Some stories are important and need to be told over and over again. The significance is life-changing; life-affirming; life-warning. There is something hauntingly beautiful in the story of Corrie Ten Boom. It is the story of one family risking everything to help Jewish people escape the horrors of the Nazi machine which had invaded the Netherlands. It is the story of risk and betrayal; of love and hatred. It is the story of humanity gone mad and humanity swept up in the fray. It is the story of Corrie whose father Casper and sister Betsie were ground up by the Nazi machine. It is the story of finding thankfulness in the midst of horror. It is the story of forgiveness. It is the story of loving the enemy. It is the story of being shaped by Jesus when the world has lost its mind. And speaking of Jesus, can we hear the story of Jesus too many times? Can we study too much? Or is the story of Jesus the story of stories; the story that must be told? The significance is life-changing; life-affirming; life-warning. The story of Corrie is hauntingly beautiful because it is the story of a courageous woman being shaped by The Story.
Luke 1:1-4 is a prologue to The Story. But hey Luke, do we really need another account of Jesus’ life? Luke lets us know that many have thrown their hand into the work of compiling a narrative of the deeds that were born to fruition among them. The “many” would seem to refer to more than the other three Gospels, of which, John was most likely written after Luke. The order of writing is given by some as Mark, Luke, Matthew and then John. The important thing for us is that The Story of what Jesus had accomplished was being compiled by a lot of people – sometimes in writing and sometimes orally. It is The Story! It is too important not to tell and then to tell again.
The word “handed down” can be a technical term for the handing down of tradition; accepted tradition; authoritative tradition. What is important here is that the sources were eyewitnesses or self-viewers; people who had seen these things happen. So, right away, we are forced with a decision: Do we accept Luke’s claim? Do we believe that he compiled this narrative from the people who were actually there? If we accept this claim, how we read this narrative will be effected. Oh, and Luke lets us know that these prime sources had an agenda – they were servant of the word or message. They were not neutral observers. They had placed themselves under the rule of the message; The Story. They had not shaped the story, the story had shaped them.
And even though many had already told the story, Luke thought it fitting to spend a lot of time and effort in investigating the story as well. The word “from the beginning” can mean “again, from above, for a long time.” Now, that is a wide range of meaning. This is the same word Jesus used in speaking with Nicodemus about being born “again” or was it “from above” or both? In this context, “for a long time” would make good sense. He didn’t just listen to a few Jesus groupies and throw a story together. He investigated carefully; he invested time and effort into the project. He organized his research into order. What order? Chronological? Well, maybe. Theological? Probably. There may be some chronological hiccups in the Gospel. These hiccups may be more imagined than real. But it is possible that chronology was not Luke’s primary concern. He is not merely an historian. He is a story teller. And telling this story is about theology first and foremost.
Luke wrote his two-volume work to Theophilus. And who might Theophilus be? Yeah, we don’t know. Since the name means “Friend of God” some have suggested a symbolic name representing all believers. It seems more likely that Luke was writing to an individual, but had a larger audience in mind. He wanted Theophilus to share the book with others. Since this Theophilus is given the title “most excellent,” many have supposed some Roman official. And this just may be the case. Theophilus may have been a Roman official who was intrigued by The Story. Luke could have encouraged Theophilus to investigate himself, but he wanted him to have a certainty about what he already knew; what he had already been taught. The Story was too important not to organize; not to agonize over; not to painstakingly write down.
Just as Luke desired that Theophilus would have a certain knowledge of what he had been taught, I pray that we also will have an understanding of Jesus that is certain. So, let’s dive into The Story once again. This is not a wading pool. This is the Story! Dive deep and let it shape you into a Friend of God.