By the end of the topic, pupils should be able to:
Discuss the method and purpose of writing in Luke's gospel.
Explain the sources of Luke's gospel.
Define the term synoptic problem.
Explain the solution to the synoptic problem.
Explain the characteristics of Luke's gospel.
1.1 Luke's method and style of writing
The first verses of the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of Apostles indicates that the gospel was written by the same person and was addressed to Theophilus.
Luke was a literary master who used a variety of styles in Greek writing.
Luke wrote his gospel in such a way that seemed to have accommodated the Greeks. This might have been a result of the educational qualities he possessed.
He records the childhood of Jesus more than any other gospel writer which explains that he was a historian and had time to research about events. (Luke 2:40-52)
In his writings, he records more of Jesus' accounts of Prayers and praying more than any other gospel records.
Since Luke was using a number of eye witnesses he narrated some of the events just the way he had received them from those who had witnessed the life and teaching of Jesus.
Luke's gospel broadly resembles the other Synoptic Gospels in style since Mark was one of his sources; Luke clearly modified the Gospel form by doubling its length and increasing the time-span of the story.
The author's styles of writing places emphasize on Jesus as the teacher. He records about 23 parables of Jesus teaching of which 18 are not accounted for in other gospels.
1.2 Sources of Luke's gospel
The writer of the Gospel of Luke is believed to have consulted other three sources which he used in the compilation of his message.
The author used sources such as Mark, Mathew and the Q source.
He also used his own information known as the Luke (L) source. The L source was composed of information gathered from oral traditions and written documents. For example the information in the birth stories may well have been obtained from Mary herself.
The synoptic problem revolves around the issue of originality of information used by gospel writers. Mark has sixteen chapters as compared to Mathew who has 28 while Luke has 24. Hence Mark seems to have omitted some of the relevant information such as the birth stories and parables which we get from Mathew and Luke.
The problem is then why Mark is considered as the main sources of which he omits other information. This may be due to the originality of the work of Mark and his sources.
Luke may have just went further by providing such information that is not found anywhere else except from his gospel, gathered from the unknown source (Q).
1.3 Purpose of writing
The Gospel of Luke was written to address the following things:
To give a detailed account to Theophilus and other Greeks in faith concerning the life and teaching of Jesus Christ (Luke 1:1-4)
To address the misconceptions about the Second coming of Christ.
To explain that Christianity was not a threat to The Roman government.
The deal with social injustice between the poor and rich. ( Luke 6 20-23)
To show concern for the outcasts, poor, widows and others who were downtrodden in the society.
To express joy, prayer and thanksgiving about the works of Jesus.
To strengthen the Gentile Christians who were made to feel that they did not belong to the Christian family by their counterparts.
