Bible Study: A Survey Through the Gospel of Luke, Part 2

This is the second and final post on the questions for a survey through the Gospel of Luke Using the Ascension Press study which my Lay Dominican Fraternity coordinated during Lent.  Sessions one through four were in Post #1, which you can find here.  Post #2 contains the questions and my answers to sessions five through eight. 

 

 

Session 5: Luke Chapters 10 – 12

 

1.      Jesus often prays to God the father, and in this chapter 10 of Luke we see Jesus thanking God the Father.  In what ways can we adopt a posture of gratitude when conversing with our heavenly Father?  Why is giving thanks an essential attitude for prayer?

My answer: Thank the Father repeatedly during the day for all the little blessings as they happen.  Gratitude is a form of praise.  It’s an acknowledgement of our dependence on Him.

 

2.      During the Divided Kingdom in the reign of King Ahaz of Judah, Israel took captive two hundred thousand men from Judah (2 Chr 28:8-15).  What connections can you find between this passage and Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan (Lk 10:29-37)?

My answer: the Samaritans in the Old Testament (from the Northern Kingdom) were merciful to the captives from Judah in the same way the Good Samaritan in the New Testament parable was kind to the injured man from Judah.

 

3.      What are the differences in the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6:9-13 and the Lord’s Prayer in Luke 11:2-4?

My answer: In Luke there is no “our,” no “who art in heaven,” no “hallowed be thy name,” no “thy kingdom come,” no “thy will be done,” no “on earth as it is in heaven,” and no “deliver us from evil.  They are similar in that both address the Father, both petition for daily bread, both ask for forgiveness as we forgive others, and both ask not to be led into temptation.

 

4.         Jesus is often harsher when dealing with the Pharisees and scholars of the law than he is with the ordinary sinners who come to him as in chapter 11.  What might account for this?

My answer: The Pharisees and scholars refuse to believe in He being the Messiah.  Both are conspiring to kill Him.  Both are part of the established power structure.  Both are hypocrites.  Both should know better.  Both are missing the interior disposition of charity, emphasizing the stickling of the law instead of the spirit of the law.

 

5.         Consider Jesus’ words: “Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Lk 12:34).  Where is your heart?  What do you treasure above all else?  What are some ways you can turn away from the “treasures” of the world and align your heart with the treasure of God’s kingdom?

My answer: I consider my treasure my God and my family.  Turning to prayer and reading scripture will help align your heart with God’s kingdom.  Cultivate communion with God.

 

6.         What makes Jesus a source of “division’ (Lk 12:49-53)?  What does this tell us about the cost of discipleship?

My answer: Jesus is a source of division because He is there to overturn those in power, overturn the secular values, and refocus humanity to the Truth.  Faith in Jesus requires a separation from the world and its values.  One has to die to oneself.

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Session 6: Luke Chapters 13 – 17

 

1.      In an earlier chapter of Luke’s Gospel, Jesus teaches a parable about trees and fruit: “For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit; for each tree is known by its fruit.” (Lk 6:43-44).  In the parable of the barren fig tree, Jesus tells the fate of a tree that bears no fruit (Lk 13:6-9).  How are these teachings related?

My answer: While the fig tree has not born bad fruit, it has not born good fruit either.  It has born no fruit.  The fig tree is given another chance with the hope that through nurturing it can bear good fruit in the future..

 

2.      What does the parable of the leaven (Lk 13:20-21) tell us about the Kingdom of God? 

My answer: It tells us that on one level the kingdom of God is intended to be here on earth, and that the faithful through good works will be like leaven and make the kingdom rise.

 

3.      Read Mt 5:13; then read Lk 14:34-35.  Why does Jesus bring up the importance of salt retaining its taste?  How is this a metaphor for the Christian life?

My answer: Salt gives flavor to food, and we Christians are to be salt improving the flavor of society.  The Christian life will improve society as salt improves the flavor of food.

 

4.      What does the parable of the lost sheep (Lk 15:1-7) tell us about God?

My answer: A human shepherd would not abandon the 99 sheep to go find the one lost.  That is not realistic.  God, on the other hand, will never give up on any one soul, and will search Him out to the end.

 

5.      In the parable of the dishonest steward (Lk 16:1-13), the master commends the dishonest steward for how he acted.  What point is Jesus trying to make here?

My answer: This is probably my least favorite parable.  It’s confusing.  It appears that the steward is just trying to sell the master’s items at a reduced rate for his own gain.  What I didn’t know is that he is selling off the master’s items eliminating his personal cut.  So he is not actually robbing the master.  The master commends him for his prudence to sell at a reduced cost.

 

6.      After the death of King Solomon, ten tribes of Israel rebelled and broke away, diving the kingdom into two: the Northern Kingdom in Samaria (known as Israel) and the Southern Kingdom near Jerusalem (known as Judah).  The Samaritans of Jesus’ day were the remnant of the breakaway group and dwelled separately from the Jews.  With this context in mind, what is so significant about Lk 17:11-19?  Specifically, why ten, and why does Luke emphasize the Samaritan who returned?

My answer: The ten echoes the lost tribes of Israel, and in that sense all Jews.  The one who returns is the Samaritan, the one who were supposedly enemies, that is the foreigner.  It is the foreigner who is grateful, but the other nine selfishly run off.

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Session 7: Luke Chapters 18 – 21

 

1.      In what ways does the parable of the widow and the unrighteous judge (Lk 18:1-8) reflect our relationship with God?  What are the crucial differences between the judge and God?

My answer: We need to be persistent in our prayers as the widow is persistent in her appeals to the judge.  Faith requires persistence.  The judge is slothful, unrighteous, and arbitrary; God is righteous, and acts with justice.

 

2.      What can we learn from Zacchaeus, a tax collector who clearly cheated people, and his conversion upon encountering Jesus (Lk 19:1-10)?

My answer: We learn that no man is beyond conversion if such a dishonest tax collector can come to repentance.  We learn that Jesus does not give up on the worst sinners.

 

3.      As King David neared the end of his life, he took certain steps to confirm the path of succession for his son Solomon.  Compare 1 Kings 1:32-40 with Lk 19:33-40.  What similarities do you notice between these two scenes?  How is this moment yet another confirmation of Jesus’ identity?

My answer: Both Solomon and Jesus triumphantly enter Jerusalem on a donkey/mule to a jubilant crowd praising their kingship.  This reveals Jesus as a king and a Messiah.

 

4.      How does the parable of the wicked tenants (Lk 20:9-19) relate to Jesus’ conflicts with the religious leaders of Israel?

My answer: The wicked tenants stand for the Jewish leaders and the beloved son stands for Jesus.  The ruler who stands for God will take away the inheritance from the Jews.

 

5.      In Lk 20:27-40, how are the Sadducees, who don’t believe in the resurrection, trying to trap Jesus?  How does Jesus effectively dismantle their trap?

My answer: The Sadducees are trying to trap Jesus citing a potential situation in heaven which would be considered polygamy.  Jesus dismantles it by stipulating that there is no marriage in heaven.

 

6.      How can we apply Jesus’ point about the widow’s offering (Lk 21:1-4) to our own lives?

My answer: The widow gave to God all that she had.  That is what we are called to do at least spiritually.

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Session 8: Luke Chapters 22 – 24

 

1.      Exodus 24 recounts how God established a covenant with Israel through moses while they were at Mount Sinai.  The covenant was sealed with a sacrifice.  Compare Ex 24:5-11 with Lk 22 19-20.  What similarities do you notice between the two passages?

My answer: The covenant is sealed with a sacrifice, the bulls in Exodus, Jesus in Luke.  Both sacrifices are performed in a liturgical setting and both hold up the elements of the sacrificed body and blood.  Both sacrifices are in the presence of God.

 

2.      Daniel lived during the Babylonian Exile, serving in the court of the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar.  Daniel received many prophetic and apocalyptic visions.  Compare Dn 7:13-14 with the scene of Jesus before the chief priests and scribes in Lk 22:66-70.  How do they interpret Jesus’ comments to the council?  How do they parallel Daniel 7?

My answer: Jesus alludes to Himself as the Son of Man from Daniel 7.  He refers to Himself as “the Son of Man,” which would be the Messiah. 

 

3.      Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great, was the tetrarch who ruled over the region of Galilee at the time of Jesus.  Herod’s family was not ethnically Jewish; he descended from the Idumean converts to Judaism during the time of the Maccabean revolt.  With this context in mind, what is the irony behind Jesus’ confrontation with Herod (Lk 23:6-9)?

My answer: the irony is that Herod is not in the Davidic lineage and therefore not a true king of Judah.  Jesus on the other hand is in the Davidic line.

 

4.      There are three “last sayings” of Jesus on the cross in Luke’s Gospel (Lk 23:34, 43, 46).  These three last sayings are not found in the other Gospels.  What do these words spoken by Jesus from the Cross tell us about him?

My answer: They speak of mercy ((“Father forgive them, for they know not what they do”), of hope ((Truly I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise”), and of trust (“Father, into your hands I commend my spirit”).

 

5.      How does the story of the disciples on the road to Emmaus (Lk 24:13-35) mirror what happens during the catholic Mass?

My answer: On the walk from Jerusalem, the hidden Jesus explains how the scriptures fulfill the events at Calvary, reflecting the Liturgy of the Word at Mass.  At the table, Jesus’ breaking of the bread reflects the Liturgy of the Eucharist at Mass.

 

6.      Why might Jesus’ ascension (Lk 24:50-51) be considered both a joyous and a sorrowful event?

It is sorrowful because the person of Jesus has physically left us; it is joyous because He has left us the Holy Spirit to fill us and remains with us in the Eucharist.

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A final note.  I hope you got something out of this.  While the session videos were interesting and educational, I think what was most instructive were reading the Gospel itself, answering these questions, and then reviewing them as a group.  You can certainly do the first two on your own. 

If you want to join us in our next Bible Study in Advent, send me your email address.  We haven’t decided what study to do next yet, but I will announce it when we do.