Book 42 The Book Of Luke
Who wrote the book of Luke: Luke
When was it written: Sometime between 59 and 63 A.D.
The gospel of Luke is the most orderly and complete telling of Jesus’ life and ministry. This is interesting in the fact that Luke was not one of the twelve disciples. He was also a Gentile by birth—the only Gentile to author books in the Bible (he also wrote Luke).
He was, however, a highly educated individual, a doctor by trade, and a devoted follower of Christ and assistant to Paul on his missionary journeys and in the early churches. Luke was also a keen historian and stickler for details. Many call him the first apologist, which is a person who makes reasonable ‘arguments’ and justifications for religious teachings.
Luke’s target audience was his fellow Gentiles. He wanted them to embrace the truth and experience the love and grace of
Luke’s Introduction To His Book Of The Gospel Answers This Question:
“Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word.
The name is Theophilus means ‘loved of God’. This fact has caused some theologians to wonder if the Theophilus Luke was writing to was not actually a person, but rather a title for all Christians and would-be Christians because we are loved of God.
The words ‘most excellent’ preceding his name, however, strongly indicate that the Theophilus Luke addresses in the opening verses of his book of the gospel is a real person—most likely a Roman official.
What Does Luke Tell Us About Jesus
The book of Luke is very thorough and it is the only one of the four gospels to give us several different accounts of events and teachings of Jesus’ ministry. For example, Luke is the only one of the four gospels that tells us the parable of the Good Samaritan, the prodigal son, and the post-resurrection encounter with Jesus on the road to Emmaus.
Because of Luke’s most thorough account of Jesus’ life and ministry, I am simply going to go through the book; listing the major sections of the book and provide you with interesting or noteworthy information to go with them.
Birth of John the Baptist: Luke is also the only one of the gospels that gives us the account of the miraculous birth of John the Baptist. John, who was Jesus’ cousin, was born to Zechariah, the priest, and his wife, Elizabeth—devoted Jews descended from Aaron.
They were also very old and had not been able to have children. So when an angel told Zechariah he was going to be a father, the old man questioned the angel Gabriel who had been sent to give him the message. Because of his doubt, Zechariah was struck dumb.
He and Elizabeth, however, did conceive a child and named him John as the angel had instructed Zechariah to do—at which time he was again able to speak. John was then raised up to know and honor God in all things and as prophesied, became the man who prepared the way for Jesus’ ministry.
Birth Of Jesus: The second chapter of Luke provides us with the most-often recited/read account of Jesus’ birth because it is the most complete and most beautifully told. Not only does it capture the facts, but the feelings of those involved.
The details encompassed in Luke’s account of Jesus’ birth are an excellent example of the extent of Luke’s interviews and research. Even secular scholars agree that Luke was a historian among historians—the best of the best.
Jesus As A Boy: Once again Luke stands alone in revealing to us the only details we have about Jesus’ boyhood beyond their return from Egypt as recorded in Matthew. From Luke, we are able to discern that Mary and Joseph were devoted to God and took their job as parents of this miraculous baby seriously.
By presenting Jesus at The Temple to be circumcised and blessed by Simeon and Anna, they were unwittingly fulfilling prophecy while keeping the Law as they had been raised to do.
We also see in the second chapter that even from an early age Jesus knew he had a one-of-a-kind purpose. He knew he was different, yet he was also child who needed to be cared for and treated as any child should.
NOTE: One particularly interesting verse is Luke 2:50: “But they did not understand what he was saying to them.” This verse is in reference to Jesus’ reply to Mary’s question of why Jesus had run off from her and Joseph. Why had he worried them so? Jesus’ reply was that they should know he needed to be in his Father’s house.
Why Didn’t They Understand?
Their Lack Of Understanding Could Have Been A Number Of Things:
To that point, on the outside, Jesus was just like every other kid—including his siblings. It is quite possible that Mary and Joseph were so focused on just getting by that they had allowed the passage of time to dull their senses in regard to who Jesus really was.
They may have been focusing more on the fact that Jesus had been missing for a few days—something any conscious parent would do. Their misunderstanding may have been more about what he had done rather than why he had done it.
Following the accounts of Jesus’ pre-ministry life, Luke also gives us the account of Jesus’ baptism, the period of fasting, and the temptations from Satan. Included in the fact that Jesus was about thirty years old when he started his formal ministry and a genealogy of Jesus from the side of his earthly father, Joseph.
Following his baptism and time in the desert, we read in Luke 4 that Jesus returned to his hometown of Nazareth, but it was not the homecoming one would expect the Messiah to receive. Or was it? When Jesus first read from the scroll of Isaiah, everyone was proud of their ‘hometown boy’.
They were also amazed because as far as they knew, he was nothing more than the son of Joseph, a poor, but respected carpenter. When they questioned how he, the son of Joseph, could be so knowledgeable, Jesus warned them about the dangers of not accepting him for who he was.
This angered them and they drove him out of town. In all honesty, one would have to admit that the confusion in the minds of the people was somewhat justified. They’d known Jesus most of his life (since the family had returned from Egypt when Jesus was approximately three years old).
They had watched him grow up. Their children had played with him. They celebrated the Passover with him and his family. He was just another member of their community as far as they were concerned, so who was he to all of a sudden be telling them… He was Jesus, that’s who.
The last half of chapter 4 and chapter 5 give us the same accounts as Matthew and Mark do—the calling of the first disciples and some of Jesus’ early miracles.
Chapter six begins with Luke’s account of Jesus’ interaction with the Pharisees over picking up heads of grain to eat and healing a man on the Sabbath. This is immediately followed by a listing of the twelve disciples and Luke’s condensed version of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount.
In parts of chapters ten, eleven, and twelve, Luke again records sections of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. From this, we see that Luke’s account of Jesus’ ministry is not solely chronological, but also topical; meaning he inserted sections of the Sermon on the Mount where they fit with some of the other things he was writing.
This doesn’t make the Bible any less accurate, though. It is simply telling the story from a different perspective to a different audience. The facts always have and always will remain the same.
Ministry, parables, and miracles of Jesus make up chapters seven through nine.
Chapter ten begins with Jesus sending out seventy-two followers in pairs. Their job was to go into towns and villages ahead of him to prepare the people for his coming.
These men were given explicit instructions as to how to present themselves, what to do, and what not to do. They were also given authority from God to heal people and cast out demons.
The time in which they were to do these things was obviously limited, as we read that they returned to him with a report of what had taken place (verse 17). Another verse that is of particular interest in this passage is verse 20: “However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
Jesus’ words were words of warning against pride and arrogance— of falsely believing that what they were able to accomplish was their doing rather than God’s. It is a warning we need to heed today, as well.
Chapter ten ends with the parable of the Good Samaritan and our introduction to Jesus’ close friends and followers, Mary and her sister, Martha (their brother was Lazarus).
The next several chapters primarily consist of Jesus’ parables. Again, a parable is an earthly story with a heavenly or spiritual meaning.
The parables Luke records for us teach us about God’s forgiving and merciful character, the fact that God is personally interested in each of us, the importance of us forgiving others and treating them as we want to be treated, the power of persistent prayer, and the importance of standing firm in the truth.
The account of Zacchaeus the tax collector surrendering his life to Jesus is recorded only in the gospel of Luke, yet it is one of the most often-told accounts in the Bible. Zacchaeus’ conversion is a positive reminder of the fact that none of us are beyond saving or unloved by God.
Chapters twenty-two through twenty-four are devoted to the end of Jesus’ life here on earth. Luke begins his account with Judas’ agreement to betray Jesus and ends with the ascension to heaven.
Luke’s account is completely in line with those of the other three gospels, but as is the case with the other three, he includes some things the others do not and vice versa. Some of the things Luke includes that the others do not are:
The fact that an angel from heaven comforted Jesus while he was praying in the garden just prior to his arrest
The fact that Jesus put the soldier’s ear back on his head after Peter cut it off with a sword (while Jesus was being arrested)
That Peter and Jesus made eye contact right after Peter denied Jesus the third time
The friendship that was formed between Herod and Pilot as a result of Jesus’ arrest and death sentence
More of the words Jesus spoke while on the way to Golgotha
The account of Jesus speaking with Cleopas and someone else on the road to Emmaus. We don’t know for certain who Cleopas was or who was with him. We know it wasn’t one of the eleven chosen disciples (242:33), but we know whoever the two men were, they were faithful followers Jesus trusted enough to share his resurrected presence with.
Luke does not, however, share with readers the Great Commission. He simply says that Jesus blessed the disciples before leaving them and that they worshipped him and praised God in The Temple for all they had seen, heard, and experienced.
Key Verses In Luke
Every book of the Bible provides us with words of wisdom, instruction, comfort, encouragement, admonishment, warning, and promise, and hope. Let’s look at some of what the Book of Luke has to offer.
Luke 2, the account of Jesus’ birth and early life
“The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.” Luke 6:45
While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright, the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead?
He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: “The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified, and on the third day be raised again.” Luke 24:4-7
salvation as he had. Luke’s joy in Christ is almost tangible and his hope for eternity in heaven is contagious.
So how did Luke gain such intimate and detailed insight into the life and ministry of Jesus?