Luke 6: Part 2 (1)

Pray Psalm 73.1-3.
Truly God is good to Israel,
To such as are pure in heart.
But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled;
My steps had nearly slipped.
For I was envious of the boastful,
When I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

Sing Psalm 73.1-3.
(Ellacombe: Hosanna, Loud Hosanna)
To us our God is only good, to all the pure in heart!
But as for me, I nearly stood in sin from Him apart.
I nearly stumbled, nearly slipped as I the proud observed,
how they with ease and riches dripped while I, impoverished, served.

Read Luke 6.1-26; meditate on verses 24-26.

Preparation
1. On whom did Jesus pronounce woes?

2. Why?

Meditation
The coming of the Kingdom of God is not Good News for everyone. Jesus warned us (vv. 22, 23) that some people would hate, exclude, and revile us. Who are these people? Obviously, they are those whose appetites and desires are satisfied by temporal and material pleasures rather than the promised blessings of the Kingdom.

Those who are driven to make and have money may well realize their goal; but it will be their only consolation. Woe awaits them at the coming of the Kingdom of God because they neither desired nor sought it (v. 24).

Those who make temporal pleasures – food and drink, things and sex, things and experiences – their highest objective in life may succeed in varying degrees to realize their desire. But they will come to woe when the promise of the Kingdom is realized on the last day (v. 25).

And those for whom reputation and popularity are their chief ends will meet with woe as well, for they are like the false prophets of old, whom everybody loved because they told them what they wanted to hear, not what God was speaking (v. 26).

In these verses Jesus exposed the idols of our secular age – things, wealth, pleasures, popularity – and their false promises. Worshiping these may or may not lead to disappointment, disillusionment, and frustration in this life, but most certainly to eternal woe in the age to come. We must worship and serve the Lord of the Sabbath. No place exists for idols of any sort in the Kingdom of God.

Treasures Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162.
Blessed are the poor, hungry, sorrowful, hated, excluded, reviled, and cast out (Lk. 6.20-22).

Woe to the rich, full, laughing, and well-spoken of (Lk. 6.24-26).

To the blessed He had words of comfort, “Rejoice…in like manner their fathers did to the prophets” when they mistreated them (Lk. 6.23).

To the woe-begotten He said, “For so did their fathers to the false prophets” when they spoke well of them (Lk. 6.26).

The Christian life is full of beautiful, albeit difficult, contrasts like those found in yesterday’s and today’s verses. Things that our sinful minds in our fallen economy think are important, but that God says are not. Such as:
“So the last will be first, and the first last” (Matt. 20.16).
“For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it” (Matt. 16.25).
“…but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave—just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Matt. 20.26-28).

Because the idols of our age are so pervasive in life and culture, we need to stay close to our Savior and His Word, leaning into Him, always seeking His mind (1 Cor. 2.16) for all we do and think. This will become a reality as we daily seek His Wisdom, Who said:
“Now therefore, listen to Me, My children,
for blessed are those who keep My ways. Hear instruction and be wise, and do not disdain it.
Blessed is the man who listens to Me, watching daily at My gates, waiting at the posts of My doors.
For whoever finds Me finds life, and obtains favor from the LORD; but he who sins against Me
wrongs his own soul; all those who hate Me love death” (Prov. 8.32-36 caps added for emphasis).

“Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who…made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant…” (Phil. 2.5-7). His mindset must be ours in order to realize this blessed life.

For reflection
1. What does it mean to have “the mind of Christ”? How should this affect the way we look at our own lives?

2. Why do woes come upon those who desire things other than Christ to make their lives make sense?

3. How can we maintain vigilance against falling prey to the idols of this age?

A woe is a cry of pain that results from misfortune. Just as God presented blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience in Deut. 28, Jesus presented blessings and woes to His disciples who were anticipating the kingdom. The same blessings and woes apply to believers today when their works are evaluated (see 1 Cor. 3:12–15; 2 Cor. 5:10; 1 John 2:28; Rev. 22:12). Earl Radmacher (1931-2014), NKJV Note on Luke 6.24

Pray Psalm 73.25-28.
Thank God and praise Him for the promise and blessing of knowing Him and being a citizen in His Kingdom. Pray to know His Presence with you in all you do today.

Sing Psalm 73.25-28.
(Ellacombe: Hosanna, Loud Hosanna)
Then what have I in heav’n above but You, my God and Lord?
And on this earth what shall I love besides You and Your Word?
My flesh and heart shall surely fail, and death my soul release;
Your strength for me will e’er avail and grant eternal peace.

Then let them perish who depart from You and from Your Word.
All those unfaithful in their heart You shall destroy, O Lord!
But as for me, Your Presence, Lord, is where I e’er will dwell!
I hide myself within Your Word, Your wondrous works to tell.

T. M. and Susie Moore

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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter (Williston: Waxed Tablet Publications, 2006), available by clicking here.