Seeking Jesus This Christmas- Day 14: Dec 14 | Luke, the Doctor of Details

Read: Luke 1:1; Luke 2:40

Key Verse: “Having carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I also have decided to write an accurate account for you, most honorable Theophilus, so you can be certain of the truth of everything you were taught.” (Luke 1:3-4)

Without the Gospel of Luke we wouldn’t know the details of the birth of Christ. We wouldn’t know about the characters involved in that birth and we certainly couldn’t look as deeply into the spiritual meaning of Jesus’ birth. And Luke himself tells us why he wrote what he did, “so you can be certain of the truth of everything you were taught.”

Why all these intimate details, and why do these facts come to us only via the pen of Luke? Luke, a physician, consistently provides more detailed physical descriptions than the other Gospel writers do. His training in observation and accurate diagnosis evidently led to greater interest in, and closer attention to, physical details.

Maybe we could take time to consider the similarities between Luke and ourselves: like Luke, most of us are not Jewish, not born in Israel, not among Jesus’ first disciples, and not trained as theologians. Yet also like Luke, because of our own unique background and relationship with Him, God is able to use us to convey the good news of Jesus’ rescue mission in a way that no one else can.

Pray: Thank you Lord God for choosing a medical doctor to be an author of one of the Gospels. We are so thankful for Luke – his years of professional training, his attention to detail, his willingness to use his skills to bless others, his obedience to be used by you in such a unique way to provide us such a unique look into the life of the Master. And thank you Lord for sending Jesus to experience life as we do. We love you.