In The Word
Read: Luke 6:12-36
Choosing the Twelve
12 It was at this time that He went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God. 13 And when day came, He called His disciples to Him and chose twelve of them, whom He also named as apostles: 14 Simon, whom He also named Peter, and Andrew his brother; and James and John; and Philip and Bartholomew; 15 and Matthew and Thomas; James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon who was called the Zealot; 16 Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.
17 Jesus came down with them and stood on a level place; and there was a large crowd of His disciples, and a great throng of people from all Judea and Jerusalem and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon, 18 who had come to hear Him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled with unclean spirits were being cured. 19 And all the people were trying to touch Him, for power was coming from Him and healing them all.
The Beatitudes
20 And turning His gaze toward His disciples, He began to say, “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. 21 Blessed are you who hunger now, for you shall be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh.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. 24 But woe to you who are rich, for you are receiving your comfort in full. 25 Woe to you who are well-fed now, for you shall be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep. 26 Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for their fathers used to treat the false prophets in the same way.
27 “But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29 Whoever hits you on the cheek, offer him the other also; and whoever takes away your coat, do not withhold your shirt from him either. 30 Give to everyone who asks of you, and whoever takes away what is yours, do not demand it back. 31 Treat others the same way you want them to treat you. 32 If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. 33 If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. 34 If you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners in order to receive back the same amount.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. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation
Walking In The Word
It seems by now, after Jesus sees all of this humanity, the sick, lost, and without hope, compelled Him to begin speaking to them about blessings. Beatitude means “blessings,” and Jesus mentions blessings toward the poor, the hungry, the broken-hearted, and the mistreated. They will all find blessings in Heaven because Jesus said that if you’re a believer, your future is blessed.
Visiting Africa often, I always ponder if the poor in that country understand that their heavenly Father does see their plight. Is it enough to know that, while you may be suffering here, there awaits a glorious eternity for you on the other side? Do you ever think of how blessed you are in this country? By the grace of God, you were born at a time like this, given so much compared to others; we, in America, are truly blessed indeed. For those of us, Jesus says in Luke 6:35, “Love your enemies, do good, lend without expecting return.” It is important though for us to be merciful, for our Father in Heaven is merciful. He has forgiven you of much; He expects the same from us. If you don’t think He should expect this from us, check out the “woe” section in our readings today. I don’t know about you, but I’ll take the “have mercy” route every time instead of falling into the hands of our God without mercy. Are you sharing? Are you aware of those around you who Jesus says, “Blessed art thou”? Be the hands and feet of Jesus in their life. See if you can bring a little Heaven down today in their lives!