The very 1st verse, Luke 6:20, tells us that this message is intended for His disciples: "And turning His gaze toward His disciples, He began to say.."
The blessings and woes in Luke 6:20-24 are in a parallel structure:
20b "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.
22"Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man. 23"Be glad in that day and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For in the same way their fathers used to treat the prophets.
26 "Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for their fathers used to treat the false prophets in the same way.
I won't get into the specifics of each verse, rather, let's look at the bigger picture. Jesus is talking to His disciples here and is drawing a dividing line between those who are true disciples and those who are not. He's saying that if we are His real disciples, as (He implies) the prophets were (6:23b), then we will be hated, ostracized, insulted and scorned for His sake. But we are to "be glad,"for the present persecutions do not compare to the future reward in heaven!
On the flip side, we should beware when all men speak well of us, for the false prophets were treated in the same way!
Jesus foreshadows how the population at large (men/all men) will persecute the true followers of Christ, but will laud the false prophets!
Jesus continues in 6:27 by saying, "But I say to you who hear..." and then teaches them true Christian behavior. Reading Luke 6:27-38 again and again, I'm struck by how utterly impossible it is for anyone to live perfectly this life that Jesus lays out. But is it really impossible? I don't think it is, but it IS impossible by our own strength. Think about it- how many Christians do you know who actually live this life that Jesus prescribes?
Jesus summarizes this Kingdom life in 6:35-
35"But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men. 36Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful."
Note in the verse 35, "and you will be sons of the Most High." The word here is "and"- an equivalent statement. Not "then" - i.e. if you do all this, "then you will sons of the Most High." There is an incredible difference between "and" and "then." "AND"- If we're sons of God, then will do those things. "THEN"- If we do these things, then we will be Sons of God. "Then" is what turns it into a performance based cult = false prophets and teachers.
Also, in v35, Jesus calls us to be like God, for He Himself does the things He wants us to do. This reminds me of the O.T. law where it says again and again, "Be holy, for the Lord your God is Holy." In v36, Jesus additionally calls us to be merciful, just as the Father is merciful. (If you're a fan of the movie "Gladiator".... "Maximus the Merciful!")
Suddenly, in Luke 6:39-49, Jesus speaks to the disciples in parables. Some short commentary-
39And He also spoke a parable to them: "A blind man cannot guide a blind man, can he? Will they not both fall into a pit?
40"A pupil is not above his teacher; but everyone, after he has been fully trained, will be like his teacher.
Jesus is the teacher, not the Pharisees. Fully trained disciples will be like Jesus!
41"Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?
42"Or how can you say to your brother, 'Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,' when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother's eye.
I believe Jesus again is warning against the Pharisees. It is as if He were saying, "How can you purport to be teaches of the Law when you yourself do not understand it and are not keeping the spirit of the Law?" This is a reminder to me as a teacher, that I need to really watch out for being a hypocrite.
43"For there is no good tree which produces bad fruit, nor, on the other hand, a bad tree which produces good fruit.
44"For each tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they pick grapes from a briar bush.
45"The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart."
If we took Luke 6:27-38 on it's own, it would seem that the Christian life is a real burden! "How impossible it is to live up to Jesus' standard?" Well, of course it is, for Jesus is the Holy God, so His standard is pure holiness. Yet, in 6:43-45, this Christian life is not to be a burden if we have the "good treasure" in our heart. We find out later that that good treasure is the Holy Spirit which Jesus sent to live in every Christian. The Holy Spirit brings forth what is good!!
46"Why do you call Me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say?
47"Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and acts on them, I will show you whom he is like:
48he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock; and when a flood occurred, the torrent burst against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built.
49"But the one who has heard and has not acted accordingly, is like a man who built a house on the ground without any foundation; and the torrent burst against it and immediately it collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great."
Do not be so quick to assume that you are, or I am, the wise builder. Do we do what the Lord says? Or are we disobedient? Are we living life by the Spirit or a life of burden by our own effort? True discipleship is by the Spirit, in obedience to God; and that life may not be a comfortable life, but it will be a blessed one. The man that truly lived this out, other the Jesus, was the Apostle Paul. In all his suffering and trials, he rejoiced in his salvation! This is the Kingdom Life, this is life the way God meant it to be lived!!
