Luke 6:20-26 — Blessings and Warnings

READ THIS: Luke 6:20-26

20 Looking at his disciples, he said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. 21 Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. 22 Blessed are you when people hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man. 23 “Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their ancestors treated the prophets. 

24 “But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort. 25 Woe to you who are well fed now, for you will go hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep. 26 Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you, for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets.

WHAT’S THIS MEAN, ANYWAY?

This section of Scripture is a famous one that is often called “the Beatitudes.” This is the very beginning of Jesus’s most famous sermon: the “Sermon on the Mount!” But what do all these fancy words mean? A “beatitude” is a fancy word that means a REALLY big blessing, and this “sermon on the mount” was quite literally a teaching lesson that Jesus had on a hill or mountaintop. Before He gets into anything else, Jesus starts by blessing certain groups of people, but He also gives a warning to others.

So, who is Jesus blessing here? Let’s see:
  • The poor
  • The hungry
  • The weeping
  • The hated
Oh… those aren’t really things that I’d personally want for myself. Well, who does Jesus warn then?
  • The rich
  • The comfortable
  • The well fed
  • The laughing
  • The loved
Oh. That didn’t get better… The Beatitudes may sound amazing to some and harsh or scary to others, but Jesus is giving such an important lesson to us about our lives as Christians! These verses are all about worldly things. Jesus saying it isn’t evil to be loved in general, but He is saying it dangerous to be loved by the world. He’s not saying we have to give up everything we own, but He is saying it is dangerous when we value the worldly things we own more than the spiritual gifts we can be given and use. He isn’t saying that we should starve ourselves, but He is saying it can be dangerous when we have plenty and refuse to give to those who need it.

The big message we get here is that Jesus is giving us a picture of what heaven will look like. God’s kingdom looks like the opposite of the world’s kingdoms. Those who are in need of Jesus will be lifted up, and those who are prideful and think they don’t need Jesus will be brought down. Our job as believers is to try and bring little bits of God’s kingdom down here to earth as representatives of Jesus!

THINK ABOUT IT:

1. Take another look at what Jesus’s kingdom is going to look like. Now be honest: does that sound exciting to you? Why or why not?

2. How can you bring parts of Jesus’s kingdom here to earth today?

TRY THIS:

If you have a few minutes, check out this awesome clip of this passage from a show called "The Chosen!" In this clip, Jesus speaks with Matthew about these verses! In the show, Matthew is somewhat of an outcast among the disciples. While the context here isn't 100% of what we see in the passage, the message is awesome!

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