October 5, 2008
Bible Study, Chapter 6
It’s impossible to get
through a week of newspaper reading without being disappointed in our
leaders. Police chiefs get arrested
while paying for prostitutes. Business
leaders come under suspicion for paying bribes.
Pastors get photographed doing drugs in hotel rooms. Teachers & coaches go to jail for sexual
relationships with students. Treasurers
for non-profit organizations do time for embezzling money. Culturally, we’ve lost our moral compass and
with it, the ability to successfully navigate through life. In a classroom, our moral compass is called,
“ethics:” a system for determining right & wrong. In Luke 6, you’ll begin to see Jesus’ moral
compass. In two similar episodes, you’ll
see how Jesus makes ethical decisions.
And, you’ll get to read the abridged notes from one of his sermons on
finding a moral compass.
Read through chapter 6 and then peruse the appropriate
verses as you study each section.
Verses 1 – 5
This is one of many confrontations Jesus will have about the Jewish Sabbath. Commandment #4 instructed the Jews to “Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8-11). Further, the commandment freed Jewish people from work on the Sabbath (a liberating thing for these former slaves). In the following centuries, Jewish religious scholars attempted to define work. This one, 3-sentence commandment turned into volumes & volumes. And, according to the interpretation of men, Jesus & his disciples broke the Sabbath commandment by plucking grain & eating it. In response, Jesus refers to a time when King David (one of the greatest Jewish heroes) also broke a law by eating ‘holy bread’ at a time when he & some of his men were starving.
- Imagine yourself in a courtroom. You have to explain why it was OK for King David & his starving men to break a law & eat ‘holy bread.’ How are you going to make this argument?
- Same courtroom… now you are defending Jesus & his disciples. Does the argument you used above still apply?
- Is there a way you can put your ideas into a sentence or two? For example, David was faced with an ethical choice: Keep a law about holy bread or feed his men. He chose to break one law but for an apparently higher purpose. What general ideas can you glean from this approach to law-keeping? Try and put these ideas into a couple sentences and see if your ideas hold true over the next few stories.
- Do not overlook verse 5. The term, ‘Son of Man’ was a well-known Jewish title that became Jesus’ favorite way of referring to himself. The title meant something like, ‘He who represents all humankind.’ So, what is Jesus saying about himself with reference to the Jewish law?
Verses 6 – 16
This is a second Sabbath controversy. By now, the Jewish religious leaders are growing very suspicious of Jesus and they’re expecting him to stray outside the Sabbath boundaries. Believe it or not, the Jews had rules about Sabbath healings… if it was life or death, go ahead! If not, they taught, you can wait 24 hours to be healed. Jesus, on purpose, picks a fight over this issue.
- Again, back to the courtroom. Defend the actions of Jesus on this Sabbath. Pay particular attention to Jesus’ self-defense in verse 9.
- Does it seem to you that Jesus is saying (verse 9) that a failure to heal this man on this day would actually be evil? Why?
- Eventually, in Luke, you will hear Jesus remind the Jews of what they already knew to be true. Jewish people knew that there were 2, and only 2, great laws in the Bible. One: Love God. Two: Love others. Jesus will say that every other law hangs on one of these 2 great laws. Therefore, all of Jewish law is really relational. That is, every law taught the Jews how to love God or how to love people. So, apply that thought to what Jesus is teaching here about the Sabbath and this healing.
- Do you think these 2 great laws still apply? How ought this influence how we think about right and wrong? Take any of the examples of ethical failures from the intro paragraph on the top of the page & review them in light of the 2 great laws. How does loving God & others apply in today’s environment?
Verses 17 – 49
This is an abridged version of a message Jesus preached. Prior to the message, Luke reminds you that what Jesus said was always accompanied by what Jesus did (verses 17-19). For the sake of our study, we’ll break the message up into several sections as follows:
Verses 20 – 26: The first 4 ‘blessings’ are contrasted by the ‘woes’ which follow. Jesus does not intend to say that he likes poor people better than rich people. Nor does he intend to communicate that all poor, hungry, people are good people & rich people are not. There are plenty of examples, even in Luke, proving otherwise. Instead, Jesus is informing his listeners of two key ideas: 1) God is aware of our circumstances and a great reversal is someday coming. And, 2) God weighs people by standards that are different from what is typical in our world.
- How does God assign value to people?
- Why do you think that poor, hungry, mourning & hated people might be more likely to want what God has to offer?
- What do these verses have to say about your priorities?
Verses 27 – 38: These sentences describe what Jesus has in mind when he calls his followers to love.
- Work through these sentences & write down everything you can find that defines how we ought to love.
- Which of these ‘love ideas’ are difficult for you right now?
- Is God bringing any person to mind to whom you need to pay some loving attention? Anyone to whom you need to offer forgiveness… or ask for it? Perhaps you can make some specific plans about what you intend to do. Consider speaking to a close friend about what you need to do & invite him/her to pray with you in preparation.
Verses 39 – 49: Authentic Christian character ought to be visible. In the same way that an apple tree ought to produce apples, our faith ought to produce certain characteristics & behaviors in us. However, Jesus suggests that it’s necessary for us to be shaped by the right teaching, and be subject to the right authority, for this to happen.
- Where do most people in our world get their ‘ethical teaching?’ Which of these are good examples of ‘the blind leading the blind?’
- In verses 41 – 42, Jesus doesn’t suggest that we never pay attention to the behavior of others. However, what is absolutely necessary for us before we meddle in someone else’s life? How do you know when you’ve done this?
- Jesus concludes this sermon with some pretty strong words about his own teaching. What is he suggesting in the concluding story? (see verses 46 – 49).
- Do you think Jesus’ concluding story is true? Why or why not?
- Are there areas of your life you need to bring under the authority of Jesus? Will you?
Summary
What are some of the big ideas you’ve learned in chapter 6?
In light of what you’ve learned, is there any God-business you need to take care of in the immediate future?