Read the Bible in a Year (23OCT19)

DAILY REMINDER – Today, October 23’s Bible reading is Luke 1.

NEXT DAY REMINDER – Tomorrow, October 24’s Bible reading is Luke 2-3. May God bless you with the reading of His WORD.

LUKE Introduction

The Gospel of Luke is so named after the author who was one of Jesus’ disciples. Luke was a physician and a highly educated man who wrote from what many scholars believe was a Greek background and perspective. In his book, Luke details Jesus’ genealogy and the Jewish customs of the day with the Gentile reader in mind. Biblical scholars have placed the authorship of this book as being between 59 and 63 A.D.  Luke is thought to have been educated in the Greek culture and some scholars are of the belief that he was a Gentile by birth. Biblical scholars have credited Luke as being the author of not only this gospel but the book of Acts as well where he accompanied the Apostle Paul in some of his journeys.

Luke attempts to give a complete history of Jesus’ life and ministry. He details many of Jesus’ parables and shows His interest in helping those who were poor and oppressed. Luke’s Gospel also highlights Jesus’ mission in bringing hope to the lost, joy to the downcast, and salvation to a fallen world. 

* Theophilus means loved by God. Some biblical scholars have made the assertion that Theophilus was not necessarily the name of a person with whom Luke may have been addressing but was a title given to his Christian readers due to its meaning and there being no information on this individual. Other biblical scholars and theologians believe that Theophilus was indeed an actual person to whom Luke was addressing in his writing and the name could have been the title of a Roman official or officer. There are several theories when it come to who Theophilus was, but most Christians hold to the belief that Theophilus was indeed an actual person whose name this was given.  

LUKE MOMENT – (23OCT19) “In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. Both of them were righteous in the sight of God…But they were childless because Elizabeth was not able to conceive, and they were both very old” (Luke 1:5-7). Isaiah the prophet had prophesied centuries earlier that there would be one who would come to prepare the way of the Lord. So, when the angel Gabriel came to deliver special news to Zechariah the priest, this was the beginning of that prophecy coming into fruition. Zechariah and his wife, Elizabeth, were very old and did not have any children. Elizabeth was barren, but Zechariah had possibly prayed for years, during the prime of their lives, for the Lord to bless them with a child, but no answer had come until now. Gabriel told Zechariah that his prayer had been heard, and his wife would bear him a son. Zechariah doubted what he was hearing because of their old age, so he was made mute until the birth. They were given instructions on his upbringing and told that he would be filled with the Holy Spirit from the womb and would bring the people’s hearts back to God in the spirit and power of Elijah.

In the line of Abraham, there were several women who were barren. Sarah was barren, but God blessed her to have Isaac (Genesis 16:1). Rebekah was barren, but God blessed her to have Jacob and Esau (Genesis 25:21). Rachel was barren, but God blessed her to have Joseph and Benjamin (Genesis 30:1). There were other women in the Bible who were barren as well, but God later blessed some of them with children. Most of these women blessed to have children were anointed to do a special work for the Lord. Their delay was purposeful in God’s plan for the call that He had over the lives of their future children.

Sometimes, we can forget the stories of the Bible and think that God no longer operates in such a manner. Zechariah must have forgotten the story of Abraham and Sarah having Isaac in their old age. He doubted that the Lord would do such a thing for him, and we sometimes take on that same mentality. We oftentimes read the stories of the Bible and act as if God is the God back then, but He is not the same God now. Why is that? Is it because we do not have faith? Absolutely! The Apostle James wrote: “But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do” (James 1:6-8). Faith is not easy for many of us. It takes time and practice of having to rely on God for the things that He has promised in our lives. Yet, God deems it impossible for us to please Him without it. Zechariah and Elizabeth were beyond their childbearing years, but they were not beyond the realm of God being able to do a miracle in their lives. John the Baptists was a miracle child for them but an answer to a prayer with a divine purpose which seemed to have been delayed but was not denied. Something to ponder….

QUESTION OF THE DAY - (23OCT19) “For no word from God will ever fail” (Luke 1:37). Gabriel had appeared to Mary to give her the Good News that she would be the mother of the Messiah and that her cousin was pregnant with the one who would prepare the way for His arrival to ministry. Gabriel told Mary that the Lord’s Word would never fail and indeed it did not, for all the prophecies that the prophets of old gave concerning John the Baptist and Jesus the Messiah came to past.

Humans do not always keep their word, and they sometimes make promises that are only to be broken later. Nevertheless, we can always count on the Lord in that whatever Word He gives to us will be fulfilled. The Bible says: “As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,  so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:10-11). God never makes promises that He does not keep and just as He told the prophets of old that the Messiah would come to save man from their sins, God’s promises are just as real in our lives today. It does not matter how long we have to wait on them to manifest, just know that God’s Word will never be contradicted nor proven to be found false. Do you believe? Something to ponder….

LUKE MOMENT – (23OCT19) “His father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied: ‘And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him, to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins…” (Luke 1:67, 76-77). After the birth of John the Baptist, Zechariah’s voice returned so that he could speak, and he prophesied over the life of his son. He declared that his son would become a prophet of God and prepare the way of the Lord. John would give the people knowledge about salvation and the forgiveness of sin.

It is important for parents to speak life into and over their children even while they are in the womb. There are too many parents who do not tell their children that they love them, pronounce defeat over them, and call them all sorts of names that resonate in their lives later on. What you as a parent speak over your child can have a lasting effect for years to come. The Bible says: “The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit” (Proverbs 18:21). It’s amazing how some parents can speak in tongues and prophesy with one side of their mouth and speak death to their children using the other side. Children need to know that they are loved, and they need to hear it from their parents most importantly. Raising children is not just about discipline, it is about giving love and speaking life into them so that they will become well-rounded adults and great contributors in the body of Christ and society. Imagine if Zechariah had told John how much of a disappointment he was, that he was no good, made him feel as if he was always falling short, and that no matter what he did, he would never meet the bar. Can you picture what would have happened to John the Baptist and the work that he would have more than likely never achieved? The Lord cares about how parents treat their children.

How a parent treats their child is a good reflection of their relationship with God. Jesus said: "If anyone causes one of these little ones--those who believe in me--to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea” (Matthew 18:6). Watch how you interact your children. Be careful what you say to them. You never know if your child will be the next prophet, pastor, evangelist, teacher, apostle, or some other servant in the kingdom of God. The Lord will hold you responsible for your words as well as your actions should you cause them harm physically, emotionally, and/or spiritually. Something to ponder….