Food critic Paul Grinberg set out to eat at the world's top 100 restaurants. Since 2011, he has had meals at 99 of them. So far he's traversed mountain roads, been lost in fog, snowed in, stranded and secured speeding tickets in Spain, France, Switzerland, and Germany. He has crisscrossed time zones and fought exhaustion. Yet the last restaurant on his list—a small members-only sushi house in Japan—has remained maddeningly out of reach.

Grinberg recently told The Wall Street Journal, "I can't get into one restaurant in Tokyo? That's just crazy!"

What's the problem? Sushi Saito, an eight-seat restaurant in Tokyo, has a private membership. Outsiders have to either dine with a member or have a member make their reservation. Tracking down a connection hasn't been easy. Mr. Grinberg has tapped pals at Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and other investment banks. He's tried contacts at American Express, Japanese car makers, and hedge funds. No luck.

Mr. Grinberg can't understand it. To reach his Top-100 goal, he said, other restaurants and chefs have gone out of their way to accommodate him by staying open after hours or squeezing him into a fully booked room. He documents his meals on Instagram, where he also has begged for a hookup: "Can anyone help me with #100 Sushi Saito?"

Possible Preaching Angles: Grace; Justification by faith—We don't get into God's presence by our own connections or influence. It is based purely on God's grace to us in Jesus Christ.