Summer 2011 Bible Study: Week 4 Day 2

Well, my friends, I have got to be honest, the mornings have been rough these last few days. I feel like ever since we opened up the Word and learned about rest, I suddenly got more tired. I know that isn’t the case, I am sure it has more to do with the sickness in our household and the fact that I am getting more and more pregnant as the days go by. But, never the less, I am sorry about having to post so late in the afternoon. My goal is to get back on a schedule, anyone else function better on a schedule?

In addition to being tired, I have been craving some detail, in my time in the Word. I love to research. I love to specifics, I love the details. A while back, I worked full time for a hospital and part of my job was to assist in the design of the new campus as well as the move of all the staff and patients. I LOVED every minute of it. I loved being able to make colored coded time lines. I loved knowing every little detail. I loved knowing exactly how many gallons of paint we needed and used, I was fascinated by what it took to move the patients from one hospital to another, I loved the details of coordination. It could be my OCD office supply, list, organization thing, but I loved that part of my job. And so, today, we will find ourselves in the details of the book of Luke.

Lord, reveal a little bit about Yourself through the details of Your word and the writings of Your servant Luke. Press in on my heart, teach me, show me the specifics, show me something new and reveal a little bit more about Yourself. Amen.

So, this is why I adore the book of Luke. You see, Luke was a doctor, and doctors love details. He was a Greek and Gentile Christian, in fact he is the only known Gentile author within the New Testament. He was a historian of the early Church, He loved to research. He was also a near and dear friend of Paul.

Turn with me to Luke 1:1-4 and read it carefully!

You see, I love this about Luke, He had heard of Jesus, he had heard of His word and works and he investigated everything for himself. He dove right in and researched His Sweet Jesus and I adore that about him.

The Book of Luke, also known as the Gospel of Luke has been called the most beautiful book ever written, and Luke begins by telling us about Jesus' parents; the birth of His cousin, John the Baptist; Mary and Joseph's journey to Bethlehem, where Jesus is born in a manger; and the genealogy of Christ through Mary. Luke looks at Jesus' public ministry and reveals His perfect compassion and forgiveness through the stories of the prodigal son, the rich man and Lazarus, and the Good Samaritan. While many believe in this unprejudiced love that surpasses all human limits, many others—especially the religious leaders—challenge and oppose the claims of Jesus. Those of us who adore, love and follow Sweet Jesus, we are encouraged to count the cost of discipleship, while His enemies seek His death on the cross. Finally, Luke dives in and researches the sacrifice where Jesus is betrayed, tried, sentenced and crucified. But the grave cannot hold Him! His Resurrection assures the continuation of His ministry of seeking and saving the lost.

Luke loves the details and I love him! I adore the fact that Luke researched, he questioned, he wanted answers, he dove in and asked for things to be revealed to him. I think one of the biggest issues I have had to come over is the thought that questioning the teachings of Word I have been exposed to, or looking deeper into things I had also known for the simple fact that I grew up in a church, was somehow wrong. I have come to find out that little things, like the Apostles Creed, doesn’t actually exist within the Word, but never the less, I have vivid memories of sitting in a wooden pew listening to the pastor clothed in his white rode read the gospel messages from the pulpit. I too heard the Word as a child. I heard of Jesus, I went to church and yet, here I am, diving in and researching the very Savior I have fallen in love with. Research is not wrong, nor is it unbiblical. One of the greatest blessings in my life has been the opportunity to walk through life with various girls from various age groups, and I have loved listening to them question what they are taught, often times by me. We have great conversations, we open the Word and dive in, sticky notes and highlighters in hand, ready to see what He has to say about what I said.

So, here we are in Luke. One of the things I adore most about our Sweet Jesus is that He is THE Healer. He is the great Physician. And so, today, as I find myself submerged in the illnesses of life, I want to dive into Luke’s very detailed, physician minded, accounts of our Sweet Jesus healing those around Him.

Turn with me to Luke 4:38-44 and read it carefully.

Jesus had finished His teaching within the synagogue and had left to go to the home of Simon, also known as Peter. We are told that Peter’s mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever. I believe this to be an important fact because I had always assumed that the men who were disciples of Jesus were never married. I am not sure where that thought came from, but for some reason, I had always pictures 12 singles men hanging out with Sweet Jesus. And here, we find out different. Luke points out that Peter was indeed married. As we continue to read we find out that Jesus rebuked her fever and she was healed. But again, the detail of a physician comes into play because we are told that she was not only healed, but healed enough to immediately serve others. Jesus not only healed her physically, but He healed her and restored her strength.

I love that verse 40 starts out with the detail of what time of day it was, my Bible says “When the sun was setting”, I don’t know about you, but it seems like that would have been a long day for our Sweet Jesus. Teaching in the synagogue, walking to the home of Peter, healing his mother-in-law and then people bring their friends and loved ones suffering from all kinds of illnesses to Him. The reason this time frame is also important is because in Luke 4:31, we are told that this was the people’s day of rest. Their Sabbath lasted from sunset on Friday to sunset on Saturday. The people didn’t want to break the Sabbath law by traveling during their Sabbath so while the sun was setting, while their Sabbath day was ending, they set out to travel and meet their Healer.

Luke goes onto tell us that our Sweet Jesus laid His hands on every single one of those people and healed them.

Verse 41 always struck me as a little odd. My Bible states that demons came out of many people shouting “You are the Son of God” and yet, our Sweet Jesus rebuked them and would not allow they to speak.

Here is my first question to our author, the physician.

Why didn’t Jesus allow the demons to reveal who He really was?

I have found my answer to be three-fold.

#1. Jesus wouldn’t allow the demons to proclaim who He was, in turn He commanded them to remain silent, which in turn showed His authority over them.

#2. Our Sweet Jesus wanted his listeners to believe in who He was through His words and actions, not the words of others, let alone demons. We learned in a previous weeks study about how Satan knows the Word, and that was through the example of him tempting our Sweet Jesus in the desert.

#3. Jesus was going to reveal His identity according to His Father’s timeline and would not be pushed around by Satan and his demon friends. I struggle with this one, because I find myself often rushing into things rather than truly waiting for His timeframe to be revealed to me. It is important to note that the demons referred to Sweet Jesus as the “Son of God”, which means, they knew he was Christ, the One and Only, the King of Kings. However, Sweet Jesus had more servant work to do, and He needed to reveal Himself as the Father’s Servant, who suffered and died, and then He would be revealed as the One and Only, the Savior, the King of Kings. Sweet Jesus had enough people talking about Him already and He probably didn’t want people talking about His identity as King, if they focused on that and that alone, think about all the teachings and miracles that would have just been written off as from “the Son of God”, rather than as a fulfillment of prophecy.

Read Luke 4:42-44 carefully, once again.

I love these few verses. These few verses show me that Jesus, my Sweet Jesus needed alone time. He needed to get up and get away from the craziness that came with His life on Earth. And yet, we come to learn that He too was interrupted. People followed Him, I am sure they started talking to Him before they even realized they had interrupted. And when He tried to leave, they kept Him from leaving, or tired to at least. But, we are told in verse 43 and 44, that He kept focused on what He was suppose to do at that time. He was suppose to teach, preach the good news to other towns, He was not suppose to stay and be the personal healer for one town. He was suppose to travel, preach, teach and eventually become the Healer of the World.

I love that our Sweet Jesus is our Healer and Teacher. So don’t be surprised if while He is healing you or a loved one, He is also teaching you a little something. Right now, while He heals my hubby from strep, He is teaching me the value and importance of a servants heart.

Comment for the day: What is He healing you from or teaching you?

Lord, Sweet Jesus, Savior, Healer and Teacher, You are good and Your Word is life giving. Help me learn the lessons You have set out to teach me. Help me embrace the freedom of Your timetable and not rush to get things done simply because I have my own dead line and task list. Bless me with moments with You all day long, not just while we are together in Your Word. Help me to hide Your Word in my heart so I may remember it all the days of my life. Amen.