Living out the Mercy of God

The Beatitudes and Woes in Luke 6

We'll be examining in today's message verses 24 to 36. So when you have that please do stand for the reading of God's Word. Luke chapter 6 starting verse 24 hear you this morning the word of the Lord.

But woe to you who are rich for you have received your consolation. Woe to you who are full now for you shall be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now for you shall mourn and weep. Woe to you when all people speak well of you for so their fathers did to the false prophets.

But I say to you who hear. Love your enemies. Do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who abuse you. To the one who strikes you on the cheek all for the other. Also the who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either.

Give to everyone who begs from you and you and from you the one who takes away your goods don't demand them back and As you wish that others would do to you do so to them. If you love those who love you.

What benefit is that to you for even sinners love those who love them? And if you do good to those who do good to you. What benefit is that to you for even sinners do the same? And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive what credit is that to you.

Even sinners lend to sinners to get back the same amount. 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 is kind to the ungrateful and the evil be merciful even as Your father is merciful.

These are the words of the Lord. You may be seated Father in heaven we do approach you this morning in the name of Jesus asking Lord that you revealed to us the intent and heart of your word. That you would help us to live out the mercy and tender affection of God in our day-to-day lives.

Lord it where we fall short. Please help us and empower us by your spirit and the sound instruction that we're about to receive. To live in such a way in which Jesus is ultimately glorified and magnified.

To the mercy that we live out for his glory in his name's sake. Amen. Church, we're going through the Beatitudes here in this section of Scripture. Yeah, what's unique in Luke's account of the Beatitudes on the Sermon of the Mountains that he introduces several woes in the same breath.

And what I want to encourage this morning is that in the Beatitudes our Lord is teaching us something. He's teaching us something of great value and of great importance if you're following the notes. I want you to write this in the first part of your notes in the Beatitudes.

Our Lord is teaching us that the abundant life. Who here? Wants an abundant life. Raise your hand. Oh. Come on, there's more people than that that want an abundant life. I think we all want an abundant life.

Amen. We all want a life that is overflown with the blessing of God in our lives. I haven't met a single person who wants to be poor. I haven't been a single person who wants to be miserable. Most people want to be happy.

Most people want to have abundance in their life not scarcity. It is a good thing actually to desire abundance to a degree. Now where this is maybe in your mind if you're a good Christian and you have good sound theology.

You hear the word abundant coming from the pulpit and maybe some alarm bells are starting to ring as it should. Because there is an abuse of this is an extreme to this where there are those in the pulpits of many churches around this country and in the world that teach that abundance is Indeed at the heart of the gospel that God wants you healthy wealthy blessed at all times.

That part of the of the gospel is that God wants you to be overflowing an abundance of material things so that maybe you can bless Others or so it may be evidence of God's blessing your life. But in the Beatitudes we find something a little bit different.

We find that the abundant life comes not from riches or food but from Obedience, so I want you to write this in the notes if you haven't already that the abundant life comes not from riches or food but from obedience.

From obedience now, what do we mean by that? I want to examine again last week's verses in verse 20 of Luke chapter 6. When Jesus starts his sermon on the mountain, he begins to be attitudes. He says this in Luke's account.

Blessed are you who are poor? For yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are you when you are hungry now for you shall be satisfied. Blessed are those who weep now for you shall laugh. Blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you and revile you and spurn your name is evil on account of the son of man.

Rejoice in that day leap for joy for behold your reward is great in heaven. So for so their fathers did to the prophets you see the abundant life. The blessing of life doesn't always come in the immediate blessings of material things.

Here we have a contrast from the Lord Jesus Christ. He starts off the Beatitudes with the term blessed blessed blessed. And then he goes on to the next verses of Scripture to give us woes woes woes. Let's contrast that for a moment.

What does the word blessed actually mean. You see in Scripture the term bless or blessed simply means happy. It means one that is Satisfied so you say happy is the one who according to Scripture here are poor.

Now most poor people are not happy. I know because I'm one of them. I'm not always happy when I don't have enough. Maybe you're one of them, too. It says also blessed are you or happier you when you're hungry?

I Have a hard time with that one. I don't get very happy when I'm hungry and Most of us aren't very happy when we're hungry. It says again Happy are you who weep? Well people who are weeping people who are crying not usually happy.

It seems to be a Opposite so what is the intent here? What is Jesus getting at here? How is it that we can be happy when we're hungry when we're poor when we're weeping when people hate us? Happiness According to the world is circumstantial.

You are happy when things are going your way. When everything is going your way, you're happy you feel good. Things are going the way you want to go and you have a level of happiness. Happiness, I like to put it this way according to the way that the world teaches is cheap.

It's fleeting. It's here one moment and gone the next. I give this analogy all the time. Happiness is you going outside of the store at Walmart and finding $20 on the floor. Pretty happy, aren't you? No one's around you pick it up.

I got $20. It's great. God's really a blessing me with that abundant life today. Amen. But then you get to your car and you see that someone's rear-ended you. Not so happy anymore, aren't you? Because that happiness of the world is fleeting.

Circumstantial it's external. It's here one moment and gone the next. But the happiness or the blessedness that God offers is an internal joy. That isn't so easily taken away. It's this joy. That's lasting.

It's this joy. That's foundational because it isn't Outside of us rather it's inside of us. Isn't in the world. It's in our soul because it's planted there through the peace that God gives to the gospel reconciliation.

You can be blessed and happy. Ultimately have joy in your life. Even when circumstances are not favoring you even when things are not going your way. Even when you are poor you're hungry. You're weeping.

You're destitute. You're hated. You can have a joy and a happiness that lasts. Because our true joy our true happiness comes from the Lord. It is enduring. It is enduring. Christ is the perfect model for this.

When you examine his life you examine his sufferings. Christ suffered More than anyone has ever suffered. More so that all people here in this room put together. Yet The joy of the Lord was his stronghold.

It kept him to continue to live a life of obedience to his father. He lived out the mercies of his father and. So in the Beatitudes in the Sermon of the Mount Christ is teaching us that the abundant life true happiness.

True blessedness isn't Circumstantial rather and it doesn't come from the riches from the world nor does it come from the fullness of food? But rather in the obedience of following God. That's where true and lasting Happiness blessedness can be found is in obedience to the one and true God.

He contrasts this in verse 24 when he says. But. So remember what proceeds blessedness. Even in circumstances that don't favor you, but he says woe to you who are rich. For you received your consolation.

Woe to you who are full now. For you shall be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now for you shall mourn and weep. Woe to you then when all people speak well of you. For so their fathers did to the false prophets.

Let's identify these woes one by one. The first woe. Woe to whom? The rich. I don't know about you, but I'd rather be rich than poor. Being rich isn't necessarily sinful in itself. But why then is Jesus pointing this out?

Why is Jesus? Emphasizing this particular life. Woe to you who are rich that is to say those of you who only trust in your earthly riches and possessions if All that you have looked to it look forward to is that what you have here and now.

You are actually poor. You've received your consolations. What Jesus says if riches material blessings material riches is all that you have. And all that you look forward to it is all that you'll get.

You'll get it. One of the things that the Lord does in Scripture to a people and to a person is That he will ultimately hand us over to our desires. So if you want riches He'll hand it over to you. You make that deal.

The devil you make that deal of the world. He'll give it to you. But it's all you'll get. It's all you'll get. Brothers and sisters what sets Christianity apart from the world is that we believe that you have an immortal soul that your soul does not perish at the grave, but rather it continues and.

So what will you do with that precious soul of that precious life if we're blessed if we're lucky? We'll live 70 80 90 100 years. But even that in comparison to history in comparison to eternity is but a blink.

It's but a but a blink of an eye. We're here one moment scripture says that like the blades of grass and then we quickly wither away. We're here one moment and gone. Life is short if material blessings is.

All that you have it's all that you put your trust in is all that you look forward to it's all that you'll get. And eternity is a long time. Therefore woe to the rich Jesus says for you have received your Consolation it's as good as it's gonna get.

It's as good as it's gonna get. I forget this who says this quote. It might be C .s. Lewis or another. But there's a quote that goes similar to this. Earth is all the hell the believer will ever taste.

Earth is all the heaven the unbeliever will ever taste. This place here and now is as bad as it gets for us. It's it only goes up from here brothers and sisters so if you're Having difficulties if you're struggling in life, you're struggling your finances.

You're struggling your relationship know that this is as bad as it gets is down here and all that we have to look forward to. It only gets better but for the unbeliever. This here and now is as good as it gets.

It doesn't get better. It only gets worse if you die. Apart from knowing true joy true. Peace true blessedness in the personal work of Jesus Christ. This is all the hell you'll ever taste there believer, but this is all the heaven the unbeliever will ever see.

This is what Jesus is contrasting here. For us who know him for those of us who are found in Jesus this morning. All the pain all the suffering all the poorness the poverty the pain the suffering that we endure here and now in this world is as bad as it gets for us because we have an eternal way of glory to look forward to.

Jesus is teaching us in the Beatitudes that we have to delay personal Gratification in the immediate for true peace and gratification in the future. There's an experiment that was done with little kids.

Maybe you've heard of this. Maybe you've seen This there's a video you can watch on YouTube where little kids are put in a room toddlers you know, maybe three to seven years old and they're given a little piece of candy and they say Wait right here.

And if you wait a couple minutes, I'll give you another one and so kids. Various backgrounds are looking at the piece of candy. No one's in the room with them. More often than not, you know what they do.

They take that little piece of candy and they eat it because they just can't help themselves. It's so good. Look at that skittle the color the taste and they just can't help themselves. And that's a perfect image of Sinners in this world.

We look at the at the treat and we say well, this is as good as it gets. But for those who delayed immediate satisfaction and gratification. If they wait at five minutes, the person would come they give another piece of candy and that's the Christian.

The Christian has to persevere we have often to delay personal gratification. Here now so that later. There's more blessing. There's more abundance in the world to come. Jesus also points this out to us when he says woe to the fool write this in the notes.

He says first woe to the rich now. He says woe to the fool. He says woe to you who are full now for you shall be hungry again. The personal riches personal gain health and wealth and and blessing now, that's all you're looking forward to it's all you'll get but Jesus says You'll eventually Go hungry.

They'll eventually be a time When you will not be able to satisfy the hunger that you have and I believe that Jesus is pointing to the reality of hell. Hell is a doctrine that is seldom taught and preached from pulpits in America today because it is so fearsome.

It is so powerful and it's so scary that preachers shy away from it. Because I even here now I see there's some visitors and I don't know where you stand with Jesus Christ. And and I might scare you away by telling you the truth about what God's Word teaches about hell.

But the reality is this hell is real. And the Bible teaches us that those of us who do not trust in Jesus those who not put their faith in Jesus Shall go to the place of eternal separation from Christ.

It's the place. Well, you'll have perpetual hunger, but nothing will ever satisfy perpetual thirst but no amount of water will be able to satisfy Your thirst it is the place of total separation from the goodness of God.

But it is not total separation from God as some erroneously teach. The book of Revelation says in chapter 14 that it is the place. The lake of fire is the place of torment where you are in the presence of the Lamb.

But the presence of the Lamb is not of his mercy or grace, but rather of his wrath. You receive God for all that he is the splendor of his greatness the splendor of his majesty the splendor of his glory the splendor of his holiness and You'll be consumed by it.

Just as if I were to put you on a rocket ship and send you to the Sun the closer you. You got to the proximity to that glorious body. The quicker you would deteriorate and that is the analogy of hell.

It is not the place the void of God's glory is the place where you receive the full brunt of God's glory without any covering. Without any protection and those of us who are in Jesus, we will one day see God face to face.

We shall also see all his glory yet. We come to him veiled in Jesus Christ. Under his protection under his blessing then we shall see him face to face and we shall be as he is. That's the hope of glory brothers and sisters is to be found veiled in Jesus.

So we may see and approach the face of God. Jesus again says woe to you who are full now for you shall be hungry. Pointing to the eternal reality of hellfire. Woe to you who laugh now, don't you write this in the notes woe to who laugh.

Now laughter is a beautiful thing. It's a gift that God has given humanity. It is a good thing to laugh. It's a good thing to have a sense of humor. I think God has a sense of humor and yet It says woe to you who laugh now for you shall mourn and weep again pointing to the true Eternal realities of hellfire where Jesus says elsewhere.

It is the place of weeping and gnashing of teeth. Woe to you who have only this world to look forward to is the point that Jesus is making. He goes on to say also woe to you when all people speak well of you.

Next part is woe to to you when people speak well of you can write that in there as well. What Jesus is saying is that being? Satisfied in these things alone are their own Consolation that is to say again if all that you have look forward to in this world.

If all that you have in this is is what's in front of you now is this place with no? regard for eternity. That's as good as it gets. But it only goes downhill from there. So he contrasts the blessing and the woes.

I'm packed a little more again. We said blessing means happiness or true happiness true joy. Woe means the complete opposite. We don't really use the word woe in our English vernacular today. Maybe you've heard There's a use phrase that's probably more popular than the English word.

Woe, but it is oi vey. The Yiddish oi vey is a rendition of the Hebrew for woe and. So it's often used in connotations of something. That's negative something bad's happening. We say oi vey. The word woe Literally means the undoing.

Which is why in Scripture for instance in Isaiah chapter 6. Isaiah the prophet sees God in Isaiah chapter 6 and he says woe am I I? Am undone. He says for my eyes have seen the Lord of hosts. Woe means the unraveling of oneself the undoing of oneself.

Blessedness is the completeness is the joy the happiness of oneself. Jesus is comparing contrasting of that which will make you ultimately happy and satisfied and that which will leave you destitute and undone.

Blessed are you. When you obey the master. Woe to you. When all you have to look forward to is today's riches and blessings. You are actually becoming undone is what Jesus is saying. Woe to you. If you think you'll find true Consolation of your riches woe to you if you think that fullness now is what truly matters woe to you if laughter.

Now is all that matters woe to you when people when people speak well of you. So so for so their fathers did to the false prophets undoing unbecoming. Unraveling. You see these are things that we believe actually make us whole.

Many people in the world they seek after riches they seek after pleasures they seek after fullness. They seek for laughter now. They seek for comfort now. They seek for people's approvals and yet what Jesus is saying is these are actually your undoing.

Your pursuit of these things your love for these things your passion for these things will actually become your undoing. It's the unbecoming the unraveling of man. True blessedness is not found in one's possessions.

It's not found in one's riches. It's not found in being hungry or satisfied. Now. It doesn't come in laughter now. It doesn't happen when people speak well of you, but instead is when you obey the Father.

It's when you live out the true mercy of God. Notice how then Jesus points his attention to in in verse 27. He says but I say to you who hear. You love your enemies do good to those who hate you. Okay, this was a radical then it's a radical now.

We live in this polarized time and so with social media political divisions social divisions economic divisions. Our world is polarized and very powerful fashion. Where we are now taught not only is that?

Person look or act or think differently to me, but I actually hate them. I don't like them. So whether you're a Republican or Democrat conservative or or or anywhere in the spectrum. We're now being taught not only can't like okay.

We we have differences, but no we can't have these differences because now you're an existential threat to me. And I have to undo you before you undo me. We are we are at a we're at each other's throats in this country but what Jesus is saying here is Love your enemies.

How do we love our enemies? He answers it by saying do good to those who hate you as We read earlier in the Old Testament. The intent of God's law is ultimately for good is to do good to our neighbor.

It's to preserve society. It's to preserve the good kindness of God in all places. And yet so often the inclination of our heart is to hate Those who mistreat us to hate those who hate us. To give an eye for an eye a tooth for tooth.

That's how we've been ingrained and there is a natural Inclination to this there's a natural law behind us and natural law is invoked in God's Old Testament law. Which is why it says if you were to steal something you have to pray restitution.

There is an eye for an eye and a tooth for tooth in the Old Testament, but Jesus is introducing something of radical change. He's getting to the heart and intention of God's law when he says love your enemies.

Do good to those who hate you verse 28 bless those who curse you and pray for those who abuse you in this culture today. We are especially taught to hate those who harm us who abuse us. This is not a political message, but we do have a we have harnessed over the last couple of decades a victimized culture a culture of victimization.

Where something bad happened to us that is now excused for us to act out in outlandish ways. Well, you don't understand my story. I was abused. I was hurt. Someone did this to me someone did that to me.

Therefore I'm the way that I am brothers and sisters. That's not excuse. It's not excuse. That's not to minimize The pain the hurt that was done to you by no means but rather recognize this we still have personal Responsibility and we are called in a radical way to love our enemies.

To do good to those who hate us and also to pray for those who abuse us. There's a call to a radical life of mercy. That is the call to which you have been called to this morning is to live out the mercy of God.

If you're following along in the teaching we are called to love our enemies. To do good to those who hate us while blessing those who curse us. Genuinely praying for them. Do we genuinely pray for our enemies?

Do we genuinely pray for those who hurt us who abuse us who's mistreated us? We've all been mistreated. We've all been abused in one way or another. We're all victims of a sort. We've also been victimizers.

We've also with the same tongue with the same emotions have been hurt with we've hurt others with and. So truly the Word of God stands that we're all guilty. We're all guilty brothers and sisters, which is why it is so important that we live out mercy.

Because if we expect mercy from from our father if we expect mercy when we do wrong. We must also be a must be willing and able to extend mercy even to those who hate us and curse us. That's the radical call.

It was on the same verse 29 the one who strikes you in the cheek offer the other also. And the who takes you away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either. Give to everyone who begs from you from the one who takes away your goods.

Do not demand them back now again. We read earlier in the Old Testament if someone steals from you you have a right to restitution. What Jesus is saying? Sometimes it is more noble to withhold your right in Order to amplify God's mercy and blessing.

We're so quick to go to the law when we're offended. We're so quick to do so. Yet Christ is calling us to a way of life of radical mercy. To be merciful to others. To be merciful to those who have hurt us at the heart of the Beatitudes.

The attitudes of the Beatitudes. They sent her around to Primary factors once you write this in the notes. You're following along number one humility. Humility. Notice again those who are blessed. Blessed are the poor those who are humble.

We have nothing. Blessed are those who weep. Blessed are those who mourn. Those who are hurting those who are lowly. Those are the ones who are blessed those who are humble who have humility. And it also centers around mercy.

The two attitudes of the Beatitudes that almost all these things center around is humility and mercy. Mercy is being able To extend a hand to extend grace to those who have harmed you to those who have wronged you.

That's mercy. It's extending forgiveness and Understanding to those who may even be undeserving of it because the truth of the matter is brother and sister. We are all undeserving of mercy. This is the radical doctrine of grace.

You what grace actually means the word grace means undeserved kindness unmerited favor. Which means there is no scenario in which you deserve forgiveness. None zero. There is no way that by any natural means you can come to to the Father.

Come to God and demand and receive forgiveness. It is totally a work of grace undeserved. Unmerited you are not deserving of it yet. God as it says in Ephesians chapter 2 being rich in mercy with the love of which he loved us made us alive and Seated us with Christ in heaven places for by grace.

You have been saved. That's the power of grace and we are called to live this grace out practically not solely theologically. Because as a reformed church, we all affirm the teachings of grace. Yet, we're not called merely to acknowledge these truths, but to live them out.

Live out the grace and mercy of God and you know what will happen. Your enemies May become your friends. Those who curse you may in turn bless you. That is the hope of what Jesus is getting at here. So that someone takes your cloak you Put hot coals over their head not by literally harming them, but by doing good to them.

Doing good as the Apostle Paul writes in Romans chapter 12. He says we do not overcome evil with evil, but rather we overcome evil with what? Good. Good. That's at the heart of God's law is his goodness.

It's good for neighbor and good for man and that which is good for God for when he made all things He says it is in fact good and at the end of human History it will once again be good. But we are in the process even now of making all things good again through the gospel of peace all things will be made good again and you.

Dear brother and sister. Have a vital role to play in that goodness as we bring the good news of Jesus Christ to the world and we share in The goodness grace and mercy of God to an unbelieving and dying world.

That's our call. That's the call of the Beatitudes. What we also find here in verse 31. Which is often called the golden rule. Jesus says as you wish that others would do to you. Do so to them. Or do likewise on to them.

The golden rule here is doing on to others as you would want on to you. Meaning if you're following the notes and what you write this in there, we must imitate Christ and wanting the best for yourself and others.

You see God has a best for you in mind. God has a best for you in mind his best isn't that you hold on to Trauma, it isn't that you hold on to the past. It isn't that you hold on to the burdens of yesterday, but rather that you give them over to him today.

That's God's best for you. God's best for you is that you forgive and you forgive readily and you forgive quickly and so that when we're having arguments. Even if it's between the husband wife Friends church members.

We are called to forgive to forgive often and to forgive quickly because it's in forgiveness. That we see the power and mercy of God. It's when we forgive. There's a power there because at the practical side of this is that the opposite of forgiveness is Harboring ill intent.

It's harboring hatred and hatred is like a poison. Yeah, it'll hurt the other person but ultimately in the long run. It's gonna hurt you more. And so God's call is to let go of hatred even to those who truly harm us.

Pray for those who harm us pray for those who persecute us and let love. Rule, let mercy. Have its time. We're called to treat others the way that we would want to be treated even if the other side Doesn't get it.

Even if the other side doesn't compute even the other side doesn't relent. We still treat others the way we would want to be treated with dignity respect humility. Showing the worth of the individual as the image bearer of God.

That's at the heart of the golden rule. Now Jesus begins to set up a series of questions and scenarios here that I think is of much interest. He says in verse 32 if you love those who love you. What benefit is that to you?

Think about that question for a moment think about that scenario if you love those who love you. That's easy. We all got friends. We all have family. We know what it's like to be loved. We know what it's like to have a group of people that that we're close with.

It's easy to love those who love you. The Christian life my dear friend is not a life of ease. God's not calling you to an easy life. He's calling us to a difficult one and what's very difficult because I can preach to you by this idealistic Love this idealistic mercy.

It's another thing to truly live it out it's only when you are faced with actual scenarios in life where you have to extend mercy that you see how Difficult this truly is. This is no trivial matter. It is hard work to love those Who hate you to love and pray for those who have hurt you?

It's not easy. But Jesus says if you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? What benefit he says for even the sinners love those who love them? Are we not different than the world? That's what Jesus is getting at.

He wants us to look different behave different speak differently. He wants Christians to remarkably different than the world. Because again he goes on to say. And if you do good to those who do good to you.

What benefit is that to you? He says. For even sinners do the same. What benefit is there to treat others who only to treat well only those who treat you well. Does that magnify the gospel of mercy? Does it magnify the gospel of grace if we only focus on those who have treated as well?

It does not. For sinners do the same. He's then gives another scenario. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive what credit is that to you? What credit is that to you. What Jesus is again pointing to is a radical life of mercy mercy.

Because how many of us in times past have lended out money and didn't get it back. It kind of begins when when money gets involved and Jesus points to this often because Jesus preached a lot about money.

It's one of the top three things that he speaks on through the Gospels. When money is involved. Our true character comes out. You know why? Because money tends to be our greatest idol. And When the idols of life are messed with when the gods of our heart are messed with.

That's where our true colors come out. So Jesus saying if you've lended to someone. With all the expectation of receiving back. What benefit is that to you? Now again, Jesus not. Jesus is not okay with fraud.

Jesus is not okay with not paying back your Obligations. That's not what he's saying. But rather he's looking at the heart of the one Who is his follower and saying if even if you find yourself in this scenario?