Luke’s Gospel begins by telling us why he is doing this. We see that many gospels (which means “good news”) have already been written by this time. So, why aren’t they included in the Bible? Are they trying to hide something out there? Is the truth really out there, and no one wants to tell us? No, that’s not it. There are four marks that every book in the Bible shares, and no book that has these four marks is excluded from the Bible. We take time to talk about these four marks and how we know that we can trust the Bible.
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Good morning. It’s good to be with you on this Monday morning as we begin a new week and a new journey together.
I’m looking forward to this time in Rooted—and especially excited to begin our study of the Gospel of Luke. On Friday, someone messaged me to say how much they enjoyed walking through Judges, because they had never read it that way before. And I think that’s the value of going slowly, reading through whole books—especially the ones we don’t usually spend much time in.
For me personally, Luke is kind of the “forgotten gospel.” I don’t turn to it as often as I do Matthew, which is probably my favorite. Of course, we often read Luke during Advent and Christmas because of the nativity story. But beyond that, I just don’t think about it as much. Maybe you do—maybe Luke is your favorite gospel. But for me, I’m excited to dig in more deeply and see what the Holy Spirit wants to show us.
Today, we’ll begin with the introduction—Luke 1:1–4—a short passage, but an important one that sets the tone for the whole book.
Luke 1:1–4
Since many have undertaken to set down an orderly account of the events that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed on to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word, I too decided, after investigating everything carefully from the first, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the truth concerning the things about which you have been instructed.
There’s a lot here to unpack. Luke opens by acknowledging that many others have already tried to write down the story of Jesus—what he calls “an orderly account” of the events that were fulfilled among them. This tells us two things:
- There were already written and oral accounts of Jesus circulating by this time.
- Luke felt it was necessary to write his own account—carefully researched and structured—so his reader could know the truth.
That reader is “most excellent Theophilus.” We don’t know exactly who Theophilus was. He may have been a real person—perhaps someone who financially supported Luke’s writing, a patron of sorts. That was common in Greek literature. But it’s also possible “Theophilus” is symbolic. The name means “lover of God,” so Luke could be addressing his gospel to all who love God and want to know more about Jesus.
Luke also mentions that he carefully investigated everything from the beginning. That tells us this gospel wasn’t thrown together. Luke was a physician by trade, and his writing reflects that—he’s detailed, orderly, thoughtful. He names places, times, people. He’s precise. In fact, as we study this gospel, we’ll see his careful research show up again and again.
A Word About the Bible Itself
Before we go further, I want to take a moment to talk about how we got the Bible—because Luke’s comment about “many accounts” opens that door.
There’s a common misunderstanding that a council (like the Council of Nicaea) sat down and arbitrarily decided which books belonged in the Bible and which didn’t. That’s not really how it worked.
The books of the New Testament were recognized as authoritative because they met four important criteria:
- Time period – Written before 100 A.D.
- Apostolic connection – Written by or connected to an apostle.
- Theological soundness – Consistent with what the early church believed about Jesus.
- Catholicity – Widely accepted and used by churches across regions.
All 27 books of the New Testament meet all four of these criteria. And no book that meets all four was excluded.
For example, the Gospel of Thomas is often cited as a “lost gospel,” but it was written well after 100 A.D., is not linked to an apostle, teaches heretical ideas (like Gnosticism), and was not widely accepted by the early church. That’s why it isn’t in the Bible—not because it was “suppressed,” but because it didn’t pass the test.
Luke, on the other hand, does pass the test. Though not an apostle himself, he was a close companion of Paul. His gospel was accepted by the early church, it was written within the proper time frame, and it teaches the truth about Jesus.
So when you read the Bible, you can trust it. The process of canonization wasn’t arbitrary or political—it was prayerful, careful, and Spirit-led.
I know this has been more of a background lesson than a devotional today, but I think it’s important to understand why you can trust the Bible. If you have questions about how Scripture came together—or about any part of this process—I’d love to talk more. It’s a fascinating and faith-affirming topic.
So, Luke says, others have written, but he wanted to give an orderly, accurate account—so that we might know the truthabout the things we’ve heard.
That’s why we’re reading this together. That’s why we’re digging in.
I’m looking forward to studying Luke with you over the coming weeks. Thanks for being part of this journey.
See you tomorrow as we begin with the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth. Have a great day.
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