In biblical times, leprosy was a generic term for a variety of highly infectious skin diseases. For the health of the community, people afflicted with one of these skin diseases would be forced to live alone, outside of their town or village until they could prove that they were clean. In the Bible, leprosy was also a graphic illustration for the destructiveness of sin, causing shame and separation from both God and others. Luke chapter 5 contains the miraculous account of a leprous man made clean. As we continue reading in our salvation story, Luke describes the opposition that Jesus would encounter from religious elites. To silence their criticisms Jesus sends the cleansed man to them as proof, evidence of his authentic and authoritative word. Just like that leprous man, if we come to Jesus he can and he will cleanse us from our most shameful sin. Our transformed life is powerful proof of the truth of the gospel.

Simon lived in Capernaum with his wife and family. He and his brother Andrew owned a fishing business. They were partners with the sons of Zebedee, James and John. But one day Simon and his associates had a life changing encounter with Jesus. In obedience to Jesus’ command Simon hauled in his most successful catch ever. There were so many fish the nets were breaking and the boats were sinking. But on this, the most profitable day of his career, Simon left it all behind. He became one of Jesus’ disciples. As we continue on in our salvation story, Luke describes the calling of Jesus’ first disciples who personally respond to his authoritative teaching. They serve as a model for us all. Being a disciple is an invitation into a life of greater meaning and purpose that demands we stop chasing our own dreams and instead follow Jesus.

Authority. It’s something we all deal with on a daily basis. You may submit to the authority of your parents, teachers, law enforcement officers, building inspectors, or your boss at work. These are authorities that we commonly interact with and maybe even sometimes resist. But there are other authorities that have the power to govern or control our lives too, both in the physical and spiritual realms. As Jesus went about fulfilling his prophetic mission, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom in the village of Capernaum, he demonstrated the authority of his word over demons and disease. Jesus’ word is the ultimate authority over all things, including our own lives. As his disciples we don’t possess that authority. However, we submit to and share with others the authoritative word of he who does.

Ever since he was a boy, after he and his parents had returned from Egypt, Jesus frequented the synagogue in Nazareth. He would go there every Sabbath. Being from a small town everyone knew who Jesus was. He was the son of the carpenter. His mother was Mary. His brothers were James and Simon. The townspeople heard that he’d become a rabbi. There were even reports of him doing miracles up in the village of Capernaum. Now, he was back home and everyone listened attentively as he unrolled the text to teach for the very first time. Jesus emphatically declared that salvation had come and boldly identified himself as the Savior. But because of their familiarity the townspeople rejected Jesus, refusing to be transformed by his teaching. This is a solemn warning for anyone who has grown up in or around the church familiar with Jesus and his word. We might become inoculated to the message and miss out on our chance to change.

A voice from heaven thunderously declared, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” There had never been a more stunning bestowal of divine favor upon any one man. As a descendant of Adam and as the perfect, one and only Son of God, Jesus was uniquely qualified to be the Savior of the world. But the Devil responded, “Prove it.” Immediately following his dramatic baptism and anointing by the Holy Spirit, Jesus spends 40 days in the wilderness where he is tested. Jesus passed the test, proving and perfecting his credentials to save. As God’s dearly loved children we too are tested daily, assailed by temptations to follow our own pleasures rather than the plans and precepts of our Heavenly Father. Jesus’ example is both inspiring and instructive for all those who wish to be his disciple.

After his baptism by John, Jesus began his public ministry, on his way to accomplishing the mission for which he had been sent. However, Luke interrupts the narrative to add a piece of historical data that might seem insignificant to some and even boring to others; the genealogy of Jesus. Biblical genealogies should not just be skipped over or ignored. In them we find hidden gems of truth. And so it is here at the end of Luke chapter 3. Jesus’ ancestry uniquely qualified him to be the Savior because not only was he a descendant of David, born to be the King of the Jews, he was a descendant of Adam, born to be the Savior of the world. Because of who Jesus was we can all become children of God. 

[Guest Speaker: Curt Isaacson | Worship Pastor | PassageWay Church] John the baptizer comes on the scene in Luke 3 nearly 20 years after the close of chapter 2. Like a good historian, Luke paints a picture of the date John enters the scene, as well as the state of both the Roman and Jewish political systems (and it wasn't good). John's ministry of repentance would stand in stark contrast to the self-sufficiency, power politics, religious pedigrees and ritual practices of the day (and so, too, ours). He understood his prophetic assignment to "prepare the way of the Lord" by calling people to repentance: a change of mind that would result in a change of conduct. Through repentance, John was calling the people to prepare the way for Jesus (both spiritually and physically) and would play the key role in inaugurating Jesus' earthly ministry and confirming Him as the Messiah. This Messiah would finally establish the reality of true and lasting forgiveness of sins and reconciliation with God.

Jesus grew up like any other devout Jewish boy in first century Palestine. The Bible is silent about his childhood, which indicates that it was probably quite normal. Normal except for one episode recorded in Luke 2 when Jesus is separated from Mary and Joseph. After a frantic search he’s found interacting with the rabbis in the temple at Jerusalem. Luke reveals that from a young age Jesus was aware of his divine sonship, which would require single minded devotion to the mission entrusted to him by his Heavenly Father. This single-mindedness would be the cause of pain and division, not just for him but for anyone who wishes to be his disciple.

Perhaps you received a gift this Christmas but you weren’t quite sure what it was, or perhaps how it worked. Appreciation for a gift is diminished when we don’t fully understand it. We may even misuse it. The first part of Luke chapter 2 describes an incredible gift, Jesus born to save us from our sins. We know that the story ends with Jesus’ death on the cross and his victorious resurrection, but is Jesus really the only one who can save? What qualified him to be the Savior? After the birth narrative, Luke explains that Jesus did something no one else has ever done. He perfectly fulfilled the requirements of God’s law. He was the perfect Israelite. Not only does Jesus take away our sin, he gives us his very own righteousness. This incredible exchange is what makes the gospel so great.

Good news, great news, isn’t kept to oneself. Birth announcements, graduation announcements, engagement announcements are all moments that can’t be fully enjoyed unless shared with others. And so it was when the eternal Son of God entered into human history, born to save us from our sin. An angel shared this good news with a group of ruffian shepherds who went and saw the thing that the angel had told them about. And when they saw it, like the angels before them, they went and shared that good news with others. Both the angels and the shepherds went about praising God for the wonderful things He had done. In the peace and stillness of Luke’s salvation story we find a loud and clamorous call to evangelism, to joyfully proclaim the good news of Jesus.