Read Luke 1:1-25 Soap 1:1-4
Interesting fact: Luke is the only Gentile to pen any books of scripture, having written the book of Luke and Acts. He was probably converted by Paul himself. Colossians 4:14 describes Luke as a physician, which explains his detailed accounting of Jesus' healing ministry. Luke would have been fascinated by Jesus' healing. He wrote the book of Luke for two apparent reasons: 1) to confirm Theophilus' faith, and 2) to present Jesus as the Son of Man, even though Israel rejected Him.
Theophilus' name means: "friend of God". I would love to be described as God's friend! This meaning reminds me that salvation is not simply a one-time decision, but a relationship with Christ. He wants us not only to accept salvation, but to "have certainty of the the things we have been taught." Luke goes on to describe the extent of his research about Christ's life. What a privelege it must have been to speak with eyewitnesses of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection!
Must we blindly trust in a one-time decision of faith? No! God's Word and the study thereof confirms our faith. The most important thought I gathered today from this passage is that we are absolutely obligated to understand what we believe and why. His Word is alive, revealing His truth to our hearts and confirming our faith in the process. May we all be called Theophilus, or friend of God.
Feel free to post a comment below.
Week 1
ReplyDeleteDay 1
Good Morning Girls
Well I am excited to begin this journey of studying God Word with you ladies. I love God’s word and there is nothing more exciting to me than the bible and I love discussing it. A few things to note about Luke as we begin is that he was the only Gentile to write two books of the bible, that being Luke and the book of Acts. What I love about these introcution is that even though Luke is stating that he has taken eyewitness accounts of the Jesus, for he himself never met him, it is certain as we travel through this book we will be able to see that he had heavenly guidance by the Holy Spirit. Luke learned from those who had actually been with Jesus such Matthew, Mark, Phillip and by his close friendship with the Apostle Paul, who had an on the road to Damascus experience. Luke shows us the healing side to Jesus ministry, maybe being a bit prejudice since that was his own profession, but I think mostly Luke wants us to see in those healings the divine mercy of God. I pray for a greater understanding of His word, that we all take something out of this study that will not only enrich our lives but those around us.
Be blessed!!
I meant to say introduction and just Jesus not 'the'...lol...really wish they would let you go back and edit
DeleteI posted something but it is under Fawns profile. Not sure how to use this yet. LOL
ReplyDeleteI had to set up a second profile Lisa, so I hope I am doing everything correct also
DeleteAnother thing just revealed to me as I read todays scripture again. I need to pray EXPECTANTLY. The angel told Zechariah that God had heard his prayers about Elizabeth's barreness. His prayers were going to be answered but Zechariah had disbelief. If we pray for something we need to expect God's provision in his way. WOW
ReplyDeleteOkay ladies. Keep up the great comments and insight. I had to go read it again after reading your comments. Good stuff!
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI like what Susie said about the introduction. I think the way that Luke begins this book makes him seem more real in some way. I had never really paid attention to verses 1-4 until today.
ReplyDeleteTesting!
ReplyDeleteIt's funny how God works. Randy and I have been working on our Wednesday night lesson. It's on John the Baptist. Then tonight, I read Luke 1 for this study, and BAM there it is again. It stands out to me that it is not always easy to have the faith we should. Zacharias had Gabriel standing right in front of him and yet he questioned the message. Verse 20 states: And, behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season.
ReplyDeleteGod’s word is TRUE. He is unchanging. If he said He will do it he WILL. He has proven himself to us over and over and over…..
Lord help me to always trust you! Help me to KNOW that with you ALL things are possible.
Lisa, I couldn't agree more. When we ask God for something, we should EXPECT that He will answer our prayers (even if it's not in a time and manner of our choosing).
ReplyDeleteJason and I talked about this passage this evening and discussed that an application that can be drawn is that we have an obligation to pass on what we know. Luke couldn't wait to tell someone about the good things he has witnessed. With his medical background, the facts would have been important to him, I think. All too often I am hesitate to share my good news because of my own awkwardness and insecurity. Luke didn't have these problems.
Great thoughts!
DeleteOkay, I am having difficulty SOAPing the first four verses. These are verses we tend to just read past to get to the meat of the story. Interesting that we now focus on the 'intro' to the chapter.
ReplyDeleteI finally 'observed' that Luke wanted Theophilus to have faith in what he had been taught. Luke wanted to encourage him to continue in the faith....wanted to assure Theophilus that what he had been taught and believed was correct. It seems that Luke is one that would be sure to watch out for his fellow believer, pick him up when he has fallen, and encourage him when he is down. Luke is doing what he can to ensure that others have an accurate account of the truth.
I believe this is where we, I, can apply it to our lives....be an encouragement to others and confirm the truth in love to one another....Don't sit back and continuously be ministered to, but do our part to minister to others.
Yes, I too was surprised to find we were SOAPing the first four verses. Just goes to show how when we really think about any part of God's Word, He delivers! Great thoughts
DeleteAs I am "soaping" the 1st 4 verses ( great terminology Amy!!), I observe the God's word from the beginning (vs. 2) those who were eyewitnesses narrated an order of events.
ReplyDelete1-God has a plan and this plan is wondrous when others see it come to fruition (1st Corinthians 14:40 ...all things... In order).
2-when those who have experienced God's favor- you want to share it by writing, talking, singing, to anyone and everyone. (Vs. 3 having had perfect understanding.....write to you an Orderly account) the application I take from this is God's word is "the word of God accomplishes the work of God" David Platt, Radical together, P. 45, para. 3. Every word in the bible is set in perfect order to accomplish his work and when you start living for Jesus you will see wondrous things so don't keep it inside-shine your light bright for all to see/hear. Salt and light baby!!!
Great connection to what we've been studying in Sunday School, Michelle!
DeleteIn this part of Luke, the part that just comes out at me is God's faithfulness. Zechariah asked, "how can this be?" How many times do we try to limit God and His plans? Our minds are so limited to the here and now. To the people and things going around us. God sees the big picture. How our lives intersect with others. How decisions effect the future.
ReplyDeleteGod can take our little mustard seed and help it grow. God can take our doubt and weakness to show HIS power and strength. Those times when we think it's too much. I can't go on. Those moments God will use us to shine HIS light.
Your thoughts are very insightful. Theophilus willingness to support Luke is a great example to us!
ReplyDeleteSorry girls, I'm a little behind. I tried to post my comments last night but our computer was being stubborn. Anywho, here's what I gleened from yesterday's verse's. This is actually from a footnote in my Bible but I wanted to share it. "God wants us to know the bible teaches truth and can be trusted in all that it declares. The Gospels are not a c ollection of religious fairy tales. They are parts of the only written source of eternal truth, God's Word." This was such a great reminder to me that we can go to God's Word and find the truth we seek.
ReplyDeleteI also read the "intro" to Luke in my Bible and really liked that Luke had thoroughly investigated Jesus' story. I like that word "thoroughly". So many times I just take for granted what someone else says and I fail to really dig into God's word and find out the truth myself. Luke's example has inspired me to really start digging into the Word more.