Blessings and Woes                  Luke 6:20-26

I am going back to Denver where I grew up for the first time in over 25 years in a couple of weeks.  I am wondering how much change will have occurred in that 25-year time period and how that will affect me.  I grew up in Denver and worked as an armored car guard there for several years during college, so I knew every street of the Denver Mile High area from Fort Collins to Colorado Springs.  When I was last there in about 2000, I was amazed by the changes and by the money and affluence that existed in evidence all around me.  Which brings me to the topic of this month’s article.

When I think of the Sermon on the Mount I usually think about Matthew’s version of Jesus’s message found at chapter 5 of his Gospel.   There is, however, another somewhat different version, which is found in chapter 6 of the gospel of Luke.  The obvious difference is that Matthew’s version is much longer, but that doesn’t strike me as the most important difference.  No, Luke adds something to Matthew’s more comforting version that could cause us concern.  Because Luke has a corresponding list of “woes” in addition to his list of “blessings.”   

(Note: For the scripture, I did not follow the text in Luke which listed all the blessings first and then listed all the woes, but I grouped each individual blessing with the corresponding woe)

“Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.”

 “But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort.”

“Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied.”

“Woe to you who are well fed now, for you will go hungry.”

“Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.”

“Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep.”

“Blessed are you when people hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and      reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man.”

“Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you, for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets.”

At first glance it seems like there is a corresponding woe for every blessing and that the very things that bring us blessings are the same things that bring us woes.  But after thinking about this for a while, I decided there is a more important distinction.  What do all the blessings have in common?  They are in tune with God.  What do all the woes have in common?  They are about seeking Self. What do all the woes have in common?  They are about seeking Self.  If you think about this line of reasoning the message appears clear, we are blessed when we are in tune with God, regardless of our circumstances in this life, and we find woe when we satisfy Self instead of serving and desiring God.

When Jesus blesses the poor and hungry, the grief stricken and the scorned, he is not saying that we should all aspire to poverty, hunger, sorrow, or scorn.  He is saying that he is with us, even when it seems that the world has deserted us.  He is saying that God loves us, even when everyone else hates us, and that as believers we find blessing in seeking God and in loving those whom God loves, no matter the cost.

When Jesus announces woe to those who are wealthy, eat well, and enjoy fame and approval from people, he is not saying that wealth, good food, and popularity are bad things.  He is saying that when we start to take material blessings for granted, or worse, think that we have somehow acquired these gifts by our own efforts, we abandon God, and our self-importance will be our spiritual downfall. 

I decided that what Luke is telling us is that when we are hungry for God, we want the things God wants.  When we are seeking God, we share the pain and sorrow God feels for people who are suffering.  When we are focused on spiritual matters, money loses its power over us. As we practice generosity, we lose the desire to accumulate more than we need, and we may even find that we need considerably less than we have.  When we stand up for justice, and act with love and generosity, we affirm that every person, regardless of condition is loved by God, and worthy in God’s sight.

Because this is the key:  We are sinners who have been forgiven and graced into salvation.  That grace has nothing to do with what we do, and everything to do with who God is.  A God who loves us enough to forgive us for being self-satisfied, for growing fat while others go hungry, for hoarding assets while others have nothing. Yes, God even loves us enough to forgive us for everything we have ever done to separate ourselves from his salvation.  We need only ask for his forgiveness.

Amen.

Brad Belke