JRNT 97
10/26/2025
The Blessed Life Ð The Gospel of Luke (Part 46)
Luke 6:20-23
Jesse Randolph

Well, you can go ahead and turn with me, in your Bibles, please, to Luke 6. WeÕre going to be in Luke 6:20-23 today. As we hear directly from Jesus, our Lord in His ÒSermon on the Plain.Ó Luke 6:20-23, GodÕs Word reads:
ÒAnd turning His gaze toward His disciples, He began to say, ÔBlessed are the poor, for yours is the Kingdom of God. Blessed are those who hunger now, for you shall be satisfied. Blessed are those who cry now, for you shall laugh. Blessed are you when men hate you, and exclude you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man. Be glad in that day and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For their fathers were doing the same things to the prophets.ÕÓ Poverty. Hunger. Tears. Hatred. Exclusion. Insults. Scorn. Those are what make up Òthe ÔblessedÕ lifeÓ according to Jesus. Ailments. Discomfort. Pain. Heartache. Suffering. ThatÕs what it means, to use a modern term to be: #Hashtag Ð Òblessed.Ó

Now, clearly, thereÕs a setting, thereÕs a context to the words I just read here from Luke 6. Before we wade waist deep into our text, to find out what it means to truly live Òthe Ôblessed lifeÓ according to Jesus we do need to lay out some of those particulars. Some of the context. Some of the background. For instance, in some of our more recent sermons in Luke weÕve seen that Jesus, up to this point in the narrative, has been most recently ministering at Capernaum on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee. Where He was facing increasing opposition from the scribes and the Pharisees. That opposition had reached this fever pitch in connection with these two different Sabbath-related incidents earlier in Luke 6. We looked at those a few weeks ago. We saw that Jesus really took things to the next level in Luke 6:5, where He declared Himself to be ÒLord of the Sabbath.Ó 

Jesus then went off to this mountain to pray, as weÕre told in Luke 6:12. As He did so, we learned He was praying for His own strength in opposition to the Pharisees who were opposing Him and intensifying in their opposition. He was praying for that momentous decision He was about to make in appointing the twelve. He was praying for those twelve preemptively, as they prepared to go out and preach and proclaim the Gospel of His Kingdom. So, he went up on that mountain to pray. Then, on that same mountain, Luke 6:13, we see that He went about appointing those twelve apostles, from that broader group of disciples who had been following Him up to that point. ItÕs there on the mountain that He appointed Peter and Andrew, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, Judas the son of James and Judas Iscariot, Òwho became a traitor.Ó The last time that we were in Luke, a couple of weeks ago, we were in verses 17-19, where we saw that Jesus came down from that same mountain where He had been praying, where He had appointed the Twelve. Verse 17 tells us that He Òstood on a level placeÓ where He encountered this Òlarge crowd.Ó That large crowd was made up of three different groups. 

First, was ÒHis disciplesÓ, those who had been following Him for some time. Second, there was this Ògreat multitude of people from all Judea and JerusalemÓ, meaning, Jewish people from the south. Then there was this third group from Òthe coastal region [it says] of Tyre and SidonÓ, which was this pagan region up in the north. And then, in verses 18-19, we saw how Jesus ministered to this eclectic mix of people. They were Òhealed of their diseasesÓ, verse 18, Òand those who were troubled with unclean spirits were being cured.Ó ÒAnd all the crowd was trying to touch Him, for power was coming from Him and healing them all.Ó

So, as weÕve seen so far in our study of LukeÕs Gospel in these early years of His ministry, there in Capernaum; Jesus carried out this ministry of teaching this ministry of healing. This ministry of delivering people of the unclear spirits that had indwelt folks. He did all of this, not to be some sort of magician sideshow act. Rather, He did so to prove to His people, the people of Israel, that He had come as God in flesh. HeÕs God incarnate. The Messiah of Israel had arrived. The Savior of the World was on the scene.

Well, in our next text, our text for today starting here in verse 20, Luke is still describing this same scene for Theophilus. The scene here still is Jesus standing on this Òlevel place.Ó This flatland, this plain. Which is why IÕm comfortable calling this the ÒSermon on the PlainÓ, as I articulated last time. Jesus is still standing in front of this large crowd, in this scene. This crowd that is made up of these apostles who had come down the mountain with Him. Those disciples who had stayed at sea level when He went up the mountain to appoint the apostles. These various other people who came from north and south to hear Him and otherwise be ministered to by Him. As weÕll see here in verse 20, you see the language there: Jesus, it says, turned ÒHis gaze [He was turning His gaze] toward His disciples.Ó And then He proceeded to lay out some of the most profound truth that has ever left the lips of any human being, although this, of course, is God in flesh a divine, fully human, fully divine God/Man. 

Now, weÕll get here in a moment, I promise, we will get into the text. But I want us to do some more spade work before we do so. I want us to do a little bit more digging. I want to get under the surface of whatÕs happening here in this text. To flesh out whatÕs going on here in the ÒSermon on the Plain.Ó See, these four verses that we have before us here this morning, are collectively called ÒThe Beatitudes.Ó Now, what exactly is the ÒbeatitudeÓ? A ÒbeatitudeÓ is a word of blessing. Which is exactly what we have here in our passage, ÒBlessed are the poor.Ó ÒBlessed are those who hunger now.Ó ÒBlessed are those who cry now.Ó

In our passage for this morning, Jesus, quoting no one and speaking authoritatively as God is laying down this paradigm for His disciples, about what it truly means to be Òblessed.Ó What it truly means to live Òthe blessed life.Ó As He did so, Jesus was stepping into this stream of Old Testament texts, that God had laid out for the people of Israel both individually, as Israelites, and collectively, as the people of Israel about what it means to truly be Òblessed.Ó
In fact, if you would, turn back, with me, to Deuteronomy. Deuteronomy 28, the fifth book here in the book of the Law, in the first five books of your Old Testament. Deuteronomy, youÕve heard me say before, is GodÕs second giving of the Law to the Israelites. ThatÕs what Deuteronomy means itÕs GodÕs second giving of the Law to the people of Israel, through Moses. But look at Deuteronomy 28:1. It says, this is God speaking to Israel for a second time through Moses. ÒNow it will be, if you diligently listen to the voice of Yahweh your God, being careful to do all His commandments which I am commanding you today, Yahweh your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth. And all these blessings will come upon you and overtake you if you listen to the voice of Yahweh your God: Blessed shall you be in the city and blessed shall you be in the field. Blessed shall be the offspring of your body and the produce of your ground and the offspring of your beasts, the increase of your herd and the young of your flock. Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. Blessed shall you be when you come in and blessed shall you be when you go out. Yahweh shall cause your enemies who rise up against you to be defeated before you; they will come out against you one way and will flee before you seven ways. Yahweh will command the blessing upon you in your barns and in all that you send forth your hand to do, and He will bless you in the land which Yahweh your God gives you. Yahweh will establish you as a holy people to Himself. As He swore to you, if you keep the commandments of Yahweh your God and walk in His ways.Ó

So, you see it there. ÒBlessedÓ are you, Israel. When Ð what? Well, when you keep GodÕs commandments. When you obey His Law. When you follow His Word. If you flip back to Deuteronomy 27, you see these parallel curses in the second part of this chapter. Which were promised to fall upon those in Israel who failed to obey Yahweh. Who failed to obey His commandments: 
ÒCursed is the man who makes a graven image or a molten image.Ó
ÒCursed is he who dishonors his father or mother.Ó
ÒCursed is he who moves his neighborÕs boundary mark.Ó
ÒCursed is he who leads a blind person astray on the road.Ó
ÒCursed is he who strikes his neighbor in secret.Ó
ÒCursed is he who takes a bribe to strike down innocent blood.Ó
And then this one, verse 26, ÒCursed is he who does not confirm the words of this law by doing them.Ó
So, this idea of ÒblessingsÓ coming to those in Israel who obeyed Yahweh. And curses coming to those who failed to do so had deep roots in IsraelÕs history, going all the way back to the Law of Moses.

That same idea of this divine bifurcation, between these two separate groups of people, the faithful and the Law-abiding, and the evil and the lawless comes through in what we read from our scripture reading this morning. Psalm 1, IÕll read it again for us, just to highlight what Jesus is stepping into, the stream His stepping into in our passage. Look at Psalm 1:1-3 again: 
ÒHow blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the way of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of Yahweh, and in His law, he meditates day and night. And he will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season and its leaf does not wither; and in whatever he does, he prospers.Ó

Now look at verse 4, look at the contrast:
ÒThe wicked are not so, but they are like chaff which the wind drives away. Therefore, the wicked will not rise in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For Yahweh knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.Ó

So, there we see again this contrast between the blessed and the wicked. 
The one who, to borrow the words of Jesus Himself in Luke 11:28, Òhear[s] the word of God and keep[s] itÓ and the one who doesnÕt. The one will prosper while the other will perish. ThatÕs whatÕs being said here in Psalm 1. And itÕs into that stream of Old Testament Scripture, and Jewish thinking, that Jesus spoke the words which Luke recorded for us in our text, back in Luke 6. Where our Lord pronounced not only these blessings or beatitudes. In the text for today. But as weÕll see next week, He also pronounced these Òwoes.Ó 
Òwoe to you who are rich.Ó
Òwoe to you who are well-fed now.Ó This starts in verse 24 and following.
Òwoe to you who laugh now.Ó
Òwoe to you when men speak well of you.Ó
Jesus, in other words, sounds stylistically like this Old Testament prophet, or this Old Testament psalmist, as HeÕs pronouncing blessing and curses on the people of Israel.

Now, another important question, a preliminary question, this falls into that category of spade work, which we need to work through as we get ready to launch into this text. Is this: who are these beatitudes for? Well, clearly, Jesus spoke these words in our text, directly to His disciples as they gathered around Him, there on this plain. ThatÕs clear from the words of verse 20, where Luke says, that He turned ÒHis gaze toward His disciples, He began to say.Ó So, as He began to issue the words, deliver the words that weÕll be in this morning, Jesus was, no doubt, looking into the eyes of these first-century Jewish men. ThatÕs the immediate context. But we also canÕt lose sight of the fact, that in this Gospel account, in which this is all recorded, in the Gospel of Luke this is Christian Scripture. And God gave this to believers today. He gave it to the church. He preserved this portion of JesusÕ sermon for His followers today. To read to consider and to extract principles to apply to our lives. 

What weÕre going to find, as we interact with these beatitudes this morning is that there is much to learn from them. There is much to spur us on in re-centering our priorities so that our thoughts in this life are much less about here and now, and much more about there and then. Much less about temporal things, worldly things and much more about eternal things. And that Kingdom focus that weÕll get into this morning. What weÕre really going to see, as we work through these beatitudes this morning, is how they present this fundamental reversal of the worldÕs way of thinking. TheyÕre going to refute conventional human wisdom about what it truly means to live the ÒblessedÓ life. 

With that. Back to our text, Luke 6:20, where Luke here, speaking of Jesus, makes this transitionary statement in the narrative. He says: ÒAnd turning His gaze toward His disciples, He began to say.Ó Now, Jesus had, to this point, leading right up to this, been interacting with these Òcrowds.Ó This broader group of people, who had come from north and south Judea and Jerusalem and Tyre and Sidon. They had come to watch Him heal and deliver. But now, note this, and this is significant, that Jesus is Òturning His gaze [you see it there, verse 20] toward His disciples.Ó Meaning that that group of learners, mathitis, students, pupils, followers, those who had been following Him around the Sea of Galilee for some time now.  

ThatÕs significant. ItÕs important to understand here that Jesus delivered the words that weÕre going to be studying here, to those who were already following Him. He didnÕt issue these statements in the beatitudes as some sort of evangelistic exhortation. He wasnÕt, in this scene, calling on the lost to be saved. These arenÕt words of threat. These arenÕt words of condemnation. ItÕs not like HeÕs saying here Òdo these beatitudes, and then youÕll one day be in the Kingdom of God.Ó This is not a turn or burn kind of message from Jesus, in this scene. Rather, His words here are offered as words of encouragement to those who are already His disciples, already His followers. And what HeÕs communicating to them, as they gather around Him. Is that though they might experience poverty, hunger, weeping and exclusion and hatred now. They were already supremely blessed, because theirs is the coming Kingdom of God. Jesus was saying to His disciples here on the plain:
ÒDonÕt be deceived by the way that things appear all around you in this life.Ó ÒYou might be discouraged.Ó ÒYou might be downtrodden here in this life.Ó ÒBut what awaits you, is going to more than make up for it.Ó In other words, as HeÕs laying out these beatitudes, HeÕs tending to His lambs to those who are of Him to His disciples in this ÒSermon of the Plain.Ó 

Again, verse 20, Òturning His gaze toward His disciples, He began to say.Ó Next come the four beatitudes. Starting with this one. ÒBlessed are the poor, for yours is the Kingdom of God.Ó
Now, letÕs zero in on that word, ÒblessedÓ for just a moment. The Greek word is makarioi. There wonÕt be a spelling test after. And while some English translations will render that word Ð blessed as ÒhappyÓ, as though itÕs an emotional state that Jesus is after. I donÕt think thatÕs quite right. Rather, what Jesus is driving at here is oneÕs status, oneÕs station, oneÕs situation. But by using that word Ð ÒblessedÓ Jesus isnÕt saying that His followers will always experience happiness or joy in this life. How could He? To the contrary, JesusÕ followers have, you just read FoxÕs Book of Martyrs as one example His followers have, through the centuries, been regular students in the school of suffering. But they are still ÒblessedÓ positionally blessed. They are in a positive position. You could even say they are Òfavored.Ó ItÕs all in light of their status. ItÕs all in light of their secure position before God, through Him, as the Son of Man. The believer, the follower of Christ, the one who is in Him, can be content with the calamities they face in this life. They can be at peace with peril. Because they know the living God, through Him. It is truly well with their soul. 

So, reading on in this beatitude, this first one. Jesus said:
ÒBlessed are the filthy rich.Ó 
ÒBlessed are the multi-millionaires.Ó
ÒBlessed are the aristocrats.Ó
ÒBlessed are the plutocrats.Ó
Right? No. ÒBlessed are the poor.Ó
If youÕre a notetaker this morning, weÕre going to have five points this morning. The first one is this:

THE PLIGHT OF THE POOR
Verse 20, ÒBlessed are the poor, for yours is the Kingdom of GodÓ He says. Now, right away weÕve got this interpretive decision on our hands. We must make this decision Ð what does Jesus mean here by that word ÒpoorÓ? By that word ÒpoorÓ, is He referring to someoneÕs economic position? Is He referring to their financial position? Is He referring to their balance sheet? Their stock portfolio? In short, no. In fact, return with me to Luke 4:18. We were here a couple of months ago. In Luke 4:18, where Jesus, youÕll recall, is preaching His first sermon in His hometown of Nazareth. Note what He said that He came, Luke 4:18, He says, ÒThe Spirit of the Lord is upon Me. Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor.Ó As we saw, when we studied this, what Jesus was saying there, as He harkened back to Isaiah 61:1, is that when Messiah came anointed by the Spirit empowered by the Spirit He would deliver, He would preach the Gospel, the good news to the poor. 

The word here for ÒpoorÓ means to be beggarly poor, embarrassingly poor, cringingly poor. The word is used in Luke 16:20 to describe this beggar named Lazarus, who was so impoverished, so desperate that he was looking for anything, even crumbs to eat. The Messiah who would come. The Messiah who had been promised to Israel. Would bring Ògood newsÓ the gospel to people who were at that level of impoverishment. What was the Ògood newsÓ that He would come delivering to the poor? Was it that they would no longer be impoverished? That they would no longer be poor? That their once-empty bank accounts would suddenly fill up? Or would those once-empty cupboards start to fill up? Or would those once-growling stomachs now be satisfied? No. As we worked our way through this text a few months ago, we saw that this reference is not economic prosperity. ItÕs not to material wealth. ItÕs not to physical riches, tangible riches. JesusÕ language, rather, speaks to the spiritual condition of man in his natural-born state. HeÕs born, heÕs naturally spiritually poor spiritually impoverished, spiritually destitute. ThatÕs what Jesus came to earth to address. He didnÕt come to fill stomachs. He didnÕt come to fill gas tanks. He didnÕt come to fill bank accounts. No, not withstanding, what any prosperity preacher will tell you. 

So, here in our text, when He says, back in Luke 6, ÒBlessed are the poorÓ, Jesus wasnÕt referring to material poverty, or economics. He wasnÕt saying, ÒBlessed are all poor people.Ó He wasnÕt saying: ÒGo quit you job and wear tattered clothing and live under a bridge and thatÕs how you secure your position in the one-day-coming Kingdom of God. No. God does not bless people simply because they are poor. Not all poor people simply on account of being poor will one day inherit or be in the Kingdom of God. No one has ever been converted, simply by virtue of their poverty. In fact, poverty is often listed in the scriptures, if you want to take in a balanced perspective of what GodÕs Word says about riches and poverty. Poverty is often presented as a consequence, a curse even, in scripture. Proverbs 10:4 says, ÒPoor is he who works with a slack hand.Ó
Proverbs 13:18, ÒPoverty and disgrace come to him who neglects discipline.Ó 
Proverbs 23:21, ÒFor the heavy drinker and the glutton will come to poverty, and drowsiness will clothe them with rags.Ó
See, Jesus didnÕt come to proclaim a social gospel. Jesus came to proclaim a saving Gospel. One that addresses manÕs spiritual impoverishment. He came for the poor in spirit. 

In fact, this would be a good time to go over to MatthewÕs Gospel. Look at Matthew 5, where we have this account of His Sermon on the Mount. 
IÕll just pick it up in verse 1, to give us a running start here. It says:
ÒNow when Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain. And after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. And He opened His mouth and began to teach them saying, ÒBlessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.Ó Now, again, I do think that the Sermon on the Mount and the Sermon on the Plain are different sermons. But itÕs not as though Jesus was preaching two entirely different messages in these two sermons. No. He preached these sermons in different places and on different occasions. But He was preaching the same basic message, as He worked through the beatitudes in each. As He worked through what it means to live a truly ÒblessedÓ life. Look at those words again, in Matthew 5:3, ÒBlessed are the poor in spirit.Ó Meaning:
Blessed are those who are aware of their won spiritual bankruptcy in their natural condition.
Blessed are those who recognize, who in their natural state, they are spiritual destitute.
Blessed are those who realize that any so-called rightness they would seek to present to a thrice holy God, is nothing but Òfilthy ragsÓ in His presence.
Blessed are those who recognize their desperate need for mercy.
Blessed are those who, as it says in Isaiah 66:2, are Òhumble and contrite and who tremble at GodÕs Word.Ó
Blessed are those who come with that broken-spirit of Psalm 51 and Psalm 34. 
Blessed are those who like the tax collector in Luke 18, say ÒGod be merciful on me, the sinner.Ó
Blessed are those who approach God not with pride, not with self-assurance but instead who come to Him humbly, lowly, empty-handed and aware of their hopeless estate. Aware of how desperate they are in need of deliverance from Him. 

So, it wasnÕt His disciplesÕ economic position, going back to Luke 6, that Jesus was zeroing in on with this beatitude. Rather, it was their spiritual condition. Through this beatitude, Jesus was saying that He hadnÕt come for the self-assured religiously proud crowd. He hadnÕt come for those who were trusting in their own riches and resumes. No. He came for the spiritually impoverished. He came not for those who thought themselves something. But rather for those who knew themselves to be nothing. He spoke to His disciples, as He spoke to His disciples in this scene on the plain, back in Luke 6. He remined them that His spiritually poor followers, those who were lowly in heart. Those who, in the worldÕs eyes, at least, seemed to have nothing. That they indeed did have something, something of exceeding value. Look at the second half here of this first beatitude, at the end of verse 20. After saying, ÒBlessed are the poorÓ He says: Ò. . . for yours is the Kingdom of God.Ó

Now, note that language. ThatÕs some loaded, charged language in our circles, especially. ÒYours is the Kingdom of God.Ó Now, He does say it that way. ÒYours is the Kingdom of God.Ó  It doesnÕt say Òyours will be the Kingdom of God.Ó It does say, Òyours is the Kingdom of God.Ó ItÕs a present, active, indicative verb. ThatÕs interesting to see a present tense verb there. So, does this mean that HeÕs saying to His disciples, there in the first century, that they are Òin the KingdomÓ right then and there? Does it mean that for us today, that we are Òin the KingdomÓ right now? No, it doesnÕt. I mean, how sad would that be, if this were the ÒKingdomÓ? Potholes on O Street. Cavities in our mouths. Endless construction in Lincoln all summer long. Right? Two lanes down to one lane. ThatÕs the Kingdom? ThatÕs just not the case. WeÕll get into this grammatically in a minute here. 

So, what did Jesus mean, then? When HeÕs telling His disciples here, with this present tense verb, that theirs Òis the Kingdom of GodÓ? Well, what HeÕs communicating is that their future in the Kingdom is certain. Their future in the Kingdom is secure. In fact, they already have certain rights to it. They have an inheritance, which is the Kingdom. But they are not in the Kingdom yet. They one day would be, but theyÕre not there yet. That truth is so certain, so settled that in the present day, they could take that to the bank. The same idea is conveyed over in Colossians 1:12-14, where Paul there, heÕs encouraging believers in Colosse to Ògive thanks to the Father.Ó And then he says this of God the Father, that He, Òwho has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. Who rescued us from the authority of darkness and transferred us to the Kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.Ó And again, I ask, are you and I already living in Òthe Kingdom of His loveÓ? Answer: Potholes, cavities, No! But so certain is our future in GodÕs coming Kingdom that Paul, in Colossians, could speak of it like itÕs already there. 

James, does the same thing in James 2:5. He says, ÒDid not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the Kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?Ó ThatÕs precisely what Jesus is saying here in this first beatitude. His disciples, His followers, the Òpoor of this world.Ó They are poor economically, yes. Remember they had all left businesses and fishing ventures to follow Him. But most importantly, they were poor spiritually. Though the world might call them poor and the world might call them wretched, and though the world might feel sorry for them and scorn them. In reality, His followers were already eminently rich, theyÕre Òrich in faithÓ, as it says in James 2:5. They were already Òheirs of the KingdomÓ as James 2:5 indicates. Not yet in the Kingdom but assured that one day they will be in that Kingdom. So, they were ÒblessedÓ and they could call themselves Òblessed.Ó ÒBlessed are the poor.Ó ThatÕs one beatitude. WeÕve just worked through The Plight of the Poor.

The second beatitude here in JesusÕ Sermon on the Plain, is found in the first part of verse 21, where it says, ÒBlessed are those who hunger now, for you shall be satisfied.Ó Our second point, if youÕre taking notes, is: 

THE FAITH OF THE FAMISHED
Now, in working through that first beatitude, we saw that the poor had this spiritual meaning. We linked up with Matthew 5:3, and we see that HeÕs referring here to the Òpoor in spirit.Ó Well, the same is true of this word ÒhungerÓ here in verse 21. 

Jesus is speaking in spiritual terms. HeÕs not speaking, necessarily in physical terms. One of the reasons we know that is that there is no inherent moral value in being physically hungry. A person is not more inherently holy or pious, their salvation is not more inherently secure, simply because of the fact that their stomach is growling. In fact, if youÕve ever experienced that symptom of being ÒhangryÓ, I think thatÕs actually in our dictionaries now. You know that sometimes the exact opposite of that is true. YouÕre usually not acting more pious, more holy when youÕre hungry. You get grumpy, right? LetÕs take that to another extreme, logically. LetÕs think about a triple murderer. An unrepentant triple murderer whoÕs on death row who goes on a hunger strike. Is he pious? Is he godly? Is he holy? I use the key word, unrepentant. Simply by virtue of being hungry, is he ÒblessedÓ, using JesusÕ terms? No. ThatÕs not what Jesus has in view here. 

Again, we get a clue for what Jesus means here, by going back to MatthewÕs Gospel. Turn with me, back to Matthew 5 once more. This time, weÕre going to look at verse 6. Back to the Sermon on the Mount. In MatthewÕs recordings of JesusÕ Beatitudes there, Matthew 5:6 gives us an important interpretive key to understanding whatÕs going on in our text.
Look at Matthew 5:6, ÒBlessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.Ó ThatÕs the key. The one who is ÒblessedÓ is the one who hungers and not only hungers but who thirsts. Note what he hungers and what he thirsts for, Òrighteousness.Ó What does that mean? What does that entail? To hunger and thirst for righteousness? Well, there are a few things to mention in defining that term. 

First off, to hunger for righteousness, properly speaking a person must himself or herself be righteous. But wait a second, youÕre thinking Romans 3:10 says Òthere is none righteous, not even one?Ó ThatÕs right. Philippians 3:9 though says that if we are in Christ, if we are saved though we have no righteousness or our own inherently and naturally, we do receive the righteousness of God through faith in Christ. So, in order to hunger for righteousness, one must be righteous. They must have already been declared righteous by God, who has imparted His righteousness to them. And then, practically speaking. To hunger for righteousness means to have a hunger for God Himself. Meaning, to increasingly find satisfaction, true satisfaction, lasting satisfaction in knowing that you know the living God. Knowing that you know Him through the faith that He has imparted to you in His Son. 

Now, you might be thinking that sounds awfully abstract. That sounds vague. Can you give me some examples of what you mean? Sure. To Òhunger and thirst for righteousnessÓ means to have the cravings of the Psalmist in Psalm 42:1-2, ÒAs the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.Ó
Or how about David, in Psalm 63. This is what it means to Òhunger and thirst for righteousness.Ó To be like David, to feel those same pangs of praise that he had in Psalm 63:1-5, ÒO God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly; my soul thirst for You, my flesh yearns for You, in a dry and weary land without water. Thus, I have beheld You in the sanctuary, to see Your power and Your glory. Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips will laud You. Thus, I will bless You as long as I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name. My soul is satisfied as with fatness and richness, and my mouth offers praises with lips of joyful songs.Ó

Do either of those describe you? Psalm 42, Psalm 63, thatÕs what it means to Òhunger and thirst for righteousness.Ó To desire, to earnestly strive to draw nearer and nearer to the One who saved us. To the One who ultimately is righteous. To the One who through His shed blood made us righteous in the eyes of a holy God. And for those who, back to our text in Luke 6, to those who Òhunger and thirst for righteousnessÓ, or Òwho hunger now.Ó We here from our Lord here in Luke 6:21 that they are Òblessed.Ó They are ÒblessedÓ because it says, Òfor you shall be satisfied.Ó

Meaning, a future day is coming, namely, in the coming Kingdom of Christ where those who hungered and thirsted for righteousness in this life  who kept their eyes on Christ in this life who stayed their affections on Christ in this life will be, it says, shall be, future Òsatisfied.Ó ThatÕs a reference to our desires, our hunger, for righteousness. To have that Psalm 63 mentality fulfilled in the coming Kingdom of God. For those who have hungered and thirsted for righteousness in this life. For those who have sought their greatest satisfaction and joy and delight in this life, from God theyÕll be richly rewarded spiritually satisfied in the Kingdom to come. TheyÕll be at GodÕs banquet table, where the focus wonÕt be focused so much on food or how full weÕre getting, like itÕs a heavenly Hometown Buffet, but rather, the focus is going to be on the One who laid out the spread God Himself. A cross-reference to jot down would be Psalm 107:9, which says, ÒFor He has satisfied the thirsty soul, and the hungry soul He has filled with what is good.Ó

Now, of course, in a sense, thatÕs already true. For us today, for we today who hunger and thirst for righteousness. But it can be true in the ultimate sense when we are one day in GodÕs presence. For those who hunger ÒnowÓ in the present-day Luke 6:21, the words of Jesus we Òshall be satisfied.Ó ÒBlessed are those who hunger nowÓ because we Òshall be satisfied.Ó Blessed are those who have that appetite for righteousness now. Blessed are those who are hungry for that more intimate sense of communion with the living God now. Blessed are those who pursue righteousness, holiness, godliness, with the SpiritÕs help, now. Blessed are those who, now, meditate on those words and think those thoughts listed in Philippians 4:8, ÒWhatever is true, whatever is dignified, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable.Ó
Because those who are truly righteous now. Those who hunger for righteousness now. Those who hunger for holiness now. Those who hunger for God Himself now. What Jesus is getting at here is that they will have their longings, their cravings for more intimate fellowship with the God above their communion with Him intensified, satiated, satisfied in the future and coming Kingdom. That day is coming. ÒBlessed are those who hunger now, for you shall be satisfied.Ó

Well, with that we come to our LordÕs third beatitude, still in verse 21, where He says, ÒBlessed are those who cry now, for you shall laugh.Ó WeÕve considered: The Plight of the Poor. WeÕve looked at, The Fate of the Famished. HereÕs our third heading, if youÕre taking notes:

THE WAY OF THE WEEPING
We live in a fallen, sad, broken world. One which has been marred by sin. One which is shot through with pain and grief and suffering. Eliphaz, one of JobÕs counselors, he got this one right, when he said in Job 5:7, that Òman is born for trouble, as sparks fly upward.Ó Paul, says in Acts 14:22, that ÒThrough many afflictions, we must enter the Kingdom of God.Ó For some of you, those words immediately resonate. YouÕre thinking, yes, I know that experience. IÕve been in trouble or through trouble. IÕve experienced afflictions. IÕm well acquainted with both. For some of you, youÕre thinking about some sort of physical ailment. A sore back. Partial blindness in old age. Concerning dark spots thatÕs grown on your skin. That lack of balance when you suddenly shoot up and try to stand up. Creaky achy joints. For some, itÕs relational strife. A daughter who walked away from the faith. A son who doesnÕt call anymore. A church member whoÕs giving you side-eye and doesnÕt seem to like you anymore. 

The reality is, we live in a sad, dark, depressing world. Sometimes, whether youÕll admit this to the person sitting next to you this morning, or not, the griefs of this world bring tears to our eyes. But the real realities of grief and sorrow for us, though the grief and sorrow are really bad and real realities. WeÕre not always very honest with those realities. HereÕs what I mean. Though we are, by definition, people of truth we live by a book that is called the Word of Truth. Though we worship a God, and we have an outlook on reality that is true, itÕs based in reality. ItÕs rooted in a God who made us and formed us and is taking us somewhere. Though we are people of truth for some of us, we are in denial when it comes to facing up to the reality that life in this fallen world can be sad. Circumstances in this broken world can be grievous. The tear ducts that God built us with, are there for a reason.

But why? Why do we bury our heads in the sand when sorrows like sea billows roll? WhatÕs the testimony of scripture? What has God said to us in His word? Well, He said things like this in Psalm 119:136, ÒMy eyes shed streams of water, because they do not keep Your law.Ó Or James 4:9, says, ÒBe miserable and mourn and cry. Let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy to gloom.Ó The Messiah who was promised to Israel, in Isaiah 53:3, it is said that He would be Òa man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.Ó Then here in our beatitude in Luke 6:21, that Messiah would say, Òblessed are those who cry now.Ó Blessed are those who weep. Blessed who are those who sob. Blessed are those with tear-streamed cheeks. Blessed are those who on some days, if theyÕre being honest, they donÕt want to do this anymore. 

Why are they blessed? Well, because for them for the faithful ones who are poor in spirit for those who hunger for righteousness, those tears are ultimately going to be turned to joy and laughter, in ChristÕs coming Kingdom. ÒBlessed are those who cry now, for [and this is future oriented] you shall laugh.Ó What youÕre lacking now, ultimately joy, youÕll have one day, later. 

God spoke of this, prophetically, to the prophet Jeremiah. You could turn with me over to Jeremiah 31:10. Right dead-center in your Bibles. IÕm going to give us a running start here, and read a few verses, and then weÕll get to the point here. Jeremiah 31:10 says:
ÒHear the word of Yahweh, O nations.Ó  ÒDeclare in the coastlands far away, and say, ÔHe who dispersed Israel will gather him and keep him as a shepherd keeps his flock.Õ For Yahweh has ransomed Jacob and redeemed him from the hand of him who was stronger than he. They will come [this is future oriented] and sing for joy on the height of Zion, and they will be radiant over the goodness of Yahweh; over the grain and the new wine and the oil, and over the young of the flock and the herd; and their soul will be like a watered garden, and they will never waste away again. Then the virgin will be glad in the dance, and the young men and the old, together, for I will turn their mourning into joy and will comfort them and give them gladness for their sorrow.Ó These words were written all those years ago, to Jeremiah, this prophet to Judah, are speaking of MessiahÕs future Kingdom. Where we see it here, sorrow turned into gladness. Whereas we see, back in our Gospel account, LukeÕs Gospel, chapter 6, crying turned into laughter. 

I canÕt possibly round out this thought without reminding us of the words of Revelation 21, where the apostle John describes, through the SpiritÕs movement, the coming new heaven and new earth. He says:
ÒThen I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, ÔBehold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain. The first things passed away.ÕÓ

It is difficult every time I read that passage, not to read it through tears. As I think, as we think of what awaits us. To put that in contrast and think about all of the tears that have been shed on this earth, by the LordÕs faithful followers. Tears shed by parents of a stillborn child. Tears shed by that single person who earnestly desires a spouse. Tears shed by that teenager whoÕs been elbowed out of that friend group he or she thought they were a part of. Tears shed by that medical practitioner who has witnessed, first-hand, the horrors of abortion. Tears shed by that first responder who witnesses the carnage of that murder-suicide. 

For the follower of Christ, those tears are temporary. They will be shed only on this earth. But in the life to come in the Kingdom there will be none of that. There will only be joy, laughter, even. The pain and suffering of this life. The sobbing of the godly in this life will be reversed. A day is coming, as it says in Psalm 126:5, where Òthose who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy.Ó 

That brings us to our fourth and final beatitude in the Sermon on the Plain. Where Jesus said this in Luke 6:22, ÒBlessed are you when men hate you, and exclude you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man.Ó As weÕve looked a: The Plight of the Poor / The Fate of the Famished / The Way of the Weeping. HereÕs our fourth heading:

ÒTHE LOT OF THE LOATHED
As if these first three beatitudes didnÕt lay it out clearly enough, in terms of the realities of living for Christ in this life. the delayed rewards of obedience in the life to come. Jesus really drives it home for us here in verse 22 with this fourth beatitude. 

Now, there are a few things to note here. For starters, note that Jesus does not use the word ÒifÓ here. No. He uses the word Òwhen.Ó Blessed are you ÒwhenÓ men hate you and ÒwhenÓ men exclude you and ÒwhenÓ men insult you and ÒwhenÓ men scorn your name as evil. In other words, what Jesus is describing here is going to happen. ItÕs not a matter of ÒifÓ, itÕs a matter of Òwhen.Ó note those four verbs: ÒHate.Ó ÒExclude.Ó ÒInsult.Ó ÒScorn.Ó Does anyone here like being on the receiving end of any one of those? No. Of course not. We all prefer to be loved and welcomed and honored and preferred and praised and adored. We think weÕre pretty great and we think that other people should see how great we are just like we think we are. ThatÕs the natural human condition. 

But thatÕs not how it goes. ThatÕs not how itÕs promised to go, for the follower of Christ. Instead, you see it here, verse 22 Ð Christ told his disciples they would be Òhate[d], the word is detested literally, pursued with hatred. Like people are going out of their way to hate you. He tells them theyÕll be Òexclude[d]Ó, disowned, ostracized, particularly by those who are closest to us family, friends. Then He says youÕll be Òinsult[ed]Ó, reviled, disparaged, denounced. Then He says theyÕd be Òscorn[ed], spurned, possibly even defamed. And then He gives the reason why this would happen, still in verse 22.  His disciples would face hatred and exclusion and insults and scorn ÒFor the sake of the Son of Man.Ó They donÕt face those things because theyÕre big jerks. They face it, because theyÕre witnessing for Jesus Christ with their life and with their testimony. 
Now, this gets back to application to our lives today and showcasing what Jesus said to His Jewish audience right in front of them in the first century does have application to us today. 

To declare with your mouth that Jesus is Lord  
To declare that God has raised Him from the dead 
To believe in Biblical truths about heaven and hell 
To stand on what the Bible teaches about sin and judgment and salvation 
To affirm what God has said about creating all things in six literal days 
To affirm what God has said about His design for marriage and for parenting 
To affirm His design of there being only two genders, one man, one woman 
To stand on the truth that Jesus is the only way, He is the way the truth and the life, and the no one comes to the Father but through Him 

Guess what thatÕs going to get you? ItÕs not going to get you promotions. ItÕs not going to give you, if you proclaim that boldly, more dinner-party invites. ItÕs not going to get you any political appointments, by taking those positions today. What is it going to bring you? Hate, exclusion, insults, scorn. Because you love and you live for the Son of Man. Because you love and live for Jesus Christ. The reality is you have signed up for a lifetime of trouble. The reality is you are headed straight into the headwinds of persecution and difficulty. ThatÕs the truth. Now, does that mean you crumple up and fold and collapse? Does that mean you head for the hills and live like a monk? Does that mean you wimp out on your witness? No! ItÕs full steam ahead. Knowing that those things are coming. 
What did Jesus say in John 15:18? ÒIf the world hates you, know that is has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, ÔA salve is not greater than his master.Õ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you.Ó

We are privileged people. WeÕve been living in this privileged protection of American Christianity for 250 years now 250 next summer, right? We should heed more words like these in I Peter 4:13, ÒBut to the degree you are sharing the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you.Ó I would suspect that most of us arenÕt being insulted enough like weÕre called to be. For standing for the name of Jesus Christ. 

That brings us to our fifth and final point this morning. WeÕve looked at, The Plight of the Poor / The Fate of the Famished / The Way of the Weeping / The Lot of the Loathed
Last is:

THE JOY OF THE JUSTIFIED
Verse 23, this continues on the thought in verse 22, where Jesus says:
ÒBe glad in that day and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For their fathers were doing the same things to the prophets.Ó With these words, our Lord is really putting the cherry on top of what HeÕs been saying in each of these other four beatitudes. Everything up to this point in this Sermon on the Plain was about Jesus telling His disciples that they need to take this longer view, this eternal perspective of their lives here on earth.

Here in verse 23, Jesus is actually ratcheting things up. HeÕs gone from these declarative statements, Ò. . . blessed are you . . .Ó Ò. . . blessed are you . . .Ó Ò. . . blessed are you . . .Ó To now issuing these two commands in verse 23. These are imperatives. These are things His followers must do when they are hated, when they are scorned, He says, Òbe gladÓ, ÒLeap for joy.Ó When people hate you and exclude you and scorn you and insult you. HeÕs saying Ð ÒJump for joy!Ó ÒCheer up!Ó From the worldÕs perspective, itÕs odd. ItÕs not what weÕre used to hearing. WeÕre used to cheering up and jumping for joy when we get something we really want not persecution, insults, or scorn. But thatÕs what it means to live the truly blessed life, according to Jesus. 

Then, He attaches the reward, middle of verse 23, weÕre to Òbe gladÓ and we are to Òleap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven.Ó A day is coming, like Paul would say in II Corinthians 4:17-18, where all would be made right.  Paul says:
ÒFor our momentary, light affliction is working out for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.Ó Meaning, the wicked will not prosper forever. Our trials and our grief and our suffering will not last forever. Our sicknesses and our ailments will not last forever. ItÕs all ÒmomentaryÓ and ÒlightÓ especially when in comparison to that Òeternal weight of gloryÓ that awaits us. 

I donÕt know everybodyÕs status this morning, and what youÕre going through, but I pray that those words, from Paul, through the Spirit through Paul, would be an encouragement.

Last, these words at the end of verse 23, Jesus says:
ÒFor their fathers were doing the same things to the prophets.Ó You read through the Old Testament; you know that men like Isiah and Jeremiah and Daniel, suffered for their witness. Go to Hebrews 11 and to the stories told there, Hebrews 11:36, Òand others experienced mockings and floggings, yes, also chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword. They went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, mistreated (of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in desolate places and mountains and caves and holes in the ground.Ó That does not sound like living your best life now. 

But you know what? When it came to prophets like that, from the Old Testament, who suffered so greatly, thatÕs who Jesus has in mind here, at the end of vers 23. Their persecutors, the ones who brought them such great suffering. TheyÕre not the ones who got the last word. Whose word are we reading right now? GodÕs Word. All these years and centuries later, we are still reading from and benefitting from GodÕs Word. Meaning, when it came to the suffering of those prophets, God got the last word. He always gets the last word. 

ThatÕs the point here to land. Jesus, what HeÕs saying to His disciples in His beatitudes HeÕs saying to these disciples on the plain that yes, there will be, in this life, storms of opposition. And yes, there will be fires of persecution. But the kings and Kingdoms of this world will not, ultimately win. They are temporary. They will fade away. But an eternal Kingdom is coming. And for those who have put our faith in Jesus our soon and coming King, our stake in His Kingdom is secure.

So, what are we called to do today? Knowing those future Kingdom realities exist, is not to panic, not to worry, not to give up hope. But to press on. To endure. To be willing to wear a few wounds for the cause of Christ. To be willing to bear a few scars for His sake. To live out Romans 5:2 as we:
ÒBoast in our afflictions, knowing that affliction brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope.Ó ThatÕs what it means to live the blessed life. 

LetÕs pray.
God, we thank You for this time in Your Word, this morning. We thank You for this treasure trove YouÕve given us in these beatitudes from Jesus, in Luke 6. I do pray that working through this would benefit us, as we consider our lives here on this planet, in these bodies of flesh. As we look ahead and look forward to the world to come, even the Kingdom to come. Help us to maintain an eternal focus. A God-glorifying focus on the trials and the sufferings that will surely be before us. Strengthen our faith. Strengthen our witness for You, God. We pray in JesusÕ name. Amen.