THE FEAST OF ST. LUKE – October 18, 2009

SCRIPTURES – Isaiah 35:5-8; 2 Timothy 4:5-18; Luke 1:1-4

Today we remember Luke, a highly educated Greek physician who lived in the 1^st century A.D. Luke was a convert to Christianity who became a traveling companion of the apostle Paul and changed from being a physician of the body to, as our Collect of the Day says, a physician of the soul. He was with Paul in Rome at the end of Paul’s life, as we heard in Paul’s second letter to Timothy. It was probably while there that Luke wrote his Gospel of the life of Jesus as a catechism for a Roman convert named Theophilus. He also wrote the book of Acts, the record of the activities of the apostles and the first Christians in the years after Christ’s ascension into heaven.

Thank God for Luke and his authorship of these books! If we didn’t have them, we wouldn’t have:

• The beloved parables of the Prodigal Son and the Good Samaritan. They are only in Luke’s Gospel.
• Songs that we often sing in worship, such as Mary’s song, the Magnificat, which we sang today; or the song the angels sang when Jesus was born, known as the Gloria; or Simeon’s song, “Lord, now You let Your servant go in peace,” which we sing after receiving Holy Communion.
• If it wasn’t for Luke we wouldn’t know much about the apostle Paul, the first Christians, and the spread of Christianity throughout the world.

And, you know what else? If it wasn’t for Luke we wouldn’t have Christmas! At least, probably not as we have it today. Luke’s Gospel is the only one which tells us of the angel Gabriel’s coming to Mary to announce that she, although a virgin, would conceive and bear the Son of God; of Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem; and of how the angels sang of His birth to the shepherds, who then visited Him. Because of Luke’s Gospel we have Christmas carols and crèches and all of the joy that we associate with Christmas.

But, wonderful though these things are, they are not the main reason we remember and celebrate Luke’s life. Luke wrote “that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.” There’s no reason to be uncertain when it comes to God: who He is, what He does, what He thinks of you, what you can expect from Him and what He expects from you. God sent His Son to reveal all these things clearly and be our Savior by His death and resurrection for us. God also caused what Jesus said and did to be written down for us: by eyewitnesses, such as Matthew and John, and by those, such as Luke, who “followed all things [about Jesus’ life] closely.” He apparently spoke to people who had been with Jesus, such as Mary, and gathered together what they told him. The Holy Spirit guided him in writing two books of the New Testament, Luke and Acts, so that by them we can have certainty, security, a sure and firm foundation for our faith. If you are uncertain about God; uncertain about Jesus; or uncertain about yourself, with a weak and vacillating faith – there is hope for you! Go to the good doctor Luke.

A doctor can only be of help if you go to him. Let us listen to and believe what the good doctor Luke tells us about Jesus! Let God minister to your soul through him! Begin today and set aside time each day – 15 minutes, a half hour – to read one of the Gospels – Luke would be a good place to start – and get to know your Lord Jesus better. As you do so, the Holy Spirit will minister to your soul. He will assure you of the forgiveness of your sins, no matter what they are, for Jesus has borne them all for you. He will fill you with His peace, the assurance that God is with you as your loving Father. You will “have certainty concerning the things you have been taught,” and so will be able to say what Simeon said after he saw his Savior, Jesus:

“Lord, now You let Your servant go in peace. For my eyes have seen Your salvation!”