The Gospel of Luke – Jesus is for everyone: Radical attitudes

Luke 6:37-42

Jesus’ teaching in Luke 6 is radical. It teaches us to live a radically different life to the world around us. Jesus calls us to follow Him and be radically different. His teaching is practical and hits where we are in our lives. We are supposed to stand out from the crowd.

Jesus has three negatives and two positives:

Negatives

1. Do not judge (vs 37) – We all like to judge others. Jesus says whenever we judge others we open ourselves up to the judgement of God. We will be judged as we judge others.
2. Do not condemn (vs 37) – Jesus is forbidding a critical spirit that loves to tear down and destroy. Criticism is extremely destructive.
3. Do not be a hypocrite (vs 41-42) – When we point out the faults of others and don’t look at our own faults we make ourselves into hypocrites. It is ridiculous to criticise and condemn others and not address the faults in our own lives. Jesus says we should put our own lives in order and sort our own lives out before God. Jesus calls us to radical self awareness.

Positives

1. Forgive (vs 37) – Forgiveness is powerful and always positive. When you’re tempted to judge or condemn others forgive them. We should forgive others as we are forgiven by God.
2. Give (vs 38) – Be generous towards others. When we are generous towards others God is generous towards us. This is a conditional promise. We should not give to get back from God, but God does bless a cheerful giver.