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Gospel of Luke Lecture

Birth Narratives: Elizabeth

  • Connects to Tanakh - Abraham and Sarah are equal to Elizabeth and Zachariah

  • Elizabeth and Zachariah - Descendants of Aaron (Moses’ brother); elite Jews

  • Mary & Elizabeth are Cousins - John the Baptist and Jesus are blood relatives

Birth Narratives: Mary

  • Cana (rural area in Galilee) - Grew up in

  • Betrothed to Joseph - Joseph is prominent in Mary’s pregnancy and Jesus’ early years but not really anywhere else

  • Mark is Negative toward Mary - Mary is clueless to Jesus’ messiahship

  • Luke’s Positive Portrayal - Very positive, special woman, chosen woman

  • Pseudepigraphal Works - Followed Luke’s positive portrayal of Mary

    • Gospel of James - Written by Jesus’ brother

    • Gospel of Thomas - about the boyhood of Jesus

Birth Narratives: Annunciation

  • Mary & Gabriel - Gabriel (one of two angels in the New Testament) warns Mary about Jesus

  • Holy Spirit “Overshadows” Mary - Holy Spirit impregnates Mary

Birth Narratives: Mary and Elizabeth Meet

  • John Represents Judaism - Elizabeth is carrying him miraculously just as women in the Old Testament had

  • Jesus Presented as Something New - Mary is the first and only virgin birth

Birth Narratives: Magnificat

  • Magnificat - Poem Mary Sings

  • Magnificat - Early Christian Hymn

  • Hannah’s Song - Connects to the Tanakh and Hannah’s barren birth

Birth Narratives: Critical Issues

  • Late Tradition - mid 80s

  • Only mentioned in Luke and Matthew - Why not mentioned in other and earlier places?

  • Virgin Births in Other Cultures - Not the first time because other cultures; may have been gotten from other sources

  • Theotokos - Barer of God, Mother of God

    • Perpetual Virginity - She never has sex with Joseph; brothers and sisters are actually cousins or children from Joseph’s previous marriage (Roman Catholic, Episcopalian, Anglican, Methodist, Lutheran)

    • Sinlessness - Mary must be untainted for Jesus to be; Seen in pseudepigraphal texts (Gospel of James)

    • Immaculate Conception - Mary’s mother Ann was also overshadowed by the Holy Spirit

    • Ascension - Mary didn’t die, she ascended into Heaven

Birth Narrative

  • Census - No record of this at this time; Mary and Joseph travel to Bethlehem (because David was born there so the Messiah would be too)

  • Shepherds - outcasts and poor people in that society; Angel tells shepherds that Jesus (the Savior) has been born

  • Contrast with Augustus - Caesar Augustus’ birth was sometimes connected to miracles so Luke uses it as a device showing the similarities but foiled

Transfiguration

  • Eight days - resurrection

    • Seven days - creation; so eight is recreation

  • Inner Circle - Peter, John, James

  • “glory of God shined through his person” - Dazzling white robes

  • Moses - Personification of the Law

  • Elijah - Represents Prophets (because he was a standout prophet)

  • Meaning of Transfiguration - Foreshadow of the resurrection

Long Journey to Jerusalem

  • Literary Device - introduces Jesus’ teachings (Q and L)

Good Samaritan

  • Context: Jesus and the Lawyer - What gives me eternal life?; shows legalism

  • Loophole? - lawyer looks for one to get by the easiest way possible

  • Reversal of roles - Samaritans typically bad, so Jesus shows them as good

  • Spirit and Letter of the Law - the saved do not look for loopholes or a minimum, it’s a transformation

Martha & Mary

  • Martha and Mary - Sisters of Lazarus

  • Traditional Roles for Women in Culture vs. the Kingdom - Martha portrays traditional women working, Mary represents women in the kingdom sitting at the feet of Jesus

    • Women were not allowed to sit at the feet of rabbi at that time

Parables about the Lost

  • Context - parables are meant to speak to all groups of people, the poor, tax collectors, and pharisees

  • Lost Sheep - religious leaders (99), the sinners and tax collectors (1), shepherd does the illogical thing (a message of affirmation for the sinners and tax collectors having a place in Heaven)

  • Lost Coin - God is portrayed as a woman finding the lost coin

  • Lost (Prodigal) Son - goes against the practice of violently forcing your children to respect you; pigs were unclean so it was the lowest of low; Jewish leaders should not run, but the father did; No public affection, but the father kisses his son; older brother is the religious leaders; we’re called to be more like the father (accepting and joyful)

    • When you cover someone in the Bible - it means taking them in and caring for them

    • Placing a ring on their finger symbolizes - familial inheritance

    • Without shoes is without dignity, so - putting shoes on someone is restoring the dignity

    • Calves are meant for big meals, so - they mean a party

Parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man

  • Luke’s Negativity Toward the Wealthy - Rich man is not named (minor character), Lazarus is named (major character)

  • Roles Reversed - Poor person is in Heaven and the rich man is in Hades

  • Illustration of Beatitudes and Woes - those in misery on the world is bless in the afterlife; those in joy (rich) on the world will weep in the afterlife

  • Difficulty for the Wealthy to Enter the Kingdom - “it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle”; wealthy man did not notice Lazarus (did not sacrifice for the kingdom of God)

Passion Narrative

  • Similar to Mark - though chronology is different and Jesus speaks on the cross

  • Sayings on the Cross - Speaks to the men on crosses with him

    • Paradise - Luke 23:43

    • Forgiveness - Jesus practiced what he preached by forgiving the criminal (Luke 23:34)

  • Soldier - changes line from Matthew and Mark

    • “Surely this man was innocent” - statement of injustice not Messiahship

    • Jesus as role model - Soldier did not view Jesus as the savior

    • Injustice - Soldier did not proclaim belief that Jesus was the savior

Postresurrection Appearances

  • Women - A lot of women at the tomb and immediately report to the disciples

  • Peter - runs back to find the tomb empty too

  • Emmaus - where disciples are going and they did not recognize him when they saw him on the road, not until they did communion together

  • Jerusalem - Luke’s disciples go here so the Jesus movement can begin with the Jews and spread throughout the rest of the world

  • Ascension - End of Luke and Beginning of Acts and all the disciples worshipped (but in Matthew some doubted)

MS

Gospel of Luke Lecture

Birth Narratives: Elizabeth

  • Connects to Tanakh - Abraham and Sarah are equal to Elizabeth and Zachariah

  • Elizabeth and Zachariah - Descendants of Aaron (Moses’ brother); elite Jews

  • Mary & Elizabeth are Cousins - John the Baptist and Jesus are blood relatives

Birth Narratives: Mary

  • Cana (rural area in Galilee) - Grew up in

  • Betrothed to Joseph - Joseph is prominent in Mary’s pregnancy and Jesus’ early years but not really anywhere else

  • Mark is Negative toward Mary - Mary is clueless to Jesus’ messiahship

  • Luke’s Positive Portrayal - Very positive, special woman, chosen woman

  • Pseudepigraphal Works - Followed Luke’s positive portrayal of Mary

    • Gospel of James - Written by Jesus’ brother

    • Gospel of Thomas - about the boyhood of Jesus

Birth Narratives: Annunciation

  • Mary & Gabriel - Gabriel (one of two angels in the New Testament) warns Mary about Jesus

  • Holy Spirit “Overshadows” Mary - Holy Spirit impregnates Mary

Birth Narratives: Mary and Elizabeth Meet

  • John Represents Judaism - Elizabeth is carrying him miraculously just as women in the Old Testament had

  • Jesus Presented as Something New - Mary is the first and only virgin birth

Birth Narratives: Magnificat

  • Magnificat - Poem Mary Sings

  • Magnificat - Early Christian Hymn

  • Hannah’s Song - Connects to the Tanakh and Hannah’s barren birth

Birth Narratives: Critical Issues

  • Late Tradition - mid 80s

  • Only mentioned in Luke and Matthew - Why not mentioned in other and earlier places?

  • Virgin Births in Other Cultures - Not the first time because other cultures; may have been gotten from other sources

  • Theotokos - Barer of God, Mother of God

    • Perpetual Virginity - She never has sex with Joseph; brothers and sisters are actually cousins or children from Joseph’s previous marriage (Roman Catholic, Episcopalian, Anglican, Methodist, Lutheran)

    • Sinlessness - Mary must be untainted for Jesus to be; Seen in pseudepigraphal texts (Gospel of James)

    • Immaculate Conception - Mary’s mother Ann was also overshadowed by the Holy Spirit

    • Ascension - Mary didn’t die, she ascended into Heaven

Birth Narrative

  • Census - No record of this at this time; Mary and Joseph travel to Bethlehem (because David was born there so the Messiah would be too)

  • Shepherds - outcasts and poor people in that society; Angel tells shepherds that Jesus (the Savior) has been born

  • Contrast with Augustus - Caesar Augustus’ birth was sometimes connected to miracles so Luke uses it as a device showing the similarities but foiled

Transfiguration

  • Eight days - resurrection

    • Seven days - creation; so eight is recreation

  • Inner Circle - Peter, John, James

  • “glory of God shined through his person” - Dazzling white robes

  • Moses - Personification of the Law

  • Elijah - Represents Prophets (because he was a standout prophet)

  • Meaning of Transfiguration - Foreshadow of the resurrection

Long Journey to Jerusalem

  • Literary Device - introduces Jesus’ teachings (Q and L)

Good Samaritan

  • Context: Jesus and the Lawyer - What gives me eternal life?; shows legalism

  • Loophole? - lawyer looks for one to get by the easiest way possible

  • Reversal of roles - Samaritans typically bad, so Jesus shows them as good

  • Spirit and Letter of the Law - the saved do not look for loopholes or a minimum, it’s a transformation

Martha & Mary

  • Martha and Mary - Sisters of Lazarus

  • Traditional Roles for Women in Culture vs. the Kingdom - Martha portrays traditional women working, Mary represents women in the kingdom sitting at the feet of Jesus

    • Women were not allowed to sit at the feet of rabbi at that time

Parables about the Lost

  • Context - parables are meant to speak to all groups of people, the poor, tax collectors, and pharisees

  • Lost Sheep - religious leaders (99), the sinners and tax collectors (1), shepherd does the illogical thing (a message of affirmation for the sinners and tax collectors having a place in Heaven)

  • Lost Coin - God is portrayed as a woman finding the lost coin

  • Lost (Prodigal) Son - goes against the practice of violently forcing your children to respect you; pigs were unclean so it was the lowest of low; Jewish leaders should not run, but the father did; No public affection, but the father kisses his son; older brother is the religious leaders; we’re called to be more like the father (accepting and joyful)

    • When you cover someone in the Bible - it means taking them in and caring for them

    • Placing a ring on their finger symbolizes - familial inheritance

    • Without shoes is without dignity, so - putting shoes on someone is restoring the dignity

    • Calves are meant for big meals, so - they mean a party

Parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man

  • Luke’s Negativity Toward the Wealthy - Rich man is not named (minor character), Lazarus is named (major character)

  • Roles Reversed - Poor person is in Heaven and the rich man is in Hades

  • Illustration of Beatitudes and Woes - those in misery on the world is bless in the afterlife; those in joy (rich) on the world will weep in the afterlife

  • Difficulty for the Wealthy to Enter the Kingdom - “it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle”; wealthy man did not notice Lazarus (did not sacrifice for the kingdom of God)

Passion Narrative

  • Similar to Mark - though chronology is different and Jesus speaks on the cross

  • Sayings on the Cross - Speaks to the men on crosses with him

    • Paradise - Luke 23:43

    • Forgiveness - Jesus practiced what he preached by forgiving the criminal (Luke 23:34)

  • Soldier - changes line from Matthew and Mark

    • “Surely this man was innocent” - statement of injustice not Messiahship

    • Jesus as role model - Soldier did not view Jesus as the savior

    • Injustice - Soldier did not proclaim belief that Jesus was the savior

Postresurrection Appearances

  • Women - A lot of women at the tomb and immediately report to the disciples

  • Peter - runs back to find the tomb empty too

  • Emmaus - where disciples are going and they did not recognize him when they saw him on the road, not until they did communion together

  • Jerusalem - Luke’s disciples go here so the Jesus movement can begin with the Jews and spread throughout the rest of the world

  • Ascension - End of Luke and Beginning of Acts and all the disciples worshipped (but in Matthew some doubted)