Day 17: Luke 7-9. Healing, Teaching, Following Jesus
In Luke 7, Jesus heals a centurion's servant, a story we might be familiar with. Then he balances that story with one about Jesus raising a widow's son from the dead. Luke is careful to include many stories about women in the gospel.
There's also the unnamed woman who anoints Jesus' feet with her tears while he's dining at Simon's house. She is identified as a "sinner", which leads many people to consider he to be a prostitute. Really, is prostitute the only sin open to women (at least in those times?) Also, I still wonder about identifying people as "sinners". To me, it's like saying, that person is a "human being."
Mary Magdalene is named as one of the followers of Jesus at the beginning of Luke 8. Luke also mentions (without saying much more) that several women travelled with him and supported his ministry. Some of the names are interesting though, like Joanna, who is coincidentally, the wife of HEROD'S steward Chuza. I can't help feeling like there's a story we don't know there.
The next two stories are familiar ones: the man healed of a legion of demons (notice how the people want Jesus to leave after he does this great miracle?) and the little girl and the woman who are both healed. Unlike Mark, Luke doesn't portray Jesus' works to her in his native language of Aramaic, "Tabitha cum."
At the beginning of chapter 9, the twelve disciples are commissioned and sent out with the power to heal and preach. At the beginning of the next chapter (we'll get to it in tomorrow's post), 72 disciples (missionaries) are sent out with the power to heal and preach, and with instructions.
Chapter 9 includes again the story of John the Baptist in prison, as well as his death.
Jesus' great question, "Who do people say that I am?" takes place when the disciples find him as he is praying by himself. It is not long afterwards that he predicts his death and resurrection, but orders them to be quiet about it. He challenges people to take up their cross daily -- here's how my translation words it. "All who want to come after me must say no to themselves, and take up their cross DAILY."
It is sobering to consider that there are not many who are willing to take up his challenge.
What do you notice most in these three chapters?
There's also the unnamed woman who anoints Jesus' feet with her tears while he's dining at Simon's house. She is identified as a "sinner", which leads many people to consider he to be a prostitute. Really, is prostitute the only sin open to women (at least in those times?) Also, I still wonder about identifying people as "sinners". To me, it's like saying, that person is a "human being."
Mary Magdalene is named as one of the followers of Jesus at the beginning of Luke 8. Luke also mentions (without saying much more) that several women travelled with him and supported his ministry. Some of the names are interesting though, like Joanna, who is coincidentally, the wife of HEROD'S steward Chuza. I can't help feeling like there's a story we don't know there.
The next two stories are familiar ones: the man healed of a legion of demons (notice how the people want Jesus to leave after he does this great miracle?) and the little girl and the woman who are both healed. Unlike Mark, Luke doesn't portray Jesus' works to her in his native language of Aramaic, "Tabitha cum."
At the beginning of chapter 9, the twelve disciples are commissioned and sent out with the power to heal and preach. At the beginning of the next chapter (we'll get to it in tomorrow's post), 72 disciples (missionaries) are sent out with the power to heal and preach, and with instructions.
Chapter 9 includes again the story of John the Baptist in prison, as well as his death.
Jesus' great question, "Who do people say that I am?" takes place when the disciples find him as he is praying by himself. It is not long afterwards that he predicts his death and resurrection, but orders them to be quiet about it. He challenges people to take up their cross daily -- here's how my translation words it. "All who want to come after me must say no to themselves, and take up their cross DAILY."
It is sobering to consider that there are not many who are willing to take up his challenge.
What do you notice most in these three chapters?
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