The Highlights Series Part 2 by John Luke RobertsonSample

Although Luke’s name never appears in the gospel of Luke, it is Christian tradition that Luke wrote it. So, who was Luke? Paul listed Luke with other Gentiles in his greetings to the Colossians (4:14) so we can conclude that Luke was not a Jew. Paul also refers to him as “the beloved physician.” Luke was clearly a good friend to Paul and an important character in the bible. He was not an apostle, but he walked among them. Luke is believed to have settled in the Greek city of Thebes, where he died at age 84. 

From Luke’s introduction, it’s clear that his purpose for writing was to give readers a clear, concise account of Christ’s life in chronological order. Luke was a physician, so he would have been trained to be a careful observer, which makes it great for all of us, since we depend on the words in the Bible to be true and accurate, right?  So, what we have is the first part of a two volume work written to Theophilus. The second work is the book of Acts.

When reading the four gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, it’s important to remember these were people who are recording what they saw and how they saw it. If you went to an event with four friends, chances are your account of it would sound differently than that of your friends. Luke tells his story, as he saw it, through the eyes of a physician. He offers a unique perspective of Jesus as the “Son of Man”, a phrase Jesus uses often to describe himself. 

Jesus came to seek and save the lost. Luke’s portrayal of Jesus lets us know that God sent Him to earth to save all humanity---Jews and Gentiles.