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Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God. And when it was day, He called His disciples to Himself; and from them He chose twelve whom He also named apostles: Simon, whom He also named Peter, and Andrew his brother; James and John; Philip and Bartholomew; Matthew and Thomas; James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called the Zealot; Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot who also became a traitor.
And He came down with them and stood on a level place with a crowd of His disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and be healed of their diseases, as well as those who were tormented with unclean spirits. And they were healed. And the whole multitude sought to touch Him, for power went out from Him and healed them all.
Then He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples, and said:
"Blessed are you poor,
For yours is the kingdom of God.
Blessed are you who hunger now,
For you shall be filled.
Blessed are you who weep now,
For you shall laugh.
Blessed are you when men hate you,
And when they exclude you,
And revile you, and cast out your name as evil,
For the Son of Man's sake.
Rejoice in that day and leap for joy!
For indeed your reward is great in heaven,
For in like manner their father did to the prophets.
"But woe to you who are rich,
For you have received your consolation.
Woe to you who are full,
For you shall hunger.
Woe to you who laugh now,
For you shall mourn and weep.
Woe to you when all men speak well of you,
For so did their fathers to the false prophets."
- Luke 6:12-26
Yesterday, we read that on the second Sabbath after the first (that is, on a feast day immediately following the Sabbath) Jesus went through the grainfields. And His disciples plucked the heads of grain and ate them, rubbing them in their hands. And some of the Pharisees said to them, "Why are you doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?" But Jesus answering them said, "Have you not even read this, what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him: how he went into the house of God, took and ate the showbread, and also gave some to those with him, which is not lawful for any but the priests to eat?" And He said to them, "The Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath." Now it happened on another Sabbath, also, that He entered a synagogue and taught. And a man was there whose right hand was withered. So the scribes and Pharisees watched Him closely, whether He would heal on the Sabbath, that they might find an accusation against Him. But He knew their thoughts, and said to the man who had the withered hand, "Arise and stand here." And he arose and stood. Then Jesus said to them, "I will ask you one thing: Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or evil, to save life or to destroy?" And when He had looked around at them all, He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." And he did so, and his hand was restored as whole as the other. But they were filled with rage, and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus.
Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God. And when it was day, He called His disciples to Himself; and from them He chose twelve whom He also named apostles: Simon, whom He also named Peter, and Andrew his brother; James and John; Philip and Bartholomew; Matthew and Thomas; James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called the Zealot; Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot who also became a traitor. Jesus' ministry has gone far and wide, even the Pharisees from Jerusalem and Judea have come to hear Him, and are beginning to engage in antagonism against Him. The first thing we must note here is Jesus' night of prayer, a communion with the Father that comes before everything else. It is time to choose the Twelve who will go first to the Jews, and then to all the world with the gospel message.
And He came down with them and stood on a level place with a crowd of His disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and be healed of their diseases, as well as those who were tormented with unclean spirits. And they were healed. And the whole multitude sought to touch Him, for power went out from Him and healed them all. Jesus here is preaching "on a level place," a plain. We know He preached in all places, and the content we will read of His preaching here is quite similar to the Sermon on the Mount, although not as extensive. The first thing we read about in these verses is healing, as so many of our recent readings have emphasized. We recall Jesus' words to the Pharisees who criticized while He ate with tax collectors and sinners: "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance." We note that members of this crowd have even come from Gentile areas, Tyre and Sidon.
Then He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples, and said: "Blessed are you poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are you who hunger now, for you shall be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh. Blessed are you when men hate you, and when they exclude you, and revile you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of Man's sake. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For indeed your reward is great in heaven, for in like manner their father did to the prophets." In recent commentary, we have remarked on the power of paradox: so much of Christian understanding is rooted in the paradox of the Incarnation and what it means for us that the Kingdom is present in our world. Jesus' teaching here is paradoxical; it is meant to open up our eyes to the presence of this Kingdom and our participation in it. Life is not about what appearances seem to tell us. If we are "poor," if we "hunger," if we weep and mourn, we must understand the power of this Kingdom in our midst and its presence in us and among us. We will be filled, we will laugh, and we inherit a Kingdom -- Jesus' very first message in this sermon. His disciples must be prepared for the world's adversarial response, but be confident in the rewards and power of faith, of this Kingdom. And they are not alone, for so were the lives of the prophets, also messengers of this Kingdom.
"But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. Woe to you who are full, for you shall hunger. Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep. Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for so did their fathers to the false prophets." Luke reports four "woes" that are not found in Matthew's Sermon on the Mount. My study bible tells us that woe is an indication not merely of sorrow, but of unspeakable destruction (Isaiah 5:18-24; Amos 5:18-19; Revelation 12:12). A note says, "Those who prize the vices listed here are liable to the 'utmost misery'; however, they find hope when they sacrifice their earthly blessings in showing mercy to others (Cyril of Alexandria)." Again, just as with the words "poor" and "hungry" we can read these words, "full" and "rich" in many ways.
Paradox is apparent when the Kingdom is present in the world, especially as it is reflected in the Incarnation -- Christ bringing the Kingdom "more present" in our world. We initially commented on this word, paradox, in a reading from last week: Friday's reading, We have seen strange things today! The people who said that were responding to Jesus' healing of a paralytic, and the word for "strange" in the Greek is literally paradox. That is, something contrary to common expectation or understanding. And that is really what the Incarnation is all about. The Kingdom present to us in this world introduces paradox to us. How is it possible that those who weep are blessed? How can it be that we should rejoice when we're reviled and called evil? Why should the wealthy and full feel or receive woe? What does it mean that they have received their consolation? Is it bad when people speak well of us? This is the introduction of the Kingdom into the world, a way of thinking that sets things based purely on appearance upside down. Jesus is encouraging everyone to perceive life on different terms than are apparent by daily "worldly" or material life. It's important that we understand that the presence of the Kingdom has to change our perceptions of day-to-day material understanding and expectation. There's more to life than wealth -- or, as Jesus puts it elsewhere, quoting from Deuteronomy, "Man does not live by bread alone." The presence of God brings us a different reality, which we are encouraged here to make a part of our every day lives, our every day consciousness. And that brings paradox. Are there things in your life that make you sad and mourning? Think on the things of God, how God leads and teaches. Do people treat you poorly? Look to your own love of God and God's response of love to you. Take care of yourself and live accordingly, a good life of learning to practice God's love yourself and bringing that love and care into the world. We have so much more to our reality than is present in a very "worldly" perception of life. Our faith and the presence of this Kingdom in the world liberates us from "every day" perceptions and launches us into a place of consciousness where we don't have to be like everybody else. We don't have to live according to the practices of evil, of hatred, or injustice. We have something better to believe in and live by. And we don't judge ourselves by how much "stuff" we have: that leads to delusions and poor behavior that sets a rotten example to the world of what it really means to be fully human, a real human being made by God and living in relationship with God. Today, we can look around and see the response to life that leaves God and the Kingdom out of the picture. We can ask ourselves where Jesus' paradoxical teachings are asking us to go. We can ask ourselves how a much better world can be created by faith.
