Scripture/Sermon of the Day. November 2, 2025

Luke 6:20-31 (All Saints Day)

Happy people and doomed people

20 Jesus raised his eyes to his disciples and said:

“Happy are you who are poor,
because God’s kingdom is yours.

21

Happy are you who hunger now,
because you will be satisfied.
Happy are you who weep now,
because you will laugh.

22 Happy are you when people hate you, reject you, insult you, and condemn your name as evil because of the Human One. 23 Rejoice when that happens! Leap for joy because you have a great reward in heaven. Their ancestors did the same things to the prophets.

24

But how terrible for you who are rich,
because you have already received your comfort.

25

How terrible for you who have plenty now,
because you will be hungry.
How terrible for you who laugh now,
because you will mourn and weep.

26

How terrible for you when all speak well of you.
Their ancestors did the same things to the false prophets.

Behaving as God’s children

27 “But I say to you who are willing to hear: 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 the cheek, offer the other one as well. If someone takes your coat, don’t withhold your shirt either. 30 Give to everyone who asks and don’t demand your things back from those who take them. 31 Treat people in the same way that you want them to treat you.

Reflection/Sermon:

I. We were talking about this reading during Bible Study last week. I thought about the state of our country now, how divided it is. Our government is an example of this — the two sides can’t agree with each other on a budget so it’s shut down. We are shut down because people can’t compromise.

I remember a while ago, the speaker of the house, Mike Johnson, was asked what he believes. He said something like, “‘Go pick up a Bible off your shelf and read it. That’s my worldview. That’s what I believe,” Johnson said during an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity During Thursday’s Hannity interview, Johnson simply called himself “a Bible-believing Christian.” AS of a year or two ago, Johnson was a member of the Cypress Baptist Church in Benton, Louisiana, according to the Louisiana Baptist Message, but has ties to several Baptist congregations, Christianity Today reports.

II. When somebody who says they’re Christian says something like this, it puzzles me. There are a lot of Christians who say they’re Christian — but they don’t talk about Jesus. Saying “I believe in the Bible” and “I believe in Jesus” are two different things. You can say, “I believe in the Bible and I hate my enemies,” and that’s OK. You can find a lot of scripture passages in the Bible that support the belief in hating your enemies. But you can’t say “I believe in Jesus and I hate my enemies.” Because Jesus clearly tells his believers that they must love their enemies. He says it in the passage we read this morning.

III. Probably the most radical teaching of the Bible coming from Jesus when he says, “Love one another — enemies included.” If Johnson believed in Jesus — he would have found a way to reach a compromise with the Democrats. Because Jesus taught us to settle our disagreements with one another, BEFORE THE SUN GOES DOWN! TODAY! NOW! And he would not support mass deportations of foreign people because that is not love.

IV. So — we’re talking about Jesus’ sermon on the plain. He says things like if someone hits us on one side of the face, turn our heads and let them hit the other side too. In other words, don’t hit back. Don’t answer violence with violence. Don’t respond do anger with anger. And if that’s not hard enough for us, Jesus says to love our enemy. And if they hurt us — if they do hit us, or steal from us, or call us a name, we need to respond with something kind and good. When cursed, we need to give back a blessing.

V. I asked, during or discussion of this, “What if all the Christians in our country actually did this. What if we took the teachings of Jesus seriously and practiced them. What would happen then?”

And the answer came quickly: “We’d be overrun.” Our enemies would quickly defeat us — if we didn’t strike back, if we were nonviolent, if we put down our guard.

VI. And that seems like the right answer. So at the end of Bible Study I assigned homework. Everyone was to find some time to read this passage again — the Sermon on the Plain — but this time with a magic marker — and just cross out all the verses which, in our modern world, just don’t make sense —or are not really practical. Thinking about it now — I need to add to the assignment. Don’t just cross out the parts of the Bible we don’t agree with — we need to write in something that makes more sense to us.

Example: cross out the “turn the other cheek” passage and write in whatever form of retaliation you’d prefer to use. Like, “If someone strikes you on the cheek, draw your gun and shoot them.” Or — “pepper spray their face” or “taze them” or “hit them back harder.”

VII. Because clearly, a lot of the Bible is dated and in need of a major overhaul.

VIII. Janet and I are watching a show now — kind of like Downton Abbey — about really rich people and their servants, but in America — called The Gilded Age. One of the characters, a woman who married an old incredibly wealthy man who knew would die soon — and he did and now she’s filthy rich — and as bitter and unfriendly as she is wealthy.

Somebody said something to her — they were trying to explain something. She said, “I’m not concerned with facts — not if they interfere with my beliefs.”

IX. That pretty much sums up the human race now. That describes why we watch the particular news we watch, and why we listen to the people we listen to, and even who’s interpretation of the Bible they will accept.

Is there any hope for us — the human race? Did Jesus ever really expect the any of us could love each other — including immigrants, refugees, enemies — even the person we don’t like who lives next door?

X. There’s a passage in the Gospel of Mark, right after Jesus was transfigured on the mountain. When he came down he noticed a commotion between the disciples and a crowd of people. He said “What’s going on?” A man came up and told Jesus he’d brought his son who was possessed by a demon and asked the disciples to drive it out and they couldn’t.”

And Jesus seemed to get angry. He said, ““You unbelieving generation — how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy to me.”

The boy was in bad shape. The demon threw him to the ground and he went into convulsions and foamed at the mouth. The father told Jesus the boy had been like that since childhood and the demon would throw him into water or fire to kill him. Then the father said, “If you can help him, please have pity on us.”

Jesus said, “What do you mean ‘If I can?’ — everything is possible for one who believes.”

The man said, “I believe — help me overcome my unbelief.”

Jesus cast the demon out and took the boy’s hand and helped him stand.

Later — the disciples asked Jesus, “Why couldn’t we drive out the demon?” Jesus said, “This kind can come out only by prayer.”

XI. In other words — our own spiritual transfiguration into the image of God, into Christ — is going to take time, and trust, and patience. “Prayer” is another way of saying “ongoing relationship with God.” Living the teachings of the Sermon on the Plain — is possible, Jesus says. Like casting out demons that may have possessed us since our childhood. Demons that throw us into the fire of anger or rage or hatred or violence. But it is possible to cast these demons out, and to actually love our enemies and even want to do good to them — want to bless them — want to love them. But this transfiguration takes time — God’s time. And our work is to keep connected to God, and trust, and persevere. Prayer. Because our gradual conversion into Christ is happening even now.