Basics on The Gospel of Luke

1. About the Author

a. Distinguished from the house of the circumcision, Luke was a Gentile (Colossians 4:11-14) and was the only non-Jewish writer of the New Testament. Nothing is known of Luke’s background or family from the New Testament.

i. In A. D. 185, Irenaeus (trainee of Polycarp who had been trained by John the apostle) claimed that Luke was a physician, & a disciple of Paul.

ii. The anti-Marcionite Prologue (A. D. 170) claimed that Luke was a native of Syrian Antioch who had no wife or children and lived faithfully until he died at the age of 84 in Asia Minor.

iii. The church historian Eusebius in the 4th century said that Luke was a native of Antioch.

iv. In the 5th Century, Jerome stated his opinion that Luke and Titus were brothers.

v. Archaeologist William Ramsay thought the same thing but this is an argument from silence which proves nothing.

vi. A postscript to 2 Corinthians says that it was written by Luke and Titus. There is no mention of Luke or Titus in the book of Acts.

b. Luke was a loyal friend. He visited Paul during his 1st Roman imprisonment (Philemon 24) and was the only one to see him in his 2nd imprisonment (2 Timothy 4:11).

c. Called “Luke the beloved physician,” his writings are of an educated man who knew medical terminology. In the 1882 book The Medical Language of St. Luke, W. K. Hobart lists more than 400 words shared by Luke and Greek medical writers such as Hippocrates and Galen (see John Stott, The Incomparable Christ 34, and E. F. Harrison, Introduction to the New Testament 198).

i. Where a demon was said to “throw down a boy,” Luke used the medical word for convulsions (Luke 9:42).

ii. When a distraught father begged Jesus to “look upon my son,” Luke used a term that was also used of a physician seeing a patient (Luke 9:38).

iii. When a woman suffered a twelve-year blood hemorrhage, Luke omits the detail that she exhausted her life’s savings on ineffective medical care & suggests her disease was incurable (Mark 5:26; Luke 8:43).

iv. Only Luke tells us that Peter’s mother-in-law had a “great fever” (Luke 4:38; Matt. 8:14; Mk. 1:30), that a man was “full of leprosy” (Luke 5:12; Matt. 8:2; Mk. 1:40), that it was the right hand that withered (Lk. 6:6; Matt. 12:10; Mk. 3:1), & that Malchus’ right ear was severed (Lk. 22:50; Matt. 26:51; Mk. 14:47).

v. Jesus’ burial cloth was like a medical bandage (Luke 24:12).

vi. When shipwrecked with Paul on Malta, Luke gave medical treatment to some of the inhabitants (Acts 28:9). When a snake bit Paul, the locals wondered by Paul was not “swollen” from the venom. Greek physicians Hippocrates and Galen use this word to describe inflammation of the body. We wonder if Paul’s thorn in the flesh required continuous medical treatment from his friend Luke (2 Cor. 12:7).

d. Luke was a cautious and meticulous researcher. He used a method similar to the modern scientific method to study the question “Who is Jesus?” He interviewed many witnesses before compiling his data (Luke 1:3). He is the only Gospel writer to document the events of Jesus to secular history (2:1-2; 3:1).

e. Luke’s training as a doctor would have exposed him to the best available education. His writing style shows him to be an intellectual & cultured man. When education submits to God’s truth, it is a blessing to the world. A godless education is the curse of modern man that breeds arrogance & misery. Luke wanted to reach the educated masses who saw the futility of mythological religions. It was said that two Roman priests in passing one another could not look the other in the face because each knew the worthlessness of their religion.

f. Before Luke began practicing medicine, he presumably would have taken the oath taught by the Greek physician, Hippocrates (460-377 B. C. ) known as the “father of medicine”:

I SWEAR by…the gods and goddesses, that, according to my ability and judgment, I will keep this Oath and this stipulation- to reckon him who taught me this Art equally dear to me as my parents, to share my substance with him, and relieve his necessities if required; to look upon his offspring in the same footing as my own brothers, and to teach them this art, if they shall wish to learn it, without fee or stipulation; and that by precept, lecture, and every other mode of instruction, I will impart a knowledge of the Art to my own sons, and those of my teachers, and to disciples bound by a stipulation and oath according to the law of medicine, but to none others.

I will follow that system of regimen which, according to my ability and judgment, I consider for the benefit of my patients, and abstain from whatever is deleterious and mischievous.

I will give no deadly medicine to any one if asked, nor suggest any such counsel; and in like manner I will not give to a woman a pessary to produce abortion. With purity and with holiness I will pass my life and practice my Art. #I will not cut persons laboring under the stone, but will leave this to be done by men who are practitioners of this work. Into whatever houses I enter, I will go into them for the benefit of the sick, and will abstain from every voluntary act of mischief and corruption; and, further from the seduction of females or males, of freemen and slaves.

Whatever, in connection with my professional practice or not, in connection with it, I see or hear, in the life of men, which ought not to be spoken of abroad, I will not divulge, as reckoning that all such should be kept secret. While I continue to keep this Oath unviolated, may it be granted to me to enjoy life and the practice of the art, respected by all men, in all times! But should I trespass and violate this Oath, may the reverse be my lot!

2. About the book

a. Luke claims that he researched his material before including it in his book (Luke 1:2). Some material in the Bible includes information that is revealed by God Himself. The events of creation week fall into this category. However, some material in the Bible is what is known by experience or observation. When the apostle John says that Jesus was in Gethsemane the night before his betrayal, this information did not need to be revealed because John was there. Although Solomon claims that his material in Ecclesiastes was the result of study and observation, his words are still inspired of God (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Luke’s material is the same kind of inspiration. Paul in 1 Timothy 5:18 quotes Deuteronomy 25:4 and Luke 10:7 and calls both passages “Scripture. ” Thus, Luke’s record of Jesus’ words have the same authority as Moses’ words.

b. Though the actual author is never stated, we know that the same person wrote the book of Luke & Acts to a man named Theophilus (“the former treatise,” Acts 1:1; Luke 1:3). Luke calls Theophilus “most noble,” a term used for high officials in the Roman government.

c. The language style of Luke & Acts is similar. J. W. McGarvey said there are over 50 words common to both books that are not found anywhere in the New Testament (Commentary on Acts, viii).

d. The author of Luke/Acts joined Paul at Troas (Acts 16:10). Prior to that time, the author used 3rd person plural pronouns to describe missionary activities of Peter and Paul (Acts 1:3; 2:2; 3:5; 13:4; 16:7-8).

i. In Acts 16, the author uses “we” where he joined Paul at Troas and was left at Philippi (Acts 16:10-17).

ii. In Acts 20:5-15---21:1-18, the author joined Paul’s missionary company in Macedonia (Philippi is in Macedonia) and went with them to Jerusalem.

iii. Acts 27:1--- 28:16 The author was a constant traveling companion of Paul from Caesarea to Rome until 28:16 when Paul was placed under house arrest in Rome. During this two-year imprisonment, Paul wrote 4 epistles and mentioned Luke as his companion (Col. 4:3,14; Philemon 9-10, 24).

iv. Luke was also with Paul in his last Roman imprisonment (2 Timothy 1:12; 4:11).

e. External evidence for Luke’s authorship of Luke & Acts. The evidence is so ancient & strong that both conservative and liberal scholars are in agreement on Luke’s authorship:

i. Muratorian Canon—a 2nd century document that lists authoritative books of the New Testament includes Luke & Acts.

ii. Irenaeus—(A. D. 140-202), understudy of Polycarp (A. D. 69-156, who was an understudy of the Apostle John) listed the books of the New Testament that should be accepted as Scripture. He also said that Luke recorded the Gospel preached by Paul.

iii. Clement of Alexandria—(died A. D. 102), elder of church in Rome who personally knew Paul & Peter, he wrote letters to congregations having problems & exhorted them to follow the writings of the apostles. He gives a list of New Testament books that includes Luke & Acts.

iv. Origen—(A. D. 185-254) a brilliant scholar & defender of Christianity against educated pagan thinkers, he listed the writings that he considered authoritative. Luke & Acts were in his list.

v. Other early church leaders considered Luke the author of Luke & Acts: Tertullian, Eusebius, & Jerome.

vi. In Geneva, Switzerland is the oldest known copy of Luke, the Papyrus Bodmer XIV that has been dated between A. D. 175-225. A small portion of Luke’s Gospel is missing but at the end Luke 24 is the phrase KATA LOUKAN (meaning “according to Luke” (George Goldman, Introduction to Luke, 1988 Lectureship Book of the East Tennessee School of Preaching 16).

f. Of the four Gospel writers, Luke gives the longest account. Although Paul wrote more books (13), Luke the physician wrote more material than any other writer, about 25% of the New Testament. Some wonder why God gave us four Gospels instead of one. Four independent narratives are written from different perspectives to different audiences. Each account serves to supplement the other three. Each one is evidence that is difficult to refute. If all four accounts were merged into one “gospelette,” the material would have been only half the length of what we have. As they are, the four Gospels result in about half of the bulk of the New Testament.

g. Although Luke is called one of the synoptics, Luke records 82 different sayings or events not mentioned in any of the other Gospels (William Hendriksen, New Testament Commentary on Luke 18-21). This alone should resolve what some call the “synoptic problem. ” Compared to the other “synoptic Gospels,” about 75% of Luke is common to Matthew and Mark.

h. Greek culture emphasized two qualities: 1) human reason & intellect, 2) human culture & perfection. Luke presents Jesus as the perfect mind & the perfect man. Writing for a Greek, Theophilus, Luke carefully explains details that foreigners would not have known: Calvary is called by its Greek name, Kranion, not Hebrew, Golgotha, though both mean “the place of the skull. ” Luke does not use the term rabbi, but gives its Greek equivalent, master. Luke traces Jesus’ lineage back to Adam, not Abraham. The Gospel of Luke presents Jesus as the Jewish Messiah and mankind’s Savior. Luke's account had a universal appeal, especially to the Gentiles. Jesus is presented as the perfect Man who is interested in every person on earth, no matter what his or her station in life.

i. Luke says more about children than any New Testament writer. He also mentions Jesus’ love for outcasts, social misfits and losers. Luke emphasizes Jesus’ kindness toward women, the poor, the outcasts, publicans, Samaritans, the weak, and those who were suffering in different ways. Luke has been called the “Gospel of the underdog. ” Luke mentions 13 women not mentioned elsewhere. As a physician, Luke knew what it was to see hurting people on a daily basis & his writing reflects that sensitivity.

j. Luke emphasizes joy, prayer, worship, & the Holy Spirit more than the other Gospels. Of the 15 references to the prayers of Jesus, Luke mentions 11 of them. He mentions angels more than 20 times. He also emphasizes the sufferings of Jesus. He gives over 35 references to the rejection of Jesus. He is the only writer to tell of Herod’s part in the crucifixion of Jesus. Luke mentions 20 miracles but 6 of them are only mentioned by him. He also mentions 23 parables but 18 are peculiar to his Gospel.

k. The genealogies of Matthew and Luke are different:

i. Matthew begins with Abraham and works forward to Jesus. Matthew traces the lineage through David & his son Solomon, and ends with Joseph but it is thought that he gives the lineage through Mary.

ii. Luke begins with Jesus and works backward to Adam, the son of God. Luke traces the lineage through David and his son Nathan and ends with Joseph, the legal father of Jesus.

l. He is the only gospel-writer to speak of the Sea of Galilee as a lake. Luke had been to the Mediterranean, and he knew that compared to the Mediterranean, Galilee was only a lake.

m. Written for the Greek mind, Luke was written in a comprehensive, logical, and orderly manner. Portions of this book approach the grandeur of Classical Greek literature. The first four verses are the best Greek in the New Testament and follow a pattern of other literary works like Josephus. Of the 4 Gospels, only two of them have a preface (Luke & John). Some have called the Gospel of Luke “the most beautiful book ever written” (William Barclay, Commentary on Luke, introduction).

n. Luke claims to have written accurately (1:3). He mentions thirty-two countries, fifty-four cities, and nine Mediterranean islands. Hem also mentions four Roman emperors and other prominent officials (Goldman 12).

o. William Ramsay was a 19th century British archaeologist whose mind had been poisoned by Europe’s liberal theology. He spent years retracing the places Luke describes. The accuracy of Luke in Luke-Acts as a historian caused Ramsay to change his mind. He later said that he had not been able to find a single error of Luke in any of his writings and Luke was a historian of the highest order.

p. Date of writing: The fact that Luke prophesies the destruction of Jerusalem (Luke 21) but does not record its fulfillment is a strong reason to believe that it was authored prior to A. D. 70. How much before this date we cannot know for certain.

3. Purposes of the book

a. To teach one searching for truth. Luke acknowledges other written accounts about the life of Jesus. Luke claims that he interviewed those who were in a position to know the truth about Jesus. He investigated so he could write accurately and orderly (1:2-3). He implies that his account is more accurate than some of the other narratives.

b. To prove the Christian faith was no threat to Rome. Having been a companion of Paul, Luke knew that Christians were accused of treason against the government. After all, Jesus was accused of treason against Caesar. Luke shows that Christianity is compatible with Roman authority and that Christians are neither dangerous nor rebellious. Perhaps Luke presented his material to also secure the release of Paul from prison.

c. To take the Gospel to all nations. The printed page can go where people sometimes cannot go. Consider how the world has been blessed by the message of the four Gospel accounts.

d. To provide a permanent record about Jesus Christ. As long as the apostles, eyewitnesses, and ministers of the word were living, the early church was guided by the truth on the lips of these people. After all, they were inspired by the Holy Spirit. How would succeeding generations be able to know the life-changing truths of Jesus? Luke wrote so that Theophilus could be certain of his faith. When we read Luke’s account, we also can be certain.

4. Outline

a. Prologue (1:1-4)

b. Infancies of John and Jesus (1:5—2:52)

c. Preparation for ministry (3:1—4:13)

d. Galilean ministry (4:14—9:50)

e. Ministry on way to Jerusalem (9:51—19:27)

f. Ministry in Jerusalem (19:28—24:53)