There’s a man I know, and from early on in childhood he loved to learn. He was so fascinated by facts and figuring things out, that his parents couldn’t keep up with him. For his 5thbirthday, he asked for notebooks and pencils so he could take notes about his favorite topics. He was one of those kids that asked endless why and how questions. In adolescence, he became especially curious about science and the human body. As he got older, he studied and learned as much as he could, eventually going to medical school and becoming a physician. He was a well-respected doctor in his field, when suddenly his life took an unexpected turn.
Plot twist – he becomes an author!
And I don’t even know if he wanted to make this change, but one thing led to another and he found himself meticulously documenting, describing, and getting everything written down that he could. His love for medicine didn’t wain, but he was so pre-occupied with this project, that practicing medicine became secondary. He went from saving lives to writing about people’s lives, becoming a biographer and historian. He wasn’t sure why he, a doctor, was supposed to walk away from his practice and become an author, nor did he know the impact this change in direction would have. Nonetheless, he went.
He became one of the most successful, sought after authors in the world. EVER. There’s only two other authors that are more successful than him, by the world’s standards.
Meet Luke.
Biographer of Jesus and also the Apostles of the early church. His ‘project’ was advancing the gospel through truth-telling. Facts, documentation, historical accounts of salvation through Jesus.
We really know so little about Luke, and the first two paragraphs above describe my guess of what his life may have been like. Since he was such a humble servant, he kept the focus where the Holy Spirit led him: the gospel of Jesus. While we don’t have the details on his background or conversion, we do know the most important thing about him – he was a follower of Jesus. He was highly educated and trained as a physician, with great attention to detail and fact gathering. Christian tradition holds that he also drew and painted to go along with the books he wrote. He is also the largest contributor to the New Testament (Gospel of Luke and Acts of the Apostles), only surpassed in the Old Testament by Moses and Ezra. The Bible was written by God, and these writers were called to get the words on the page. What an amazing testimony through his faith and obedience, Luke influenced generations and generations to come. The Bible is the most read, purchased, or copied book ever in history, and Luke was one of the top three leading writers!
One of the few and final pieces of information we have recorded about Luke is from Paul’s second and final letter to Timothy. In Chapter four he notes that only Luke is still with him in the ministry, as all of his other ministry partners have scattered. This is believed to be the last letter that Paul wrote, and he was killed shortly after.
Luke seemed so focused and impassioned to advance the gospel, that his own life, career, desires were in the background. From the outside looking in, it seems like a major life change and plot twist, and Luke doesn’t even mention it!
This is so inspiring to me, someone who likes to be on a path and moving toward a certain direction. When the “plot twists” in my life come, I usually make my thoughts on it pretty well-known. Why??? When I break it all down, the goals are the same, no matter how God decides to get me there: Salvation and glorifying God. Whether that’s through motherhood, being a physician or author, being a friend, sharing the gospel with a stranger… what may feel like a plot twist in my world, is just God’s way of accomplishing his ultimate goal. Is God calling you to something that feels like a big plot twist?
If you have time this week, do some digging and get inspired by Luke. I loved reading in my study Bible about his writing style, where he’s mentioned, etc. You can find Paul’s two other brief mentions of him in Colossians 4 and Philemon 1. It was also special to read how Luke and Matthew’s accounts of Jesus’s birth come together and bring the real event to life.
