Hebrews 13.1-8, 15-16; Luke 14.1, 7-14

I wonder whether you have seen any of the sample questions issued for those who wish to apply for citizenship in this country. I was rather relieved when I did one of these sample tests to discover that I would have qualified - but only just. Of the three sample tests I took, I failed one of them.

I wonder how you would have got on. Here are some sample questions.

Life in the UK says to be British means you should…
A: “Respect laws, the elected political structures, traditional values of mutual tolerance and respect for rights and mutual concern.”
B: “Share in the history and culture of an island nation with a character moulded by many different peoples over more than two thousand years.”
C: “be part of a modern European democracy, one with a tradition of sharing our ways with the world – and allowing the world to bring its ways to us.”

Almost 60m people live in the UK. By what factor do the native-born English outnumber their Scots or Welsh neighbours?
A: By nine to one
B: By seven to one
C: By six to one

Life in the UK explains what to do if you spill someone’s pint in the pub. What usually happens next?
A: You would offer to buy the person another pint
B: You would offer to dry their wet shirt with your own
C: You may need to prepare for a fight in the car park

The police turn up with the ambulance and an officer asks you to attend an interview at the station. What are your rights?
A: You don’t have to go if you are not arrested, but if you do go voluntarily you are free to leave at any time
B: You must go. Failure to attend an interview is an arrestable offence
C: You must go if you are a foreign nationalI wonder how many of those questions you got right - would you pass the test?

The required pass-mark is 75% correct. What I didn’t tell you is that applicants are also given a book in which all the answers to the questions are to be found, although they must sit the test without the book to hand.

We are welcoming Cody today, not to citizenship of the UK, but as a member of the Church. But unlike gaining UK citizenship, we need not pass any test.

All that God asks is that we are people who follow Jesus - that’s what a Christian is; a disciple, a follower, of Jesus. And we don’t have to know a book perfectly to do that, though, of course, the Bible helps us to know who it is whom we are following.

Cody is too young to say for himself that that’s what he wants, so his parents and godparents are going to make promises on his behalf that they will bring him up to know God, to be part of the Christian community and to teach him by their example what it means to pray and to follow Jesus.

And the great thing is that, if we keep on believing, even when we fail to live up to God’s standards, we don’t lose our place in God’s family. All of us have been created by God as unique and special, and because of his love for us, he will forgive us when we recognise our wrongdoing - that’s what the water in baptism is all about - a symbol that God will wash away all that we have done that denies God’s love for us.

The love that God has for us is unconditional. God never stops loving, even when we go our own way. It’s like a parent. I’m sure most of you here today can think of a family where parents and children have had struggles to get on with each other, where relationship s are not as good as they should be.

I’m sure you all know of families where parents’ hearts are breaking because their children seem to be going off the rails, and they long for them to turn around from destructive paths and receive their love again. In those cases, so often, the parents’ love goes on, even when it’s hard to communicate that with the child.

God’s love for us is like that. Even when we ignore God, or do things which we know are contrary to God’s ways, he still goes on loving us.  Jesus said that the two greatest commandments were about loving God and loving others. At a very basic level, that is what members of the Christian community are asked to do.

And we see what this means in practice in our readings this morning. Loving others is about hospitality - not the sort of hospitality that says I’ll invite so-and-so for dinner because I know I’ll get an invitation back - that’s not real hospitality. Real hospitality is about offering something in love, with no regard as to whether we’ll get anything back or not.

It’s not about grading people and making some more important than others, but about loving everyone, and doing so humbly.

At the time when the letter to the Hebrews was written, there were Christians imprisoned for their faith and tortured - the instruction is not to forget them because they might be out of sight.
There is always a bond between people who belong to the Christian community.

So, today, as we welcome Cody as part of God’s family, let us hold in mind God’s love for us, our love for each other, and let us have the courage to live that out in our community.