Lessons from the Gospel of Luke: Faith in Action

Read Luke 9:1 – 45

Chapter 9 of Luke’s Gospel raises a whole host of questions, such as:

• What was Jesus doing while His disciples were out preaching?
• Why was Herod concerned with who Jesus was, and why did he try to see Him?
• What did Jesus mean in verse 27 about some not dying before seeing the Kingdom of God?
• What did Jesus, Moses, and Elijah talk about at the Transfiguration, and how did the three disciples keep from telling anyone about it?

Those are great questions, and I encourage you to study to find the answers.  However, I think this chapter raises other questions which require our immediate attention.

• Before sending His disciples on mission, why did He tell them to “Take nothing for the journey…” (vs.3), and “If people do not welcome you, shake the dust off your feet…” (vs. 5)? Before He sent them out, He gave them power and authority, equipping them for the tasks that lay before them.  Their mission was twofold:   He wanted them to learn to depend solely on God for everything they needed; and He wanted to remind them that their job was to present the message.  It was, and is, the hearer’s responsibility to accept the message, and if they refused, it was time to move on to someone who would hear and respond favorably. Today, He is still calling us to that same “mission”, and through the Holy Spirit living in us, He also provides all that we need to succeed.  Like the disciples, we must learn to trust Him completely as we strive to complete the mission the disciples began.

• Jesus asked His disciples, “Who do the crowds say I am?” (Luke 9:18b, NIV84), and they quickly responded with several ideas.  Then, He asked the more important question, “Who do you say I am?” (Luke 9:20a, NIV84). He still asks us that same question today, and each of us is responsible for our own answer.  It doesn’t matter what our parents or friends believe.  We must decide for ourselves who Jesus is and what He means to our lives.

Those are just two significant questions that Luke raises in chapter 9.  Check back next week for a few more observations.