The Book of Luke, the fourth book in the New Testament of the Holy Bible, it is also one of the four Gospel accounts of the life of Jesus Christ. It was written by Luke, a doctor and follower of Christ in the early Church, and was written as one of two letters to Theophilus. We don't know exactly who Theophilus was, but by reading Luke and Acts, both of whom were written to Theophilus, we can gather that he was possibly seeking for the truth of who Christ was, and the origin of the Christian church.
In this book we find in the second chapter, the account of Christ's birth which is often read at Christmastime, and from there it proceeds to give an account of the life of Christ and his miracles, teachings, death, and resurrection.
As I was finishing up the last chapter today, the words in the above photo spoke to me. Jesus had died and been resurrected, but many of his disciples were not aware of that yet. They were still grieving and probably dealing with PTSD from watching him be brutally executed and wondering if they were next. They were wondering what to do and where to go, and many of them reverted back to their old professions, such as fishing.
Then Jesus comes along and explains to them the Old Testament and the Prophets, and how he fulfilled most of the Messianic prophecies. Then he reveals himself as resurrected Jesus--not a ghost, as he shows by eating with them, and having them touch him. He opens their eyes to the truth, and proceeds to give them directions and their purpose. No longer are they just students, but now it's time for them to step up as His ambassadors, telling the world about Jesus and the salvation that ALL men, Jews and Gentiles, can have through Him. They are to start locally, and spread out to the rest of the world.
It's amazing how that happened, studying early New Testament Church History. Despite persecution and threats and even brutal death to those practicing Christianity, it continued to spread and grow.
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