Luke Chapter 7

• The account of the centurion in Luke 7:1-10 spoke to me in the way that it illustrated the faith and commitment of the centurion. Some of the elements of this account that stood out and struck me were as follows:

• Despite not being Jewish (an Israelite), the centurion was somehow able to boldly acknowledge Jesus as his Lord (v6).

• Going further, the centurion also acknowledged the power of Jesus in 7:7 where he stated, “just say the word, and my servant will be healed.”
  

• The centurion must have been a fairly compassionate master as we know he regarded at least some of his slaves in a high manner (v2).
  

• I liked the way the centurion explains his thought process in verse 8 and the reasoning behind his decision to not go to Jesus directly with his request. The description in verse 8 really conveys the centurion’s total comprehension of Jesus’ unquestioned authority.

In other words, the centurion appears to be saying that subordinates, whether soldiers or slaves, do not ask or tell their superior what they will do. To the contrary, a subordinate is told what to do and does as ordered. In this manner, the centurion, better than most, understands the utmost importance of this type of complete submission to authority.

What comes to mind is the zealous marine officer played by Jack Nicholson in the movie, “A Few Good Men”. In the movie, Jack’s character is the commanding officer of the US military base in Guantanamo Bay. The most notable aspect of the character is his inflexible belief in the importance of the chain of command. Something about this centurion seems to indicate that he lived according to a code of hierarchical relationships and took those codes seriously.

As noted, adding to the impact of the centurion’s deference is the fact that he seems to be a ranking officer and a person of standing. This was most likely a man that had devoted his life and career to the Roman Empire and must therefore have been indoctrinated with concepts of allegiance to Rome. Thus, the manner in which the centurion so overtly submits to the authority of Jesus is nothing short of amazing.

Luke Chapter 6

• Jesus’ response to the accusations of the Pharisees in Luke 6:1-10 gives rise to a couple of interesting considerations. It seems that there is value by looking at both what Jesus said as well as how He delivered his message in these verses.

WHAT (Jesus says)

In one context, it appears that there is something to be learned by understanding (or at least trying) what Jesus is saying through His response to the Pharisees in 6:1-10. Jesus’ message appeared to be a rebuke against the Pharisees for having an extremely narrow, legalistic, understanding of the Sabbath. More importantly, perhaps their flawed understanding of the Sabbath was indicative of the Pharisees’ flawed understanding of God, Himself, and what He desired of his believers.

It seemed that Jesus’ message to the Pharisees was that they were misguided in thinking that mere adherence to the law, done in isolation and without understanding, was pleasing to God.

In 6:9, Jesus presented the following question to the Pharisees, “’I ask you, is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a life or to destroy it?’" Presumably, this was rhetorical and meant to illustrate the ignorance of the person that would choose to say that it was unlawful to do good or to save a life if such acts were to occur on the Sabbath.

Part of the flaw with such an absurd response is that at best such strict, legalistic adherence requires little if any thinking on the part of the believer. At worst, such a response would indicate that the believer does not truly understand God, and therefore may not understand what he really believes in.

• HOW (Jesus said it)

In another context, I found it useful to observe how Jesus responded. I thought it was interesting that Jesus chose to chastise the Pharisees by rhetorically asking, “’Have you not even read what David did…’”, thus highlighting the importance of not only reading the Bible, but also understanding it and applying its lessons in appropriate circumstances.

• Key Takeaways: At least one key point taken from the preceding analysis was that God neither designed nor intended for us to be one dimensional, robotic practitioners of faith. Instead, it seems we are supposed to think and appropriately apply God’s teaching as presented in the Bible.

• From 6:12-19, titled, "Choosing the Twelve", as mentioned previously, I wonder how Jesus chose his disciples, especially the Twelve.

• In reference to the night before Jesus was to choose his Twelve Disciples, 6:12 states, “It was at this time that He went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God.” By the way, I just noticed that v12 speaks to The Twelve Disciples. I wonder if the author had a sense of humor there.

In any case, this incident once again highlights the critical emphasis Jesus placed on prayer. Choosing his Twelve Disciples must surely have been one of the most important decisions Jesus made in his time on earth, and we see Him praying the entire night before making his choices.

• 6:20-26, titled, "The Beatitudes", brings up some interesting points. 6:20 states, “And turning His gaze toward His disciples, He began to say…”

What I find interesting is that it is clear that Jesus is speaking to a crowd of His disciples. Yet, in 6:24-26, Jesus begins to say to this very same crowd comprised entirely of disciples, “Woe to you…”

One question arises from trying to understand the meaning of “Woe to you…” It seems that this statement refers to the fact that some of His disciples will not receive salvation. While this issue appears to be clearly addressed in Matthew 24:42-51, titled, “Be Ready for His Coming”, it appears to be the first time this issue is addressed in Luke.

Then again, what are the theological boundaries of salvation? Are believers in Christ entitled and thereby assured of salvation or is salvation impacted by our actions here on earth?

• 6:46-49, titled, “Builders and Foundations” really resonates with me and most fully captures my sentiments at the current time. This analogy is quite clear so I will not attempt to explain it. Suffice it to say that at this point in my life, my foremost desire is to have a well built foundation in Christ.

Luke Chapter 5

• My comments begin with the definition of the word, “disciple” since it represents a substantive theme within not only Luke chapter 5, but also within the broader scope of Christianity.
  
  Definition of: disciple
  Etymology: Middle English, from Old English (discipul) & Anglo-French (disciple), from Late Latin and Latin; Late Latin (discipulus) follower of Jesus Christ in his lifetime, from Latin, pupil
  Date: before 12th century
  
  1: one who accepts and assists in spreading the doctrines of another: as
  a: one of the twelve in the inner circle of Christ's followers according to the Gospel accounts
  b: a convinced adherent of a school or individual
  
  Synonyms: follower

• My first set of questions originates with the title of the first 11 verses of chapter 5, “The First Disciples”.

How intentional was the selection of the First Disciples?

How well did Jesus know them?
How were they chosen?
Was there anything special about them?
Did they fully comprehend to what they were agreeing when becoming disciples?

Clearly, without strenuous extrapolation, these questions can also be directly applied to the lives of all subsequent followers/believers in Christ.

In any case, from what I gathered, none of the aforementioned questions is made irrefutably clear from the verses in chapter 5. Instead, there appears to be conflicting evidence at least regarding how well Jesus knew the people who would later become His First Disciples.

• Simon Peter is first mentioned in Luke 4:38 in reference to the healing of Simon’s mother-in-law. Therefore, considering that the chapters in Luke appear to be in chronological order, it is reasonable to assume that Jesus had some prior relationship with Simon before their meeting at the lake of Gennesaret as mentioned in Luke 5:1-3. Supporting this conclusion is the fact that Simon refers to Jesus as Master in 5:5.
  
  However, 5:11 states, "When they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed Him.” Hence, it appears that Simon Peter, James, and John only became Jesus’ followers after the miraculous catch of fish (5:6-7). Why then was Simon doing as Jesus asked and referring to Him as Master and Lord prior to him leaving everything and following after Him?
  
  I use the preceding examples to illustrate that it is unclear what kind of relationship Jesus had with His disciples prior to them agreeing to follow Him.

• Without copying and pasting the entire first eleven verses of chapter 5, I am left with the question of how intentional Jesus’ actions were regarding the selection of His Disciples. In other words, did Jesus simply choose Simon Peter, James, and John because they were fishermen coincidentally standing near the shore when Jesus happened to be at the lake?
  
  Luke 5:1-2 states, “Now it happened that while the crowd was pressing around Him and listening to the word of God, He was standing by the lake of Gennesaret; and He saw two boats lying at the edge of the lake; but the fishermen had gotten out of them and were washing their nets.”
  
  The use of the word “happened” reasonably leads the reader to infer that Jesus may have been near the lake as a matter of circumstance and not by intention or purpose. This interpretation would then imply that the selection of His disciples was not predetermined.
  
  On the other hand, by substituting the word “occurred” for “happened” in 5:1, I would be more willing to take the view that Jesus being at the lake was purposeful and by extension so too were the subsequent events, which He orchestrated to enable Simon Peter, James, and John to follow Him.

• There is something about 5:4 that is meaningful yet for some reason I lack the ability to fully articulate my thought. Perhaps it is that I again am left wondering how deliberate Jesus’ actions were when “he said to Simon, ‘Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.’"
  
  In other words, did Jesus have a predetermined plan as to how the events of that day would unfold exactly as they did, or were His actions more spontaneous where He thought to himself something along the lines of:
  
  “Hey, I happen to be at a lake today. These fishermen seem like they’d make good Disciples. Now, I need to convince these guys that I am God personified. I know I can do anything, but since their nets are empty, what better way to convince them than to have them haul in a miraculous catch of fish? Yes, I think that will do the trick, and so I’ll go with that strategy.”
  
  Anyway, I hope you get my point.

• There seems to be a pattern emerging that whenever God, His representative angel (Gabriel), or Jesus interact with humans in a supernatural manner, the very first words spoken are “Do not fear (be afraid)…” as stated in Luke 5:10; 1:13; 1:30; and 2:10. I don’t know if this is material or not, but it just seems interesting.
  
  Additional questions arise from 5:10 where, “Jesus said to Simon, ‘Don't be afraid; from now on you will catch men.’" Going back to one of the original questions I posed at the beginning of the entry, does anyone think it reasonable that Simon fully understood what he was getting into when Jesus said that to him? Nonetheless, we can infer that Simon was so moved that he still decided to follow Jesus.
  
  Perhaps the inference is that faith in Jesus Christ, as evidenced by His very first followers, has never been about intellectual concession. Instead, it has more to do with submission and obedience in spite of the lack of full comprehension.

• In 5:12-26 titled, “The Leper and the Paralytic”, we see Jesus gaining acclaim as both a speaker and a healer. One interesting observation is that Jesus appears to perform His miraculous healing in response to other’s requests. On the other hand, we can compare this to Jesus’ interaction at the lake with Simon, James, and John where Jesus acted miraculously on his own volition.
  
  Therefore, this would seem to support my observation from Luke chapter 1 where I noted that it appears that God (and now Jesus) works in at least two different ways. He answers the petitions (requests) of those that call to Him (the sick), and He also works without being asked (the Disciples).

• 5:16 notes, “But Jesus would often slip away to the wilderness (lonely places) and pray” in relation to His seemingly hectic schedule of public speaking and healings.
  
  As noted by some of my fellow Luke bloggers (Su, I think), it is significant that Jesus appears to acknowledge the importance and essential application of solitary prayer with God.

• In 5:20, Jesus states, “’Friend, your sins are forgiven’” in response to a paralytic man. Interestingly, after all of the many healings performed by Jesus, this appears to be the first instance of Him equating or substituting the forgiveness of sins (spiritual healing) with physical healing.
  
  This brings up an interesting point. What was more important to Jesus, the forgiveness of sins which thereby provided a path to eternal salvation from God (and by definition released one from eternal punishment), or the physical healing of people, which provided a more temporal relief?
  
  The answer to this question appears to be addressed in 5:23-24 where Jesus responds to accusations of blasphemy resulting from the comment He made in 5:20.
  
  In 5:23-24, Jesus states, “’Which is easier: to say, Your sins are forgiven, or to say, Get up and walk, but that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins....’ He said to the paralyzed man, ‘I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.’"
  
  From this comment, I think it is reasonable to infer that Jesus performed the miraculous physical healings as a means to achieve a greater objective, which was to prove that he was able to save those who were heretofore destined for eternal damnation.

• Again, the issue of how predetermined or intentional Jesus’ selection of His Disciples was surfaces in 5:27-28, which states, “After that, He went out and noticed a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting in his tax booth. ‘Follow me,’ Jesus said to him, and Levi got up, left everything and followed him.”
  
  It appears much clearer in this instance that the selection of Levi was in fact not predetermined. I find it challenging to interpret 5:27-28 in any other manner than to think that Levi’s selection was somewhat serendipitous or opportune.
  
  Also interesting and different from the selection of Simon, James, and John, was that for some reason it was not mentioned that Jesus needed to convince Levi (Matthew) to follow Him. Levi somehow just did.

• In 5:31-32, Jesus provides one of the most direct and unambiguous explanations for His time on earth in which He responds to those questioning Him by stating, “’It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.’” Hooray!

• After numerous readings, I still do not grasp the parable of the wineskin in any substantive manner.

Luke Chapter 4

Luke Chapter 4 –
• This chapter resonated with me the most thus far. I
often wonder about some of the theological concepts
contained within this chapter, particularly with
regard to Satan's reality and presence in the world.

• For example, it is quoted in Luke 4:1-2, "Jesus,
full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and
was led around by the Spirit in the wilderness for
forty days, being tempted by the devil."

This sentence seems to suggest that it was God's (Holy
Spirit) intent to allow Jesus to be tempted by Satan,
which brings to mind the concept of God's interaction
with Satan. Because God's omnipotence is
unquestioned, it stands that Satan acts only to the
extent that is allowed by God. The next logical
question is why and to what extent God allows Satan
act.

• It is telling that Jesus' primary and immediate
response or method of defense against Satan's
attack/tempting is to refer to and quote scripture.
This occurs three times, Luke 4: 4, 8, 12 ("it is
written/said…."). Interestingly, the three quotes
Jesus used are all from Deuteronomy.

• The devil's repeated attacks/temptations to Jesus
reveal a few things about Satan's engagement style (in
no particular order).

1. Persistence – tried three times.
2. Crafty/conniving – changes strategies on the third
attempt to mimic Jesus' style of refutation by also
using scripture (out of context) and saying, "for it
is written," Luke 4:10-11.
3. Never-ending – "When the devil had finished every
temptation, he left Him until an opportune time." Luke
4:13. I think the key word in this sentence is
"until", which is followed by "an opportune time".
Put another way, it seems one could interpret the
sentence as saying the devil left Jesus temporarily,
in anticipation of the next opportunity to tempt. It
clearly does not state that Satan gave up finally.

• Key Takeaway - I feel like this chapter gives the
reader a strong indication of Satan's character and of
the manner in which he interacts. Clay.7/6/07

Luke Chapters 1-3 (Second Delivery Attempt)

...acknowledgments to UPS. My first attempt at
posting did not go through because I sent these as a
word attachment. I thought Kayan was reviewing these
first and then posting. haha. Anyway, here are my
first entries.

Luke Chapter 1 –
• Main point of this chapter appears to be laid out in
1:1-4, that the reader (specifically, Theophilus) is
being given a pretty detailed account of Jesus'
background. It occurred to me that the amount of
detail is prodigious as supported by the author
describing Elizabeth's pregnancy in months (first 5,
then sixth, etc).

• I found interesting the comparison between the
pregnancies of Zacharias/Elizabeth and Joseph/Mary.

• Similarities: God sent His angel Gabriel to speak
to one party of each of the couples. Both Zach and
Mary were initially afraid as Gabriel remarked to
each, "Do not be afraid…" Both Zach and Mary appeared
to exhibit initial apprehension to what Gabriel said.

• Differences: Gabriel spoke to Zachariah (man) and
Mary (woman). It appears that Zach/Elizabeth asked
God for a child, whereas Mary/Joseph did not.
Gabriel's response to the apprehension conveyed by
Zach and Mary is very different. In Zach's case, he
is slightly rebuked for his doubt, but Mary is only
encouraged by Gabriel and by no means rebuked.

• The multiple use of the word "favor" concerning Mary
in 1:28-30 is interesting. Perhaps the implication is
that finding favor with God can result in miraculous
things. In fact, seven verses later in 1:37, it
states, "For nothing will be impossible with God."

• A question arises as to why God uses angels
(Gabriel) to communicate at times, particularly given
the paramount importance of this event. Why would He
not communicate directly?

• What is the purpose of the clearly different
structure of The Magnificat 1:46-55?

Key Takeaways – It appears from this chapter that God
works in at least two different ways. He answers the
petitions of those that call to Him (Zachariah), and
He also works without being asked (Mary). Clay. 7/3/07

Luke Chapter 2 -
• Again, when the angel of the Lord appeared before
the shepherds, the angel said, "Do not be afraid…"
This was the exact same response by Gabriel to both
Zachariah and Mary. Why the need and purpose to
constantly reiterate this point? Perhaps it is just
human nature to be afraid of something one has never
seen or experienced before. However, the exact
phrasing and repetition of the statement makes me
think that there is some other reason for the
statement, "Do not be afraid…"

• Use of the word "Spirit" or "Holy Spirit" in
reference to Simeon is pronounced (mentioned 3 times)
in Luke 2:25-27. I went back to chapter 1 and found
seven occurrences of the word "Spirit". Makes me
wonder why God communicates through the Holy Spirit at
times, directly, through prophets, or through angels.

• How did Simeon and Anna, the prophetess know that
they were in the presence of the Christ?

• I found it interesting in that it appears that God
gave continuous affirmation to Mary and Joseph that
they were indeed in the presence of the Christ
throughout chapter 2. Clay. 7/3/07

Luke Chapter 3 –
• Definition of Tetrarch - Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Latin tetrarcha, from
Greek tetrarchEs, from tetra- + -archEs –arch
1 : a governor of the fourth part of a province
2 : a subordinate prince

I wanted to look this word up since it has not been a
highly utilized component of my vocabulary.

• It seems that there is a pattern through chapters 1
through 3 that what God says will be done, will in
fact occur. This is supported by the birth of Jesus,
the birth of John as told by Isaiah the prophet in
Luke 3:4-6.

• Did not fully understand the whole wheat and chaff
metaphor by John, and it seemed particularly
important.

• Completely missed the meaning of the Genealogy of
Jesus verses. I know that these are important but
nonetheless was unable to understand it. Clay. 7/3/07