True Blessing: Embracing God's Upside Down Kingdom - Luke 6:17-26
Notes
Transcript
Handout
FCF: The struggle to find our identity and worth in what the world values (being popular, wealthy, comfortable) instead of embracing the counter-cultural, cross-centered identity Jesus calls "blessed.
Reflection Question:
Looking at his disciples, he said:
“Blessed are you who are poor,
for yours is the kingdom of God.
Reflection Question: What does it mean to be blessed?
Sermon Opening:
"If I stopped you on the street and asked you to define the word 'blessed' or 'happy'—what is the first image that pops into your mind? Is it a promotion? A debt-free bank account? A healthy, successful family? Is it possible that our definition of 'blessed' is completely upside down from the one Jesus uses?"
Text Opening:
Our text today is from Luke chapter 6.
Last week, we saw Jesus call His disciples. Now, He comes down the mountain to a 'level place'—a plain. He is surrounded by two groups: those committed to following Him, and a massive crowd desperate for healing.
He went down with them and stood on a level place. A large crowd of his disciples was there and a great number of people from all over Judea, from Jerusalem, and from the coastal region around Tyre and Sidon, who had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases. Those troubled by impure spirits were cured, and the people all tried to touch him, because power was coming from him and healing them all.
Point 1: Restore the Hurting
Explain:
My first point is Restore the Hurting
There are two things to note from these short verses. The first is Jesus power. The second, and I think more important is that they came to hear Jesus.
There are two crowds, the first is a crowd of disciples and the second are people who need help. The crowd of disciples are more than the 12. Remember Evan last week covered this verse 13 says, From a crowd of disciples, Jesus picked 12 to be apostles.
The word disciple means in Greek is μαθητής (mathetase). It means to learn.
A disciple learns to live like their teacher.
A disciple is somebody who learns to live like Jesus.
That’s the first crowd. There’s another crowd as well.
There are people from all over Israel as far south as Jerusalem and up northwest from the coast in Tyre and Sidon. All sorts of people have heard about Jesus.
Our text says that they have come be healed and to hear him.
Their motivations are to be healed of their diseases and to hear from Jesus.
One group wants to learn to be like Jesus. The other group wants to be healed and hear from Jesus.
Illustrate:
Imagine walking into the MercyOne ER. In the the ER, you have crowds of people who are hurting. They have broken bones, fevers, and chronic pain. They aren't there to learn about anatomy, physiology, or pharmacology; they are there because they are desperate for relief. They just want the Doctor to fix it.
But right behind that group, is another. They are wearing white coats, holding clipboards, and listening to every word the head of ER says. These are the residents— the doctors in training - the students. They aren't there to get help; they are there to learn how to do what the Surgeon does.
In Luke 6, the "Crowd" is the patient in the ER. The "Disciple" is the resident in the white coat. And the beauty of Jesus is that He doesn't lock the doors to the ER just because you aren't a medical student yet. He welcomes the patients, heals them, and eventually, invites them to put on a white coat and learn from Him.
Connection to Apply:
"So, which one are you today? Are you the patient who is just hurting, or are you the student ready to learn? Jesus welcomes both. But notice this: whether you are the patient or the student, you have to be in the room with the Doctor to get what you need. You won’t get what you need from the parking lot."
Apply:
It doesn't matter if you have been here 45 years or 45 minutes—we all need to be near the Great Physician.
If you are here today as a "Patient"—overwhelmed by life, sickness, or addiction—Jesus invites you to come close. He doesn't require you to understand everything before He helps you. But you do have to step into the treatment room.
Step 1: Bring your burden to Him in prayer this week. Don't try to fix it yourself.
Step 2: Don't try to heal in isolation. Sick people don't get better by hiding; they get better in a hospital among others.
If you are here as a "Student"—you’ve been healed and now you want to learn—your job is to help the patients.
So here is the invitation for both groups: Join us in the "treatment room." We have a prayer group meeting tomorrow night at my house. It’s a place where you can say, "I’m hurting," and receive prayer, or say, "I’m learning," and pray for others. If you can't make that, stick around for the potluck today. The point is: don't stay in the parking lot. Come inside, get close to Jesus, and let His power touch your life.
Now, we will read on. The crowds have come to hear Jesus. Let’s hear his word.
Point 2: Rejoice in Persecution (when people Hate you because of Jesus.)
Looking at his disciples, he said:
“Blessed are you who are poor,
for yours is the kingdom of God.
Blessed are you who hunger now,
for you will be satisfied.
Blessed are you who weep now,
for you will laugh.
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.
“Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their ancestors treated the prophets.
Explain:
My second Point is Re joicein Persecution
This section is commonly known as the Beatitudes. Here, Jesus begins establishing the theme for his entire ministry: The Upside-Down Kingdom.
Jesus looks at His disciples and says four shocking things. He says you are Blessed if you are poor, if you are hungry, if you weep, and if people hate you.
We need to stop right there. The word "Blessed" comes from the Greek word makarios. It doesn't mean "happy" in the sense of a fleeting emotion. Instead, "blessed" describes a state of existence. It means you are in a position of favor with God.
So, how can being poor, hungry, and hated be a position of favor?
In our world, the rich are "blessed" because they are self-sufficient. If they have a problem, they write a check. They don’t need anyone.
But in the Kingdom of God, self-sufficiency is a liability.
Jesus says the poor are blessed because they have no self-reliance. Because they have no resources of their own, they are forced to rely entirely on the King.
The Poor are empty of money, so they are filled with the Kingdom.
The Hungry are empty of food, so they are filled with God’s provision.
The Weepers are empty of joy because they see the brokenness of the world, so they will be filled with God's comfort.
In the Upside-Down Kingdom, you cannot be filled with God if you are already full of yourself.
In the Kingdom of God we rely on the resources of God.
Then Jesus moves to the fourth group: "Blessed are you when people hate you... because of me." Notice the connection. He just described a life that cares for the poor and weeps over injustice. When you start living that way—when you start living Upside-Down—you become a threat to the world’s system.
Illustrate:
If you look at the organizational chart of any major corporation or worldly kingdom, it looks like a pyramid. The CEO or King is at the top, and the thousands of workers are at the bottom holding him up. The energy flows up. The money flows up. The people exist to support the King.
Jesus takes that pyramid and flips it upside down.
In His Kingdom, the King is at the bottom. He is the foundation. He bears the weight.
The energy and the resources don't flow up to Him;
they flow up from Him to the people who are hungry and hurting.
This is why the poor are blessed. In a worldly system, they are crushed at the bottom. In Jesus' upside-down system, they are the ones receiving the most care.
Apply:
So, we have a choice today. We can live right-side up, or we can live upside down.
Living 'Right-Side Up' means you rely on yourself. You fight to stay on top of the pyramid. You numb your hunger with temporary things so you don't have to feel the pain of the world. It’s comfortable, but it’s godless.
Living 'Upside Down' means you embrace your poverty. You admit, 'I can't do this on my own.' You let yourself feel the hunger so you can be filled by God. And most dangerously, you start caring for the people the world wants to crush.
And listen, when you start living this way—when you start caring for the poor and the addicted instead of judging them—the 'Right-Side Up' world is going to hate you. Because you are disrupting their system.
If you start fighting for the sobriety of people in this city, the people making money off their addiction aren't going to send you a Christmas card.
There are some drug dealers in this town who really don't like me... GOOD! I want to put them all out of business!
If the world loves everything you do, you probably aren't doing much for the Kingdom. But if you are insulted because you are loving the people Jesus loves, rejoice! That means you’re finally living right-side up in the Kingdom of God.
If being persecuted for righteousness is the best place to be, what is the worst place? It’s not being persecuted—it’s being comfortable.
Point 3: Reframe Success
“But woe to you who are rich,
for you have already received your comfort.
Woe to you who are well fed now,
for you will go hungry.
Woe to you who laugh now,
for you will mourn and weep.
Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you,
for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets.
Explain:
The word woe is from the Greek οὐαί (ooweh). It’s less of a word and more of a sound you make when things aren’t going well. It’s a sigh of exasperation. Other places it’s translated as Ah!
It’s a very unpleasant word that Woe does not capture in our culture.
Jesus says Ah! to you who are rich.
Now Jesus is going to flip the script on everything he just said. He said blessed are the poor. Now he says to the rich un’t-uh.
I have a question for us.
What if Jesus was serious when he says Woe to you who are rich.
What if wealth is not a sign that things have gone well in your life.
What if wealth is a sign that things are wrong in the world.
The disciples he’s talking to aren’t rich. He’s describing the kingdom of God to them.
Jesus recognizes that rich won’t rely on him, they rely on themselves. That self reliance is their comfort.
The poor get the kingdom of god. The rich get their self reliance.
What if those who are poor are hungry because the rich have their food. The rich laugh easily while they subject the poor to the injustices for which they mourn.
The reality is that those who exploit are trading the eternal, unshakeable kingdom of God, for a temporary payout right now.
This is my third Point: We have to Re frame Success
Illustrate:
Imagine if a rich person pulled into the MercyOne ER with a broken arm. They begin by telling the nurse at the check-in station how much their car is worth and how much their shirt cost.
The physician doesn’t care. For all the focus on the material wealth, their arm is still broken. Their focus on the material isn’t helping to fix their arm. Actually, their misplaced focus is only delaying getting help.
What if it’s not their arm that’s broken, what if it’s their soul?
Apply:
The 'rich' Jesus is talking about are not just the billionaires. We are all rich in something. We are all rich in resources, self-control, or approval—things we use to console ourselves so we don't have to rely on God.
The person who has to check their bank account every hour to feel safe? They've received their consolation. The person who can’t stop scrolling social media for approval? They’ve received their consolation. The person who judges the addicts in this room so they can feel better about their own life? They've received their consolation. They get to feel 'good' now.
But what Jesus is saying is terrifying: The thing you rely on to console yourself is the thing that keeps the Kingdom out.
We are called to live upside down. That means we give up the cheap, temporary consolations of the world—self-reliance, money, status—so we can embrace the full, eternal reward of the Kingdom.
Take a hard look at your life this week. Where are you getting your consolation? Where are you trying to feel full, laugh, or get praise? Those are the very things Jesus is sighing over. If you are full now, you will go hungry later. But if you embrace the hunger now, you will be filled forever."
Closing:
We began this morning looking at a crowd of the sick and a crowd of students gathered around Jesus. We discovered that He welcomes us all into the emergency room of His presence, regardless of whether we came to be Restored or to become a Disciple.
Then, Jesus pulled back the curtain and showed us the terrifying, beautiful reality of the Upside Down Kingdom.
We saw that Poverty is a blessing because it recognizes our reliance on the King.
We learned that to live this way—to help the poor, the addicted, and the mourning—is to invite the hate of the world. And in that persecution, we are called to Rejoice.
And finally, we heard Jesus’ sigh of exasperation, "οὐαί—Ah!" to those who are rich, full, and popular. Because the greatest danger is not that you have money, but that you have allowed that money, or self-reliance, or status to become your Consolation—the cheap comfort that keeps the Kingdom out.
This entire sermon is Jesus asking you: Which kingdom are you building?
Are you building a right-side up kingdom, where you are the foundation, your self-reliance is your consolation, and your goal is to stay full and comfortable? If so, you have already received your reward.
Or are you ready to live the Upside Down Life?
The Upside Down Life is a life of holy hunger—hunger for justice, hunger for God, hunger for the things that only He can fill. You cannot be filled with the Kingdom while you are full of yourself.
This is just the introduction to the upside down kingdom. It keeps going.
Closing Application:
Your final application this week is simple: Embrace the emptiness.
If you are struggling with addiction, embrace the emptiness of realizing your own resources have failed. That is the first step toward the Kingdom. If you are financially secure, embrace the emptiness by intentionally giving away your consolation so you are forced to rely on the King. If you are struggling with a deep sense of wrongness in the world, embrace the emptiness of the pain, knowing that your weeping will be turned into eternal laughter.
Get close to the Healer, let go of your consolation, and start living the beautiful, challenging, upside-down life you were truly created for.
