Culture & Context: The Gospel of Luke

Welcome to Culture and Context, a blog that will flesh out the context of the PATH journal and other content that we study here at True North.

Welcome to Year 2 of the PATH Journal! I am excited to continue to provide to you the culture and context of the books we are studying. I pray that these blogs are enriching your study and maybe even inspiring you to dig deeper in the Scripture on your own.

Year 2 begins with the gospel of Luke. He is not identified by name in the gospel, but was well known by early believers. Acts 27:1- 28:15 places the author in Rome along with the apostle Paul. Luke was not an apostle nor did he witness to the gospel events; however, being a companion of Paul, who was an apostle of Jesus, gave him direct access to source material. Both his gospel and the book of Acts were written in letter form to Theophilus.

Theophilus is called “most excellent” by the author (Luke 1:3) and we can assume that he was a man of respect and high social standing. The name Theophilus means loved by God. Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Dictionary says that Luke and Theophilus were believed to come from Antioch in Syria. Writings attributed to Clement, the first early father of the church (birthdate unknown, died in AD 100), noted that “Theophilus was more exalted than all the men of power in that city (Antioch) consecrated, under the name of a church, the great basilica [the palace] in which he resided.”

Luke was a physician and he approached the writing of this gospel with the precision and care of a man of science. The name Luke means light-giving. The introduction to the Gospel of Luke mentions that he carefully compiled the data from eyewitnesses:

"Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us, it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught." -Luke 1:1-4

We know that Luke was a companion to Paul because of the frequent use of the pronoun “we” in the book of Acts. Acts 16:11-17 details Paul and Luke’s visit to Philippi. Acts 20:5-15 describes another meeting between Paul and Luke in Philippi, with travel to Miletus. Paul and Luke traveled together to Caesarea in Acts 21 and then sailed together to Rome (Acts 27:1- 28:15). One can imagine that Paul had plenty of time to tell Dr. Luke all about Jesus and Dr. Luke carefully noting it down as source material.

Just a few more bona fides; Col. 4:14 refers to “Luke the beloved physician,” and 2 Tim. 4:11 states that Luke alone was with Paul after Demas, Crescens and Titus had left Paul in Rome while he was awaiting execution. I picture Luke’s faithfulness being a great comfort to Paul at that time. Phil. 1:24 refers to Luke as a fellow worker.

According to the Tyndale Bible Dictionary, Luke was believed to be a physician in Antioch, that he wrote his gospel in Achaia (the entire Greek peninsula south of Thessalonica), and died at the age of 84.

The Gospel of Luke has the distinction of being the only gospel with a sequel, that being the Book of Acts. Acts finishes with Paul’s imprisonment in Rome, which suggests that the gospel was written prior to Paul’s death in AD 64, maybe even in Rome. Luke, himself a gentile, wrote his gospel in language familiar to gentiles. He assumed that his readers were familiar with the geography Greco-Roman world, rather than the geography of Palestine. That does not mean, however, that the gospel could not appeal to Jewish readers!

Luke’s vivid story-telling traces the story of Jesus from the very beginning, even prior to the conception of Jesus, as the gospel begins with the story of John the Baptist’s conception and birth. Luke’s gospel is one of the synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke). The synoptic gospels are all very similar in their synopses of Jesus’ life in contrast to the gospel of John, which while complementary, is written less as a synopsis of Jesus’ life and more to persuade the reader that Jesus is the Messiah who brings eternal life to those who believe.

The message of Luke is presented as thoroughly and carefully researched (1:3), meant to strengthen the faith of believers (1:3-4) and to challenge the misconceptions concerning the life and ministry of Jesus. It focuses on both the divinity and humanity of Jesus. Jesus’ divinity is especially emphasized in Luke’s descriptions of Jesus’ miracles, teachings and parables, while his humanity is presented in the description of Jesus’ early years in Luke 2.

Luke’s gospel is unique in several ways. It is the only gospel with a sequel. It is the longest of the four gospels. Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Commentary states that one-third of the material in Luke is unique to Luke; the narrative in chapters 9-19 appears only in Luke’s gospel. Only Luke and the longer version contain the story of Jesus’ ascension into heaven (along with Acts). This commentary also notes that Luke wrote that God’s grace was available to gentiles as well as Jews; indeed, God knew that the Jews would reject Jesus as Messiah (Acts 2:22-39), “leaving the door open” to gentiles.

Some of Luke’s source material came from the gospel of Mark: de Silva of An Introduction to the New Testament (INT) even claims that Luke was intent on improving Mark’s grammar and writing style! The INT lists these parallels:

• Luke 3:1-4:15 = Mark 1:1-15

• Luke 4:31-6:19 = Mark 1:21-3:19

• Luke 8:4-9:50 = Mark 4:1-9:40 (minus Mk 6:45–8:20)

• Luke 18:15-43 = Mark 10:13-52 (note absence also of Mk 9:41–10:12)

• Luke 19:29-22:12 = Mark 11:1-14:16

• Luke 22:13-24:12 = Mark 14:17-16:8

There are many ways to divide up the structure of Luke. Since I have been quoting de Silva, I’ll put his outline here:

Introductory material: Luke 1:1-2:52

• Prologue: Lk 1:1-4

• Announcement of the birth of John the Baptist: Lk 1:5-25

• Announcement of Jesus’ birth: Lk 1:26-56

• Birth of John: Lk 1:57-80

• Birth of Jesus: Lk 2:1-52

Jesus in Galilee: Luke 3:1–9:50

• Preparation for ministry: Lk 3:1–4:13

• John the Baptist and Jesus: Lk 3:1–22

• Genealogy: Lk 3:23–38

• Temptation: Lk 4:1–13

• Inauguratory sermon: Lk 4:14–30

• Galilean ministry: Lk 4:31–9:50

Journey to Jerusalem: Luke 9:51–19:27

Jesus in Jerusalem (and environs): Luke 19:28–24:53

• Jerusalem ministry: Lk 19:28–21:38

• Passion narrative: Lk 22:1–23:56

• Resurrection appearances in Judea: Lk 24:1–53

The ESV Expository Commentary lists these theological themes found in Luke: God’s covenant with His people, the Kingdom of God, Jesus Christ the Son of Man, the Holy Spirit (mentioned 17 times in the gospel and 56 times in Acts), salvation, discipleship and the good news for all people. Other commentators like John MacArthur make note of the theme of compassion for all people, no matter their sex or status. In Luke, Jew and Gentile believers are equal members of God’s new community.

Why should we study Luke? According to J.B. Tyson of the Harper Collins dictionary, “Luke’s gospel

emphasizes that the salvation Jesus brings has a present-day orientation to it: Jesus has come to seek and save the lost and to liberate people from things that prevent them from experiencing life as God intends.”

My prayer is that you gain new insights from this gospel, and indeed from every word you read in Scripture. The beauty of God’s Word is that new things are discovered even in frequently-read passages!

Works-cited and Resources

• Clement. Date unknown. In Recognitions, Book 10, Chapter 71. Retrieved from https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/080410.htm

• deSilva, D. A. (2018). An Introduction to the New Testament: Contexts, Methods & Ministry Formation (Second Edition). IVP Academic: An Imprint of InterVarsity Press.

• Elwell, W. A., & Comfort, P. W. (2001). In Tyndale Bible dictionary. Tyndale House Publishers.

• Grenz, S., Guretzki, D., & Nordling, C. F. (1999). Pocket dictionary of theological terms. IVP Academic.

• Holman Reference. (2024). The New Testament Handbook. Holman Reference.

• MacArthur, J., Jr., ed. (1997). The MacArthur Study Bible (electronic ed.). Word Pub.

• MacDonald, W. (1995). Believer’s Bible Commentary: Old and New Testaments (A. Farstad, Ed.). Thomas Nelson.

• Mandel, D. (2007). In The Ultimate Who’s Who in the Bible. Bridge-Logos.

• Radmacher, E. D., Allen, R. B., & House, H. W. (1999). Nelson’s new illustrated Bible commentary. T. Nelson Publishers.

• Schreiner, T. R. (2021). Luke. In I. M. Duguid, J. M. Hamilton Jr., & J. Sklar (Eds.), Matthew–Luke: Vol. VIII (pp. 703–1105). Crossway.

• Schreiner, T. R. (1995). Luke. In Evangelical Commentary on the Bible (Vol. 3, pp. 799–839). Baker Book House.

• Tyson, J. B. (2011). Luke, Gospel According to. In M. A. Powell (Ed.), The HarperCollins Bible Dictionary (Revised and Updated) (Third Edition). HarperCollins.

• Unger, M. F., Harrison, R. K., Vos, H. F., Barber, C. J., & Unger, M. F. (1988). In The new Unger’s Bible dictionary (Rev. and updated ed.). Moody Press.

• Weaver, P. D., ed. (2019). Surveying the Gospels and Acts (Second Edition). Learn the Word Publishing.

• Youngblood, R. F., Bruce, F. F., & Harrison, R. K., Thomas Nelson Publishers, eds. (1995). In Nelson’s new illustrated Bible dictionary. Thomas Nelson, Inc.