Luke 6:17-26
Lesson Focus
Jesus invites those with material wealth to participate in his mission of restoration and renewal in the world.
Lesson Outcomes
Through this lesson, participants will:
Understand that the Sermon on the Plain is addressed to all Jesus’ followers.
Understand that God desires a level and equal world for all of God’s children.
Respond to Jesus’ invitation to participate in his mission by using the power and privilege we have as those who are “rich” to help those who are not.
Catching Up on the Story
Now that Jesus has assembled his close band of followers, he begins to engage in the mission he proclaimed he would undertake in chapter four. Jesus’ ministry has not been confined to proclamation but has also involved cleansing, healing, and releasing those who find themselves in bondage.
It isn’t hard for the crowds to understand Jesus as a healer, but it will be more difficult for them to realize that Jesus has come to affect the whole person, body, mind, and soul. Jesus will use his power to heal as a way to help those around him understand that he can forgive sins, too.
Claiming to be able to forgive sins will get him in trouble—lots of trouble. It will draw the attention of the religious elites of Israel, who will constantly seek to question, entrap, and ensnare Jesus. This won’t stop Jesus, though. It will only embolden him. Through prayer and the strength that fellowship with the Father provides, Jesus will call more followers, teach in powerful ways, and perform miraculous healings.
With that background Jesus begins his first major teaching, often called “The Sermon on the Plain.” It’s important to understand that this is not like a sermon, as you and I know it. It is more like a collection of teachings. Luke’s sermon is similar to Matthew’s Sermon on the Mount, including the central part of our passage. There are, however, several differences.
We can divide today’s passage into three sections. Verses 17-19 set up the sermon. Verses 20-23 comprise a set of blessings, while verses 24-26 are the antithesis of those blessings. We will examine each in turn.
Power Came Out: Luke 6:17-19
Jesus has been up on a mountain praying. In Luke’s gospel, anytime Jesus is seen praying, we know something important is coming along. This time, Jesus has spent time in prayer and fellowship with the Father, and through the power of the Spirit, he continues to fill out his inner circle of followers. At this point, we finally get the complete list of twelve disciples. When Jesus comes down from the mountain, he moves to a level place where his disciples surround him.
These are all of Jesus’ disciples, not just the twelve of the inner circle. These disciples come from all over, too, from Judea and Jerusalem. There are natives of Israel and people from Tyre and Sidon, which were on the border between Israel and Lebanon. This last group would have potentially had Gentiles included in it. Jesus’ mission will not be just to Israel. This great multitude has come to hear what Jesus says and to be healed of their diseases. Even unclean spirits were no match for Jesus.
Luke's imagery leads us to believe that Jesus is not distant from this great multitude but is surrounded by them, so much so that those needing healing and release were confident that if they could only touch him, they would be made whole. Jesus’ healing is nondiscriminatory; it just comes out from him because that is his nature. His nature is to heal and make whole. Jesus’ concern for healing, wholeness, and liberation leads to this indiscriminate healing. As we have already seen earlier in chapter four, Jesus’ lack of preference for his people will land him in hot water. It will not help his cause when he opens his mouth to preach.
Blessed are you… Luke 6:20-23
Somehow, Jesus has calmed the masses enough for him to talk. He raises his hand and begins to address the crowd. Luke tells us that he is speaking to his disciples. This might lead us to believe that he is only talking to the twelve, but the word Luke uses here is his generic term for a follower of Jesus. He will use the term “apostle” to refer to the twelve. So, addressing all of his followers, Jesus launches into a set of blessings. A few things are essential to understand the nature of what Jesus is saying here.
First, a strain of thought within Israel’s faith saw material abundance as a sign of God’s favor. If you were rich, it meant that you and your family had done something right. It meant that in the eyes of God, you were righteous. On the other hand, if you were poor or sick or otherwise on the margins of society, it probably meant that you had sinned in some fashion, and your condition was part of God’s punishment. This conventional wisdom is based on passages like Deuteronomy 28 and others from Israel’s wisdom literature. Jesus turns this wisdom on its head.
We must also understand that Jesus’ words here are not prescriptive but descriptive. In other words, Jesus is not commanding us to be poor. Rather, Jesus is describing the way the world is now. There are rich and poor, but at the same time, Jesus is looking toward the future; this is not always how things will be. That’s not to say that one day, here on this earth, the poor will be rich, and the rich will be poor. Jesus is not simply interested in a big reversal.
In what, then, is Jesus interested? To answer that question, we must go through blessing by blessing, woe by woe. The word translated as “blessing” is used to express the happy and untroubled state of those free from care (Marshall, 248). It can be translated as “happiness,” but doing so might miss the point. This is no sentimental happiness derived from circumstance. This is the happiness produced by the gift of God’s good salvation.
It is contingent, not on mood, but on God’s faithfulness. Blessed becomes a better translation because it necessarily points to an outside force responsible for the blessedness. It seems odd, though, that this blessedness would be coupled with the descriptors that Luke uses. “Blessed are you who are poor…”? “Blessed are you who are hungry…”? “Blessed are you who weep…”? Those do not sound like blessings at all. To understand what Jesus seeks to communicate, we must look at these blessings in contrast to their woes. We will notice that each blessing corresponds to an opposite descriptor in its woe. The passage is parallel, with verses 20 -23 contrasting verses 24-266.
As we said a few weeks ago, Luke's poor are not just those who are economically poor. Being poor involves issues of power and privilege within the community. Health issues, an unclean vocation, or an outside family heritage can all make you poor.
Certainly, some are poor because of their erroneous choices. While Jesus is concerned with poor people, he contrasts the underprivileged and marginalized poor with the overprivileged wealthy. We might add that in this context, Jesus is not speaking directly to the world but directly to his followers. Speaking directly to those who are poor, Jesus assures them that though they are poor now, theirs is the kingdom of God.
Even though they are hungry, they will be filled with food, and even though they weep because of their poverty, oppression, and sadness, they will soon laugh the laugh of joy.
Finally, when they are cast out because everyone thinks they are evil and no good to anyone, they should rejoice, literally jump for joy, because this is what happened to God’s prophets.
Jesus uses three words here in Greek to describe this casting out: ekbalosin - to drive out or expel, throw out, exorcise a demon. The second word is poneron - immoral, evil, wicked, worthless—finally, onoma - name, or call.
The literal translation could be something like, 'drive you out and exorcise you (like a demon) because they believe your name (and by consequence, you) are evil.' In these blessings, Jesus points to the day in God’s future when the world will be made level again, where there is wholeness, justice, and restoration. God is actively doing something to rectify the suffering people experience today.
But Woe to you… Luke 6:24-26
What about the rich, though? Unquestionably, some of those who are wealthy have been blessed by God. There’s nothing inherently wrong with being rich, born into privilege, is there? No, there is not, and that is not what Jesus says. But as we look at these woes, which are statements of warning towards those addressed, we realize that the rich and privileged will experience the opposite of the comfort they have in this life in the next. What we have to understand, and this is difficult for us to hear, is that, more often than not, the privilege and riches that you and I have come at the expense of those who are poor. No, you have not actively oppressed anyone, but you participate in a system that does. We are all so entangled in it that we cannot generally see it, and exiting this system would be difficult.
While Jesus is pointing to the reality that those who have had comfort and privilege in this world won’t have it in the next, it doesn’t mean that is the future God wants for the rich. No, Jesus is saying that his preferred future would be for those who are rich and have privilege now to use their power, prestige, and social and economic capital to care for the poor here and now. In other words, Jesus wants to move the rich into the Kingdom of God, not just here and now but in the future, too. See, the Kingdom of God is the way things are supposed to be, the way God intended the world to be at creation, good and whole, pure and right. God did not intend for there to be poor and rich.
God did not intend for there to be insiders and outsiders.
God did not intend for there to be privileged and non-privileged.
God intended for things to be level, equitable, and equal.
If Jesus came to bring the Kingdom of God to earth here and now, and if he intended to do that through bringing good news to the poor, and if, by our baptism, we are called to participate in what God is doing in bringing the kingdom here, and now, then, you and I are called to use our power and our privilege, our wealth and influence to help the hungry have food now, to bring laughter and joy to those who weep, and to care for those who get cast out from society because they are deemed too evil, or unwanted to be of any use to anyone.
So What?
Jesus' Sermon on the Plain isn't just a nice message; it's a radical call to action. It flips our understanding of blessing and woe on its head, challenging the comfortable assumptions we make about wealth, poverty, and God's favor. We often live in a world that echoes the very societal structures Jesus is critiquing – a world where material wealth is equated with success and divine blessing and where those on the margins are often overlooked or even blamed for their circumstances. Jesus' words disrupt this narrative, offering a starkly different perspective.
Today’s text calls us to grapple with the uncomfortable truth that our privilege, our comfort, often comes at the expense of others. This isn't about individual guilt or shame but about recognizing the systemic inequalities we participate in, often unknowingly. We benefit from systems that perpetuate poverty, hunger, and marginalization, and Jesus' message compels us to acknowledge this reality.
This passage isn't simply about a future reversal of fortunes. It's a present call to action for those of us who have been blessed with material wealth and privilege. Jesus isn't condemning wealth itself, but he's highlighting the responsibility that comes with it. He's inviting us to use our resources, our influence, and our social capital to actively participate in bringing about the Kingdom of God here and now.
What does that look like in practice? It's not just about writing a check to a charity, although that can be a valuable step. It's about examining the systems we support – the businesses we patronize, the policies we advocate for, the way we invest our money – and asking ourselves: Are these systems contributing to a more just and equitable world? Are they lifting up the poor and marginalized, or are they perpetuating the very inequalities Jesus is challenging?
It's about more than just giving away our excess. It's about listening to the voices of those who are struggling, understanding their experiences, and advocating for systemic change. It's about challenging our own biases and prejudices and recognizing the ways in which we might be contributing to the problem, even unintentionally. It's a call to move beyond charity to justice, to move beyond sympathy to solidarity. It's a call to use our privilege not to maintain the status quo but to dismantle the structures that create inequality. It's a call to join Jesus in his mission of bringing good news to the poor, feeding the hungry, comforting the afflicted, and standing with those who are cast out. It's a call to live in a way that reflects the Kingdom of God, where justice and mercy prevail and all of God's children are valued and loved. This isn't an easy path, but it's the path Jesus calls us to, and it's the path that leads to true blessing.
Discussion Questions
Read the text aloud. Then, read the text to yourself quietly. Read it slowly, as if you were very unfamiliar with the story.
Jesus' blessings seem to turn conventional wisdom on its head. How do these blessings challenge our understanding of what it means to be blessed?
The "woes" are directed towards the rich and comfortable. How do we reconcile this with the idea that God loves everyone? Is Jesus condemning wealth itself, or something else?
How does this passage challenge the idea that material wealth is a sign of God's favor? How might this understanding impact how we view those who are struggling financially?
Jesus isn't just talking about economic poverty. How can someone be "poor" in other ways, such as in terms of power, social standing, or health? How do these other forms of poverty relate to Jesus' message?
What are some concrete examples of how we, as individuals and as a society, participate in systems that perpetuate inequality, even unintentionally?
How can we move beyond simply feeling sympathy for the poor and marginalized to actively working for justice and systemic change?
This passage calls those with privilege to use it for the benefit of others. What are some practical ways we can use our own privilege (whether it's financial, social, or otherwise) to help those who are less fortunate?
8. How does the concept of the "Kingdom of God" relate to the blessings and woes in this passage? What does it mean to live as citizens of this kingdom in our daily lives?
Are there ways we might be tempted to spiritualize or minimize the very real material concerns Jesus addresses here? How can we avoid this?
Reflecting on your own life, where do you see yourself in this passage? Are you more aligned with the blessings or the woes? What steps can you take to live more faithfully in accordance with Jesus' teachings?
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