Bible Study recap: Luke 6.17-26

Is the healing of diseases and casting out of spirits a gimmick to attract a crowd? From Tyre and Sidon to Judea and Jerusalem is an expansive area of diverse people and problems. But before things got too far, Jesus wanted to be clear about what he was expecting of his followers, of the attitude and way of life that would be required of them. He knew that he wasn’t going to be everything for everyone and wanted people who followed him because they wanted to. He wanted to be sure that they would fully know what was in store and want to follow anyway.

(Similar to the Toronto Raptors who signed players this year that wanted to be in Toronto, despite its “unfavourable” taxation system, weather, and border complications)

We appreciated that Jesus, coming down from the mountain after a time of prayer (and selecting the 12 apostles from among all the disciples), spoke from ground level – rather than orating from a level above the listeners. In fact, “he looked up at his disciples”; were they still on the hillside?

He then shares blessings and woes, (what exactly does “woe” mean? The dictionary offers “sorrow or distress”, might it also be a caution, “beware”?). The blessings seem abstract and in the future. Would the poor really believe that theirs is the kingdom of God? How do the oppressed in Darfur respond to such a claim?

And the woes seem inevitable. If we think things through, our riches don’t last and will succumb to poverty. We can never stay full forever, we will always be hungry in the future. We can’t live in laughter all the time, there will be mourning and weeping. But the opposite doesn’t seem true: there is no guarantee that the hungry will ever be full; that the poor will ever be rich, or that the sorrowful will ever find joy.

There is an expectation of universal and cosmic balance, that things will ultimately even out between the “haves” and the “have-nots”. The choice seems to be: enjoy abundance and blessing in this life or the next. Yet is a life of poverty, hunger and persecution a free pass into heaven? And must damnation await all who have plenty? We can easily think of exceptions to these rules.

It bears remembering Luke wrote his gospel in a time of persecution and hardship for the early church. These words of Christ would be comfort as well as political commentary.

The hope he offers may be abstract and of little practical consolation, but any more so than the illusion of hope that investment scams, lotteries and gambling offer? What about the myth of the great American Dream – that you only have to work hard enough and you’ll be a success (meaning that if you don’t succeed, it’s your fault for not working hard enough).

The problems of the world are overwhelming, words often ring hollow. Hope and personal integrity may be the only tools we have, can we trust that they’re enough?