PREFACE, JESUS' BIRTH, AND BOYHOOD

Luke 1–2

DIMENSION ONE: WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

Answer these questions by reading Luke 1

1. Who is the writer who refers to himself as "I"? (1:3)

The writer never reveals his name. Traditionally, the writer of this Gospel has been identified as Luke, a Gentile physician and traveling companion of Paul (Colossians 4:14).

2. What is the purpose of Luke's Gospel? (1:4)

The purpose of Luke's Gospel is "that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught."

3. What does Luke say is his method of writing? (1:1-3)

Since many others have written narratives of the events of Jesus' life, "I too decided to write an orderly account."

4. What sources does Luke use in compiling his Gospel? (1:1-2)

Luke's sources are "those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word."

5. How does Luke describe Herod, Zechariah, and Elizabeth? (1:5-7)

Luke describes Herod as king of Judea, Zechariah as a priest, and his wife Elizabeth as a descendant of Aaron. Zechariah and Elizabeth "were righteous in the sight of God. ... Elizabeth was not able to conceive, and they were both very old."

6. What is Zechariah doing in the temple? (1:8)

He is "serving as priest before God" when his division is on duty.

7. How does Zechariah respond to the angel's promise of a prophetic son? (1:18, 22)

Zechariah is skeptical of the promise, for "I am an old man and my wife is well along in years." When he comes out of the temple, he cannot speak.

8. What words does Gabriel use to greet Mary? (1:28)

"Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you!"

9. Over what people does Gabriel say Jesus will reign? (1:32-33)

God will give him the throne of his father David, and "he will reign over Jacob's descendants forever."

10. What unique, divine event does Gabriel tell Mary will happen in her life? (1:35)

"The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God."

11. What does Mary learn about her relative Elizabeth? (1:36) The angel tells Mary, "Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age."

12. What names does the angel tell Zechariah and Mary to give their sons? (1:13, 31) The angel tells Zechariah to name his son John and Mary to name her son Jesus.

13. In response to Elizabeth's warm greetings, how does Mary answer? (1:46-47)

Mary says, "My soul glorifies the Lord / and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior."

14. After staying three months with Elizabeth, where does Mary go? (1:56)

Mary returns home.

15. How does Zechariah confirm the naming of his son? (1:63)

Zechariah, still unable to speak, writes on a tablet, "His name is John."

16. One of Luke's special interests is the Holy Spirit. What does he say about the Holy Spirit and Mary, Elizabeth, and Zechariah? (1:35, 41, 67)

Luke says that the Holy Spirit will come upon Mary, Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit, and Zechariah is filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesies.

17. About whom does Zechariah sing his praises? (1:68-79)

Zechariah blesses God, the child John, and Jesus.

Answer these questions by reading Luke 2

18. Why are Joseph and Mary going to Bethlehem? (2:1-5)

Caesar Augustus has ordered a census of the people, with each head of the house returning to his ancestral home. Since Joseph is of the house and lineage of David, he and Mary are going to Bethlehem, David's town.

19. What is the message of the heavenly host to the shepherds? (2:14)

"Glory to God in the highest heaven, / and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests."

20. What happens on the eighth day after Jesus' birth? (2:21)

At the end of eight days, the baby Jesus is circumcised and given his name.

21. What do Mary and Joseph offer as a sacrifice to make atonement for Mary? (2:22-24)

They offer, according to Jewish law, "a pair of doves or two young pigeons."

22. What do Joseph and Mary do after meeting the requirements of the law? (2:39)

They return "to their own town of Nazareth."

23. How often do Joseph and Mary visit Jerusalem? (2:41)

Joseph and Mary visit Jerusalem every year for the Festival of the Passover.

24. When Jesus is twelve, what is he doing at the temple, after the Festival of the Passover? (2:42-49)

His parents find him "in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions."

25. How does Luke describe Jesus' growth and development? (2:52)

"Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man."

DIMENSION TWO: WHAT DOES THE BIBLE MEAN?

The Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles make up one-fourth of the New Testament. These two books represent slightly fewer verses than all the thirteen letters of Paul plus the Letter to the Hebrews. But Luke and Acts represent much more than sheer bulk in the New Testament. They bring much that is new, such as Luke 9:51–18:14. They also show the compiler's (Luke's) use of many sources of information, such as Mark's Gospel (which became the basic outline for the Gospels of Luke and Matthew); the writings that only the Gospels of Luke and Matthew hold in common (known by scholars as Q); and the special and unique source that only Luke has (designated by scholars as the L source). A comparison of the Gospel of Luke with the Gospel of Mark shows how the writer felt free to correct, change, and grammatically improve sections used in Mark. In similar reports, Luke smooths out Mark's involved sentence structure:

Mark 3:7-8. "Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the lake, and a large crowd from Galilee followed. When they heard about all he was doing, many people came to him from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, and the regions across the Jordan and around Tyre and Sidon."

Luke 6:17-18a. "A large crowd of his disciples was there and a great number of people from all over Judea, from Jerusalem, and from the coastal region around Tyre and Sidon, who had come to hear him."

As is true of the other Gospel writers, Luke wrote in Greek and clearly used the Septuagint (Greek) translation of the Old Testament. He was a fine...