WWUTT 2318 Blessed Are You Who Are Hated (Luke 6:22, 26)

WWUTT Podcast

Subscribe

Download

Share

00

00:00

Jesus said, blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you and revile you and spurn your name as evil on account of the

00:08

Son of Man, rejoice in that day and leap for joy when we understand the text.

00:25

Merry Christmas from your friends at When We Understand The Text, an online Bible ministry promoting sound doctrine while exposing the faulty.

00:33

For questions and comments, email whenweunderstandthetext at gmail .com. Now here's your host,

00:39

Pastor Gabe. Thank you, Becky. And yes, Merry Christmas, everyone. This particular episode airs on Christmas day, but we're gonna continue right on with what we have been reading in Luke chapter six,

00:51

Jesus preaching the Sermon on the Plain. Today, we finish up the Beatitudes in Luke six verses 20 to 26.

00:59

I'll begin by reading that section again. Hear the word of the Lord. And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples and said, blessed are you who are poor for yours is the kingdom of God.

01:12

Blessed are you who are hungry now for you shall be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now for you shall laugh.

01:22

Blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you and revile you and spurn your name as evil on account of the

01:31

Son of Man, rejoice in that day and leap for joy for behold, your reward is great in heaven for so their fathers did to the prophets.

01:43

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.

01:53

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.

02:05

And it's that fourth beatitude and the contrasting woe that we're looking at today.

02:11

Verse 22, blessed are you when people hate you, when they exclude you, revile you, spurn your name as evil on account of the

02:18

Son of Man. And what does Jesus say about that? You should rejoice in that day. You should even leap for joy.

02:25

Your reward in heaven is great for so their fathers did to the prophets.

02:31

The people who hate you, they're just doing what their fathers did before them. They're of that same group of people that hated when

02:38

God sent prophets to them, telling them to repent and to turn to the Lord. Those people that hated the prophets, those are the people that hate you.

02:47

Same group of people, Jesus says. And then you have the contrasting woe that goes with that.

02:52

Woe to you when all people speak well of you, for so their fathers did to the false prophets.

03:01

They hated the true prophets of God, but boy, they sure liked those false prophets who told them exactly what their ears wanted to hear.

03:10

Let's come back to verse 22 here. We'll look at the beatitude first. Blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you and revile you and spurn your name as evil.

03:21

Now, this is not just they hate you for no reason. People dislike you, well, then you're blessed.

03:27

It's specifically on account of the Son of Man. Now, this is the first of these four beatitudes that is tied in exactly to something like that, of it being on account of the

03:40

Son of Man. Previously, it's blessed are you who are poor. There's no caveat to that, no qualifier.

03:48

It's just blessed are you who are poor. Blessed are you who are hungry now. Blessed are you who weep now, but this one actually ties it to the qualifier.

03:59

People hate you, but why do they hate you? Because you love Jesus. And that really brings all the, or it brings the three previous beatitudes into focus.

04:09

Blessed are you who are poor, but you long for Christ. You know that you are destitute and you need something, and it's

04:16

Jesus that satisfies your need. Blessed are you who are hungry, and that reminds you of your longing, your desire, your hunger for Christ.

04:27

Blessed are you who weep now, knowing that this world is never going to satisfy you, but you can find all good things in Christ.

04:35

And if you have come to know that, then people are gonna hate you. People who are still of this world, especially of that category of people that Jesus issues woes to, they're gonna hate you because you love

04:48

Jesus, because you're not like them. And because you love God, because you desire holiness, that's just gonna make them hate you all the more.

04:58

It's because you expose their own rottenness, and we can't have that. Remember Cain hated his brother

05:06

Abel because Abel loved righteousness, and Cain thought, well, the best way I can get over this is just to take

05:12

Abel out, and then I don't feel so guilty about my unrighteousness. Now, of course, that did not solve the problem.

05:19

That only brought worse matters onto Cain than he was facing before. So people are going to hate us because we desire

05:27

Christ, and we desire his holiness. People will hate you. They will exclude you.

05:33

You're not even part of them. The Christians, those who desire righteousness, are instead gonna be the ones that will be on the fringes.

05:44

They're gonna be the outcasts. They're going to be the marginalized. So you often hear this in our culture today, especially in like a

05:54

Christian -esque culture. I don't wanna call it a Christian nation necessarily because the majority of the

06:00

United States is actually not following Christ. But there's Christianese that is very common to our culture.

06:08

It's in fact unpopular to say that you don't like Jesus at all. That would be an unpopular thing to say.

06:14

As much as our nation, as the United States of America, has drifted into godlessness, yet it's still not a popular thing to say, oh,

06:23

I hate Jesus, or I don't care for him, and I wouldn't follow him at all. It's still a popular thing to say that I am a follower of Jesus.

06:31

But generally, when a person says that, they're following their own version of Jesus, not the

06:36

Jesus of the Bible. You know, I think of Oprah, for example. She loves to say that she loves

06:42

Jesus and that she follows his teachings, but she doesn't do anything of the sort. She's the one who has said that there are millions of ways to God instead of knowing that Jesus is the only way to God.

06:56

John 14, six, I am the way, the truth, and the life, Jesus said, no one comes to the Father but by me.

07:02

She hates passages like that. So the version of Jesus that she has in mind is very much like an ancient philosopher, nothing like the sinless son of God at all.

07:12

She hates that aspect of Jesus because then that Jesus exposes her unholiness.

07:19

She has to give up her wealth, which she has accumulated on lies. She has to admit her own faults and her own wickedness and turn from that to follow

07:30

Jesus Christ. She doesn't want to do that, one of the most powerful women in the world. And so in order to stay popular and relevant and still love this

07:39

Jesus guy that most Americans like, then she's gonna say that she's a follower of Jesus, even though she's really not.

07:45

Again, it's just her own version of it. Joel Osteen, same sort of thing. The kind of version that he, or sorry, the kind of Jesus that he preaches about is not the

07:56

Christ of the Bible. It's a Christ that is all love and no wrath. Someone like Jordan Peterson, he's gonna say that he's a follower of Jesus.

08:04

He's got an entire series where he's teaching on the gospels on Daily Wire Plus.

08:10

I haven't ever watched it. I don't subscribe to Daily Wire Plus, but the kind of Jesus that Jordan Peterson likes is very much a philosopher, not the son of God, for whom you must turn from your sin and follow him.

08:27

And then somebody like, let me give you another example, Richard Rohr, the guy who is, isn't he a panentheist?

08:34

So he thinks that everything is God or everything is in God or something to that effect. So again, he's got this very pagan version of God in his mind, which he attributes to being

08:46

Jesus, but it's not actually the Christ of the Bible whom he follows, whom he worships. You worship the true

08:52

Christ of the Bible. You know him, you love him, and you follow him. Well, the world is gonna hate you for that.

08:58

They hate you because they hated him first. As Jesus said to his own disciples, don't be surprised when the world hates you.

09:05

They hated me first. And John even says in 1 John, that the world is gonna hate you because you're not of them.

09:13

If you were of them, then they would love you. But the world will hate you.

09:18

They will revile you. They will spurn your name as evil on account of the son of man.

09:23

They will even call you evil because you are a follower of Jesus. I get it all the time, all the time online, whether it's social media, whether it's on X or Instagram or YouTube, the comment sections on YouTube.

09:41

Whenever I do a video, there will be comments in there about how evil I am because I chose to believe something the

09:47

Bible said. Just this past week, sometime earlier this week, I got called a legalist just for quoting a verse in the

09:56

Bible. I didn't even qualify it with anything else. I just quoted the verse. And someone called me a legalist for that.

10:02

Happens all the time. There are people who will say things like that because they hate the truth.

10:10

They hate holiness. They love their sin more. Can't I just have my sin?

10:16

And anybody else that's gonna try to do anything or say something that would disrupt my sin or make me feel guilty because of my sin, well, that person is evil.

10:24

And you've heard it said too, that because we would call out sin like the LGBTQ movement, or we would call murdering unborn children in the womb, exactly that, we'll get called judgmental.

10:37

We'll say that we're not Christ -like because we are stating the truth and pointing out the obvious and calling out sin and telling people, turn from your sin to the

10:46

Lord Jesus Christ and you'll be forgiven. What a beautiful, wonderful message that is.

10:52

Jesus died on the cross for our sins. He rose again from the dead. Turn to Jesus and you're forgiven.

11:00

You will live forever with God. There couldn't be a message more loving than that.

11:07

And yet the world will say that we're being hateful for judging people because of their sin because we pointed out the sin and we said exactly what the

11:18

Bible says about it. And even what the consequences of that sin is, you'll go to hell if you continue in this unrepentant path.

11:28

And the world would actually call us evil for such a message. Blessed are you though, blessed are you when people hate you and they exclude you and they revile you and spurn your name as evil on account of the son of man.

11:48

Jesus saying here in the Sermon on the Plain, rejoice in that day, rejoice when people treat you this way.

11:56

I think of Acts chapter five, when after the disciples had been preaching the gospel in Jerusalem, they had been arrested, they had been set free.

12:07

The Pharisees just could not stop these apostles from preaching the good news, from preaching that Jesus is the

12:15

Christ. And so they bring the disciples again in front of the council and they say, we strictly charged you not to teach in this name.

12:24

Yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and you intend to bring this man's blood upon us.

12:32

Remember, because they put Jesus to death just a matter of months ago, weeks ago, or yeah, whatever the timeline would be here in Acts chapter five.

12:41

But Peter and the apostles answered, we must obey God rather than men.

12:47

The God of our fathers raised Jesus whom you killed by hanging him on a tree.

12:52

They're just pointing out the Pharisees sin. Peter goes on, God exalted him at his right hand as leader and savior to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.

13:06

And we are witnesses to these things. And so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him.

13:15

Well, that council got together and they kind of discussed again, what do we do with these guys? We can't shut them up.

13:22

And so what they did instead, they didn't want to do anything to them because it just might rouse the crowd against the

13:29

Pharisees. So what they did was they beat them. They didn't kill them, but they beat them and charged them not to speak in the name of Jesus.

13:36

And then they let them go. And Acts 5 41 says, then they left the presence of the council rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name.

13:54

They did exactly here in Acts 5, what Jesus says you should do here in Luke 6, when they spurn your name is evil on the count of the son of man, rejoice in that day and leap for joy.

14:10

For behold, your reward is great in heaven for so their fathers did to the prophets.

14:17

You know, when you go to the books of first and second Kings, the thing that will delineate a righteous

14:24

King is to say of that righteous King that he walked in all the ways of his father, David.

14:29

That will be the marker of a righteous King. It doesn't matter how many hundreds of years that King came along after David.

14:36

It'll be said of him that he walked in the ways of his father, David. But if a King was unrighteous, it would say he walked in the ways of his father,

14:46

Jeroboam, who was an unrighteous King. And so again, it connects the unrighteous together through a common strain.

14:58

There was a King that preceded all of the unrighteous Kings who was the first to do unrighteousness and even exalted an idol himself.

15:05

And so whenever those Kings did wickedly and worshiped false gods or encouraged Israel to worship false gods, it would be said of them that they walked in all of the ways of their father,

15:15

Jeroboam. But when it was a righteous King, connecting that King with the way of righteousness, it would be said of him, he walked in all the ways of his father,

15:25

David. And so Jesus is using that same kind of thing here, that same kind of qualifier here, when he says, their fathers did to the prophets.

15:34

All these men who do so unrighteously to you, who do wickedly to you because you love

15:40

Jesus, they're the same as those men, their fathers before them who hated the prophets.

15:47

And then we have this woe that contrasts with the beatitude. Verse 26, woe to you when all people speak well of you.

15:59

Woe to you when people love you because you tell them what they want to hear, you permit them to do what they want to do, you sound and act just like they want you to act.

16:13

Woe to you when people think well of you in that way. For so their fathers did to the false prophets.

16:20

Yeah, they loved the false prophets. Why? Because the false prophets told them exactly what it was they wanted to hear.

16:28

When all people speak well of you. You know, even people who are popular, even people who are spoken well of, they're going to have critics.

16:35

They will have detractors, of course. And they will try to highlight that and try to say, see this group of people that hate me.

16:44

They hate me because I want to do the right thing. And they'll try to put themselves in the category of those whose name is spurned as evil on the count of the son of man.

16:56

They'll try to put themselves in that category. But you look at the big picture and you see they're not really hated by all that many people.

17:04

They're loved by most people because they're scratching itching ears. Exactly what's said in Second Timothy chapter four.

17:12

By the way, if it must be asked, what is the leading cause of false teaching in the church today?

17:18

The answer to that question is right there in Second Timothy four. A day is coming in which people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears, they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions.

17:31

That's the leading cause of false teaching in the church. Why a church would go wayward and would leave the gospel for something else because they desire something in their flesh and they look for those teachers that will give them that desire.

17:45

Those teachers become very popular, but the ones who are close to Christ, who desire

17:52

Christ, his gospel, and the teaching that accords with godliness, they're gonna be hated by worldly people.

18:00

So woe to you when all people speak well of you for so their fathers did to the false prophets. Rejoice when people hate you on account of the son of man for so their fathers did to the true prophets.

18:14

Jeremiah five verses 30 and 31, an appalling and horrible thing has happened in the land.

18:20

The prophets prophesy falsely and the priests rule at their discretion. My people love to have it so.

18:29

But what will you do when the end comes? When the people of God were furthest from God, it was when they loved the false prophets.

18:38

Similar warnings come up in Ezekiel. First Kings 22, that's a great story that kind of, that's a great example of people hating the true prophet,

18:48

Micaiah, and loving the 400 false prophets who were all telling Ahab exactly what it was he wanted to hear.

18:54

Anyway, I won't go through that whole story. I've done it many times. You can read that one for yourself. First Kings 22.

19:00

Let me finish with this though, because I think this is rightly applicable for us in first Peter chapter four.

19:08

Let me begin reading here in verse 12. Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you as though something strange were happening to you, but rejoice in so far as you share

19:25

Christ's sufferings that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.

19:35

If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed because the spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.

19:45

But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. Yet if anyone suffers as a

19:52

Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name.

19:58

For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God. And if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?

20:10

Therefore, let those who suffer according to God's will entrust their souls to a faithful creator while doing good.

20:20

So Peter says the same thing there in 1 Peter 4. Verse 14 again, if you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed.

20:30

We have a statement like that comes up several places in 1 Peter as a matter of fact. In chapter three, verse 13, who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good?

20:40

But even if you should suffer for righteousness sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts, honor

20:49

Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you, yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame.

21:07

And then in chapter two, verse 21, to this you have been called because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example so that you might follow in his steps.

21:17

He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return.

21:25

When he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.

21:33

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree that we might die to sin and live to righteousness by his wounds you have been healed for you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the shepherd and overseer of your souls.

21:51

And so may it be said of us as well, that we are able to suffer well and do so for the name of Christ and rejoicing in him when we suffer on account of his name.

22:05

Just as Jesus did not revile in return when he was reviled, but he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.

22:14

So we do the same. They're gonna hate us. They're gonna mistreat us. They will persecute us.

22:21

Let us entrust ourselves to God who judges all and rejoice in that day for our reward in heaven is very great if you are in Christ Jesus.

22:33

Heavenly father, we thank you for what we've read here. We thank you for this day in particular, a day on which we remember the gift of your son that was given to us in this world.

22:42

Our most desperate need was for Christ. And you considered our most desperate need and gave

22:50

Jesus to us that baby born in Bethlehem 2000 years ago, who lived a righteous life for us, who died on the cross for us, who rose again for us so that all who believe in him, our sins are forgiven.

23:04

We are given his righteousness and even have a place prepared for us in heaven above in glory.

23:12

Help us to fix our eyes on those things so that whatever may happen to us in this world will not discourage us, will not cause us to shrink back or lose hope.

23:24

In fact, it makes us cling all the more to Christ who delivers us into his eternal kingdom.

23:30

Come quickly, Lord Jesus. We pray in his name. Amen. This has been

23:36

When We Understand The Text with Pastor Gabriel Hughes. Find all our resources online at www .wutt

23:43

.com. On behalf of our church family, my name is Becky, thanking you for listening.