Luke 3-4
Luke 3-4
The mission and purpose of John the Baptist and Jesus’s ministry are clear to both of them, even from the beginning of the Gospel account. John the Baptist leads off this chunk of scripture by preparing the way for the Messiah, transitioning with the baptism and genealogy of Jesus. We then catch the first acts of Jesus’s ministry and His time in the desert. Especially in these early snapshots the gospels present us with, it may be easy to hold fast to our Sunday school lessons, or more so, our general understanding of these events and not dive too deep into what’s happening. For us to begin reading more critically, a few helpful essential questions include “who is the author” and “what is their purpose.” I want to add a question to the mix, possibly distinguishing the Gospel a little more readily for us: what is the author drawing our attention to specifically?
Luke’s tact in writing these opening scenes of his gospel draws notable attention to what we would typically lump into the category of context. Luke sets the stage for Theophilus in order to effectively move forward from Jesus’s time in adolescence to where we pick up. He lists people who are in power both governmentally and religiously (Luke 3:1-2), but furthermore, he talks about the crowd and their interaction with his message. After some back and forth with the various groups represented in the crowd, Luke fascinatingly describes them further. “The people were waiting expectantly and were all wondering in their hearts if John might possibly be the Christ” (v.15). We could consider this verse a subtle nod to the orchestration God has been authoring throughout all of time leading to this moment, the start of Jesus’s three years of ministry that would eventually lead to our salvation. But the interaction with the crowd and the world around him is important because it is eventually what would set the stage for Herod to behead John. All this is important for us because it emphasizes God’s glory through his kept promises seen in the prophecies, as well as the intimacy through his intentionality throughout history.
In a rather intense simplification, chapter three concludes with the genealogy of Jesus so as to fulfill the prophecy of the Messiah coming from the line of Judah and much more. Furthermore, Jesus’s ministry begins with him spending 40 days and nights fasting in the desert and being tempted by the devil. Alluding to his righteousness and worthiness in bowing only to the Father’s will, He then comes back to Galilee. Continuing with this trend of analyzing interactions with the crowds, Jesus models balance in ministry perfectly, of course. Considering who He is interacting with, there appears to be a hard line of people who are really big fans of Jesus and those who apparently want to throw Him off of a cliff (Luke 4:29-30).
It’s clear in ministry, we will see rejection from many and possibly as diverse responses as John the baptist and Jesus are seeing here in the people we are attempting to reach. The people are simultaneously expectant but also full of pride and unwilling to receive at times. When ministry is difficult, and opposition is in our faces, so to speak, the temptation to become like water and choose what is easy may come naturally. The Gospel message, this news of a new kingdom is not easy as in the Gospel of John, Jesus is quoted as saying:
This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God (John 3:19-21).
We can see this on display here and probably in all our conversations when we are proclaiming the truth of the kingdom of God; exposing the darkness can be a rather unwanted endeavor by some of our recipients, to say it softly. But Jesus’s focus is made clear at the end of Luke 4, “...I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also because that is who I was sent” (v.43). His eyes are set so mightily on the cross, on fulfilling His purpose.
In the hard times of ministry, or even when ministry is going well, having a vision of what God intends us to do and participate in(mission) is largely our centering force in decision-making.
Questions to consider:
In an effort to join the mission of God, do you ever find yourself aimless?
When ministry situations emerge, and you are looked to for making a decision, is your missional vision something that is frequently consulted?
How central to your efforts in pursuing others, and how do you go about that is your understanding of the mission?
In no way are these prescriptive or declarative of your circumstance or even your walk with the Lord. Rather, treat this as a framework for how we might seek to be more like Christ in our decision-making and involvement in ministry. Just as we see that both John and Jesus lived into their purpose even when both were led to death, we must be like them, knowing and trusting that God is orchestrating all things for our good and intentionally weaving our stories so that he may receive all the glory through them.
