Matthew 5:1-2
1 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them.

Blessings and Woes

Luke 6:20-26
20 Looking at his disciples, he said:

“Blessed are you who are poor,
for yours is the kingdom of God.
21 Blessed are you who hunger now,
for you will be satisfied.
Blessed are you who weep now,
for you will laugh.
22 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.
23 “Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their ancestors treated the prophets.

24 “But woe to you who are rich,
for you have already received your comfort.
25 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.
26 Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you,
for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets.

Jesus is about to go into a teaching that isn’t only different than what they knew, a lot of it was completely contradictory to the way that everyone lived their lives. Ultimately, what he’s doing, is getting them to rethink their value system.

Love for Enemies

Luke 6:27-42
27 “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29 If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. 30 Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. 31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.

32 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. 35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

Most of the time that I hear this verse talked about, it is used to talk about how Christians should be passive and how we should let people take advantage of us.  That's not what Jesus is trying to get across here.

If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also.
If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them.
That doesn't mean that we should let people do bad things to us.

For one thing, when Jesus sends out his disciples in Luke 22:36, He tells them if you don’t have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one.  Those swords were for self defense. We see in many other places in the Bible that self defense, and defense of your family is a good and Godly thing.

When He says: If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them, He’s actually referring to law at that time that protected people from losing their shirt in court because it was like underwear.

What Jesus is doing here, is being so over the top in His statements, to get people to understand the gravity of how we should love our enemies.

When He says, Give to everyone who asks you, He doesn’t mean that literally all of the time… That’s not wise Actually, it would contradict 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13 and a bunch of other verses that talk about wisdom with money.

This is all about SHOWING the Gospel to people, and being SO COUNTER CULTURE that your enemies don’t even know what to do with themselves, because you see the world so differently.

Judging Others

Luke 6:37-42
37 “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. 38 Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

39 He also told them this parable: “Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into a pit? 40 The student is not above the teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like their teacher.

41 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 42 How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

This section is reinforcing that we should do what we see God doing by showing how imperfect humans are, and how the only real stability we have IS GOD. What would be be like if you tried to lead someone else out of your own righteousness?
Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into a pit?

A Tree and Its Fruit

Luke 6:43-45
43 “No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. 44 Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. 45 A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.

When people hear you speak, do you think they are compelled to ask you why you are SO COUNTER CULTURE?

Are your enemies so caught off guard, that they don’t even know what to do with themselves, because you see the world so differently? Or, do they just see you as an enemy?

The Wise and Foolish Builders

Luke 6:46-49
46 “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? 47 As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice, I will show you what they are like. 48 They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. 49 But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.”

If you put this into practice, you will live a SOLID life, built on a real foundation. If you ignore this, and continue to do things your own way, your life will not have a lot of meaning.