The Gospels Part 6 of 9: Luke

Luke 1:3-4
“…It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write to you an orderly account, most excellent Theophilus, that you may know the CERTAINTY of those things in which you were instructed.

The Gospel of Luke is all about Jesus as a human being.  Luke was a physician and the only non-Jewish writer of the Bible who wrote about the Perfect Man, Jesus.  Who better than a doctor, familiar with the physical workings of man, to write about the Perfect Man?

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God’s Word Deals In Certainty.
Dr. Luke wrote his gospel in a letter directed to a young believer named, “Theophilus,” so that he would know the CERTAINTY of those truths in which he was instructed.  Many young people today don’t have that same sense of certainty. Is it any wonder that they turn to drugs, alcohol, and hedonistic lifestyles? They are floundering because they have no security or sure foundation. 😓
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Priestly Gospel.
Like every Gospel, there is at least one part of the story of Jesus that is found nowhere else.  Luke actually has a couple of them.  He opens up with the account of John the Baptist’s father, Zachariah, who was a priest.  You will find his story documented nowhere else.  

What is a priest?  Unlike a prophet, who represents God to the people, he is a man who represents the people TO God as their intermediary.  He, obviously, must be a human being. This is one of the reasons Jesus had to born into this world. 

The verse below is the key to this book, a topic we discussed in part 1 of this series.  Let’s follow the story:
Luke 1:5
“There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. 7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years.”

Levitical Priest.
Zacharias, of course, was the priest to whom the Angel Gabriel appeared while he was offering prayers for the people at the altar of incense.  But because he did not believe the angel’s message, Gabriel said to him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and was sent to speak to you and bring you these glad tidings. 20 But behold, you will be mute and not able to speak until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words which will be fulfilled in their own time.”
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The story of Zacharias does not appear anywhere in Matthew nor is it in Mark.  But all of a sudden, here in Luke, we have his story. Why? Because this is the priestly gospel, full of priestly grace.
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Son Of Man.
Luke portrays Jesus as the “Son of Man,” a phrase that appears more often in Luke’s Gospel than in any other. He documents not only His birth but His entire genealogy, (unlike Matthew), proving He descended bodily from Adam. He didn’t take on human form like some parasite or invasion of the body snatchers.  NOPE.  He was FULLY human. 100% man AND 100% God.

Luke also reveals to us the glory of this Perfect Man.  This is the only place where the details of Jesus birth in Bethlehem and His physical growing up are found. No one else records these events.  No one else tells us of the angels who filled the sky, the shepherds who heard the message, and how they came to the manger where he was born.

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Not Just Any Inn.

For further study on this topic, you may follow the links below about His birth and THE INN in whose stable He was born.  This wasn’t just any inn; the account says there was no room for Him (Jesus) in THE INN. The definite article “THE” is not there by accident!  By following the links below, you will learn some very interesting, though little-known, history about THE inn and why THE use of THE definite article. I hope you will be just a amazed and blessed as I was when I first learned of it.

Just as fascinating are some amazing secrets is the Hebrew language which show us how the shepherds knew EXACTLY where to find the holy child, even though they had some (seemingly) very sketchy information from the angel.  Now, you’ll know what they knew about exactly where to find Jesus, which is why they could go “With haste!”

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The Manger:  https://emmausroadministries.wordpress.com/2016/08/30/eder-migdol-the-tower-of-the-flock-christmas-series-part-3/

The Inn:  https://emmausroadministries.wordpress.com/2016/08/30/chimhams-inn-christmas-series-part-2/

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The story of Jesus as a young lad in the temple, asking the doctors of the law questions, is also only recorded in Luke’s gospel.  He was in the Temple, asking these learned men questions and, when they could not answer, they asked Him what He thought.  His answers demonstrated such wisdom and understanding that they were utterly amazed!

Of course, they had no idea that we’re talking to THE One Who actually authored the scriptures and gave the Law on Mt. Sinai.  Yet, though He was far more intelligent than all of these aged scholars combined, He did not show them any disrespect or lord it over them, so to speak.  No. He humbled Himself and took His place as appropriate for the child of 13 that He physically was at that time.
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From His birth, to the account of Him in the Temple at age 13, to adulthood, Luke proves that Jesus was born as a tiny human baby, physically grew up and lived a normal, hidden, human life. He grew in knowledge and grace, in stature, and in favor with God and Man.
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Deaf AND Dumb? 🙉 🙊
When John was born to Zacharias and Elizabeth, those who were present asked the father what they should name the boy.  So, if he was ONLY unable to speak, why did they do this? “They made signs to him what he should be called.”  

Why make signs to him if he was only struck dumb?  BECAUSE HE WAS NOT JUST DUMB BUT DEAF AS WELL.  Otherwise, they would only have had to speak to him and have him write the name on a tablet.

Why strike him deaf and dumb?  Remember what he said to the angel in the Holy Place?  He doubted the angel’s message! Now, it was God’s intention to bless Zacharias and Elizabeth by answering their life-long prayer with a son.  But not just any son:  THE ONE who would become the “Voice crying in the wilderness, “Prepare ye the way of the Lord,” meaning Jesus.  Only the most important prophet of all time!

Aw, you know how it is.  We humans are basically negative.  We tend to confess what it is and what we don’t have. What we need to do is grab hold of God’s promises and confess what He says; to call forth those things that are not as though they were.  Spouting negative and doubt is only going to yield more of the same: WHAT WE DON’T HAVE AND WHAT WE DON’T WANT.

Remember, words have POWER.  You get what you SAY.

God wasn’t about to allow any negative communication or doubts emanating from Zacharias’ mouth, torpedoing his blessing.  So He arranged for that to be impossible. If Zacharias could not speak or hear, he could not speak or hear any negative.

“His Name Is John.”
Zacharias asked for a writing tablet and, as you know, wrote John’s name on it. John’s name means, “God’s grace.” As soon as he wrote the child’s name on that tablet, he was immediately able to speak again!

This is no coincidence! Upon writing the word, “Grace,” his voice and hearing instantly returned. That’s right, folks: Grace opened his ears and loosed his tongue!
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Secrets In Hebrew Names.
There is a wonderful message about Jesus in the meanings of the names of John and his parents.   This is another subject entirely, so if you’d like to read all about it, you may follow the link below:

https://emmausroadministries.wordpress.com/2016/06/29/god-remembered-his-promise/
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The Law Of First Mention.
There’s a law, if you will, of “first-mention” in the interpretation of scripture which states, “The first mention or occurrence of a subject in Scripture establishes an unchangeable pattern, with that subject remaining unchanged in the mind of God throughout Scripture.” There are important principles and insights to be gained by studying the first mention of any word or subject.

For Instance: The very first mention of a “Writing tablet” is in the Old Testament where God wrote the Ten Commandments “Tablets of stone.” The very first mention of writing tablet in the New Testament is here, in this story. They are a picture of Law as contrasted with Grace demonstrating that Grace is greater than the law!

The first writing on tablets of stone in the Old Testament was Law.  The first writing on a tablet of stone in the New Testament was Grace! AWESOME!
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Compare And Contrast.
As we saw in the Gospel of Mark, events were listed in chronological order. Not so in the book of Luke. The Holy Spirit purposely placed many chapters side by side to compare and contrast law and grace.  For instance, Chapter 18 is all about the rich young ruler.  Chapter 19 recored the story of Zacchaeus to demonstrate to us the differences between the two.

Law demands; 😠 Grace supplies. 😊

The Rich Young Ruler Compared To Zacchaeus.
In Luke 18, the rich young ruler came to Jesus and asked what he could “DO” to inherit eternal life, emphasis on, “DO.” Zacchaeus, on the other hand, was dealt with totally by grace.
Where the rich young ruler went away and could hardly give up one cent to the poor, the sinner and tax collector, “Zacchaeus,” not only gave back everything he stole to those he robbed; he restored four times what he took. Not only that, but half of his goods he gave to the poor.  Amazing!
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That’s the difference between Law and Grace!  Grace causes you to be generous.  You are more conscious of SUPPLY vs. DEMAND.

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(For further study on the topic above, you may follow the link below:
https://emmausroadministries.wordpress.com/2016/07/27/where-your-treasure-is/)
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Why Portray Jesus As Man?
Jesus is portrayed in this gospel in very domestic settings, living among the ones He loved so much: Mary, Martha, Lazarus. This is the only Gospel that records the story of Prodigal Son.  So many stories of warmth and closeness, of friends and family.

Why portray Him as a man?  Because it is so easy to get caught up in His majesty and might as a holy God, we sometimes forget that He is also fully human. He has human emotions and human sympathies. He doesn’t merely know how we feel: He feels what we feel! He loves us as family! These stories of Jesus’ love for people so clearly show us the heart of the Father; the One Who sent His beloved Son into the world in order to save all of us. It cost them both more than we will ever know or understand, even in eternity.

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Different Strokes For Different Folks.

The first three gospels are known as the “Synoptic Gospels.”  Syn meaning “Together;” optic meaning “Seen.” They are “Seen together.”  Many stories that are found in Luke are also in the other two, like the account of the Centurion and his beloved servant who was very sick.  

These stories, though similar, have important differences. For instance:  In Matthew 8 it says that the Centurion came to Jesus and begged Him to heal his servant, which He did. But the account in the Gospel of Luke is quite different from Matthew’s for a very good reason. Let’s read Luke’s version of the story:

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Luke 7:3-10
”So when he (the Centurion) heard about Jesus, he sent elders of the Jews to Him, pleading with Him to come and heal his servant. 4 And when they came to Jesus, they (Elders of the Jews) begged Him earnestly, saying that the one for whom He should do this was deserving, 5 “for he loves our nation, and has built us a synagogue.
6 Then Jesus went with them. And when He was already not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to Him, saying to Him, “Lord, do not trouble Yourself, for I am not worthy that You should enter under my roof. 7 Therefore I did not even think myself worthy to come to You. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. 8 For I also am a man placed under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
9 When Jesus heard these things, He marveled at him, and turned around and said to the crowd that followed Him, “I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!” 10 And those who were sent, returning to the house, found the servant well who had been sick.”

God Resists The Proud.
Woah!  That’s quite a different story from Matthew’s account?  Why the difference?  Remember, Matthew was writing to the Jewish people, primarily.  The Holy Spirit purposely did not have Matthew record that the centurion, a Gentile, sent elders of the Jews to Jesus to ask Him to heal his servant; but He allowed Dr. Luke to document this fact. Why?  Because if he had written that this Roman centurion, this Gentile, had sent elders of the Jews to Jesus, it would build pride in them.

Luke wrote his Gospel to Gentile believers. Gentiles need to have respect for Israel. That is why He allowed Luke to let it be known that this man actually sent Jewish people to speak for him. He didn’t go to Jesus personally.

Is that a contradiction or a lie? No, because sending someone in your place is the same to the Jews as going yourself.

Divine Intent.
So you see, what is included in scripture and what is omitted is by Divine intent. God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. He wants us to be full of grace which means He wants us to be humble people.

Like water, grace flows to the lowest place. So if you stay low, grace will always find you and lift you up!  Of course, you don’t have to make yourself low in order to earn grace.  Grace is UNdeserved favor.  If you have to earn it, it is no more grace:  It is Law.

In order to bless the Jewish people, God didn’t want them to develop a prideful spirit. That would stymie the blessings He wanted to shower on them. Hence, the differing accounts!
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Don’t you just love the Bible even more? God is SO AWESOME!!! He knows what to reveal to whom for their greatest benefit!
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You may proceed to Part 7 by following the link below where we’ll talk about the theme of the Gospel of John:

The Gospels Part 7 of 9: John