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The UNIQUE MOMENTS of Luke’s Gospel WELCOME BACK So glad you’re with us again, or with us for the first time! We continue our “finishing the Bible well” type of devotionals this year as we look this week at the uniqueness of the gospel of Luke. We’ll dive in with a Monday thru Friday format and hopefully begin to see 5 different types of “Moments” that Luke alone records or expands extensively as the Holy Spirit gave him guidance. It’s been said that 2 Timothy 3:16-17 speaks to the “product” of Scripture and 2 Peter 1:21, speaks to the “process” which says, “For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit”. (NIV) So for reasons the Lord only knows, Luke wrote things the other gospel writers didn’t, which brings a harmony to our understanding of the incredible story of Jesus. He brings some added detail and mentions some folks and parabolic teaching we otherwise would have missed out on. I’ve divided the daily readings into…. · PRECIOUS Moments, · Moments of PASSION · HEALING Moments · PRAYERFUL Moments and · Moments of the HEART So here we go…may it be a great week supplementing your other studies and discipleship efforts you’re involved in within your local church fellowship! MONDAY….”PRECIOUS MOMENTS” Ok, I know it sounds like we’re looking at the figurines at Cracker Barrel, but in dividing down the “uniqueness” of Luke’s gospel record into 5 days, I saw the categories develop, and how else could I refer to the “Baby Picture” section of the story of Jesus? Here are the 4 areas I see today that are brought to us by Luke’s writing. As we go thru each Scripture selection this week, feel free to follow along. I’m in the NIV this week…. Picture 1….“Mary and the Magnificat” (1:39-58) This is an incredible moment that Mary has with her relative, Elizabeth who is 6 months ahe4ad of her in her Lamaze classes. When they meet, John the Baptist does a back flip in his mother’s womb as he is in the “prenatal presence” of the Messiah!
A blessing pours from Elizabeth’s heart to Mary as she wonders why she
is favored by God that Mary would come to visit her. And then Mary’s heart bursts forth in praise with words that have been turned into a song entitled “The Magnificat” declaring how God has looked upon her lowliness with favor, extended mercy to those who fear Him from generation to generation, how the Mighty One has done great things, and how holy is His name! If you need a version or two of the song, click on the links of Phil Driscoll and of John Michael Talbot. I guess this is the “ULTRASOUND” version of the photo album of Jesus. Now let’s move to the DELIVERY ROOM. Picture 2….“The Bethlehem Birth” (2:1-7) When Charles Schultz (cartoonist & pastor) wrote “A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS”, the world of “children of all ages” heard Linus read this passage to the whole Peanuts gang. In every church, large & small at Christmas time, these 7 verses are read, usually by candlelight. When we hear, “In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree”, we all know what’s coming. The Christmas story. And Luke covers the details for us so well. All of heaven is watching and about to explode in just a moment! And “swaddling clothes” and “no room in the Inn” were phrases about to be coined and associated with this story alone for the next 2000 years plus! Picture 3…“Shepherds on the Hillside” (2:8-20) They never would have heard the story and felt included unless heaven would’ve told them first! One angel begins the announcement with “do not be afraid” and suddenly “a great company of the heavenly host” appear praising God giving us other phrases to remember, like “glory to God in the highest” and “peace on earth, goodwill to men”! It’s a good thing the angel got to the point including all the details like good news, great joy, and for all people. The town of David, a Savior born to you, Christ the Lord all were immediately mentioned. And as soon as the angel indicated the “sign”, which was “a baby in a manger”, they can no longer contain their celestial joy! And they disappear just as quickly as they came on the scene! But they landed the punch and got the message adequately across. Because in the next moment, the shepherds all agree to “go and see” for themselves. Isn’t that the message we have as well? Inviting people to come and see for themselves! Notice the shepherds hurried off to SEE and then hurried off again to TELL. And people were amazed. Amazed that God might have sent His Messiah they had long awaited. (Remember He’d been quiet for 400 years.) Amazed it happened right there in their “O Little Town of Bethlehem”. And amazed that the shepherds found out before anyone else! Everyone’s life was changed on that “O Holy Night”! Mary & Joseph’s. The angels. The shepherds. And even Jesus! “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us”, as John so aptly would record in his gospel later. Picture 4….“Jesus Presented at the Temple” (2:21-40) Luke takes his time in giving us such a rich account of this next picture in Jesus’ Baby Photo Album. No one is exempt in the Kingdom of God, not even Mary & Joseph. They have a Jewish duty to bring the baby in the time of purification and give an offering, and they do. And in the process another “precious moment” occurs and another great song is written….thank you Michael Card in the 80’s! Simeon in the temple had been promised he’d see the Messiah before he died. As that privilege is actualized, he invites God to “dismiss him in death” because he has now “seen Your salvation, He’s the Light of the Gentiles and the glory of His people Israel”. And in just a few verses, the prophetess, Anna, shared a holy moment with them as well. But before Simeon dismisses the young couple with their baby, he also speaks painful prophecy to Mary & warns her of an upcoming trauma SHE will experience. God will allow this heart-revealing, destiny-changing, Savior to bring about the “piercing of His Mother’s soul Picture 5…“Where’d that 12 year old Messiah Go?” (2:41-52) I thought you had Him? No, I thought YOU had Him? Wasn’t He with His cousins? Where’s John the Baptist when you really need him? Love the story, although I bet the parents of this “pre-teen Messiah” were a little frazzled and embarrassed in the moment. You’ve got 1 job! To keep track of the Savior of the world and get Him to adulthood so He can make it to the cross and give His life for the sins of the world! No, I don’t think God chewed Mary & Joseph out, but they might have felt for a moment that they let Him down. But the bewildering words of their son didn’t seem to help them understand what “being about His Father’s business” really was all about. Nevertheless, the passage ends with the verse that many of us learned in VBS or church camp, that Jesus “grew in wisdom & stature & favor with God & man”. In other words, mentally, physically, spiritually & socially. The young Messiah is becoming a man. This is the last mention of Joseph in Scripture. Most Bible scholars believe he passed away sometime between this moment and the beginning of John the Baptist’s ministry. My understanding is that in the loss of a father, the oldest son was responsible for his mother and family until he turned 30, then was free to leave home. Turns out that’s exactly what Jesus did! So there’s the early photo album of Jesus’ childhood! Great moments to reflect on. God had His hand on His Son as He entrusted Him to a young couple to “parent” Him. And Luke gave us great details to savor and reflect on. Makes me think of the time our kids were kids, and now with our grandkids and how precious those days and THESE days are. Mary & Joseph had their moments of blessing. So did Simeon and Anna and all the others in these “pictureless photographs” today. May we smile “during and after” every photo while we do what we are called to do in OUR moment to honor God! TUESDAY…. “Moments of PASSION” Welcome back! Trusting yesterday was a day of more blessing than testing, but honestly God mixes those things all together in the lives of those He loves! Now on to seeing some passionate things Luke alone records in his gospel. A Passionate Pursuit (a Lost Coin 15:8-10 & a Lost Son 15:11-32) This chapter is one of my favorites of all time. Jesus tells 3 parables, and the value goes up in each one. Now I don’t mention the “lost sheep” because that one is mentioned elsewhere in the gospels. But this lost coin, that most likely represented an inheritance by the lady that searched and searched until it was found, and the Prodigal Son are uniquely Luke’s. What powerful stories! I’ve often wondered if the “Prodigal Son” was title properly? Now there are no titles in Scripture like the paragraph headings our Bibles have. Nor are there verses or chapters for that matter. But couldn’t it instead be called “the Loving Father”? Or maybe the “Obstinate, Entitled & Misguided Older Brother”? The pursuit earlier of the 1 of 99 sheep, the lost coin that called for a neighborhood search and party, and now that PATIENT pursuit of the Father, the IMPETUOUS pursuit of the prodigal, and the PERPETUAL pursuit the older brother of significance apart from respectful relationship. Luke gives us so much to consider. I’m thankful the Spirit prompted him to include those parables! The legalistic Jewish people needed to hear to GRACE of the loving Father so they might understand God wants people ALLOWED IN His Kingdom rather than KEPT OUT! And don’t you love the words of the Father, saying they HAD to celebrate, because his SON (and the older one’s BROTHER) was metaphorically dead but is now alive…he was lost, but now he’s found! That is the joy of our Father’s heart. When the lost are found! 2 Peter 3:9 reminds us that God is not willing that ANY perish, but that ALL might come to repentance! A Compassionate Pursuit (the Good Samaritan 10:25-37) Oh my! Where would we be without this parable of Jesus! This was an ILLUSTRATION type of parable regarding the question of “who really is my neighbor”? In other words, Jesus, how far do we have to take this? This is the story Jesus told when making His point about what “loving one another” really looks like. Included is the failure of the religious community in the mentioning of both the priest & the Levite who passed by. It seems that THEY would be the ones to show mercy to a fellow Jew who was wounded, but they were not the “first responders”. It was a bi-racial Samaritan, half Jewish and half Gentile. They were loathed by both ethnic groups. Our family has seen this story in a much different light with our daughter, Rachel working with the Samaritans of today, the “Roma Gypsy” people. And Jesus shows that it was an unpredictable Samaritan who broke free of prejudice and cared for one who most likely wouldn’t have been cared for if the roles had been reversed. You can almost hear in Jesus’ voice, “Put that in your Pharisaical pipe and smoke it”. But He didn’t do that. He kept it serious asking the crowd a rhetorical question, “Which one of these three were a “neighbor” to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” The expert in the law who originally asked the “greatest commandment question” responded acknowledging it was the “one who had mercy on him”. “Bingo”, Jesus said. “Go thou and do likewise”. And so must we. Too Passionate about Success (a Rich Fool 12:13-21) This is simply a sad story. Jesus was warning against all kinds of greed because (here it is), “a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” Mark it down. Take it to the bank. Cash the check. This is a HUGE spiritual truth! What we OWN doesn’t define us. Nor does what we DON’T have define us. It does REVEAL many times whether what we have OWNS US or not, though. Bigger isn’t always better and the name of the game, Jesus says is not ACCUMULATION. It’s appreciation…. it’s devotion…. it’s distribution. Jesus ends the story with another pointed statement, that “we’re not to store up things for ourselves without being RICH TOWARD GOD”. Too Passionate about their Spiritual Image (the Pharisee & the Tax Collector 18:9-14) Whoa! Another incredible parable Jesus spoke recorded by Luke! Jesus taught that ESSENCE> IMAGE. God justifies and blesses us when we humbly reveal who we REALLY are, rather than projecting and image what we want others to think of us as. This parable is “sandwiched” between one on persistent prayer (humility) and letting the little children come unto Me (even more humility). So we end our day reminding ourselves it’s not about us. The hardest thing I’ve had to “get over” in life is MYSELF. I think it’s kind of that way for all of us in one way or another. For the younger & older brother alike, they had to get over themselves. For the “priests and Levites” in the crowd, they had to realize they needed to be “more like the Samaritan”, which was awfully hard to hear! For the big farmer with the big tractors and thought he needed bigger barns, he waited too late to bring the best of his grain into the storehouse of the Lord”. He was much like Cain in that regard. Doesn’t even mention that he gave God the “leftovers”. At least Cain did that! And the Tax Collector? Who gives a flying rip if you’re all that in YOUR eyes if you’re not in GOD’S eyes! May we help each other finishing well by getting over ourselves….and never getting over the goodness of God! Love you guys….. WEDNESDAY… “HEALING Moments” We continue today with accounts that only Luke recorded, which are miraculous moments bringing health and in one case, even life back to people who were blessed in such incredible ways. There are 3 we look at today….. #1…. “the 10 Lepers” (17:11-19) I love some of the phrases in this account of healing. Notice Jesus “straddled the fence” of the Samaritan border. The group of “lepers” had the worst skin disease with the worst social side effects that you could imagine. Their skin rotted off the bone and on occasion, limbs fell off. And they were TOTALLY isolated from all of society except one another. But they meet Jesus as He and the disciples come thru the village. They show respect by “keeping their distance”. When He sees them, He doesn’t go talk or touch them, but rather acknowledges their request for pity and simply tells them to go show themselves to the priest, which was required by the Law when a person was healed. It had to be documented. Now the next phrase is awesome, in verse 1b, it says “and as they went, they were cleansed”. As they went. What if they wouldn’t have gone? But they believed enough to go. And the crazy thing was ONLY ONE CAME BACK TO SAY THANKS! And that one who returned wasn’t Jewish, but…..here we go again….a SAMARITAN. Jesus rightfully asks, “Where are the nine”? Only 10% were grateful. A foreigner. And Jesus hadn’t begun His formal ministry to the Gentiles, this guy just happened to be in this integrated leper colony, because it turns out that when you have leprosy, NOBODY CARES about your ethnicity! What a miracle….what an important lesson of being grateful! #2… “a Woman Sick for 18 Years” (13:10-17) Once again, Jesus disregards what day it is when someone needs healing! You know your priorities are messed up when you disapprove of a miracle by what day of the week it was. And that’s why the hypocritical synagogue ruler who complained got “singled out and spanked pretty good” by Jesus! Jesus had just had compassion on a lady who was bent over for 18 years. I mean this was an extreme case of scoliosis. On a personal note, my grandmother had that “curvature of the spine” something terrible. I never saw her stand up straight and yet she worked circles around most everyone from a stooped over position. But it was very difficult because she couldn’t reach what she once was able to reach. This lady that Jesus healed instantly was described by Jesus as a “daughter of Abraham” who had been “bound by Satan”, which could lead to a whole other Bible study, but for now let’s just celebrate her healing! Please note the last verse in this passage, verse 17, which says, “When He said this, all His opponents were humiliated, but the people were delighted with all the wonderful things He was doing”. It was a win. A win for the woman, for the Kingdom, for the people, & for Jesus. The only ones losing that day were the religious leaders and the Devil. What a generous healing Jesus gave a precious woman! #3… “the Raising of a Widow’s Son at Nain” (7:11-17) There are several things to notice in this passage Luke records for us. One is the lady is a widow …she is poor….and her ONLY son had just died, which represented her only hope of survival. So, his death set hers into motion most likely. There was also a large crowd with her in the funeral procession, so that’s an indication she & her son were loved and respected (and most likely her late husband) by the community. And in verse 13, the Scripture so beautifully says, “When the Lord saw her, His heart went out to her and He said, ‘Don’t cry”. I love the old hymn, “Does Jesus Care?” The lyrics are… Does Jesus care when I’ve said goodbye
to the dearest on earth to me?
When my said heart aches til it nearly breaks,
is it naught to Him, does He see? Oh, yes, He cares.
I know He cares.
His heart is touched by my grief. When the day is weary,
The long night’s dreary
I know my Savior cares. Jesus cares. And in this case, He raised her son back to life. He doesn’t always do that, but He did that day! Can you imagine how she felt when Jesus handed her son back to her? All were filled with awe & praise. Word on the street now was there a great prophet among them! And news spread. May we help the news spread of the One who will raise us all up at the resurrection and how we’ve GOT to be ready and help others be as well! To quote a phrase form one of my many favorite songs…..”Spirit in the Sky”…. Prepare yourself…you know it’s a must….you’ve gotta have a friend in Jesus! So, you know that when you die, He’s gonna send you up to the Spirit in the sky” May we be ready to go! THURSDAY… “PRAYERFUL Moments” Got a lot of mentioning of special prayers by Luke alone today for us! Let’s dive in with 9 that only he records! I better get to it….some awesome prayers to consider! 1—at His “Baptism” (3:21-22) Luke alone mentions “as He was praying” right after Jesus’ baptism. That’s when the heavens opened…WHILE He was praying….how cool is that! 2—all night long prayer before “choosing the Twelve” (6:12-16) Here’s the listing of the 12. But before Jesus made the formal selections, He spent the night….the whole night in prayer. He took it seriously. A lot was at stake! 3—at the “Transfiguration” (9:28-36) Luke says that it was 8 days after Jesus had made this HUGE insistence on discipleship. He said if someone was ashamed of Him then He’d be ashamed of them. That’s not being retaliatory, that’s just what following Him calls for. And this incredible experience that the inner circle of Peter, James & John have with Jesus on the mountain is hard to get our heads around. They had gone to the mountain to pray and once again, WHILE THEY WERE PRAYING (seems a lot of good things happened while prayers are going up) another incredible experience happens as well as the Voice from heaven, which was just like the Voice at His baptism. It all happened WHILE they were praying! 4—in “Sending out the Seventy-Two” (10:1-24) Jesus began His “sending” of this second set of troops (the 12 was the first) on their mission trip with a call for all to pray. It was a specific prayer for them to “ask the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest field.” That is to be our prayer as well. To not only GO ourselves as God prompts us, but to PRAY that He would RAISE UP & SEND others to do His work in His way, whatever that looks like in His field of harvest! 5—illustrated by the “Friend at Night” (11:1-13) Ok, Jesus. You’re telling me I need to take prayer more seriously! After a brief mention of the Model Prayer or what we call typically “The Lord’s Prayer” or what our Catholic friend would affectionately refer to as “Our Father”, Jesus gives this very pointed hypothetical. It’s about a guy who needs bread because company is coming but Meijer’s is closed so he goes at midnight to a friend’s house to ask for a favor. His “friend” isn’t all that friendly and Jesus says the guy won’t get up to help just because of friendship, but he WILL get up to help because the guy won’t go away, and he knows if he’s gonna get any sleep that night it will be AFTER he gives the guy the bread he’s asking for! This is where the ask and you will receive, seek & you’ll find, and knock and the door will be opened unto you” passage occurs. The whole point Jesus says is, God wants to give you good gifts, SO ask! Respectfully! Prayerfully! Persistently! 6—illustrated by the “Persistent Widow” (18:1-8) Yep…a little more of the same as the friend needing bread. Again, only Luke records this, but this time it’s a lady who want justice and won’t leave Judge Judy alone. Now in this teaching, Jesus is making the point that continual, fervent prayer needs to be our strategy! He also is saying that if an unbelieving judge gives in to this pressure, HOW MUCH MORE will a holy God do the right thing when it comes to bring justice. 7—the “Prayer for Peter” (22:31-34) Thru all of these, I find it fascinating that Luke was the only one who recorded these! This happens during the tension of the Last Supper, when all the disciples were very concerned about “pecking order” and who was the greatest, who serves, where one is seated and other “proximity to Jesus” kinds of concerns. In verse 31, Jesus takes the initiative to let Peter know he’s in for a battle that night. Reason being was Satan had asked to “sift him like wheat”. Sounds a bit like the conversation God had with the devil about Job long ago. And Jesus mentions to Peter that He had PRAYED for him that he might not fail and when he turns back to strengthen his brothers. Whoa….Jesus seems to indicate that Peter will TURN AWAY, because to turn back, he’d have to first of all turn away! He gives him a major “heads up”. Even tells Peter that he will deny him 3 times before the morning rooster gives his wake-up call. And it would be more than a wakeup call for Peter. It would be a moment of deep broken heartedness and tears. But isn’t it interesting that Jesus said He would PRAY for Peter! And He is our Advocate in heaven as Satan would be our Prosecutor! 8—in His “First Words on the Cross” (23:34) Verse 34…..”Father, forgive them, they don’t know what they’re doing.” And they didn’t. but they would soon enough realize as one soldier exclaimed, “Surely He was the Son of God”! 9—in His “Last Words on the Cross” (23:46) And His final prayer before His death, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit”. Luke’s gospel contains most other primary things, but I am so thankful for his contribution and willingness to be the vessel of the Lord that He was in faithfully recording what the Spirit of the Lord prompted him to write! Prayer was very prevalent in Luke’s gospel. And as we’ve seen today in these 9 “exclusives”, so to speak, their mentioning is all for good reason. May we today be people of persistent & consistent prayer, even when we’re worn and fatigued….because then is likely when we NEED HIM THE MOST! FRIDAY… “Moments of the HEART” Thanks for staying with us for the week! I know it’s a lot to ask, a lot of reading, and a major sacrifice on your part. But I truly hope this will give you a little more “familiarity” and even framework that you can look back on and compartmentalize the Word of God where you can “pull it up from your mental hard drive” for easier access! At least that’s my hope as I sense God prompting my heart here in my retirement to never shy away from the command Jesus gave Peter in his reinstatement to “feed My sheep”. So here are the 3 types of hearts that once again, only Luke records. #1—a Heart that was BROKEN…”the Thief on the Cross” (23:39-43) What an encouragement that there is hope while there is breath! But talk about the “starkest of contrasts”! One criminal on Jesus’ side hurling insults at Him. Why in the world AT THAT POINT would he do that? Hate & hostility run deep & long it appears. Mockery is addictive & it can define a person’s life I’m afraid. But notice the thief on the other side of Jesus. He CONFRONTS the guy 2 doors down. The NIV says that he REBUKES the other criminal, which means it was not only a confrontation, but one that “had no expectation of a positive response”. In other words, he knew his words would fall on deaf ears. He gives him the perfect response, pointing out they were both under the same sentence and he obviously had no fear of God, because the 2 of them were getting what they deserved, while Jesus (always the Man in the Middle) had done NOTHING WRONG. And after the confrontation, then the request. It was one of sincere regret and authentic faith. It had to be, or Jesus wouldn’t have answered it the way He did! He asks “to be remembered when Jesus came into His Kingdom”. And it wasn’t a “what have I got to lose” type of prayer. It was a broken-hearted prayer filled with faith & respect & hope in the One hanging on a cross for the sins of the world! And he got the response we all hope to get from Jesus….a “YES”. YES to forgiveness. YES to Paradise, which according to Luke 16 is the “holding place” in God’s presence as we WAIT FOR (not pay for as in the idea of purgatory) but wait for the Lord to return to earth! And did the other criminal not hear what just went down? Apparently not because his disbelief proved to be terminal. May we keep looking for those with broken hearts, while talking with both them and those with hard hearts! #2—Hearts that BURNED…. “the Road to Emmaus” (24:13-35) Oh, my we could talk a lot of time on this one! Don’t rush thru this one when you get a chance to focus on it. Every word recorded in this account has such an impact. And boy would I love to get a DVD copy of Jesus’ teaching in verse 27, which says, “And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning Himself”. Wow! That book will sell out! And after their EYES were OPENED in verse 31, they acknowledge how their HEARTS BURNED as Jesus talked and opened the Scriptures to them. When our eyes are opened to the deep truth in God’s Word, our hearts automatically burn within us. And now finally, there’s one more type of HEART Luke points out for us….. #3—Hearts that were BLESSED… “the Ascension” (24:50-53) As Jesus caught the next cloud back to heaven, His followers worshipped, returned to Jerusalem, continually praised God in the Temple, and it was all done according to verse 52, “WITH GREAT JOY”. Broken hearts, burning hearts and now blessed hearts. Jesus made a point to BLESS them before He LEFT them. Their lives were changed forever. And they lived in that transformation that continued and WILL continue as we are “conformed to the image of His Son” as mentioned in Romans 8:29. Luke did such a faithful job of recording primarily for this guy in chapter 2 verse 4 named Theophilus. And he mentions it was so that he might know the CERTAINTY of what he’d already been taught about Jesus. May our certainty go to a new level as well, as we together try to help one another FINISH WELL. Love you my friends…and may His blessings be upon you in a mighty way this week! george
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