Week 4

Christian Theology

Opening Prayer (5 Minutes)

Example (5 Minutes)

Predestination and Foreknowledge

Your Eye Is the Light of the Body (Luke 11:34)

Luke 11:34–36 ESV

Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is full of light, but when it is bad, your body is full of darkness. Therefore be careful lest the light in you be darkness. If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, it will be wholly bright, as when a lamp with its rays gives you light.”

This seems like an enigma. What does Jesus mean by this? Is it a cultural reference? It doesn’t make sense to me at face value.

How do I interpret this in light of everything Jesus else is talking about in this passage?

There are some cultural and contextual clues to understanding this passage. Let’s take it one verse at a time.

Luke 11:33 ESV

“No one after lighting a lamp puts it in a cellar or under a basket, but on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light.

Light’s purpose is to reveal what is around us.

Light is often a motive or image in the Bible of righteousness, and darkness represents wickedness.

Luke includes putting a lamp in a cellar, not found in Jewish homes. But it is found in Gentile homes, Luke’s audience.

Jesus may be referring to us as lights of the world (Matthew 5:14-16). This would concern our witness in the world. We must not hide ourselves away but proclaim the gospel as God’s lights in the world.

Luke 11:34 ESV

Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is full of light, but when it is bad, your body is full of darkness.

Jesus transitions from speaking of the light of a lamp to the eye as the lamp. This is where the Image of light as righteousness and darkness as wickedness comes in.

Luke 11:33 speaks of our witness as Jesus’ lights in the world. But Jesus changes to speak of the righteousness and wickedness in us in Luke 11:34.

What we take in (the eye of the body) is healthy when it takes in righteousness. We become righteous when we observe righteousness and include it in our character.

But if our eye are bad they take in darkness and wickedness that becomes part of our character.

The larger context concerns Jesus’ teaching. So “light” you may refer to the teaching that we listen to and apply to ourselves.

Luke 11:35 ESV

Therefore be careful lest the light in you be darkness.

We must take in righteousness and godly teaching so that our character on the inside is righteousness. If the “light,” our character and deeds, is not righteous and we will be wicked, or darkness.

Luke 11:36 ESV

If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, it will be wholly bright, as when a lamp with its rays gives you light.”

Jesus’ teaching circles back to Luke 11:36. He connects our character and deeds with our witness.

Luke 11:33 talks about us being God’s light in the world. In Luke 11:34-35 Jesus talked about us as the lights ourselves, that we must take in and apply godly teaching (light) to be full of light as His weaknesses to the world.

He concludes by coming full circle, saying that if I character and deeds are full of light we will be bright lights witnessing for Him. We will be Bright lamps on lampstands giving God’s light and revelation to the world about Him.

Questions about Verses, Passages, and Concepts (10 Minutes)

Discuss Questions (50 Minutes)

Application (15 Minutes)

Closing (5 Minutes)