Luke 4:38-44

Just a couple notes to finish off Luke 4...

Why does Jesus instruct the evil spirits not to say that He is the Son of God?

This occurs in Luke 4:35 and 4:41.
Also, sometimes Jesus would heal someone yet instruct him not to tell anyone.
Something to think about, I'll write more about this later...

Teaching and Ministry

Luke 4:40 tells us that beginning at sunset, people began bringing the sick to Him to be healed and Jesus would heal them. 4:42, Jesus withdraws to a secluded place while the crowds were searching for Him and even tried to keep Him from leaving. Mark 1 has a parallel account of this story. In Mark's account, Simon(Peter) comes to Jesus and says the crowds are searching for Him! In short, Luke 4:40, 42-44 and Mark 1:32-39 illustrate the dilemma we all face in church ministry today. How many times have we heard the refrain, "There is so much that needs to be done at church!" In these passages, Jesus shows us how we are to handle it. See my blog entry on Mark 1 for more. But we see in Luke, as we do in Mark, that Jesus' primary focus is to teach, "I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, for I was sent for this purpose." Note that He didn't mention healing, though He continued to heal people.

The Tale of Two Cities (Luke 4:14-37)

Ok, I admit I have never read The Tale of Two Cities, by Charles Dickens, but the opening paragraph seems apropos to Luke 4:14-37. Here it is via Google Books: Click Me.

In this passage of Luke, it is indeed the tale of two cities - Nazareth and Capernaum. Coming out of the desert, Jesus begins his ministry and it looks very positive. Luke gives a summary overview statement in v14, 15:

14And Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about Him spread through all the surrounding district.

15And He began teaching in their synagogues and was praised by all.

Ironically, though Jesus was "praised by all," Luke tells us about the one place where he wasn't praised- his hometown of Nazareth. Why?

There are remarkable parallels between Jesus' encounters in Nazareth and then Capernaum. The obvious differences are the "results"- the people of Nazareth were ready to throw him off a cliff, while the people at Capernaum saw Jesus' authority and power and word of Him spread. Naturally, why the different reactions from the two cities?

In Nazareth, Jesus reads from Isaiah 61:1-2:

1The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,
Because the LORD has anointed me
To bring good news to the afflicted;
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to captives
And freedom to prisoners;
2To proclaim the favorable year of the LORD
And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn,

First, this passage is a Messianic prophecy that Jesus says He is its fulfillment (4:21). What it would have been like to be sitting in the synagogue and to hear Jesus' claim? Remember, this is his hometown. Perhaps some of these people knew Jesus as a little boy growing up; even friends of Mary and Joseph. Maybe some of them were his classmates or childhood friends. "He's the Messiah?!" But it appears that they reacted favorably to His pronouncement. (4:22)

But note that Jesus didn't read all of Isaiah 61:2, but only the 1st phrase of that verse. (He left out the red part above.) If you read the rest of Isaiah 61, you will find see that the Israelites would have been looking forward to the fulfillment of the rest of the prophecy in addition to the arrival of the Messiah. Notably, Isaiah 61:4, 5-

4Then they will rebuild the ancient ruins,
They will raise up the former devastations;
And they will repair the ruined cities,
The desolations of many generations.
5Strangers will stand and pasture your flocks,
And foreigners will be your farmers and your vinedressers.

To a people who are under Roman occupation, this is their hope! Why didn't Jesus read the rest of the chapter?!!!!!

For Jesus was not here to fulfill the rest of the chapter, at least not yet. If you've read the rest of the gospels, you know Jesus did not bring vengeance on this time.

Now, the people seem to have responded favorably to Him, even if He didn't read the "good parts" of Isaiah 61. And then Jesus seemingly, intentionally, turns the people against Him. Why would He do that?

In Luke 4:23 Jesus said, "No doubt you will quote this proverb to Me, 'Physician, heal yourself! Whatever we heard was done at Capernaum, do here in your hometown as well.'" It appears that Jesus was likely ministering around Galilee already and had already been to Capernaum before, even though He goes there after Nazareth as told in Luke 4. From Jesus' statement, we infer that the people at Nazareth had heard of His teaching and healings are Capernaum and now wanted to see them firsthand; i.e. "show me what we've heard you can do." If we look back at 4:22, it appears the people were amazed at His words because they were coming from a carpenter's son they had watched grow up, "Is this not Joseph's son?"

Jesus exacerbates the situation in Luke 4:24-27-

24And He said, "Truly I say to you, no prophet is welcome in his hometown.

25"But I say to you in truth, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the sky was shut up for three years and six months, when a great famine came over all the land;

26and yet Elijah was sent to none of them, but only to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow.

27"And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian."

If they were pleasantly surprised before, albeit in a backhanded way; now they are piping mad. Elijah and Elisha were probably the most famous prophets in the history of the nation of Israel (i.e. post-King Saul). Yet, they served the Lord at a time when Israel was at its lowest point. And worse, Jesus points out that while there were many widows and lepers in Israel, God sent them to minister to Gentiles (unclean unclean!)! Ouch. Time for the lynch mob... "Run Jesus Run" (i.e. Forrest Gump) Literally, it is a miracle that Jesus passed through their midst and went His way.

Now, contrast the city of Capernaum in Luke 4:31-37. It starts off in a similar fashion- Jesus teaching in the synagogue, though it doesn't say what was the Scripture.
I think there's a hint at why Jesus was received differently in the two cities if we compare 4:22 and 4:32. In Nazareth, they spoke well of Him and wondered at His gracious words. Whereas in Capernaum, they were amazed at His teaching for it was with authority. Here, Jesus preaches in two places and gets two different reactions. I liken this to same pastor, same sermon but two types of listeners. The Nazareth listeners will walk out of a service and say, "Gee, that was nice sermon the pastor gave today. He's a pretty good speaker." While the Capernaum listeners will respond to the same preacher but say, "Wow. Pastor's sermon today was as if God were directly speaking to me through His Word!"

Another similarity between the two cities was the healing Jesus did or did not perform! In Nazareth, Jesus did not perform a healing, though He referenced Elijah and Elisha going to heal Gentiles, but not Israelites. While in Capernaum, Jesus heals a man possessed by an unclean spirit.

Note that Jesus didn't do anything magical (special chant, ritual) to cast out the unclean spirit, but by the power of His word it was done. Also note that the unclean spirit recognizes that Jesus is the Son of God (4:34)! Ironically, Jesus' hometown rejects the Son of God, while the unclean spirit recognizes Him. We also learn something about the gospel of salvation from the unclean spirit. Even the evil spirits and Satan recognize that Jesus is the Son of God, i.e. they believe that Jesus is God. But do they believe in Him? (John 3:16)

So- what kind of listener are you? Nazareth or Capernaum?

Luke 5: It's not about us.

The Calling of the First Disciples

It never ceases to amaze me how much detail I miss when I read the Bible in a cursory manner. There is so much meaning in this passage (v.1-11) about the reality of being called by Jesus and the state of our hearts if we are to be used by Him.

v3. Jesus got into the boat
Jesus didn't send Simon out. Jesus first got into the boat with Simon, and then they went out a little from shore together.

v3. Jesus asked Simon to put out a little from shore.
At this point, Simon did not know Jesus' plan. The only instruction was to go offshore a little bit. When God wants to do great things with us, He often takes us on little steps of faith, without us knowing the big harvest that's waiting for us in the end. That is the essence of faith - believing without knowing.

v5. Simon obeyed
Like most of us, when God proposes that He would do great impossible things with us, our first reaction is disbelief. I find Simon's simple, immediate second reaction - "But because you say so, I will" - to be so sweet. I don't hear his response as "there better be a big catch;" instead I read his response as simple obedience. I think this comes from his beginning his response with calling Jesus "Master."

Simon says they've worked hard all day. But Jesus wasn't in the boat when they worked hard by themselves all day.

Update 7/16/07: I made a mistake. Simon said they worked hard all night, not day. Fishermen work pre-dawn hours!

v8-10. Not sure what to make of this yet

v11. With the catch, they pulled up on shore, left everything and followed Jesus.
I see this not as the disciples' obedience. I see this more as the power of Jesus to show us so much of His power - compared to our meager efforts, even though we perceive ourselves as having "worked so hard" - that we can't help but believe in Him and follow Him. Through our tiny steps of faith, Jesus rewards us abundantly with MORE faith via showing us what He can do.

This is my biggest takeaway from this passage: it's really not about us.

- Kayan

Luke 2

Luke 2 (NASB)

So I wonder why is it that sometimes those who see God's glory or angel would be fearful or frightened, like Zacharias (Lk 1:12) and the shepherds (Lk 2:9)? Is it because of sudden appearance that causes that reaction or is it because it is God showing up in our lives? Should we be afraid? If I truly believe God is love then why should I fear? Shouldn't I anticipate great things from Him when He shows up personally to me? Or do I push Him away and control my own way? Isn't it what I want is to walk with God? But if I believe that God is also just then am I ready to give my account of my life? One pastor once said in his sermon to encourage everyone to live each day as if it is judgment day.

It was a significant event when Jesus was born; God chose to reveal His birth to the shepherds in the field (v.9). Why shepherds? Also, these shepherds were not identified with names. If God chose them for this event they must be very important but why not identify who they were? But of all the people, the Roman officers and governors were identified with names (v.1-2)! It reminds me of many missionaries that were sent to bear the suffering for the gospels, some were well identified by generations of people but many were not known by their work and contribution to God's kingdom. Are these unknown people less important in the work of God then? No, not so. They were just as important in the eyes of God but they were used by God as a different instruments of His good news, just as you and I.

Faithful as they were, these shepherds once heard about what they were told, believed and go on their way, once seen with their own eyes they made known to others and glorifying God (v. 15-18, 20). It is almost like saying, once HEARD of the good news è BELIEVED è GO è WITNESS to others è GLORIFY GOD.

Jesus, being God himself, went through the life of a human form, growing and learning (v. 40, 46), subjecting to His parents (v.51) and the law of people (Matthew 17: 24-27), finding favor with God and men. He had been through and lived in our society… at this moment I feel that He knows me more than I thought… He knew clearly His purpose on earth (v.49), do I? How may I also increase in wisdom (v.40 and 52) as I grow older, by the grace of God…

Mary, woman of mind and heart, pondering (Lk 1:29, Lk 2:19) and treasured (Lk 2:19, 51) all these things that happened in her life. May we remember what God has done in our lives and may we love our God with all our hearts and our minds.

-cy

Luke 1

v. 37 - "For nothing will be impossible with God"
So often we like to think God having the same power as
us, when we think something is not achievable by human
capability we think God the same. We are very often
putting God in the box within our own set of mind who
God is and how He works and how much He can do. But
nothing is impossible with God.
- Zacharias and Sarah though old in human biology and
limited by physical possibility in our understanding,
especially after studying human anatomy and
physiology, but God made it happened and give them
John in their old age.
- And Mary, how can a virgin bear a son? That was
not how things were created in the beginning. Yet,
being the creator, what limit does He has in His
creation? For He so loved us that He made things
happened to bless us - Jesus was born through a
virgin. Another off scale in human biology. If I am
a researcher in human anatomy and physiology I think
this will throw me off the ceiling! I don't know how
I can analyze my data with these great outlier data
points!

As nothing will be impossible with God, so when we
pray, let us believe that it will happen. James says,
"But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for
the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven
and tossed by the wind." (James 1:6) Though this
referring to asking for wisdom, but if we asked
according to the righteousness of God, know that He
will answer them. "Until now you have ask for nothing
in My name; ask and you will receive, so that your joy
may be made full." (John 16:24) - Assurance of
Answered Prayer. God heard Zacharias' petition (v.
13), though it was not mentioned when he made that
petition, maybe 10, 20, 30 or more years ago, but God
surely answered it, in His timing, to show His
majestic impossibility! :-)

Mary, a faithful servant of God, believe and obey what
she was told (v. 38 and 45). What an obedient heart!
This reminds me of many stories of missionaries, they
go simply with an obedient heart! What about us?
Where is our heart?

Notice also v. 13 and 30 and also in Lk 2:10 - "Do not
be afraid..." - that is how God speak to us before
revealing to us what He is about to do in our lives
because He knows exactly how to prepare our hearts.
He knows...

Questions - there are seemingly 2 types of questions
in this chapter, one asked by Zacharias (v. 18) and
the other by Mary (v. 34) and notice how they were
being answered. Doubts and true genuine is my
personal take. When Zacharias asked, he asked in
doubting manner, did he doubt himself or did he doubt
God? But Mary, asked in a sincere manner wanting to
know and she was given an answer. God did not say do
not question me of what I do, but ask with a heart
that wanting to learn and know. So check our heart
when we ask question.
Also let us hear and listen when someone ask us a
question, before we make our decision how to react
and to answer. Let us not misunderstood genuine
learning question from challenging/questioning of our
authority.

1. Dream big for God for nothing will be impossible
with God!
2. Ask according to His righteousness and believe it
will be answered, in His timing.
3. Believe and be obedient.

This is taking way much more to type this up than I
anticipated. Time out for now. - cy

Luke 3: Refiner's Fire

John the Baptist Prepares the Way

10 And the crowds were questioning him, saying, "(O)Then what shall we do?" 11 And he would answer and say to them, "The man who has two tunics is to (P)share with him who has none; and he who has food is to do likewise." 12 And some (Q)tax collectors also came to be baptized, and they said to him, "Teacher, what shall we do?" 13And he said to them, "Collect no more than what you have been ordered to." 14 Some soldiers were questioning him, saying, "And what about us, what shall we do?" And he said to them, "Do not take money from anyone by force, or (R)accuse anyone falsely, and (S)be content with your wages."

This passage made me think that everyone who asked John "what shall we do?" already knew the answer to their own questions before John answered. In other words, they weren't asking for advice because they didn't know what they should do. John was just revealing their hearts. Related to that, John said:

16 As for me, I baptize you with water; but One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to untie the thong of His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

John was revealing their hearts as an outsider, with gentle water. But the living Holy Spirit was on its way to truly convict people of their hearts with refining fire, activating a change from within.

19 But when Herod the tetrarch was reprimanded by him....he locked John up in prison."

The imagery here is so clear to me: When we choose not to face the truth revealed to us by God, we end up locking it up in a symbolic prison in our heart. By doing so, Herod is preventing the gentle water of John's revelation to flow. The refining fire of the Holy Spirit has no access to that part of his heart.

Genealogy of Jesus

I think most people tend to skip geneaology lists when they are encountered in the Bible. But just about every time, I skim the list for 1) familiar names and 2) names of women. In this one I found my favorite Boaz (the land baron from the book of Ruth).

Luke's genealogy list of Jesus worked backwards; i.e. instead of from the top to bottom, he started with Joseph and worked his way back up the "tree" culminating at Adam, the son of God. I looked up several genealogies in the Bible. Though we are all descendants of Adam, only Jesus' genealogy in the Bible specifies him as a descendant of Adam, the son of God (the emphasis being on God, not Adam).

Here's how Jesus is introduced in the other gospels:
Matthew: the lineage goes as far "up" as Abraham (Matthew 1:1)
Mark: simply "Jesus Christ, the Son of God" (Mark 1:1)
John: The Word became flesh (John 1:14)

So while Luke was being extra detail-oriented and nitpicky-technical - as he said he would be - he also artistically ended the lineage with "the son of God." I also liked the touch in the beginning (Luke 3:23) where he wrote, "...He was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph." I like to think that these two points, taken together, was Luke's way of saying, in his mystery novel writer voice, "Jesus was really the Son of God."

The Bible is such a beautiful mystery to be discovered!

Temptation, Round 2 (Luke 4:1-13)

I'll examine each of the 3 temptations of Jesus by first making some observations about the temptation, then take a look at the Scripture that Jesus quoted in response to Satan's temptations. Being the best Old Testament scholar that will ever walk the face of the earth, it must have been cake for Him to answer Satan by quoting each verse in context. Let's take a look...

Temptation #1: Luke 4:3-4

3And the devil said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread."

• Challenges Jesus to prove that He is the Son of God
• This is very odd. If we "cheat" a little bit and think forward in the gospel account, we know that evil spirits recognized that Jesus is the Son of God. One example is in this very chapter: Luke 4:34! Certainly, the devil knew that Jesus is indeed the Son of God and did not need proof.
  
• Jesus is legitimately physically hungry as He was likely fasting while in the desert. The devil preyed upon it.

Now here's the context of the Scripture Jesus' quoted...

Deuteronomy 8:1-3

1"All the commandments that I am commanding you today you shall be careful to do, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land which the LORD swore to give to your forefathers.

2"You shall remember all the way which the LORD your God has led you in the wilderness these forty years, that He might humble you, testing you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.

3"He humbled you and let you be hungry, and fed you with manna which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that He might make you understand that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of the LORD.

I think this passage really gives us some insight as to why Jesus was led into the desert by the Holy Spirit. The Israelites spent 40 years in the desert before entering the Promised Land. In fact, none of the original Israelites that left Egypt entered Canaan due to their repeated disobedience to God, but the next generation entered. Further, they were going into a land "flowing of milk and honey"- a land of abundance compared to the desert. I'd paraphrase Deut. 8:3 like this, "When you are living in the land of abundance, remember that true living is not gluttony, but obedience to God's Word."

Where the Israelites failed miserably, Jesus succeeded marvelously. In Exodus 15, not long after God divided the Red Sea, the Israelites grumble that they having nothing to drink for the waters they found at Marah were bitter. God turns the bitter water in sweet water and then said to the Israelites, Exodus 15:26-

If you will give earnest heed to the voice of the LORD your God, and do what is right in His sight, and give ear to His commandments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians; for I, the LORD, am your healer.

What a commentary on Deut. 8:3! In fact, after the this, the Lord provides manna to the people! We need to only listen and obey the Lord and He will provide for our needs. No one listened to God better than His very own Son.

Temptation #2: Luke 4:5-8
v6:

I will give You all this domain and its glory; for it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. 7Therefore if You worship before me, it shall all be Yours.

• My Bible has a cross-reference to 1 John 5:19- "We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one."
• Jesus would come and rule the earth, but not now.
• Simply put, the devil is tempting Jesus w/ the easy path to become ruler now, without going through the suffering on the cross.

Jesus responds w/ Deut. 6:13. Here's the context...

Deuteronomy 6:10-13

10"Then it shall come about when the LORD your God brings you into the land which He swore to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you, great and splendid cities which you did not build,

11and houses full of all good things which you did not fill, and hewn cisterns which you did not dig, vineyards and olive trees which you did not plant, and you eat and are satisfied,

12then watch yourself, that you do not forget the LORD who brought you from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

13"You shall fear only the LORD your God; and you shall worship Him and swear by His name.

14"You shall not follow other gods, any of the gods of the peoples who surround you,

15for the LORD your God in the midst of you is a jealous God; otherwise the anger of the LORD your God will be kindled against you, and He will wipe you off the face of the earth.

16"You shall not put the LORD your God to the test, as you tested Him at Massah.

This is such an awesome metaphor of N.T. living by the Spirit and not of the flesh. The Israelites would enter into a land ready to inhabit- I mean, re-read v11 above and just imagine what it would have been like to be there. It all came for free- no down payment necessary and no work to build up a city- God gave to them all for free. But God reminds them to worship Him and Him alone (v13) and this is the verse Jesus cites to answer the devil's second temptation. Jesus will inherit all from the Father in due time, He need only obey. As we know, the Israelites repeatedly struggled in their singular devotion to the one true God. Where they failed, Jesus succeeded.

Temptation #3: Luke 4:9-12
v9-

And he led Him to Jerusalem and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here;

• Again, this is a challenge to Jesus' to prove His deity, as in the first temptation.

Finally, Satan figures out Jesus' tactic and attempts to turn it against Him: Scripture vs. Scripture. Satan must have known it was a losing proposition before it even began, but he probably felt he had to try. Satan quotes from Psalm 91:11,12-

11For He will give His angels charge concerning you, To guard you in all your ways. 12They will bear you up in their hands, That you do not strike your foot against a stone.
13You will tread upon the lion and cobra,
The young lion and the serpent you will trample down.

But I wonder if he was in denial about Psalm 91:13 since stopped at v12? That verse re-calls Genesis 3:15, how the seed of the woman would one day crush the head of the serpent!! Nonetheless, it appears Satan is citing the verses in context. (Click here to read Psalm 91.)

The battle is already lost by Satan as Jesus merely quotes another verse from a passage He had already used, Deuteronomy 6. This time it's Deuteronomy 6:16. (see above) So the natural question to ask is what happened at Massah? See Exodus 17:1-7.

Unsurprisingly, the Israelites were complaining about the lack of water yet again. Deja vu! The last part of Exodus 17:7 is the key part, "... they tested the Lord, saying "Is the Lord among us, or not?"" In both the temptation by the devil and the incident at Massah, the "tester" wanted to prove the presence of God. In Luke, the devil challenges Jesus again to prove that He is indeed God. In Exodus, the Israelites quarreled with Moses for water, not God! Sure, at this time it was Moses who interceded with God for the people, yet they easily forgot the presence of the Lord. How could they? Remember that the Lord's presence was clearly evident to the people as He "was going before them in a pillar of cloud by day to lead them on the way, and in a pillar of fire by night to give them light." (Exodus 13:21)

This last temptation is alarming. The devil is the deceiver, as he deceived Eve in the Garden (Temptation, Round 1). Do you think he knows Scripture? I bet he does and knows it well. It was clear in the garden he knew God's words (instruction) to the man and woman and then proceeded to call it into question, "Did God really say...?" Whereas Eve did not re-call God's word precisely, Jesus did. Thank God! I desire to know God's Word well- cover-to-cover; for the enemy will try to use my lack of knowledge against me. At that time, may I re-call the Word that has been hidden in my heart.

Update: I just wanted to clarify something in response to Kayan's comment. Though I emphasize that Jesus knew the Word well, the fact that He was able to use it at the right time, in the right way to overcome the temptations demonstrates the integrity in His life and it is certainly by the power of the Holy Spirit. It is the Spirit that led Him into the desert in 4:1, and when He leaves the wilderness Luke says, "Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit..." (4:14). Contrasting their wilderness experiences, the Exodus Israelites failed in their flesh, while Jesus triumphed by the Holy Spirit. (Re-call the Israelites proclamation after hearing the Law in Exodus 24:7, "We will do everything the LORD has said; we will obey." This was followed by the 40 years in the desert due to their repeated disobedience to God.) And all you MasterLife veterans know that we are to crucify the flesh and live by the Spirit!

Luke 2: normal people

Excluding the visit of the Magi mentioned in Matthew and we're left with
everyday people making contact with baby Jesus. I think this omission
reinforces the humble beginnings of the birth of Jesus and that the
grandeur of a king is not based on wealth or extravagance, but instead on
spiritual matters. phil out

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.

Two Different Baptisms, So Choose Wisely (Luke 3)

Luke 3 starts off with a pretty incredible verse whose purpose is put a date to the passage. Luke names the Caesar and the year of his reign, which should be enough. Then he rattles off four government officials who were in office at the time. In v2, he names the two high priests of the time. How about that for dating it?

All four gospel accounts cite Isaiah 40:3-5 to some extent, yet Luke is the only one that includes Isaiah 40:5. Here's the passage from Isaiah:

3A voice is calling,
"Clear the way for the LORD in the wilderness;
Make smooth in the desert a highway for our God.
4"Let every valley be lifted up,
And every mountain and hill be made low;
And let the rough ground become a plain,
And the rugged terrain a broad valley;
5Then the glory of the LORD will be revealed, And all flesh will see it together;
For the mouth of the LORD has spoken."

Luke 3:6 repeats Isaiah 40:5 as follows:

AND ALL FLESH WILL SEE THE SALVATION OF GOD.

Why does Luke include this? Hmm...

Next, John speaks to the crowds and what a way to start his message, Luke 3:7-9

7So he began saying to the crowds who were going out to be baptized by him, "You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?

8"Therefore bear fruits in keeping with repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham for our father,' for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham.

9"Indeed the axe is already laid at the root of the trees; so every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

Why the in the world does John begin his message w/ "You brood of vipers"?!?! Well, at least it grabbed their attention...

3:8 is a pretty incredible statement. All along the Israelites have been the chosen people. To say that their forefathers were Abraham, Isaac and Jacob was really something. Now John comes and essentially tells them NOT to say that! What gives? "... for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham." If I were an Israelite that day, my world would have been rocked. Here I am living in Jordan, there is no Israelite nation since they are occupied by the Romans and ruled by tetrarch Herod, a half-breed Jew. But I can still claim to be the chosen people- Abraham is my father!! Woops, John blew that one out of the water.

What then if they were not to claim Abraham as father? Luke 3:9. Bear fruit or else get cut down. Ouch, isn't that a little too harsh? Nope. John's younger cousin used the same metaphor in Luke 13:

6And He began telling this parable: "A man had a fig tree which had been planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and did not find any.

7"And he said to the vineyard-keeper, 'Behold, for three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree without finding any. Cut it down! Why does it even use up the ground?'

8"And he answered and said to him, 'Let it alone, sir, for this year too, until I dig around it and put in fertilizer;

9and if it bears fruit next year, fine; but if not, cut it down.'"

Of course, there is also the much more familiar John 15.

Reading Luke 3:10-14, I did not think much about it. Ok, John is now telling the people to be nice and fair to each other. Big Whoop! Yet, this is totally consistent w/ his message and purpose. I recall that the Mosaic Law focused mainly on defining sin, the sacrificial system and penalties for sin. The main thing I recall that was not related to sin was the amazing Jubilee Year in Leviticus 25 and 27. Here, John began to instruct the people beyond the Law, hence "paving the way" for Jesus. John in fact foreshadows Paul's message in Romans 3:20-

19Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God;

20because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for ⁽through the Law comes the knowledge of sin.

Also note that John's message is solely a message of repentance- the beginning of the gospel message. Jesus brings the full message- repent of your sins and believe and have eternal life.

Now the people are wondering if John is the Messiah and he's quick to correct them, Luke 3:16-17:

16As for me, I baptize you with water; but One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to untie the thong of His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 17"His winnowing fork is in His hand to thoroughly clear His threshing floor, and to gather the wheat into His barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.

John's doing his job here- pointing to the coming King and Judge- Jesus Christ, who will baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire. A winnowing fork is a pitchfork farmers used to throw the grain into the air and husk of the grain (chaff) would be blown away in the wind. The grain is brought to the storehouses while the chaff is burned. Note the clear image of Hell here: unquenchable fire. What first comes to mind when you read the word "unquenchable" preceding "fire?" See Luke 12 for more on this.

So who gets to be baptized with the Holy Spirit and who gets to be baptized with fire? Or, who are the grain and who are the chaff?

It is interesting that John doesn't say anything about what it will be like to be baptized by the Holy Spirit, rather he focuses on the fire, the part about judgment.

Finally, the story shifts to Jesus in 3:21. Jesus was also baptized and the Holy Spirit descended on him like a dove. The Father speaks, "You are my beloved Son, in You I am well pleased." What is the relevance of this event in the context of this passage? In and of itself, the baptism is a new beginning, symbolized by the rising out of the water- a new birth. Though Jesus is God, He too is "baptized" by the Holy Spirit. And Jesus is just beginning his public ministry here. Technically, He hasn't achieved anything yet. But the Father considers his Son his beloved and is well pleased. That tells me that Jesus' relationship with the Father is not about his performance. Imagine that.

But in the context of this passage which focused heavily on John up until now, perhaps John didn't say (or Luke didn't write down) what it would be like to be baptized with the Holy Spirit since Jesus is the perfect living example!! What if God the Father says the same thing He said about Jesus for everyone as well who is baptized with the Holy Spirit, and not with fire?? "You are my beloved child, with you I am well pleased." Just a conjecture, I'm not sure. But that'd be pretty awesome- since, as Christians, we are filled w/ His Spirit.


So... what's the point? John preaches the coming judgment- You're either going to get the Holy Spirit or fire. It doesn't matter that the Israelites were descendants of Abraham. That's why Luke, a Gentile, includes Isaiah 40:5- everyone, not just Jews, will see the salvation of God. So everyone will be judged, Jew or Gentile, and the "sentence" will be either baptism by the Holy Spirit or by fire in Hell. As the old knight says to Indiana Jones at the end of "The Last Crusade," "Choose wisely."

(BTW, there's some irony in John's words. John baptizes with water, Jesus baptizes with the Holy Spirit or with fire. Water/Fire- get it?)

Lastly, Luke traces Jesus' genealogy. It'd probably be pretty fascinating to examine each and every name and it's meaning or to research the life of each name. But just a couple observations:

• Traced through Jesus' supposed father, Joseph.
• Traced all the way back to Adam.
• Adam is the first human "son of God." The genealogy stops at God.

What is the significance? In line w/ this chapter, tracing Jesus' lineage all the way back to the first man, from whom we are all descendants, Luke asserts that Jesus is Savior of all, not only for the Jews.

In contrast to Luke, Matthew's purpose was to make a case to the Jews that Jesus is their rightful king. He even says, "David the king" in Matthew 1:6. Matthew begins his account with the genealogy and starts with Abraham and works his way up to Jesus. Matthew traces Jesus' line through His mother, Mary. Additionally, Matthew includes four other women in his version (Tamar, Rahab, Ruth Bathsheba).

Mark and John do not include Jesus' genealogy.