Give And It Will Be Given To You

Luke 6:38 

 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.”

Antithesis/context: 

The story in sixth chapter of Luke unfolds with Jesus going through the grain fields, and his disciples began to pick some heads of grain, rub them in their hands and eat the kernels. 2 Some of the Pharisees asked, “Why are you doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?”

The chapter opens  with religious minded people trying to discredit the authenticity of the person and ministry of Jesus by pointing to his disciples breaking the law. In this case picking up grain and eating it,  which was the legal equivalent of working on the Sabbath. 

The chapter moves on to describe another incident 

6 On another Sabbath he went into the synagogue and was teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was shriveled. 7 The Pharisees and the teachers of the law were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal on the Sabbath. 8 But Jesus knew what they were thinking and said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Get up and stand in front of everyone.” So he got up and stood there.

9 Then Jesus said to them, “I ask you, which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy it?”

10 He looked around at them all, and then said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He did so, and his hand was completely restored. 11 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law were furious and began to discuss with one another what they might do to Jesus.

As we can see through these two incidents, there is a conflict between the teachings and actions of the legalistic religious crowd and the teachings and actions of Jesus. There is a  disconnect. 

Relevant question:

Is there a interpretational disconnect today? Are there people publicly and conveniently identifying as followers of Jesus that have interpreted the word of God in ways that only serves to justify their agenda while being dismissive  of the teachings of Jesus and the will of God? 

Proposition: In the story so far we have seen legal criticism of those who were feeding themselves. Secondly we saw those opposed to physical healing being introduced into someone’s life. The religious mind of that day devalued the basic needs of the people: food and physical well being in order to perpetuate their interpretation of the law and their customary practice, as they discredited the teachings and practice of Jesus. But I  would like to share with you from the scripture as to where our values should lie when we identify as being followers of Jesus. Therefore, this reflection  is a teaching about Christian values and practice. 

Thesis: To draw relevancy from this text let me say this: In our striving towards making this world a better place we cannot establish or support  policies and practices that neglect the well being of those who are suffering in society. We must not neglect the poor, the unhoused, the hungry, the sick, the elderly, the poor. The words of Jesus should shine light on the path to a better world. 

The narrative continues by telling us that after Jesus was confronted with such a shocking level of hypocrisy he retreated to 

12   a mountainside to  pray, and spent the night praying to God. And then when 13 When morning came, 

When the sun rose and light rolled back the darkness of night Jesus gathered his disciples and began to minister to a great crowd of people who came from all over. The Bible says they 

“ came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases. Those troubled by impure spirits were cured, 19 and the people all tried to touch him, because power was coming from him and healing them all.” 

As the crowd was listening intently Jesus a series of what has been referred to as blessings and woes. Please take note of the ones who were blessed 

 he said:

“Blessed are you who are poor,
    

21 

Blessed are you who hunger now,
    
Blessed are you who weep now,
    

22 

Blessed are you when people hate you,
    when they exclude you and insult you
    and reject you

23 “Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven.

Jesus continues with not so good news for others : “But woe to you who are rich,    

Woe to you who are well fed now,
 Woe to you who laugh now,
    Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you. 

These words of Jesus are hard words, and does not imply that all people with wealth are bad people, or that all people who have food are bad people. But the overarching theme of this teaching recognizes human suffering on one side and the benefit of the  exploitation, marginalization and oppression of the least of these on the other. 

The question for us today is: What side do you want to be on? As the chapter closes Jesus’ words from ancient days are relevant for us today. Are we willing to adhere to the teachings of Jesus or have some of us constructed a Jesus far removed from the first century Jesus. 

The chapter closes our with:
    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.”

The goods come to those who believe and follow. We are coming up the rough side of the mountain but if we hold on to the word of the Lord, hold on to his promises, if we speak truth to power in accordance with God’s word, if we stand for justice and the wellness of all people. Then God’s blessing is certain. For those who suffer he promised: 

yours is the kingdom of God.
you will be satisfied, you will laugh.

Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. 

The Rev Dr Martin Luther King Jr. in his book entitled “ Strength To Love” boldly declares 

The first quote I want to explore speaks to the essence of faith and our often misguided expectations of divine intervention that absolves us of any participatory role.  Here’s the quote: “Therefore, we must never feel that God will through some breathtaking miracle or a wave of the hand,  cast evil out of the world. As long as we believe this, we will pray unanswerable prayers, and ask God to do things that he will never do. The belief that God will do everything for man  is as untenable as the belief that man can do everything for himself.  It, too, is based on a lack of faith. We must learn that to expect God to do everything while we do nothing is  not faith , but superstition. 

Dr. King emphasizes that faith is a call to action. It is not enough in our human capacity,  in relation to God, for us to simply pray for a miraculous resolution to the injustices that plague our world; rather, we are urged to engage in the work of bringing healing to the  challenges of our communities. This quote reminds us that while we find solace in prayer, true faith necessitates that we complement our spiritual practices with tangible action. Faith requires our participation; it summons us to be active agents of change, confronting the evils present in our societies.

Simply put, there is a danger in relegating our responsibilities to a future basking in divine miracles. This notion can lead to complacency and a false understanding of faith, that undermines the urgent need to address the systems of injustice around us.

In the latter part of the chapter Jesus says: 

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. 

I want you to know that this passage of scripture relates to more than  just tithing. This passage calls us to give of ourselves. It call us to give ourselves over to the will of God. When we give of ourselves in partnership with God's plan for redemption, we can anticipate God's blessings. By holding onto the word of the Lord, speaking truth to power, and standing for justice, we ensure that our foundation is built on the solid rock of our faith in Christ, unshakeable by the storms of life. This is the path to a better world, to be guided by the light of Jesus's teachings.

 The Bible tell us in the letter to the Galatians: let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up. So then whenever we have an opportunity, let us work for the good of all, and especially for those of the family of faith.