Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Required Reading
Blomberg, chapter 8.
Recommended Reading
Darrell L. Bock, “Luke, Gospel of,” in J.B. Green (et al., eds.), Dictionary of Jesus and the
Gospels (Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 1992), 485-510.
Richard A. Burridge, Four Gospels, One Jesus? (London 1994), 99-129.
Graham N. Stanton, The Gospels and Jesus (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1989), 81-
101.
Mark L. Strauss, Four Portraits, One Jesus: An Introduction to Jesus and the Gospels (Grand
Rapids: Zondervan, 2007), 259-296.
David A. deSilva, An Introduction to the New Testament (Downers Grove: InterVarsity,
2004), 298-347.
D.A. Carson, D. Moo and L. Morris, An Introduction to the New Testament (Grand Rapids:
Zondervan, 1992), 111-134.
The rough stats on Luke’s Gospel (here I follow Darrell Bock), are:
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Lecture 7 — The Gospel of Luke
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Lecture 7 — The Gospel of Luke
Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us,
just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and
servants of the word. Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from
the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent
Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught. (Luke
1:1-4)
In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach (Acts
1:1)
N.B. Theophilus is likely the literary patron of the work, a rich Christian who provided Luke
with the means to complete the work.
The story of Jesus and the story of the early church as a unified story of Jesus’ activity.
In broad terms, the Gospel of Luke has a geographical structure, in that it moves from
Galilee to Jerusalem, with the key text of Lk 9:51 marking the change in direction (Lk
9:53; 13:22, 33-34; 17:11; 18:31; 19:11, 28.).
Similarly, Acts progresses from Jerusalem, to Samaria and then to the ends of the earth
(Acts 1:8).
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Lecture 7 — The Gospel of Luke
In the former book, most honored Epaphroditus, I have demonstrated our antiquity, and
confirmed the truth of what I have said…I shall now therefore begin a confutation of the
remaining authors who have written anything against us.
Not purely historical concerns (“orderly account of the events that have been fulfilled
among us”), but history through the lens of theology.
The notion of fulfillment - see, in particular, Luke 1-2; but also 4:21; 9:31; 21:22;
24:44-47
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Lecture 7 — The Gospel of Luke
This takes up the first third of Luke’s Gospel – but it is roughly equivalent to the first half of
Mark.
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“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to release the oppressed,
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to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
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Lecture 7 — The Gospel of Luke
“The sermon is significant, because it plays out in miniature the story which will
unfold in the Gospel. Jesus’ rejection in Nazareth foreshadows his coming rejection
by his own people Israel” (Mark Strauss)
Begins to bring blessing to Gentiles (7:1-10; note the way the Nazareth sermon ends).
Peter’s confession
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Lecture 7 — The Gospel of Luke
A travel narrative?
Focusing himself and his teaching on what it will mean for him to go to Jerusalem, in
particular, what it will means for him to fulfill the role of a suffering Messiah.
9-18 has some of the most famous parables – The Good Samaritan (10:25-37);
The Rich fool (12:13-21); The Great Banquet (14:16-24); The Lost Series
(Sheep, Coin, Son – chapter 15); The Rich Man and Lazarus (16:19-31); The
Persistent Widow (18:1-8); The Pharisee and the Tax Collector (18:9-14).
For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.
Here of course, there is much that Luke shares with Mark in terms of content, but
there is strong evidence that Luke has access to another Passion account:
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Lecture 7 — The Gospel of Luke
Perhaps the most important distinctive feature of Luke’s narrative of the Passion is the
way he makes explicit that Jesus was innocent of all guilt.
Luke alone reports three tribunals (the Sanhedrin, Herod, and Pilate).
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The centurion, seeing what had happened, praised God and said, “Surely this was a
righteous (dikaios) man.”.
Jesus as ‘Saviour’. See Lk 2:11 (1:47 re God); 19:9-10; Acts 5:21 and 13:23.
Luke also underscores the saving role of faith (Lk 7:50; 17:19; 18:42). The term Saviour is
unique to Luke in the Synoptics (it does appear in John – see John 4:42). Many (such as
Craig Blomberg and I. Howard Marshall, argue that salvation is the key concept of Luke’s
gospel).
Jesus as ‘Lord’. This term is used 14 times of God and 14 times of Jesus (7:13,
19; 10:1, 39., 41; 11:39; 12:42; 13:15; 17:5, 6; 18:6; 19:8; 22:61; 24:3). Authority
implications and divine implications.
(4:24; 7:16; 11:47-52; 13:33; 24:19; cf. also Acts 3:22-23; 7:37)
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Lecture 7 — The Gospel of Luke
his beatitudes focus more explicitly on issues of riches and poverty (6:24-
25)
Exhorts his followers to invite the poor and handicapped to their parties
(14:12-13)
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Lecture 7 — The Gospel of Luke
Samaritans
Gentiles
Women
Luke emphasises the value placed on them as disciples and partners in ministry.
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Lecture 7 — The Gospel of Luke
It is women who are at the centre of the birth narratives (unlike Matthew’s focus on
Joseph), then there is the widow at Nain (7:12-15), the sinful woman (7:36-50), the women
who financially supported Jesus (8:1-3); the woman with the blood disease (8:43-48), the
story of Mary and Martha (10:38-42); the poor widow (21:1-4).
The mission of Jesus (which will eventually spread to the Gentiles) is in accord with
Israel’s Scriptures.
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And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said
in all the Scriptures concerning himself. (24:27)
to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us (1:1)
“As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for
joy” (1:44). See also 1:47; 1:58; 2:10 (“I bring you news of great joy”), and this joy floods
the whole work of Luke in a unique way:
Luke 15:4-5 - 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of
them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost
sheep until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders”
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Lecture 7 — The Gospel of Luke
Luke 19:37 - When he came near the place where the road goes down the
Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud
voices for all the miracles they had seen:
Luke 24:52 - 52 Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great
joy.
Magnificat (1:46-55); The Benedictus (1:68-79); The Gloria in Excelsius (2:14); The Nunc
Dimittis (2:29-32).
The presence of the Holy Spirit, bringing joy and blessing throughout the birth
narrative (1:35; 41; 67; 2:26-27).
Remember Acts
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Lecture 7 — The Gospel of Luke
Historical Analysis
• Luke starts his gospel with a traditional Graeco-Roman literary preface (Luke 1:1-
4)
• Emphasis on Gentile inclusion (Lk 2:31-32; 4:25-27; 13:29; 21:24 plus what
happens in Acts)
This combined data suggests a majority Gentile readership, although not without some
Jewish Christian elements.
“
so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.”
• The fulfilment motif suggests the question - How do we know that we have
got the OT promises right?
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Lecture 7 — The Gospel of Luke
Luke … a companion of Paul set forth in a book the gospel as preached by him.
Irenaeus, Adv. Her. 3.1.1.
Luke, however, was not an apostle, but only a man of apostolic times; not a master,
but a disciple, inferior indeed to a master - and at least as much later (than they) as
the Apostle whom he followed, undoubtedly Paul (was later than the others).
Tertullian, Adversus Marcionem 4.2.2.
See also the ancient (II cent. AD) extra-textual Prologue to the Gospel
Luke was a Syrian of Antioch, by profession a physician, the disciple of the apostles,
and later a follower of Paul until his martyrdom, as cited in J.A. Fitzmyer, The
Gospel According to Luke I-IX (New York 1981), pp.38-39.
• Luke is well known in the New Testament. He is the co-worker of Paul, a doctor by
profession (Philemon 24; Col 4:14; 2 Tim 4:11).
• Arguments against Luke’s authorship tend to coalesce around the idea that his
portrait of Paul and the early church is too divergent from what we know in Paul. On this
question, see Stanley Porter, Paul in Acts.
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Lecture 7 — The Gospel of Luke
Dating
• There are two options for the dating of Luke-Acts: either (a) early 60's or (b) 70's
-90's. Arguments for an early 60's date for Luke’s Gospel (that is, before Nero's persecution
of 64 AD) are as follows:
Acts does not mention Paul's death, only his imprisonment (c. AD
61-63: Acts 28:30).
• The Gospel alludes to the destruction of Jerusalem (70 AD). Cf. Lk 13:35; 19:43;
21:5-6; Lk 21:20-24.
• There are verses that clearly refect post-70 AD hindsight. Both Lk 19:43 and 21:20
agree with Josephus' description of the army of Titus besieging Jerusalem (Jewish War
6:150, 156).
Discipleship Reflections
Following Jesus means accepting all who are outside – the greedy rich, the
socially and economically poor, the disgraced sinner.
A community filled with prayer (5:16; 6:12; 11:1; 22:32, 41; 23:34) and joy
(2:10; 24:53; Acts 2:46-47).
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Lecture 7 — The Gospel of Luke
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