Lk 1:1-4 — Be certain

Welcome & Notices

Praise: In Christ alone

Prayer

Children’s address

Do you know this chair can hold your weight? This sweet will taste nice?

Praise:

When Zion’s fortunes God restored, it was a dream come true.

2 Our mouths were then with laughter filled, our tongues with songs anew.

Children leave

Reading

Luke 1:1–4 NIV

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. With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.

Hebrews 2:1–4 NIV

We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. For since the message spoken through angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, how shall we escape if we ignore so great a salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.

Prayer

Offering

sola scriptura, solus Christus, sola gratia, sola fide, and soli Deo gloria?

Obadiah

Annabelle home. Care she needs.

Campbells home.

Julie and others who may be grieving.

Security forces in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, have ended a 15-hour siege of a hotel stormed by armed militants.

The gunmen entered the building after two bombs were detonated in the area. At least 20 people were killed, and it is feared more bodies will be found as security forces search the hotel.

sola scriptura, solus Christus, sola gratia, sola fide, and soli Deo gloria?

Lord just as you transformed Martin Luther 500 years ago through the reading of your word in Romans and through him transformed the world, would you likewise transform each of us today. Would you show us afresh the truths of your word.

Praise: By faith we see the hand of God

Introduction

As we look at these opening verses from the book of Luke this morning, my hope and prayer is that we will start to get something of a sense of the nature of Luke’s work, that we will appreciate the value of what we have here in front of us, and that therefore we will all get excited to dive in to this book over the coming weeks, months, indeed probably years. My intention is that we’ll take the book in sections, interspersing it with a few one offs and short series as we go along, but overall I expect us to spend a considerable amount of time considering what Luke has to tell us in his gospel.

If you’re wondering why this particular book, my hope is that these opening verses will provide you with the answer.

Authorship

One of the questions which every commentary on a book of the Bible, or every introductory course at seminary always has to answer is: ‘who wrote it?’. You might think that’s a straightforward question, after all it says it right there at the top, of the page, the gospel according to Luke. It probably won’t surprise you that that’s not quite enough for most skeptical scholars, but happily in this case there’s very little debate. Since the earliest fragments of the gospel we have, and the very first records of the compilation of the Biblical canon, there has been no serious contender for the authorship of this gospel than Luke, and more specifically that’s Luke ‘the beloved physician’ who was a companion of the apostle Paul for part of his journeys as recorded in Acts. He crops up briefly in one or two other places too, like the list of greetings at the end of the book of Colossians.

Well, so far so good. But why do we care? Sure, it has to be talked about by the academics, but what difference does it make to us here today whether or not Luke wrote it? If it’s all inspired by the Holy Spirit anyway, so what? Well, I don’t think that the way the Holy Spirit inspired the writing of scripture makes the human author irrelevant, otherwise we wouldn’t have such a wide variety of styles as we see different characters coming through. In any case, here are two concrete examples of why we care who wrote this book.

If the same person wrote different books of the Bible, then the one informs our understanding of the other more directly. And that’s both in terms of thematic emphases, and in terms of the particular meanings of words. If I want to know how Luke’s using a particular word, which facet of its meaning he’s focussing on, it doesn’t do me all that much good to look at how James uses the word. But I can have a look at how Luke uses it elsewhere. So if we agree that Luke wrote both this gospel and the book of Acts, we can understand the two together as a cohesive whole.

And that’s not just for people with degrees in theology looking at individual words in Greek, that’s something which will help you too. It doesn’t necessarily mean that you need to be digging into specific phrases, it’s also true that simply reading through Luke and Acts together as a unified whole will enrich your experience of either one. Let me encourage you to consider doing that perhaps over the next few weeks as we start looking at Luke’s gospel. If you read for half an hour for a few evenings you’ll get through it quickly enough.

Knowing something of who he is and his background and who he’s writing to can be a reassurance to us. For me personally, I’ve found it helpful to remember that the Bible has numerous models and examples for us of people who did not see Jesus in person themselves, yet they believe. We see people in the Bible who are willing to believe on the basis of what they have been told, on the basis of the eyewitness accounts they heard. When Luke refers to eyewitnesses in these opening verses he does so knowing that his first readers could go and find those eyewitnesses and check what he’s saying. Whilst we may not have that opportunity ourselves, I find it reassuring that the writers of the New Testament opened themselves up to that kind of fact-checking. If people within the Bible itself could believe on the basis of second and third hand accounts, then it’s not unreasonable for us to do similarly.

Luke is one such person himself, and he’s writing to another person, or people, in a similar situation. He’s writing for those who are at some remove from Jesus’ ministry both geographically and in time, and writing to assure them that it’s reasonable for them to believe in Jesus.

Summary

The second thing which you always get at the start of a commentary is a bit of a summary of the major themes of the book, helping to orient you for what’s up ahead. Any writer always has themes they tend to dwell on, and a purpose for which they’re writing, and it’s helpful to see some of that up front. I think it will be helpful for us too to have an idea of where we’re going, so let me highlight three summary themes.

Firstly, Luke’s is a gospel of good news!

The teaching, the healings, Jesus’ recorded acts of compassion, are all aspects of the proclamation of good news.

Luke 4:18 NIV

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free,

We can easily lose sight of the fact that the gospel is good news, and good news not only in some distant far off future, but good news right now. Jesus sets prisoners free and makes the blind see. Luke records the good news which Jesus proclaimed in word and deed.

2. Secondly, Luke is consistently focussed on salvation.

Commentator IH Marshall says that “The central theme in the writings of Luke is that Jesus offers salvation to men.”

It seems such an obvious thing to say, of course the offer of salvation is a fundamental theme of a gospel account. And yet how easily we lose sight of that.

When Jesus meets Zaccheus the tax collector, the account as recorded in ends with these words:

Luke 19:1–10 NIV

Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. He wanted to see who Jesus was, but because he was short he could not see over the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way. When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly. All the people saw this and began to mutter, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.” But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.” Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

And how readily we narrow that down.

Luke 19:9–10 NIV

Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

How readily we lose sight of the central importance that Jesus came to seek and save the lost.

And how readily we narrow that down. How quickly we end up thinking, or at least acting like, Jesus came to seek and save people like us. But no! There is a wideness to God’s mercy. Jesus’ ministry wasn’t primarily to the comfortable and middle-class, to the respectable. No. Jesus ministry was especially for the poor, the needy, the social outcasts. The people called “Sinners”.

3. Thirdly, the cost of discipleship

Whilst the gospel as good news is a central theme, Luke does not shy away from, indeed he dwells on, the nature of the response which is expected and the cost that will bring. He’s clear that those who follow Jesus will receive the blessings of the kingdom, but also that we are called to a life of strenuous self-denial whilst we wait. There are important passages on that in and following and in 14:25ff.

Jesus calls his disciples to a life of wholehearted discipleship, in contrast to and in rejection of the temptation of riches and of this world.

Be Certain

That brings us, then, to the question of why Luke wrote this gospel. And that brings us to those four verses right at the start of the gospel which we read earlier. If you’ve lost them, do please take a moment to turn to the beginning of Luke’s gospel just now.

Luke tells us here, in so many words, that he has set out to write a careful, reliable account, the objective of which is that Theophilus (and presumably others too) may ‘know the certainty of the things you have been taught.’

To my mind it is this purpose which makes this gospel particularly suitable for us as we set out on this journey together. Whilst many of you have known many of the gospel stories and Jesus’ parables since the days of your youth, this gospel is written for people who already know, that they might have certainty. This gospel is written for members of the church, or at least people on the fringe. Now clearly it has enormous evangelistic value too, but primarily this is written to give certainty those those within.

Hence the Title for this talk, Be certain.

Luke the trustworthy compiler

As he sets out, Luke commends himself to Theophilus as a trustworthy source, as a compiler who can be relied upon to give a true record. Note the various language he uses over these verses to build up that impression.

Firstly, he is dependent upon those who were eyewitnesses and servants, verse two. He’s dependent upon what he has received from others, but he has made sure they are reliable people, he has carefully verified their accounts. This isn’t two different groups of people he’s referring to, but one and the same. These are men who witnessed, in both senses of the word. They saw, and therefore they spoke. These are men who can be described as servants of the word because they are not promoting their own opinions, but rather have unreservedly devoted themselves to Jesus’ cause. They are servants of the word.

Note too that Luke clearly distinguishes himself from these eyewitnesses. Whilst he is embracing the role of a servant of the word, he cannot claim to be an eyewitness of what he records here in this gospel. (Though he is of some of the events of Acts). Luke’s not pretending to be something he’s not, he’s reliable and trustworthy.

Secondly, he has carefully investigated everything from the beginning. He has surveyed the materials closely, both those written down already and those he has gathered by speaking to others. He has chased down every lead.

Thirdly, what he has prepared is an orderly account. Not so much that it’s in the chronological sequence we would tend to presume in an orderly historical account today, but rather in the sense of deliberation and care in what he sets out and the order in which he does so. Luke is using historical realities to make theological points. It seems likely that he had more material at his disposal than he chose to include, after all if John can say at the end of his gospel that if everything Jesus did were to be written down the world itself could not contain all the books, Luke would be a pretty poor investigator if this is absolutely everything he was able to find out!

But he is very deliberate in what he includes and how he records it. In producing this account, his aim is to show that the story of Jesus, taken as a whole, makes sense and is worthy of belief.

All of this is why, where John has a theological introduction, Matthew begins with a genealogy and Mark just launches straight in with characteristic terseness, Luke has this introductory statement which sets out his credentials and establishes his purpose.

So we can be certain of what we find here because Luke is a trustworthy compiler.

Confirming facts

Secondly we should be certain because Luke is confirming actual true and historical facts. Whilst some skeptics will argue that Luke’s theological intentions mean that his recording of history and fact cannot be trusted, the one does not actually follow logically from the other. Any recorder or historian will always have a bias, a motivation for why they are writing, just as when a scientific study is published it’s usually worth taking a look at who funded it and what results they might therefore have been hoping to find.

It is certainly possible to write true history at the same time as helpful and God-honouring theology, and I suggest that Luke does just that. It’s certainly clear both from this prologue and from the gospel as a whole that his intention is to produce a valid historical record, hence the reference here to eyewitnesses, hence the references to named rulers in verse 5, at the start of chapter two with the record of the census and so on. This is not a fairy tale set in a time long ago in a far off land. Luke provides concrete markers.

Of course thelogical truths can be conveyed by myths, fables and fabricated stories, after all that’s essentially what the parables are, but that’s not what Luke gives us here.

Why does this matter? Because our faith is reasonable. It is based on fact and not the sort of ‘blind faith’ which many might suppose. Some people like to set up having ‘faith’ without evidence, or even contrary to the evidence, as if it were somehow virtuous. It is not. Luke and the other New Testament writers ground their arguments for belief in historical reality, not idle speculation. When the early church was faced with denials of the resurrection, with heresies many and various, their response was not mere speculation but rather this kind of factual narrative. And the same should be true for us. We should never be tempted to wander off into ‘what I think might be’ or ‘I like to think of God as...’. No, our faith is based on historical realities.

This is why we should not be concerned about scientific, historical and archaeological research. Because our faith will never be truly undermined by these investigations undertaken rightly. God is the God of science, of history, of archaeology, of the whole of reality. Science never will come up with a knock-down argument to disprove the existence of God, because no such thing can exist. The world God has created is fully consistent with the fact that God created it.

So, when Luke and the others set out to convince people, what the provide is, basically, a set of facts. As one commentator notes,

The Message of Luke b. The Contents of the ‘Gospels’ (1:1b)

It is true that no amount of head-knowledge can save a man’s soul, and in that sense a mere ‘set of facts’ does not in itself have any spiritual value. Yet a well-defined series of statements seems to have been precisely what successive generations of the church were to guard and to hand on—‘the traditions’ about Jesus.

So we can be certain, because Luke is a trustworthy compiler, and because he is laying out for us a set of facts.

Be assured

Thirdly, we can be certain in the sense that we can be assured. We can and should be confident.

Generally, in our society today, a healthy degree of scepticism is considered to be a good thing. To be open-minded is one of the greatest virtues. However, as GK Chesterton said, “Merely having an open mind is nothing. The object of opening the mind, as of opening the mouth, is to shut it again on something solid.”

The purpose of God’s word is to give us something solid with which to fill our minds. Not such that we can then be closed-minded, but such that we can have a bedrock for openness, a foundation from which to investigate, discuss and discover.

That is what Luke offers us. If you like, he invites us to read his account, see the facts on which Christianity is based, and find there a firm, solid, trustworthy and secure foundation for our faith. If we are to have faith in Christ we must necessarily have a fair degree of assurance, of certainty, that certain facts are true. At a minimum we must have confidence that Christ can save. This assurance will only come from an understanding of his work on the cross and what it set out to achieve.

I think, though, that we can go even further than this. I think Luke’s intention, when he wants Theophilus to know the certainty of what he has been taught, is that he will have assurance not only that Christ can save, but that he has been saved by Christ. As we work through Luke, my prayer is that you will be able to say not only “Christ saves sinners” but “I have been saved by christ.”

As I say that, I’m conscious of the danger that I might discourage some of you that you don’t yet have that assurance. Well that’s certainly not my intent, and I should not be discouraged. Part of whether or not we feel willing to say that is temperamental, I think, it’s got a lot to do with our character and what we’ve been brought up with — perhaps to some of you it feels like an arrogant thing to say. Certainly it could be said in arrogance, but I don’t think it’s an inherently arrogant assertion. And it can be a profound comfort and joy, a source of confidence in the face of opposition or the trials of life. But it is not essential. The Westminster larger catechism says just that.

The Westminster Confession of Faith: Edinburgh Edition The Larger Catechism

Q. 80. Can true believers be infallibly assured that they are in the estate of grace, and that they shall persevere therein unto salvation?

A. (in long and complicated language): “yes, grounded upon the truth of God’s promises.”

The Westminster Confession of Faith: Edinburgh Edition The Larger Catechism

Q. 81. Are all true believers at all times assured of their present being in the estate of grace, and that they shall be saved?

A. As assurance is not of the essence of faith, believers may not have assurance for a long time, and indeed having had it may find it to be weakened and interrupted.

All that to say, we can, we may have that kind of assurance which enables us to say “I have been saved by Christ”, and it is my prayer that our travels through Luke will give us just that.

So not only can we can be certain on an intellectual level, because Luke is a trustworthy compiler, and because he is laying out for us a set of facts, but we can be certain, we can be assured at every level of our being, because of the work of the Holy Spirit who takes these facts and applies them to our hearts.

Conclusion

Hebrews 2:1–4 NIV

We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. For since the message spoken through angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, how shall we escape if we ignore so great a salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.

So in conclusion, what are we to do with Luke’s careful account? Here let me ask you to peek back at those verses we read from Hebrews two. We must pay careful attention to Luke’s account, because to do otherwise is to ignore, or ESV to neglect, so great a salvation. We can neglect it by rejecting it outright, but we can also neglect it by paying it mere lip-service, by claiming to follow Jesus but allowing it to have only the barest minimum of impact on our lives.

So in conclusion, what are we to do with Luke’s careful account? Here let me ask you to peek back at those verses we read from Hebrews two. We must pay careful attention to Luke’s account, because to do otherwise is to ignore, or ESV to neglect, so great a salvation. We can neglect it by rejecting it outright, but we can also neglect it by paying it mere lip-service, by claiming to follow Jesus but allowing it to have only the barest minimum of impact on our lives.

This sort of lip service is what the writer to the Hebrews suggests will result in drifting away. As your car, driving along the motorway, will keep more or less a straight line for a fair while without your input, but sooner or later will need a guiding hand.

So Luke’s intention is that you may have certainty. The sort of certainty which overflows into action. These verses in Hebrews are one of several in the New Testament which remind us of the serious reality of the prospect of Hell. Theophilus needs to know the certainty of the things he has been taught because Christ’s saving work on the cross is not mere example, not mere emotionalism, not only an example of love, but rather it is for the salvation of souls, rescuing us from a very real danger.

Praise: How firm a foundation

Benediction

May you know the certainty of the things you have been taught, that you might not drift away but rather might enjoy such a great salvation, having assurance that you will persevere in grace unto the end.