A careful investigation for Theophilus, Luke traces Jesus from birth to

ascension with the eyes of a historian and the heart of a storyteller showing

us a savior who seeks the lost.

Hello, this is Seat Go Create.

You are listening to read the New Testament in 90 days.

Welcome back.

This is 27 books in order in context.

We're walking through the New Testament, the way it was written so that

you can hear it the way the first.

Churches did.

In other words, as the letters were released, we're

actually going in that order.

So, a little bit different, but it is awesome.

It is building and we are having fun with it.

Make sure if you haven't yet to get the free reading plan and details.

Background more context at K two M Foundation slash.

T 90 links are down in the notes and in plenty of other places, so

make sure you check that out today.

Stop.

Luke, I hate saying every one of these is one of my favorites, but this

one early on in my Christian walk.

What's good for me, I'm an engineer by background.

I like things in order, and Luke seem to lay it out in order.

Luke is the longest gospel and it's the first half of a two volume

work, and we're gonna get to the next volume right after this.

So they are in that order.

Some key facts.

Luke is a Gentile physician and he is the only, I believe.

The only non-Jewish person that wrote in the New Testament, so we have

a very good Gentile perspective.

He actually is also Paul's traveling companion.

We have the date of Luke being released around a D 61.

I wanna mention one thing here.

When you're looking at all of these books that released in the late

fifties and early sixties, they obviously could move around as far

as the order and things like that.

One of the things that I wanted to do with this reading plan is I

wanted, if at all possible, Luke.

And acts to be back to back.

And so some will say that Luke may have been available and finished

in the late fifties, 59 or 60.

Some say the early sixties, like we're doing 61.

I put it at 61 because our next one is going to be acts.

I just wanted those to be together.

For us to get it in context back to back.

So, uh, anyway, I just wanna mention that a little bit of a disclaimer.

The audience, this is unique, I think I said this when we read Philemon, but this

is also to an individual, not to a group.

It is to Theophilus, which means lover of God.

Oddly enough, weird little sidebar.

When Gloria and I moved into our rv, our motor coach, we named our rv Theo

Short for Theophilus, lover of God.

So we lived in the lover of God for seven or eight years and

traveled and things like that.

Just a weird little.

Tidbit there.

We believe that Theophilus was a man of rank who needed certainty.

I'm also going to, when we open up Acts, mention some theories

about who Theophilus may have been.

We'll talk about that when we get to Acts next time.

The setting is around 30 to 31 years past the resurrection, Luke.

Appears to have been gathering testimony for years, and of course

we know that Ax will follow this.

So this is kind of one continuous story.

Luke and Ax do go together.

It's one of the reasons why we tried to put them there in this reading plan.

Let's get some historical.

Context.

As we've been saying, Nero is still on the throne in Rome.

Paul is under house arrest, but Luke is with him.

Luke has been traveling with him, and Luke is with him in Rome.

In Jerusalem.

The temple is still intact.

It's nine years before the destruction and the church, the gospel is

spreading across the empire.

Theophilus represents.

Educated seekers who want certainty about Jesus.

I guess I may have fit into that category early on in my Christian walk, being

an engineer and wanting to see facts and details and get things in order.

This is one of the reasons why this gospel really spoke to me.

Here's the tension that's going on.

Stories about Jesus.

Are circulating when we get to acts, it's going to be a good

bit about Paul Theophilus needs an orderly, reliable account.

Why now Luke has interviewed eyewitnesses, including those who saw the risen

Christ traced events carefully and now.

So Theophilus may have certainty, this is a quote, may have

certainty concerning the things.

You have been taught this is a Gentile writing to a Gentile.

It's kind of important to keep that perspective and that context in mind here.

Luke, as I said earlier, he's the only non-Jewish author in the New Testament.

And we are very confident that Theophilus is almost certainly a Gentile.

If Jesus words were only for Jews, Luke's entire project

really doesn't make any sense.

Let's talk about some things that were going on.

Early on when we start reading Luke, and then it's still going on 30 years later

when Luke's gospel arrives at some of the audiences that probably were circulating

this after it went to Theophilus.

There are three kingdoms at a crossroads.

We talked about this in the introduction to this reading plan and this tension

shaped Jesus ministry in 80 30 and still is shaping the church 30 years later.

The reason this gospel, I believe is kind of important is that think about 30 years.

Kind of going by.

Look back in your life 30 years.

There are some things that you remember from 30 years ago, but some of the details

may start getting a little bit fuzzy.

Luke is documenting details so they don't get fuzzy.

There's clarity there, and so that's why his gospel and his detail is so important.

the.

Three, I guess kingdoms that we're talking about here.

Those three empires.

One of those is Rome, the empire whose governor declared Jesus innocent,

yet handed him over to be crucified.

Now, Nero sits on the throne and.

Paul Awaits trial, the Jewish establishment, the temple structure,

the leaders of the temple, the leaders of the Jewish faith, that's

the Sanhedrin that condemned Jesus.

The temple still stands, but 80, 70 is only nine years away.

That's when it will be judged.

And destroyed.

And then we've got the kingdom that I believe pertains most to us, and it's

the context that we want to read the book of Luke From the Kingdom of God, the one

Jesus announced to the poor, the captives.

The blind.

It's now spreading across the empire through ordinary

people, ordinary witnesses.

Here's what you're gonna encounter in Luke.

He's careful and compassionate.

A historian with the heart of a storyteller, you'll hear

about the birth narratives.

John the Baptist Mary Song Shepherds the Manger.

Jesus at 12.

In the temple The road to Jerusalem from chapter nine.

Jesus sets his face toward Jerusalem and I believe we look back and know

that he knew what he was going to face when he arrived at Jerusalem.

The journey.

Shapes the gospel.

The parables of the lost.

The lost sheep.

The lost coin.

The lost son.

A father running to embrace his lost son.

The prodigal outsiders are welcome.

That is so important here with a Gentile most likely writing to a Gentile.

That's a context we need to get here.

Women.

Travel with Jesus all the time.

Women are welcomed in a culture and society where they

were not considered equal.

The tax collectors became disciples.

Samaritans are heroes and the poor.

Are blessed, Jesus ministers to the Gentiles.

A Roman centurion's faith is praised above all Israel that had to make

the, uh, the Jews feel great when Jesus praised a Roman centurion.

That's in chapter seven, verse one through 10.

A demoniac is healed in Gentile territory in Deis.

That's chapter eight verses 26 through 39, And a Samaritan foreigner was the

only one who returns to thank him.

That's chapter 17, 11 through 19.

Gentiles were always part of the plan.

Simeon calls Jesus a light for Revelation to the Gentiles.

In chapter two 30 through 32, Luke extends Isaiah all.

Flesh shall see the salvation of God in chapter three, verse six, and Jesus

points to Elijah serving a Gentile widow and Eisha healing name in the

Syrian and nearly gets killed for it.

That's in Luke four.

Verses 25 through 27, the risen Jesus commands the gospel.

Go to all the nations.

The Greek word is ethnic gentiles.

And that is, in chapter 24, verse 47, the genealogy is interesting.

In the beginning of Luke, he traces Jesus back to Adam, the father of all humanity.

And that's in, 3 23 through 38, not just Abraham.

The father of Israel, the framing is universal from the start

the cross in the resurrection.

Everything continues to go back to that.

As we read through these New Testament books, a Roman

centurion declares this man was.

Innocent on the road to Emmaus, hearts are burning.

And Luke, the physician, is documenting physical resurrection.

That's powerful.

So Luke, as a doctor, would know.

What someone coming back from the dead really means.

We see Jesus eating fish, showing his wounds, proving he is no ghost,

and then we have the ascension.

Jesus ascends promises the spirit and disciples return with great joy.

Luke ends where acts will begin.

All right, here's your reading assignment.

You're gonna read Luke over seven sessions over the next seven days.

if you can read it in less, that would be awesome.

Make sure you've downloaded the reading plan.

I just realized that in some of these episodes, I actually didn't

give the proper number of reading sessions so it could be conflicting

with, with the actual 90 day plan.

I don't wanna create confusion.

Make sure you go download the reading plan at K two M Foundation slash.

1990 because I have, I believe, said some wrong numbers in these episodes.

So what's next?

We've already said it after this.

We go to acts, how a small sect became a global movement in one generation.

It grows and it grows fast.

And of course Paul is gonna be a central character when we get to.

Acts.

Alright, before you read, let's set the scene so that you can

immerse yourself in Luke's gospel.

It's 80 61.

Luke, a Gentile physician and traveling companion of Paul has

been gathering testimony for years.

He's interviewed eyewitnesses.

He's traced events carefully.

Now he's writing for Theophilus, a Gentile man of rank who needs

certainty about what he's been taught.

Luke's project assumes something important.

Jesus words matter to Gentiles from Simeon's Prophecy to the Great Commission.

This gospel makes clear the message was never for Israel alone.

It seemed good to me also having followed all things closely to write.

And orderly account for you most excellent Theophilus, that you

may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.

And what you'll read includes resurrection appearances that establish

physical, historical certainty.

Jesus isn't a ghost.

He eats fish.

He shows his wounds.

He opens minds to understand scripture.

Then he ascends and acts will pick up exactly there.

Now, let's read.