The Bible encourages us to extend hospitality to those in our community, whether they are acquaintances or strangers.
Christians are obligated to respect and serve others in the same ways that they do God. We can achieve this by extending a warm welcome to guests in our houses and places of worship.
The Bible is a great source of knowledge, direction, and advice on welcoming visitors.
These Bible verses for welcoming visitors are bound to offer encouragement and insight, whether you are new to hosting guests or are merely looking to broaden your understanding of hospitality.
First, lets take a look at what the Bible says about welcoming visitors.
What Does The Bible Say About Welcoming Visitors?
The Bible has many verses encouraging us to show hospitality and welcome visitors. Here are some key examples:
- “Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.” – Hebrews 13:2
- “Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.” – Romans 12:13
- “The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt. I am the Lord your God.” – Leviticus 19:34
- “Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.” – Romans 12:13
- “Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.” – Hebrews 13:16
Bible Verses For Welcoming Visitors
Many verses in the Bible encourage believers to welcome strangers, respect others, and offer a warm welcome to those who may be new or unfamiliar. Hospitality is a significant theme throughout the Bible.
These 51 Bible verses for welcoming visitors provide inspiration and direction on giving a gracious and hospitable welcome to everyone who comes your way, whether you are a church minister or just someone seeking to make guests feel at home.
These passages provide instruction and motivation for showing kindness and hospitality to those we come in contact with.
Romans 15:7 (ESV) – Welcoming One Another As Christ Has Welcomed You
Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.
Matthew 25:35 (ESV) – Show Kindness To Strangers
For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,
Hebrews 13:2 (ESV) – Do Not Neglect To Show Hospitality
Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.
Galatians 3:28 (ESV) – We Are All One In Jesus Christ
There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
Romans 12:13 (ESV) – Seek To Show Hospitality
Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.
1 Peter 4:9 (ESV)- Show Hospitality Without Grumbling
Show hospitality to one another without grumbling.
Psalm 122:1 (ESV) -Let Us Go To The House Of The Lord
A Song of Ascents. Of David. I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord!”
John 3:16-17 (ESV) – For God So Loved The World
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
1 Samuel 25:6 (ESV) – Peace Be To your House
And thus you shall greet him: ‘Peace be to you, and peace be to your house, and peace be to all that you have.
3 John 1:5 (ESV) – A Faithful Effort Towards Strangers
Beloved, it is a faithful thing you do in all your efforts for these brothers, strangers as they are,
Galatians 3:26-28 (ESV)
For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
Romans 13:10 (ESV)
Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.
John 3:16 (ESV)
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
Matthew 25:1-46 (ESV)
“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept. …
Leviticus 19:34 (ESV)
You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.
Bible Verses About Welcoming Strangers
The Bible gives us direction and knowledge on how to be loving and kind to everyone, whether we are engaging with people from different backgrounds or welcoming strangers into our homes or churches.
The most inspiring and motivating Bible verses about welcoming strangers are examined in this article, and we also consider how we can put these lessons into practice in our daily lives.
Matthew 25:35 (ESV)
For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,
Hebrews 13:2 (ESV)
Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.
Leviticus 19:33-34 (ESV)
“When a stranger sojourns with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong. You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.
Romans 15:7 (ESV)
Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.
Leviticus 19:34 (ESV)
You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.
Romans 12:13 (ESV)
Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.
Matthew 25:40 (ESV)
And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’
1 Peter 4:9 (ESV)
Show hospitality to one another without grumbling.
Exodus 23:9 (ESV)
“You shall not oppress a sojourner. You know the heart of a sojourner, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt.
Leviticus 24:22 (ESV)
You shall have the same rule for the sojourner and for the native, for I am the Lord your God.”
Deuteronomy 10:19 (ESV)
Love the sojourner, therefore, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt.
Bible Verses To Welcome A New Pastor
Everyone concerned may experience both excitement and difficulty when a new pastor is welcomed into the church.
We want to greet our new spiritual leader with open arms and show them the love and support they need to succeed in their new position.
Many important verses from the Bible can be used to show our gratitude, appreciation, and excitement for the appointment of a new minister.
Romans 15:7 (ESV)
Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.
Colossians 3:14-16 (ESV)
And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.
Ephesians 2:19 (ESV)
So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,
Acts 20:28 (ESV)
Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.
Hebrews 10:25 (ESV)
Not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
Psalm 133:1 (ESV)
A Song of Ascents. Of David. Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!
Hebrews 13:2 (ESV)
Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.
Romans 12:5 (ESV)
So we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.
1 Peter 2:9-10 (ESV)
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Bible Verses For New Church Members
Joining a religion for the first time can be an exciting and rewarding experience. We seek direction, inspiration, and support as we enter a new spiritual community in order to strengthen our religion and our relationship with God.
Many verses in the Bible can give new church members consolation, inspiration, and guidance as they set out on their spiritual journey.
These verses can clarify the value of fellowship, the effectiveness of prayer, and the extent of God’s mercy and compassion.
Matthew 16:18 (ESV)
And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
1 Timothy 5:1 (ESV)
Do not rebuke an older man but encourage him as you would a father, younger men as brothers,
John 3:16-17 (ESV)
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
Psalm 23:1-6 (ESV)
A Psalm of David. The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. …
1 Corinthians 3:17 (ESV)
If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.
1 Corinthians 12:13 (ESV)
For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.
1 Timothy 5:19 (ESV)
Do not admit a charge against an elder except on the evidence of two or three witnesses.
Colossians 1:18 (ESV)
And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.
1 Corinthians 12:12-17 (ESV)
For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.
For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. …
Acts 2:42 (ESV)
And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.
John 8:32 (ESV)
And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
Hebrews 12:6 (ESV)
For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.”
Colossians 1:17-20 (ESV)
And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
Ephesians 1:22 (ESV)
And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church,
1 Corinthians 12:12 (ESV)
For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.
Romans 15:2 (ESV)
Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.
Conclusion
We are commanded to treat others with respect and to offer a gracious welcome to everyone, whether we are receiving guests into our homes, churches, or communities.
We can create a warm and inclusive environment that represents God’s love for all of his children by practicing hospitality and loving those who may be unfamiliar or new to us.
Let us keep in mind Hebrews 13:2, which cautions us that by extending hospitality to strangers, we might unwittingly be receiving angels, as we work to put these teachings into practice in our everyday lives.
