Luke 1

Verses 1-4

• Even though Luke was not an eyewitness of Jesus' life and ministry, He still had “perfect understanding”. The twelve apostles were diligent to share all the details of Jesus' life with others, which included Luke. As a result, Luke was able to deliver an “orderly account” to Theophilus, and this gave him certainty of the gospel.

  • We can learn two things from this:

1. 1. The best way to come to perfect understanding of the Word is to read it yourself. This is how you'll learn directly from Jesus and the apostles.

   2. This perfect understanding will allow you to bring a detailed and orderly message to others, which will help them to believe with certainty.

• Learn the Bible for yourself, and learn how to share it in an organized way!

 

Verses 5-13

• The man and woman that God chose to bring John the Baptist into the world, answering their prayers, were upright and obedient people, blameless in their actions.

  • God will honor you if you are obedient to Him. Obedient people have their prayers answered more (John 9:31, 1 John 3:22). 

    • Learn to be obedient to God, and you will see better results from your prayers!

 

Verses 14-17

• John the Baptist was great in the sight of the Lord not because he persuaded people to follow him, but because he persuaded many people to follow Jesus.

  • This also makes us great in God's eyes. If all the people who know us come to know and follow Jesus, this is greatness. 

    • Learn, like John, to live to see Jesus' name exalted, not your own name. Do not live so that people will know your name. Live so that people will remember Jesus because of you (John 3:29-30).

      • Talk about Jesus most, not yourself! One other thing you can do to help this is always encourage people to learn from the Word for themselves, rather than just learning from you. (See John 1:29).

 

Verses 18-25

• Zacharias had to be made mute because he did not believe the Word of God to him. But God's Word came to pass anyway, even though he did not believe it.

  • It's possible that Zacharias needed to be made mute in order for the promise to be fulfilled.

  • Regardless, we are reminded that God's Word always comes to pass, and that God will stop anything that stands in the way.

  • As believers, we should be people that God uses to bring His Word to pass, not people that He must move out of the way.

    • Practically, if you are a doubtful person, you will not have much positive influence, just as Zacharias' influence was taken away. But if you have faith, God can use you more. 

      • Don't spread word of unbelief to people, and choose to grow your faith(more on growing faith in Matthew 17 and James 2).

 

Verses 26-58

• Contrary to Zacharias, when Mary heard of God's promise to her, she replied with faith, saying, “Let it be unto me according to your word” (verse 38).

  • If you want to please God, have a so-be-it attitude for anything you read in the Word. Simply accept the Word as it is (James 1:21).

    • The best way to accept the Word humbly is to do it (James 1:22). Do what the Word says and you will show that you accept and believe it.

  • Mary did ask the question of how she would conceive (verses 34), but she did not ask in doubt, like Zacharias did.

    • It is ok to ask sincere questions about the Word to grow your understanding of it, but do not ask questions that come from unbelief. If you ask questions with the wrong attitude, you either will not get the answers you want, or you will never be satisfied with the answers you get (Mark 11:28-33)

• Another key verse is 37, where we're told, “For with God nothing shall be impossible.

  • The Holy Spirit brings power that defies the laws of nature and makes anything possible, even things that are beyond our imagination (Ephesians 3:20).

    • Do not be surprised when miracles happen!

• Verse 45 highlights that Mary was blessed and joyful because she believed what God said to her. Similarly, we will be blessed if we believe God's Word. 

  • God's Word will come to pass anyway, but we will be blessed and happier in the process if we believe it. 

    • Again, grow your faith!

• Verse 58 adds that others will have joy with us when they see God working in our lives. Trusting God will bring joy to others also!

 

 

Verses 59-66

• Verses 64-66. Miracles and wonders from God bring the fear of God to people (Acts 2:43). 

  • The fear of God is good. If God is doing miracles, there will be fear of Him that spreads. Keep this in mind, so that you do not follow things that are irreverent or fanatic. God's works always bring reverence and fear.

  • Also keep in mind that God's miracles are not always healings. God caused muteness to Zacharias, He caused blindness to Saul (Acts 9:8), and a blinding dark mist to fall on another (Acts 13:11-12).

    • In the end, all of these things brought glory to God. Remember that anything that causes people to repent and fear God is good.

 

Verses 67-79

• Verses 71-75. God wants us to have no fear of any person, to be obedient to Him, and holy in everything that we do. Christ also came to take away our fear of man, our fear of the devil, and our fear of death (Hebrews 2:14-15). Christ came to give the power to obey God. 

  • Do not give in to fear. The only fear you should have is the fear of God (Matthew 10:28). This will keep you on the right path.

• Verses 76-77. This is a reminder that we are also tasked with bringing the knowledge of God to people. 

  • Talk to people about repentance and the forgiveness of sins.

 

Verse 80

• Notice that John spent his days growing strong in the desert before he began his ministry to Israel.

  • It is important for us to be prepared, like John was prepared. We will not be able to be very effective around others if we do not prioritize our own growth and preparation.

  • Focus on your own growth and strength. Learn to pray, to read and do the Word, and to be strong against sin and temptation. This will make you effective for God's kingdom.