Luke 6:38
Introduction
In Luke 6:38, Jesus makes an analogy that His listeners would find relatable to their daily life. In their agrarian culture, the Hebrew people were familiar with the concept of a buyer coming to a seller for grain with a measure ready to be filled. The seller would fill the buyer’s measure with grain, pressing it down and shaking it up to make room for more until it overflowed. In the same way, God will give to Christians an overflow according to what we are willing to give, and He wants us to give Him our whole life.
In the divine reciprocity of God, what we give will be returned to us in the same measure until it overflows. The kind of overflow we receive depends on what we are giving. This resulting overflow could be either good or bad for us. Despite what our culture says, this is not karma. Karma is a pagan belief that what you put out in the world will come back to you. What we experience in reciprocity is not karma, but a divine response demonstrated throughout Scripture. If we give love, mercy, and grace, we will receive those things. But if we give hate, unforgiveness, and unkindness, we will get that in return.
As Christians, we can no longer operate at a sinner’s level. We must live out the scope of the gospel, and that means loving our enemies (Luke 6:27). We can start by stopping—stop trying to get vengeance, stop slandering, stop rejoicing when our enemies are hurting. We should instead do good to those who hate us. We were once enemies of Jesus, but He loved us and offered us salvation which we accepted. Now the gospel can work through us so we can respond like a Christian and love others.
Getting Started
- When is the last time you wanted something to be fair? What did “fairness” usually look like?
- Why do you think Christians have adopted the culture’s idea of karma instead of seeing reciprocity as something that comes from God?
Let’s Get Personal
- Christians often ask God for a whole life overflow but only want to give a “part” life response. What parts of your life are you giving to God and what parts are you holding back?
- Have you ever experienced overflow? What did that look like?
- What is the most difficult part of loving your enemies? How can loving your enemies help you?
Take the Next Step
- How do you need to change what you are giving so that you can experience an overflow of God’s grace and mercy?
- Who is an “enemy” in your life, and how can you show God’s love to that person this week?
- Want to dig deeper? Take a look at the following passages: Deuteronomy 15:10; 32:35; Job 4:8; Psalm 7:16; Proverbs 11:25; 28:27; Matthew 5:7; 6:14-15; 7:2; 27:35; Luke 6:27-28; 22:36; John 3:16; Acts 20:35; Romans 5:10; 12:19; 1 Corinthians 9:23; Galatians 6:8; James 2:13; 1 Peter 3:9.
Renew Your Mind
“Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure—pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.”
Luke 6:38
