Luke 6:1-49
Luke summarizes the Sermon on the Mount in this one chapter. There are several warnings that this passage brings to my mind.
BEWARE OF LEGALISM: The Pharisees were hung up about the disciples eating grain on the Sabbath and about Jesus healing on the Sabbath. It is easy for us to look at them and wonder how they could be so shallow and blind. The problem is that most of us have our hang ups too, only we are not quite so adept at seeing our own as we are at perceiving those of the Pharisees. The problem with legalism is that these petty issues often blind us to the vital issues of God's Word. We become puffed up with pride over the fact that we keep our lists of do's and dont's but we fail to love one another, have compassion on the poor and be thankful for the Lord's blessings. We fight, frown, fume and find fault with all and call it holiness.
BEWARE OF HEDONISM: I know that it is a stretch to look at the beatitudes as a warning against hedonism, but hear me out. Notice that Christ calls those who have difficulties now, blessed. But He says "woe to you who are rich" and "woe to you who are well fed." Being rich, and eating well is not sin in and of itself, but it is easy to allow these pleasures to become the pursuit of our lives. When the source of our pleasure becomes things of this earth and not our relationship with God or our anticipation of eternal rewards, we become idolaters. Christ's point is that we need to find our pleasure in His person and His promises and not on the passing pleasures of this world.
BEWARE OF HUMANISM: The basic tenant of humanism is to consider one's self as the center of the universe. Man's natural bent is to be a worshiper of self. From the time we are very small we like to be the center of attention and want others to scramble to meet our needs. This is diametrically opposed to the teachings of Christ. He calls us to love others, even our enemies. We might love others who we think will return our love, but this is just a form a humanistic manipulation. God calls us to love unconditionally even those who have no ability or inclination to love in return. This is not natural, it is supernatural, but it is what God has called us to do. We must beware of this cancer of self absorption that lurks in our lives and fight it off by demonstrating selfless love to ALL.
BEWARE OF JUDGMENTALISM: It is a fact of life that it is much easier to see the errors of others than it is to see our own errors. Mirrors exist because it is nearly impossible for us to see ourselves without them. If only there were mirrors that would show us the sins of our hearts as easily as mirrors let us know when we are having a "bad hair day." We must be careful not to judge others and allow their failures to be excuses for us to harbor bitterness. When other fail us or sin against us we must forgive them not stand in condemnation of them. Any time we are offended we must use it as a reminder to look into our "heart mirrors" and see if the offense we feel is really because of our own sin and not the sin of our neighbor. Trying to remove specks from other's eyes when our's are filled with logs is dangerous work. We must beware of this tendency in our lives.
BEWARE OF LEGALISM: The Pharisees were hung up about the disciples eating grain on the Sabbath and about Jesus healing on the Sabbath. It is easy for us to look at them and wonder how they could be so shallow and blind. The problem is that most of us have our hang ups too, only we are not quite so adept at seeing our own as we are at perceiving those of the Pharisees. The problem with legalism is that these petty issues often blind us to the vital issues of God's Word. We become puffed up with pride over the fact that we keep our lists of do's and dont's but we fail to love one another, have compassion on the poor and be thankful for the Lord's blessings. We fight, frown, fume and find fault with all and call it holiness.
BEWARE OF HEDONISM: I know that it is a stretch to look at the beatitudes as a warning against hedonism, but hear me out. Notice that Christ calls those who have difficulties now, blessed. But He says "woe to you who are rich" and "woe to you who are well fed." Being rich, and eating well is not sin in and of itself, but it is easy to allow these pleasures to become the pursuit of our lives. When the source of our pleasure becomes things of this earth and not our relationship with God or our anticipation of eternal rewards, we become idolaters. Christ's point is that we need to find our pleasure in His person and His promises and not on the passing pleasures of this world.
BEWARE OF HUMANISM: The basic tenant of humanism is to consider one's self as the center of the universe. Man's natural bent is to be a worshiper of self. From the time we are very small we like to be the center of attention and want others to scramble to meet our needs. This is diametrically opposed to the teachings of Christ. He calls us to love others, even our enemies. We might love others who we think will return our love, but this is just a form a humanistic manipulation. God calls us to love unconditionally even those who have no ability or inclination to love in return. This is not natural, it is supernatural, but it is what God has called us to do. We must beware of this cancer of self absorption that lurks in our lives and fight it off by demonstrating selfless love to ALL.
BEWARE OF JUDGMENTALISM: It is a fact of life that it is much easier to see the errors of others than it is to see our own errors. Mirrors exist because it is nearly impossible for us to see ourselves without them. If only there were mirrors that would show us the sins of our hearts as easily as mirrors let us know when we are having a "bad hair day." We must be careful not to judge others and allow their failures to be excuses for us to harbor bitterness. When other fail us or sin against us we must forgive them not stand in condemnation of them. Any time we are offended we must use it as a reminder to look into our "heart mirrors" and see if the offense we feel is really because of our own sin and not the sin of our neighbor. Trying to remove specks from other's eyes when our's are filled with logs is dangerous work. We must beware of this tendency in our lives.
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