Luke 06.27-30 What we will study this morning
in the Sermon on the Level (part 03) is the seven commands that Jesus
gives to His followers to love our enemies and unbelievers (Luke 06.27-30).
Jesus started the Sermon on the Level giving a description of
how a person who is in a right relationship with God should conduct his life,
contrasting that with what the Pharisees taught, who were concerned about
external qualities, while Jesus was concerned with the internal, the heart.
Jesus declared that those who are spiritually poor, spiritually hungry, those
who weep over their unrighteousness, and are ignored by the world are blessed (Luke 06.20-26
| Sermon on the Level part 02).
Luke 06.27 “But I say to you (you all) who hear” In the Greek, the word
for “But”
is (G235) alla alla. It is a word in the original Greek that is used for great contrasts. Here again we see that Jesus speaks in
great contrast to what the Rabbis of that day commonly taught. Jesus
continues with His Sermon on the Level, speaking primarily to the disciples,
but also to the whole group of people that are gathered around Him (“You” in Luke 06.27
is written in the second person plural, so it means you all). If you remember from Sermon on the Level (part 01) (Luke 06.17-19),
we learned that the audience that Jesus was speaking to was the newly
appointed Apostles, (referred to as “them” in Luke 06.17),
the “large
crowd of His disciples” (the ones
not chosen to be Apostles, Luke 06.17) and the curious ones from “from all Judea
and Jerusalem and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon” (Luke 06.17). This teaching was directed
primarily towards His disciples, because Paul tells us “a natural man does not accept the things
of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand
them, because they are spiritually appraised.” (1Corinthians 02.14)
In this portion of the Sermon on
the Level, Jesus tells us that His true followers are to be distinct from the
world because of their supernatural love that does what is right, even to
towards those who are hostile to the Gospel. Jesus gives seven distinct
commands that involve a continuous or repeated action in Luke 06.27-30:
“love your
enemies”, “do good to those who hate you”, “bless those who
curse you”, “pray for those who mistreat you”, “offer him the
other also”, “Give to everyone who asks of you”, “and whoever takes
away what is yours, do not demand it back.”
01. Love Your Enemies (Luke 06.27)
Luke 06.27 “love your enemies” The Greek word for “love” is
(G25) agapaw agapao. We know that this is
the self-sacrificing love that Jesus wants us to have.
During the time of Jesus, the
prevailing attitude amongst the Jews was intolerance for any Gentile,
especially the Romans who now occupied their land. They literally had a hatred
for the Romans, or anyone who was aligned with Rome, such as Matthew the tax
collector (Luke 05.27-39 | The Saviour of Sinners). Maimonides, a Jewish scholar from medieval times noted
that the Talmud said that a Jew should not rescue a Gentile who has fallen into
the Sea.
When we studied Luke 06.12-16
(Choosing The Twelve) we noted that
one of the Apostles that Jesus chose was “Simon who was called
the Zealot” (Luke 06.15) which means that Simon was a
member of a radical, terroristic group called the Zealots. This was a group who were fervently dedicated and
devoted to the Law of God, and would use any and all means necessary, including
kidnapping and murder against anyone who was going to oppose them, especially
the Romans who were occupying the land of Israel. Anyone
who was caught or suspected of being in partnership to the Romans, be it a
Roman or a Jewish man, like Matthew the tax collector, the Zealots found
nothing wrong with violently murdering them! By doing so, they believed and
taught that they were doing God’s work. Since
the prevailing thought of the time was not to love your enemies, you can see
the problems that arose simply because Jesus was telling His followers to love
their enemies.
Having hatred and wanting to avenge your enemies was not taught
in the Old Testament (Exodus 23.04-05; Leviticus 19.18; Proverbs 24.17; Proverbs
25.21-22). The word “neighbor” is anyone in need (Luke 10.29-37,
the Good Samaritan), not just to fellow Jews.
02. Don’t Seek Revenge (Luke 06.27)
Instead
of seeking revenge, the followers of Jesus are to “do good to those who hate you,”
(Luke 06.27). The Greek word for “good”
here is (G2573) kalwv kalos and it means to do good to, benefit one. (Joseph
Thayer, Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of
the New Testament [Peabody; Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 2000], p323)
So in context, Jesus is telling His followers that they are to love their
enemies and do things that will benefit their enemies. Solomon wrote that “If your enemy
is hungry, give him food to eat; And if he is thirsty, give him water to drink;
For you will heap (to pile up in the Hebrew) burning coals on his head, And YHWH will
reward you.” (Proverbs 25.21-22) What Solomon meant was that
as heaping coals upon them melts metals, so is the heart softened by kindness.
In the
New Testament, there are examples and commands to love your enemies and to do good
towards those who hate you (Acts 07.60; Romans 12.17-21; 1Thessalonians 05.15;
1Peter
03.08-09). When the followers of
Jesus encountered hatred and animosity, they are to respond by desiring what is
best for those who hate them. By doing what is
best for those who hate the followers of Jesus, those followers demonstrate
that it is a supernatural (G26 agaph) agape love that only comes from God. The
creditability of the Gospel is proven when the followers of Jesus love even
their enemies and do good to those who hate them (Galatians 06.10; 3John 01.11).
03. Bless Those Who Curse You (Luke 06.28)
Not only are the followers of Jesus are to love their
enemies, do good to those who hate them, but they are also to “bless those who
curse you” (Luke 06.28). This means we show our love for our enemies
by the way that we talk about them. Even though they may speak evil about us,
our response is to say good things. Stephen, when he was being stoned to death,
fell to his knees and “he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this
sin against them!” Having said this, he fell asleep.” (Acts 07.60)
Paul writes instructing that the followers of Jesus are to “Bless those who persecute you; bless and
do not curse.” (Romans 12.14) and “when we are reviled, we bless; when we are
persecuted, we endure;” (1Corinthians 04.12). James writes that those
who profess to be followers of Jesus ought to have control over their tongues
in James
03.01-12.
This command by Jesus to “bless those who
curse you” (Luke 06.28) does not mean that we don’t warn
unbelievers about the consequences of their sin (Matthew 23.13-36). But when we do
warn them of the consequences of their sin, we need to have a real desire to
see them repent and not just lash out at them (Romans 09.01-03).
04. Pray For Your Enemies (Luke 06.28)
The fourth command by Jesus here
for His followers is “pray for those who mistreat you.” (Luke 06.28)
The Greek word for “mistreat” is (G1908) ephreazw epereazo and it means to insult, to treat abusively, use despitefully. Remember that
Jesus said it is a blessing when people ignore us or treat us badly for the
sake of the Son of Man (Luke 06.22).
How are we to pray for those who
treat us in an abusive, despiteful way? We are not to have the attitude like
James and John, who wanted to call down fire from heaven to consume a Samaritan
village in Luke
09.51-56 because the inhabitants of that village were not willing to
receive Jesus. Instead we are to praying for the
forgiveness of their sins and their salvation.
05. Turn The Other Cheek (Luke 06.29)
Luke 06.29 “Whoever hits you on the cheek” Here Jesus is
speaking specifically to His followers, instructing each one individually in a
group and He tells them to “offer him the other also”
Most
people, including the churched often misunderstand this passage. They will
quote this passage to justify why they believe that CHRISTians are to be
pacifists, etc. But what they forget or don’t know is that Jesus told His
Apostles to buy a sword for protection if they don’t have one in Luke 22.36. Jesus
was not prohibiting His followers from defending themselves for survival’s
sake. What Jesus is commanding
His followers here, is that they should not defend themselves when we are
insulted for His names sake. In that culture, to slap someone on the cheek
wasn’t a physical attack, but instead it was attack on that person’s honor.
Knowing this will help you in
understanding why it was such a humiliation for the soldiers to slap Jesus on
the cheek and pluck his beard (Isaiah 50.06; Matthew 26.67; Mark 14.65;
Luke
22.63-64; John 19.03), one of the greatest indignities
that can be done to a man with a beard in that culture. Personal revenge should
never be the mark of a person who has been redeemed by the blood of Jesus;
instead we ought to be marked by love for our enemies. If we truly love our
enemies (Luke
06.27), we are commanded to put up with our honor being defamed by
turning the other cheek and not fighting back. To turn the other cheek is to
accept hostility and having our rights trampled on without hatred or revenge,
and instead to pay them back with love and kindness (Proverbs 25.21-22).
Luke 06.29 “and whoever takes away your coat, do not withhold your shirt
from him either.” The Greek word for “coat” here is (G2440) imation himation and it
means an outer coat, while the word for “shirt” here is (G5509) citwn
chiton and it refers to the inner garment. The order is reversed in Matthew 05.40,
which seems to be the legal process for a debt. If your lose your inner garment
because of the law, the outer one must go as well, for the outer one was the
most valuable one. The inner garment was worn to work in, and the coat was worn
when not working or when they traveled. Most people at this time only owned one
coat or cloak, which was also used as a blanket when they were sleeping. Jesus
is telling His followers that they are to be willing to give up their most
valuable piece of clothing, and even their inner garment or shirt as well!
The Mosaic Law required that any coat taken as a pledge
had to be returned before sunset (Exodus 22.26; Deuteronomy 24.10-13). To keep
the coat would be a serious offense. But when that happens, the followers of
Jesus are told not to fight back, but instead to love and minister to those who
persecute them, even if that means losing your shirt also! The followers of
Jesus can obey this because they know that their Father in Heaven will take care
of them and provide all that they need (Philippians 04.19).
06. Give To All
Who Ask (Luke 06.30)
Jesus next commands His
followers to “Give
to everyone who asks of you” (Luke 06.30), which deals with lending, as noted in
the account recorded for us by Matthew in Matthew 05.42. This is something that the Mosaic Law
commands as well in Deuteronomy 15.07-10. Solomon wrote, “Do not withhold good from those to whom it
is due, When it is in your power to do it.
Do not say to your neighbor, “Go, and come back, And tomorrow I will give it,” When you have it with you.”
(Proverbs
03.27-28) “One who is gracious to a poor man lends to YHWH, And He
will repay him for his good deed.” (Proverbs 19.17) “While the righteous gives and does not hold back.” (Proverbs 21.26) “He who is generous will be blessed, For he gives some of
his food to the poor.” (Proverbs 22.09)
The idea here is that the person
who asks has a legitimate need, for Scripture condemns laziness and not working
when able to (Proverbs
06.06-12; Proverbs 20.04; Proverbs 24.30-34; Proverbs
26.13-15; 2Thessalonians 03.10). Just because a person
may take advantage of your generosity as a CHRISTian and not repay the loan
should not keep a follower of Christ from graciously and lovingly meeting their
need.
07. Don’t Demand
Your Rights (Luke 06.30)
The seventh command here is
Jesus telling His followers that “whoever takes away what is yours, do not demand it back.”
(Luke 06.30)
Jesus now addresses a situation when someone steals from a follower of His. Jesus
says this in the present active imperative in a prohibition, which means do not have the habit of asking for
repayment. Remember, we have a higher calling, we are to love our enemies,
we are to be gracious and not seeking revenge, for we are to “Never take
your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, “VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY,” says
the Lord.” (Romans 12.19).
Jesus has given us an example of
how to act and never seeking revenge in 1Peter 02.20-24.
In Matthew’s account of the
Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 05.01-07.29, He states that His followers “are the salt of
the earth” and “the light of the world” (Matthew 05.13-14), and sometimes the
salt stings and the light exposes sin.
Sinners show their hatred by ignoring us (Luke 06.22),
insulting us (Luke
06.28), physically abusing us (Luke 06.29), and suing us (Luke 06.30). This is something we
must expect (Philippians
01.29; 2Timothy 03.12) as followers of Jesus.
Jesus was the perfect example in
all of these commands in Luke 06.27-30: “love your enemies”, “do good to those
who hate you”, “bless those who curse you”, “pray for those who mistreat you”, “offer him the
other also”, “Give to everyone who asks of you”, “and whoever takes
away what is yours, do not demand it back.”
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