Controversy on the Sabbath, the selection of 12 apostles, and the Sermon on the Mount are in Luke 6.
Sabbath Day
Sabbath was counted from sunset on Friday to sunset on Saturday. God rested on the seventh day and blessed it (Exodus 20:8-11). He made the Sabbath day for man (Mark 2:27).
The Pharisees objected to the disciples picking grain on the Sabbath because it violated their traditions. Breaking the Sabbath was punishable by death (Exodus 31:15).
Luke 6 Outline
6:1-11
Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath
6:1-5
Disciples pick grain on the Sabbath
6:6-11
Jesus heals a man’s hand on the Sabbath
6:12-16
Jesus selects 12 men to be Apostles
6:12
Jesus prays all night on a mountain
6:13-16
Jesus names 12 apostles
6:17-19
Jesus heals multitudes
6:20-49
Sermon on the Mount (compare Matthew 5-7)
6:20-23
Four Beatitudes
6:24-26
Four Woes
6:27-38
Golden rules of love
6:39-45
Warnings about blind guides
6:46-59
Application: Wise and Foolish Builders
Omniscience of Jesus
Jesus had total knowledge. Jesus read men’s thoughts before he healed the man with the withered hand (Luke 6:8). John testified of Jesus’ omniscience in John 2:24-25: “But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all men. He did not need man’s testimony about man, for he knew what was in a man.”
Beatitudes and Woes
The word “beatitude” is derived from the Latin word “beatus” which means blessed or happy. The Sermon on the Mount opens with statements that begin with the word “blessed.”
Each beatitude in Luke’s account has a corresponding woe. For example, the first beatitude, “Blessed are you who are poor,” corresponds with the first woe, “But woe to you who are rich.”
Fast Facts
- Jews passing through a neighbor’s vineyard or field were allowed to eat the produce; provided they did not harvest or collect it for future consumption (Deuteronomy 23:25).
- Jesus sat while delivering the Sermon on the Mount. Rabbis traditionally sat while teaching because sitting connoted authority.