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Luke 6:17–26 Epiphany 6C February 16, 2025

Grace, mercy and peace to you from God our Father, and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. “Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you shall be satisfied. “Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh.” Where did Jesus learn to talk like that?

Jesus had many teachers of rhetoric. One of them was his mother. When Jesus was still in her womb, Mary was greeted by Elizabeth who was filled with the Holy Spirit and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And blessed is she who believed there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.” When Mary replies, her response could almost serve as a rough draft for Jesus’ words in the Gospel text today: “The Lord brings down the mighty from their thrones and exalts those of humble estate. He fills the hungry with good things and sends the rich empty away.” Maybe Jesus remembered these words and used them as his go-to sermon outline whenever he was in a pinch. Similar words pop up everywhere in the Scriptures, and Jesus knew them well. The beatitudes have the ring of the Song of Hannah in First Samuel, they have the ring of Psalm 1, and with their blessings and curses, they sound something like today’s Old Testament reading.

Of course, Jesus also learned to talk from his Father. In Deuteronomy, Jesus’ Father speaks through Moses and says to the people, “See, today I have set before you life and good—death and evil.” In today’s text, Jesus does the very same thing. He sets before us a way of life and good, and he sets before us a way of death and evil.

But the way of life and good that Jesus gently calls “blessed,” is a way filled with desperation, hunger, and mourning. To top it all off, this supposedly good way of life means that you’re going to be hated and reviled. What happened to the prophets is what’s going to happen to you. And you know what happened to them. They were killed. The way of life and good that Jesus describes seems to lead only to death. But the way of death and evil that Jesus describes is full of riches, satisfaction, and laughter—you will be spoken well of. You will enjoy a good reputation. There is no escaping Jesus’ meaning here. There is only one way to take, “Woe to you who are rich. Woe to you who are full. Woe to you who laugh. Woe to you when people speak well of you.” We can’t get around these things with a “notice Jesus doesn’t say,” or a “What Jesus really means is…fill in the blank with something more favorable to us.” Woe means woe. Suddenly Jesus doesn’t seem so gentle.

This is problematic because we want to have our cake and eat it, too. We want security, good food, laughter, and we wish we didn’t have to face the pain of death. And, yet, we also want the one thing that can’t be gotten by trusting in all those things. Those things are like oil, and what Jesus offers is fresh, pure water. Nevertheless we pray, day in and day out—thy kingdom come.

We pray that God’s kingdom comes, but we know that it will not come to the rich, to the full, to the ones who laugh, the ones who are spoken well of in the world. We know that we are richer than any of the people listening to Jesus on the plain in Galilee so long ago. We don’t often go hungry. Death is more avoidable for us than it has ever been in all of history. We are able to enjoy success and take pride in our good name. Look at all the things you’ve worked so hard to build up for yourself and for your family. Look at all the comforts you’ve earned for yourself. Think about all the things people have praised you for over the years, all your achievements and accolades. When we put our trust in those things, Jesus says, “Repent. And believe in the Gospel.”

The beatitudes are not just about the poor, the hungry, the weepers, and the folks with a good reputation. They are also about Jesus. They describe him. His words tell about the kind of person that lives in his kingdom, and in the same way, his words tell about the ruler of that kingdom. Jesus’ words tell what he will do, what he will become in order to give us his kingdom. He will be made poor. He will go hungry and weep over the death of those that he loves. He will be cast out on account of his name. In these ways, he establishes his kingdom.

The Words of Jesus bring his kingdom. Remember that Jesus learned to speak like any other child learns to speak. He learned from his Father. Jesus talks in the same way that his Father talks. His Father said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. Jesus speaks to us, his children, and says, “Blessed are you poor” and we are made poor. By his Word, you and I are made poor, hungry for repentance, and sorrowful over our own sin. We are turned from the way of death and are set on the way of life. By Jesus’ Word, we receive the kingdom of heaven because Jesus’ Word makes us like he is. It gives us what Jesus has. His Word beatifies you and me. It gives us his poor spirit, his hunger for righteousness, his tears over our sin, his name, and perhaps most importantly—his cross. We are welcomed onto Jesus’ way of life and good with the greeting, “Pick up your cross!” That is the way of repentance.

On that way we will lose our riches. We will go hungry. We will weep. We will find that we are poor sinners, mourning for our innocence, hungry for the righteousness that is offered in the forgiveness that Jesus alone can give. The blessedness that Jesus speaks about today is given by faith in his words. Because you are in Christ, yours is the kingdom of God, yours is the satisfaction for sin that Jesus earned on his cross. Yours is the laughter of innocence and righteousness. Yours is eternal life in his name.

In the name of Jesus. Amen.