Have you ever noticed that some studies seem to be contradictory? One study will note that coffee is good for you as it is made of up of mostly water while another will state that it dehydrates you because of the caffeine. One study states that eating eggs will give you high cholesterol while another points out how it actually lowers cholesterol.
How can we be sure that the things we’re listening to are true? How can we have confidence to believe what we hear?
When it comes to published studies and dietary advice, we may need to take them all with a little patience and moderation.
What about spiritual matters? How do we know what we’re reading is true? How can we be sure that our faith stands on a firm foundation?
I think those questions may have been on Luke’s mind as he took time to write out his gospel account of the life of Jesus - especially as he thought about a man named Theophilus.
Open your bibles to Luke 1. Today, we’re beginning a look at this book of the Bible. If you’re unfamiliar with the Bible - Luke is in the New Testament - the back portion of the bible - located after the books of Matthew and Mark and before the books of John and Acts.
?Luke 1:1–4 ESV
Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us, it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.
?Theme: We can know for sure regarding events of Jesus’ life because they have been shared by eyewitnesses and carefully investigated by others.
It seems that we gain this confidence regarding the events of the life of Jesus as we study the gospel, believe the gospel, and then share the gospel.
Before we dive into our outline, I think it’s important for us to be on the same page regarding the gospel.
If I were to ask you to tell me the gospel, what would you say? Would you talk about the life and ministry of Jesus? Would there be implications beyond just the life and ministry of Jesus? What does the word “gospel” mean anyways.
We have four books in the New Testament, including the one we’re studying now called gospels. They are four different accounts or views of the life and ministry of Jesus.
In Greek, gospel literally means “good news.” In the first century, it was a common proclamation of victory and good tidings when a political or military leader would come to power.
But when it comes to the gospel of Jesus - what is the good news? The New Bible Dictionary describes the gospel as:
The New Bible Dictionary, Third Edition Gospel
the good news that God in Jesus Christ has fulfilled his promises to Israel, and that a way of salvation has been opened to all.
So the gospel has a backward element - looking backwards to the character of God and the condition of humanity. It looks at the life of Jesus to learn not only what he did, but why. Then it looks forward to you and me - and our response. Sometimes, people will summarize the gospel with four words, God, Man, Christ, response:
God - who is holy and pure, created all things with the expectation that it would be for his enjoyment and would bring Him glory.
Man - humanity, created in God’s image rebelled against God’s perfect plan, staining all of creation with sin. Sin’s ultimate outworking is death and separation from a right relationship with God.
Christ - God sent Jesus into the world to redeem the world from it’s sinful condition by offering His life on the cross for our sins.
Response - Once we are made aware of our sin and what Christ has done, we then have an opportunity to respond in faith - admitting our sin and trusting in Christ’s forgiveness. Throughout the NT, we see this as “believe and be baptized.” Our response continues as we live lives of faithful obedience to God’s ways, glorifying Him and blessing humanity.
Last summer at Art Camp, I had the privilege of leading the camp chorale. The kids in the chorale learned a song called the gospel song which beautifully describes and defines the gospel for us.
Holy God in love became
Perfect man to bear my blame
On the cross He took my sin
By His death I live again
So, now that we understand a bit more of what the gospel is, let’s consider how we are challenged and encouraged by Luke’s account of the good news of Jesus to…
Study the gospel.
As Luke notes in his opening remarks, there have been many people who have worked to “compile” narratives of what happened in and around the earthly ministry of Jesus. While Luke’s gospel was likely written in the early to mid 60s, he was preceded by the gospels of Mark and Matthew. Many scholars suggest that Mark was the first to be written in the mid to late 50s, followed by Matthew in the late 50s to early 60s. If we were to read through through each of these three gospels together, we would note many places of similarity, but also several places of difference. Many of these differences stem from the fact that they were written to different audiences.
As we study the book of Luke, we’ll find that it was written to a gentile audience - an audience that was unfamiliar with Hebrew and unfamiliar with Jewish traditions. In many ways, it was written to an audience like most of us.
But as we read, we get to do so with eyes that pay attention to the details. We get to notice the personal interactions and the locations. We get to reflect on the humanity of Jesus as he ministers to people and as he prepares His disciples for the ministry that they will take on following his death, burial, resurrection, and ascension.
I think that this study is more than an academic exercise. Sure, this study is designed to give us information, but it’s also intended to give us confidence.
Luke, who was a physician, put his skills and education into action in order to present to Theophilus and to us an account that is the result of hours of interviews, reading, listening, learning. Michael Wilcock notes that as a physician Luke’s “business” was in healing. So as he is working through this “orderly” account, he’s working to heal the doubts and insecurities of Theophilus - and frankly all of his reader. By his own words, Luke had “followed all things closely,” indicating that this gospel account is thoroughly researched.
This is the longest book in the NT. As we reflect on this each week, we will get to consider digestible passages. We may be helped by reading the entire book each month or even each week. Now, on one hand, that may feel like overkill, like it’s a repetitive endeavor. But, I also believe that as we read and re-read and re-read, our eyes and our minds will see and understand new things in the text. We will make new observations. We will understand the parables differently. We will grasp new depths in Jesus’ ministry among others - his interactions, conversations, corrections, and encouragements.
Several weeks ago, I met another pastor at a workshop. He shared about a time when he felt like he was in a spiritual rut and so he did something that I thought was quite bizarre. He read the book of Leviticus every month for over a year. Now, if you’ve ever read Leviticus, you may know that it was designed to provide laws and rules for the people of Israel and specifically the Levites as they administered the religious practices of the community. He said that each day he would carefully and slowly read a chapter or so, meditating some, journaling some. Early on, he found that it was more of a religious exercise, but after a few months of pouring over the Word, things began to come to light to him in new ways. He found a richness in text that he had not seen before. What’s more is that he found deep spiritual applications that enriched his life and strengthened his walk with the Lord.
My hope as we take a slow, careful look at the book of Luke, that we will not only grow in our knowledge and understanding of the Word, but also in our appreciation and awe of God.
So, studying the gospel involves reading. It also involves reflecting and noting. It involves understanding.
In many ways, this study of the gospel should prompt us to…
Believe the gospel.
This time of year, it’s not uncommon to hear children ask one another if they believe in Santa Claus or some other character from children’s Christmas stories. But there are a couple of levels of depth to the concept of belief. One level is belief in the historical reality of something. When it comes to Santa Claus or St. Nicholas, there was an historic person who did secretly give gifts to people, especially people in need. But in the lore of Santa Claus is the belief that Santa can fly around the world in a matter of hours and deliver gifts to people’s homes - all in one night.
For us, when it comes to our belief in the gospel, there is again a two-fold element - historical reality and spiritual significance.
Historical Reality
That is belief in the historical reality that Jesus did the things that were written about him. Luke, Mark, Matthew and John all wrote their accounts in order to provide some historical facts.
Luke clearly states that one of his purposes in writing his book is in order to give Theophilus, whose name means “God lover,” confidence or assurance in the things that he had been taught. We don’t know exactly what Theophilus had been taught about Jesus, but Luke is clearly writing to bolster his confidence, to strengthen his belief. As we look at the rest of Luke’s gospel, we’ll get to learn about the miraculous circumstances of his birth, some unique facts about his childhood, and a great deal about his ministry.
But, it seems like this belief is more than simply an acceptance of the facts. Josephus, an early Jewish historian who lived from about AD37-100, even acknowledged some historical facts about Jesus. Whereas Josephus did not believe that Jesus was the Messiah or the Christ, he did believe in the historical reality of Jesus and even acknowledged that Jesus did some marvelous things - including rising from the dead.
The Works of Josephus: New Updated Edition The Ancient Citations of the Testimonies of Josephus, from His Own Time Till the End of the Fifteenth Century
“That there was at that time a wise man, if (says he) it be lawful to have him called a man, a doer of wonderful works, who appeared to his disciples after the third day from his death alive again, according to the writings of the prophets, who foretold these and innumerable other miraculous events concerning him; from whom began the congregation of Christians, and hath penetrated among all sorts of men: nor does there remain any nation in the Roman world which continues strangers to his religion.”
Josephus believed in the historical reality of Jesus. He may have been born shortly after Jesus ascended, but he could see the impact that Jesus’ life had on his world. Sadly, for Josephus, his belief stopped with the historical reality.
But there is a secondary reason or level of belief, that is…
Spiritual Significance
John explicitly states in his gospel that…
John 20:31 (ESV)
… these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
John’s hope is his writing would result in belief in who Jesus is and secondly, belief in what that means or what belief in Jesus accomplishes - namely life.
Theophilus, the initial recipient of this letter had clearly learned some things about Jesus. Luke takes what he learned and studied and compiled it into an account that would be logical and systematic and thorough in order to give Theophilus confidence. I think this confidence goes beyond simply the acceptance of facts - like Josephus, but also acceptance of the significance of those facts.
When we consider some of the miraculous things in Luke’s account - for example the birth of John the baptist and then the virgin birth of Jesus as we’ll see in the next couple of weeks, Luke places those together in order to communicate some significant things. I think he also does that to assuage any potential doubts.
Beloved, brother or sister in Christ, we are all going to have doubts from time to time.
I have had doubts in the past and still have unanswered questions. The certainty that Luke is aiming for seeks to address those doubts. As we study this, rest confidently in the painstaking work that Luke has undertaken. Think deeply about the facts AND the meaning. When you have doubts, bring them to the Lord, but also bring them to a brother or sister in Christ. As we learned from Tim and Josh over the last couple of weeks, we’re not in this journey of faith alone. We get to do this together!
Friend, you may believe, like Josephus, in the historical reality of Jesus. You may believe that he existed in the first century, that he taught many wonderful things, that he lived a righteous and good life. That’s great! But, let me encourage you to keep pressing, keep pursuing, keep asking “why,” “so what”, “how does this impact me?” In pursing those questions about Jesus’ life, about the gospel, I believe you’ll gain the certainty that we all long for. Mike McKinley notes in his commentary that Luke talks about salvation more than any of the other gospels. Luke is writing so that you and I will believe, that we will come to faith. He goes so far as to state: Luke 24:46–47 …“Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.”
Do you know that you have a sin problem? Do you know you need salvation from the eternal consequences of your sin? Ask those questions of the Bible. Ask those questions of God. Ask those questions of other believers. There are plenty of people around you who would love to help you process through those questions. They may not have all the answers, but they can work with you to get them. I’d be honored to help you wrestle with the historical facts and the spiritual significance of Jesus Christ - of the gospel.
So our study should result in belief. That belief is not for us to hold onto alone. These opening verses of Luke’s account help us to see from the example of others that we should…
Share the gospel.
Luke noted that many people tried to “compile” narratives - to communicate what happened. Luke was clearly aware of other accounts - whether it was just Matthew and Mark’s gospels, some of the apocryphal works, or some other documents that are no longer available.
In the few verses that we’re considering today, did you notice who was the source of his information? Eyewitnesses and Ministers. But who were those people? Essentially, I think this was the initial 12 apostles and those first followers of Jesus. Those people who had first hand information and had experienced life with Jesus where in a unique position to pass along what they learned - and they did so very well.
Two weeks ago, Tim talked about the fact that at Pentecost and following Peter’s first sermon - over 3000 people joined the church. It wasn’t long after that, that several thousand more joined the assembly of believers - all because the gospel was shared.
But notice, Luke references the things that were “accomplished” in their day. While he does not quote the Old Testament promises as much as the other gospel writers, he seems to acknowledge that Jesus life and ministry fulfilled an expectation. I think it’s interesting as well, to notice that Luke’s background as a physician and likely a gentile and Theophilus’ Greek background both informed the way that Luke organized and presented his gospel.
So, how can we share the gospel?
We can explicitly speak it.
I think there are ways that we can weave in the message of the gospel into our conversations, clearly letting people know what we believe and why. Frankly, this can be challenging at times. The gospel is good news so it should be easy. Part of the challenge is that the good news implies bad news. Well, what is that bad news? Our sin problem. And then there is the feeling like we need to be some sort of spiritual salesmen who need to close a deal. Yuck!
A couple of weeks ago, I had the privilege of meeting with Robin and Melody along with one of Robin’s friends. This person grew up in a church, but walked away from formal Christianity decades ago. She says that she believes in God and considers herself a spiritual person who prays and tries to make a positive impact on humanity. As we explicitly shared the gospel with her, it was clear that she was not in a place where she was ready to respond. Frankly, she didn’t see a need to respond. I’m so proud of Robin and Melody for the ways that they are witnessing to this woman. May we all pray that the Holy Spirit - who is ultimately responsible for salvation - would give her an awareness of her need for salvation.
We can and should share the gospel by explicitly speaking it to others. But I think we should also
Share the gospel by living it
Peter urged the readers of his first letter:
1 Peter 2:12 ESV
Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.
Our study of the gospel and of the Word as a whole, our lives together in a community of faith should make a difference in how we live, how we use our time, how we treat others.
Share the gospel by inviting others to see it
This time of year is a wonderful opportunity for us to invite others to church and to our homes. Studies have shown that most people would come to church if they were invited. Whether it’s our regular Sunday gatherings or Christmas eve, or the special Christmas program or our community groups - we can share the gospel by inviting others to see and experience the fruit of the gospel in action.
Share the gospel personally
Luke’s background and Theophilus’ ethnicity informed how Luke fashioned his gospel account. When we do share the gospel, whether verbally or visually, we should make sure that it’s personal - that we’re not resting on some formulaic pattern, but communicating how the gospel has impacted us and how it can impact the Theophilus’ that God brings into our lives.
Closing thoughts
This time of year not only brings questions of belief about Santa Claus, but it’s a rather unique time of year. Our folklore around Christmas has introduced exchanging gifts, family gatherings, and more. As Christians, may we continue to study the gospel in order to grow in our confidence and strengthen our belief so that when opportunities arise for us to discuss the true reason for Christmas we will be ready to share boldly, lovingly, clearly, and personally about the gospel.
Friend, Jesus came into the world to demonstrate how to live the life that God intended all of us to live. But knowing that we could not do that fully in our sinful condition, he took our place by paying for the consequences of our sin and inviting us into a right relationship with God. I pray that you would study and search out the gospel so that you can be sure that the gospel is not a fairy tale or a story, but a true account that has eternal ramifications.
Let’s pray.
Sources:
Anyabwile, Thabiti. Exalting Jesus in Luke. Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary. Nashville, TN: Holman Reference, 2018.
Bock, Darrell L. Luke 1:1-9:50. Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1999.
Josephus, Flavius, and William Whiston. The Works of Josephus: Complete and Unabridged. Peabody: Hendrickson, 1987.
Martin, John A. “Luke.” In The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, edited by J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck. Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985.
McKinley, Mike. Luke 1–12 for You. Edited by Carl Laferton. God’s Word for You. The Good Book Company, 2016.
Mounce, R. H. “Gospel.” Edited by D. R. W. Wood, I. H. Marshall, A. R. Millard, J. I. Packer, and D. J. Wiseman. New Bible Dictionary. Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1996.
Wilcock, Michael. The Savior of the World: The Message of Luke’s Gospel. The Bible Speaks Today. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1979.
