Reflective Bible Study

In our time focusing in on Jesus’ life and ministry within the gospels, we come to one of the more difficult passages, at least for me, that is included within the gospels. In this passage, we will be looking a little closer at the group of people who are not saved.

The primary descriptive term used in this passage to describe this excluded group is “evildoers”. This tells me that while this group “ate and drank” with Jesus, their time in His presence didn’t do anything to change their hearts away from sin.

Twice Jesus says that He does not know them or where they come from. This also tells me even though Jesus “knows” everything (because He’s God), it is very likely these people have not ever opened their hearts and lives to Jesus.

In both these descriptions, it seems as though some of these people live a double life, and some of these people may also have bought into the idea that salvation equals the freedom to sin because Jesus has already paid the price.

However, in both cases, the people take for granted the need of a personal relationship with Jesus. In a relationship with Jesus, we share our lives with Jesus, and as we grow in our love and respect for Him, we intentionally move away from doing things that don’t please Him (you might call that “sin” or “evil-doing”).

Jesus knows where we have “come from” when we share our past mistakes with Him, and He knows us when we are living our present lives with a regular connection to Him.

This leads us into our big idea for this journal entry: How honest are you with Jesus about your life – both your current and past experiences? Are your current actions drawing you closer into a relationship with Jesus, or allowing you to slip further away?

The best way to connect with Jesus is through prayer, Bible Study, and listening for the Holy Spirit. The next best way, which you can easily do along with the first, is living every minute as though you are with Jesus. Think of it like you are tackling the challenges in your day together.

As we share our lives with Jesus, we grow closer to Him, and the closer we are to Him, the better He knows us.

As a developing communicator, when I read passages in the gospels that share about Jesus’ communication style, it seems as though these details jump off the page at me. During this speaking opportunity at the Capernaum synagogue, Jesus gets a reaction from the group of people, because His presentation of the scriptures was unique from what they had heard from others.

In verse 22, we read about the people’s reaction, “The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law.” It is worth noting that this response is from what we could simply call “the sermon” part of the worship service.

In case those present needed any more proof about whether Jesus had authority, following the message, a demon-possessed man stands up to tell Jesus to leave them. Jesus responds by silencing the evil spirit and telling it to leave the man.

If Jesus’ teaching before was filled with authority, this healing solidified it in the minds of those present. Verse 27 tells us the people’s reaction after the healing, “The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, ‘What is this? A new teaching—and with authority! He even gives orders to impure spirits and they obey him.’”

Jesus’ communication was unique. Jesus shared as one who had authority, and He was not one to back down to a challenge from satanic forces. Word spreads, and that evening, Jesus has a steady stream of people who come to have their diseases healed.

This leads me to see a big theme running through this passage: Jesus has the authority to teach scripture, to heal diseases, and to free people from the devil’s traps. If we need encouragement, healing, or freedom, Jesus should be the One we look to first!

When I read Luke’s opening to his gospel, I am amazed at how this opening message sounds. While the other three gospels open with something related to Jesus, Luke opens his gospel addressing another believer – and it is in this opening that we get a picture of what Luke’s purpose was for writing his letter, and what was happening in the decades that followed Jesus’ ascension back to heaven.

Luke opens his gospel by saying, “Many have attempted to write about what had taken place among us. They received their information from those who had been eyewitnesses and servants of God’s word from the beginning, and they passed it on to us. I, too, have followed everything closely from the beginning. So I thought it would be a good idea to write an orderly account for Your Excellency, Theophilus. In this way you will know that what you’ve been told is true.” (v. 1-4)

We can see from this introduction that there was a lot of talk and speculation surrounding Jesus in the years that followed His ministry, death, resurrection, and ascension. Many people had pieced together gospel narratives from what they could find, and it is even possible that Mark’s gospel and Matthew’s gospel had already been written when Luke decided to write his.

However, also in this introduction, we are introduced to an otherwise unknown person: Theophilus. While Luke addresses him as a dignitary, official, king, or governor, I wonder how they knew each other prior to this letter being written. Since Luke was a doctor, perhaps Luke had seen Theophilus as a patient, and perhaps they had a conversation about Jesus where Theophilus had shared some of his doubts about the rumors and how they were too good to be true.

In this way, Theophilus becomes a representative for everyone in history who has ever had doubts about Jesus. Luke writes his gospel to help answer the doubts and the skepticism that some may have over whether Jesus is really who people claim Him to be.

Luke opens his gospel like one would open a letter to a friend or a research article before sharing what he has discovered through his personal interviews and research. If the story of Jesus was a scam that Jesus’ earliest followers pieced together, then Luke would have researched his way into this conclusion through all the people he interviewed and through all his research.

Instead, Luke becomes the gospel to help answer the skeptics, and Luke writes for those who have reservations about Jesus. If you have ever had doubts about Jesus, perhaps reading from Luke’s gospel is the place for you to start. Luke may have written his gospel for someone like you!