righteousness, separating themselves from the love of Jesus.

Jesus responds by saying He came for the sick, not those who are well.  He is looking for those who know they need help and forgiveness.

For those willing to confess their spiritual needs like Levi, they didn’t just receive a quick blessing or prayer.  The Holy One Himself sat across from them in their home. Over a meal, God brought them the fellowship they were made to have in Him. In those moments of eating together, it did not matter what others thought of their sins and reputation. The shame of their past quickly lost its weight in His loving presence. 

College was isolating for me at first, as it is for many. I ate many meals alone in my room watching The Office. I often felt like I was alone in my sins and struggles. Coming from a different school and from a different city or state, some students at the U of A have no idea where to find a place to truly belong.  They may find, like I did, a common space with others in a club, fraternity, or ministry. But there is no guarantee that they will find a friendship rooted in the love of God. Tim Chester says, “It’s possible to remain at a distance from someone in public gatherings, even in a Bible study. Meals bring you close. You see people, in life, as they are. You connect and communicate.” 

Being seen for who you are is not a popular trend in college or in this world.  It can be scary. We hide our sin and darkness away because we figure that it means we are unlovable and undesirable. Jesus proudly displays that we must first admit our sickness to welcome the Great Physician. He did so with Levi and his friends.

Like then, Jesus still calls us to admit our need today. But, just like in Luke 5, Jesus stands against the voice of condemnation and unforgiveness. He still shatters shame with grace. He still takes sinners and gives them a community. God still dines with us.

He has made a way to do so by taking our sin on the cross. The night before He did, He gathered His disciples for the Last Supper and showed that His forgiveness and grace must be taken in, in a most profound meal between God and sinner. “He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me’” (Luke 22:19). Christ is taken in.

During those Monday night meals, I felt like Simon the tax collector and his friends in Luke 5 when they had a “great feast” with Jesus. I was with a group of men willing to be openly weak and needy, because we had the love of Christ to rely on. We would joke and catch up, but we could not keep ourselves from returning the conversation back to the Lord. Whether it was theological questions to wrestle with, shared moments where we had seen God move in our lives, or the quiet moments when a brother poured out the contents of his soul, the Lord was at that table.  His Holy Spirit was there, encouraging each one of us in our common strength in Christ. In that meal at Chick-fil-A, I found tangible, living proof that Christ is the “friend of sinners.”

As a college pastor today, I see many students eating alone: breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Across the large, wrap-around dining hall in the student union, there are hundreds of students with their faces in a screen, their earbuds in, as fried food is swallowed mindlessly.  Some of them might need a break from social interaction and work. But many of them, like freshman me, have had enough of solitude. Many of them are restless and anxious in sin. These students are secretly dying to eat a meal with a community that can help. They are sick and need healing grace. They need a meal with Jesus.

At Christ Church College gatherings, students have a large dinner together in the café every Tuesday.  Afterwards, we break into small groups for Bible study and conversation.  We ask difficult questions about sin. We open up in our own struggles. Every time, I walk away filled with the same sense of hope. Because we experience, again and again, the love of Jesus that covers any sense of shame.  I pray that we would all have the courage to come with our sins, struggles, and weaknesses.  He is ready with a feast of grace.