Introduction: The goal of Luke’s writing comes down to this, our last
lesson: to bring us to the conclusion that Jesus is God. God came to
earth and lived as a man to reveal God’s character, and then God died
in our place to save us. Jesus rose from the grave to eternal life
giving us the choice of eternal life. It is a powerful story that has
changed the course of history and given the highest hope to humans!
Let’s dive into our final study of Luke and learn more!
- The Garden
- Read Luke 22:39-40. Recall that when we discussed Luke
11:4 (“and lead us not into temptation”) we resisted the
idea that God would tempt us. When Jesus tells the
disciples to “pray” that they “will not fall into
temptation” is He concerned about them being led into
temptation? (He prays they will not be overcome by
temptation. He knows they will be tempted. Compare Luke
22:31-32.) - Read Luke 22:41-42. How much does Jesus want to avoid
being tortured to death? - Would Jesus like a way out of this? (Yes. In Luke
4:5-8 Satan offered Jesus a way to reclaim the world
and avoid the terrible suffering. Satan’s easy
solution, however, would have meant defeat.) - What does Jesus say about His attitude toward the
will of God the Father? (He defers to it.) - Read Luke 22:43-44. What does God do to help Jesus at this
time of terrible pressure? (He sends an angel who
strengthens Jesus.) - Have you been under a tremendous amount of stress,
prayed to God for help, and then felt guilty because
you were still anxious? Is it wrong to still feel
anxious? - Read Revelation 21:8. Are you shocked to see that the
first named characteristic of those who are lost is
being cowardly? Is that even a sin? (The only way
this makes sense to me is if it refers to those who
don’t trust God. Therefore, I hate it when I ask God
for help and I’m still anxious.) - Look again at Luke 22:44. Is Jesus still in anguish
after He prays and after the angel comes to encourage
Him? (Yes. The pressure in my life will never begin
to approach the pressure faced by Jesus at this
moment. But, I feel better knowing that Jesus still
sweat blood after He asked God for help.) - Jesus felt the pressure, but how did He react?
(He did not back down. He was not a coward. He
trusted His Father.) - Read Luke 22:45-46. Have the disciples let Jesus down?
Will others let you down when you face terrible problems? - What, specifically, is the problem with the disciples
sleeping? (Again, Jesus mentions the concern about
them falling into temptation.) - The Kiss
- Read Luke 22:47-48. What does a kiss normally represent?
(Kindness, love, affection.) - How do you think Judas would answer Jesus’ question?
(Hopefully, Judas thought he was forcing Jesus into
overpowering the Romans. Pride and arrogance would
allow those thoughts: I’m smarter than Jesus when it
comes to handling the future.) - Which is worse: pride and arrogance, or
betraying Jesus? (Isn’t self-dependance a
betrayal of God’s love and power?) - Read Luke 22:49. Is this a reasonable question? (We
previously skipped over this: read Luke 22:36-38. Jesus
previously told the disciples to get armed, even telling
them a sword was more important than a coat. At the
suggestion of Jesus the disciples are armed, and they now
ask if it is the time to fight.) - Are the disciples cowards? (Not at this point.)
- Read Luke 22:50-51. This disciple did not wait for Jesus’
instructions. Who struck before having permission? (Read
John 18:10-11. Peter! Notice that Peter had previously
( Luke 22:32-33) said he was willing to die for Jesus. He
was telling the truth.) - Read Luke 22:51. How should the crowd have reacted to
this? (They saw a miracle!) - Read Luke 22:52-54. What do you think is going through the
minds of Judas and Peter? (Things are going completely
wrong. Jesus told the disciples to have swords. The
opposing crowd is armed. Peter used his sword. But, Jesus
reprimands Peter and submits to being captured. He does
not use power to defeat His enemies.) - Crucifixion
- Read Luke 23:33-34. What power does Jesus assert? (The
power of love and forgiveness! Not physical power.) - Read Luke 23:35-39. How would you respond if you were
Jesus, the Ruler of the Universe? (It is one thing to be
scorned when we have no power. It is something else
completely to suffer scorn when we could easily defeat our
enemies.) - Is overlooking insults part of your character?
- Read Luke 23:40-43. Instead of thinking about retribution,
what is Jesus thinking about? (Saving a criminal. In the
midst of terrible physical pain and mental anguish, Jesus
is still seeking the lost!) - Consider this message of grace. This criminal admits
that he is being justly killed for his crimes. Yet,
we know he is saved by Jesus. - Read Luke 23:44-46. Tell me what you think is important
about the last words of Jesus? (He trusts His Father to
the end.) - Re-read Luke 23:45. Why was the temple curtain torn in
two? (In Exodus 26:33-34 we find that in the sanctuary a
curtain separated the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place.
The ark was in the Most Holy Place and it symbolized the
presence of God as part of the sanctuary service. When
Jesus died as the “Lamb of God”( John 1:29), He fulfilled
what the sanctuary sacrificial system symbolized.) - Resurrection
- Read Luke 24:1-5. What does this mean? (Jesus is alive!)
- Read Luke 24:6-8. Why remind the women of what Jesus
previously said? (This helps to confirm the miracle and
give it credibility. Jesus foretold that this would
happen!) - Why do you think that Jesus’ resurrection was
reported first to women? (Read Luke 23:49; Mark
14:48-50; and, John 18:15. It seems that most of the
men left Jesus, but most of the woman stayed with
Jesus.) - Read Luke 24:36-43. What is Jesus doing? (Giving them
concrete evidence that He is risen from the dead.) - Read Luke 24:44-47. What is Jesus’ goal here? (He bolsters
the physical evidence with the Bible texts which predicted
His death and resurrection. They thought Jesus’ death was
an unexpected and terrible turn of events, but He shows
them that is precisely what the Bible predicted and
exactly what He told them would happen.) - Read Luke 24:48-49. What duty did Jesus assign His
disciples? (To be a witness to His death and
resurrection!) - What help did Jesus promise with this task? (The Holy
Spirit! Do you have the Holy Spirit aiding you in
advancing the Kingdom of God?) - Read Luke 24:50-53. How does Luke’s story end? (Jesus
returns to heaven, and humans worship and praise the God
who lived, died and arose to save them.) - Friend, if you have not accepted the truth of this
message, will you right now? If you have not asked for
the Holy Spirit to come into your life to help you share
the gospel, will you right now? What a great, loving,
self-sacrificing and victorious God we serve. Praise Him! - Next week: We begin a new study on Biblical Missionaries.
