Week 32 Luke 1
Luke begins:
Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.
Luke was writing to Theophilus so that Theophilus would have more confidence in the gospel story. Theophilus was maybe uncertain. Or indefinite. Or had some questions about the gospel. Luke wrote to help him with his reservations. Theophilus – like a lot of people – seemed to be on-board…but still had concerns.
Luke also said that ‘many’ other people had already written biographical accounts of Jesus. It sounds like those accounts (like Luke’s) were second-hand – the writers didn’t witness the events (by contrast Matthew & John both wrote about what they had seen firsthand).
Luke says his method was to interview eyewitnesses. He said he ‘carefully investigated’ to separate the wheat-from-the-chaff. So some discrimination went into his gospel composition.
Luke also said his story was an ‘orderly account’. That might not necessarily mean a chronological account. It might imply that the sequence of events wasn’t willy-nilly – wasn’t haphazard or all-over-the-map. Luke sequenced them in a systematic way.
Note: quote from Luke 1:1-4 (NIV)