College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
Luke 6 - Introduction
Butler's Comments
Chapter Six
THE SON OF MAN EXPLAINING THE NATURE OF HIS KINGDOM
IDEAS TO INVESTIGATE:
1.
What is unlawful about plucking a few ears of grain on the sabbath (Luke 6:1-2)?
2.
Why would the Pharisees get so enraged at Jesus for healing a man on the sabbath (Luke 6:11)?
3.
Is being poor a prerequisite to citizenship in God's kingdom (Luke 6:20)?
4.
Are Christians literally to turn the other cheek every time they are assaulted on the one (Luke 6:29)?
5.
If we are not to judge one another, how can churches take it upon themselves to excommunicate certain members (Luke 6:37)?
6.
Are there certain people intrinsically good and others intrinsically evil (Luke 6:43-45)?
7.
Does the mouth of man always speak what is in the heart, or is a man able to hide what is in his heart (Luke 6:45)?
Applebury's Comments
CHAPTER SIX
Outline
A.
Luke completed the account of a series of five complaints against Jesus (Luke 6:1-11).
1.
The complaint about plucking grain of the sabbath (Luke 6:1-4).
a)
The circumstances.
(1)
The disciples of Jesus plucked and ate the grain.
(2)
They rubbed the heads of grain in their hands.
(3)
The Pharisees, assuming that this was work, asked, Why do ye do that which is not lawful on the sabbath?
b)
Jesus answered the complaint.
(1)
He asked, Haven-'t you ever read about what David did?
(2)
David took the showbread and ate it and gave it also to his men.
(3)
This was not lawful except for priests.
c)
Jesus reminded them that the Son of Man is lord of the sabbath.
2.
The complaint about healing on the sabbath (Luke 6:6-11).
a)
The circumstances.
(1)
It was on another sabbath.
(2)
Jesus was teaching in the synagogue.
(3)
A man was there with a withered hand.
b)
The attitude of the scribes and Pharisees.
(1)
They were watching to see what He would do.
(2)
They were looking for an excuse to accuse Him.
c)
Jesus-' bold action.
(1)
Knowing what they were thinking, He said to the man, Get up and stand in the midstthat is, where he could be seen by all.
(2)
He asked, Is it lawful on the sabbath to do good or to do harm?
(3)
He looked around the room at all of them, then said to the man, Stretch forth your hand.
d)
The miracle: His hand was restored.
e)
The effect of the miracle on the accusers of Jesus.
(1)
They were filled with senseless fury.
(2)
They talked over their problem: What are we to do with Jesus?
B.
Luke told about Jesus selecting the twelve apostles (Luke 6:12-16).
1.
The circumstances (Luke 6:12-13).
a)
Jesus had gone into the mountain to pray.
b)
He continued in prayer throughout the night.
c)
When it was day, He called His disciples and chose twelve of them whom He called apostles.
2.
The twelve whom He selected (Luke 6:14-16).
a)
Simon and Andrew.
(1)
Simon was also called Peter.
(2)
Andrew was the brother of Peter.
b)
James and John.
c)
Philip and Bartholomew.
d)
Matthew and Thomas.
e)
James and Simon.
(1)
James is the son of Alphaeus.
(2)
Simon was called the Zealot.
f)
Judas and Judas.
(1)
The first of these having the same name was the son of James.
(2)
The second is Judas Iscariot, who became the traitor.
C.
He told about Jesus teaching a large crowd of His disciples Luke 6:17-49).
1.
The occasion (Luke 6:17-19).
a)
After choosing the twelve, Jesus came down with them and stood on a level place.
b)
The large crowd of His disciples.
(1)
They were from Judea and Jerusalem and from the coast of Tyre and Sidon.
(2)
They had come to hear Him and to be healed of their diseases.
c)
The healing of the multitudes.
(1)
Those who were troubled with unclean spirits were healed.
(2)
All the multitude sought to touch Him, for power came forth from Him, and He healed them all.
2.
A summary of what Jesus taught (Luke 6:20-49).
a) The Beatitudes and the Woes (Luke 6:20-26).
(1)
The four classes included in the Beatitudes. (a) Those who were poor.
(b)
Those who hunger now.
(c)
Those who weep now.
(d)
Those who are hated for the sake of the Son of Man.
(2)
The four classes included in the Woes.
(a)
Those who are rich now.
(b)
Those who are full now.
(c)
Those who laugh now.
(d)
Those of whom all men speak well.
b)
Regulations for proper conduct (Luke 6:27-38).
(1)
Toward enemies (Luke 6:27-35).
(2)
Toward others in general (Luke 6:36-38).
c)
Some concise statements of truth (Luke 6:29-45).
(1)
Blind guides of the blind.
(2)
Disciple and his teacher.
(3)
Mote and beam.
(4)
Good and corrupt.
d)
The necessity of obedience (Luke 6:46-49).
(1)
Why call me Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?
(2)
The lesson illustrated by house built on the rock and the house built on sand.
Special Note
THE SABBATH
A.
The Jews and the sabbath.
1.
It is first mentioned in Exodus 16:26.
2.
Was it observed as an eternal principle by Adam? The fact that Genesis 2:2-3 states that God rested on the seventh day and hallowed it, leads some to assume that it was given to Adam and all his posterity. This view contradicts Moses-' statement that no other nationnot even their fathershad this law of which the sabbath law was a part (Deuteronomy 4:8; Deuteronomy 5:1-3; Deuteronomy 4:13). Moses mentioned the sabbath when he gave the account of the creation because the Jews were keeping it when he wrote. God had given it to the Jews because it was on the seventh day that He had rested from His work.
3.
Why was it given to the Jews? The seventh day, rather than any other day, was given because on it God had rested (Exodus 20:11). It was given to commemorate the deliverance of Israel from Egypt (Deuteronomy 5:15).
4.
What is the relation of the sabbath to the Old Covenant? The first important fact to remember is that the Old Covenant was the Ten Commandments of which the sabbath was the fourth (Exodus 34:28; Deuteronomy 4:13). A second and equally important fact is this: The New Covenant supplanted the Old and the sabbath is nowhere found as a part of the New. See Jeremiah 31:31-34; Hebrews 8:6-13; 2 Corinthians 3:2-18; Galatians 4:21-31.
B.
Jesus and the sabbath.
1.
Why did He, as His custom was, observe the sabbath? He was born under the Law to redeem those under the Law (Galatians 4:4). At the time of His birth, His parents complied with the Law of Moses (Luke 2:22-24). When the leper was cleansed, He commanded him to comply with the Law (Matthew 8:4). During His ministry, when asked what to do to have eternal life, He pointed to the Ten Commandments as the answer (Mark 10:17-22). On the Day of Pentecost, however, when Peter spoke by the Holy Spirit, he said, Repent and be baptized for the remission of sins (Acts 2:38). This is the directive in connection with the New Covenant.
2.
What proof is there that He never broke the Law, although he was charged with sabbath-breaking?
The Jews complained that He broke the sabbath when He healed the lame man at Bethesda, but He defended His action by saying, My Father worketh until now and I work (John 5:18). A year and a half later, He referred to this incident and reminded the Jews that they carried out the law of circumcision even on the sabbath (John 7:21-24). When two laws were in conflict, the lesser was suspended at the point of conflict. Then why condemn Jesus for making a man completely whole on the sabbath?
He appealed to common sense when He asked, Is it lawful to do good or bad on the sabbath? (Matthew 12:9-12) No one dared say that His miracles of healing were bad. He pointed out the inconsistency of their complaints against Him, for they were in the habit of loosing the ox or the ass and leading it to water on the sabbath. See Luke 13:15. Does this indicate that the law had been relaxed to some extent? See Numbers 15:32-36. Again, He answered the complaint of the Jews by reference to their history, specifically, an incident that involved David. See Matthew 12:2-8. It was mercy and not sacrifice that pleased God.
C. The Christian and the sabbath.
1. Was it the appointed day of meeting of the church? The first day of the week, and not the sabbath, was the day of their meeting. See Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:1-2.
2. Why did the apostles go to the synagogue on the sabbath? They went to preach the Gospel. See the account of Paul preaching in the synagogue on the sabbath in Antioch in Acts 13:14-52. They did some things as Jews which they refused to let others bind on Gentile Christiansfor example, circumcision (Galatians 2:3-5). At Cenchreae Paul kept the provisions of a Jewish vow (Acts 18:18) and later in Jerusalem he was prepared to make certain Jewish offerings (Acts 21:17-31). He did these things as Jewish customs, not as Christian obligations (Romans 14:5-6).
3.
Was the sabbath changed to the first day of the week? No. What about Constantine? He had nothing to do with it. The New Testament was written long before his time, and it indicates that the early church gathered on the first day of the week, not the sabbath (Acts 20:7).
4.
Are Christians commanded to keep the first day of the week as a holy day and refrain from working on that day? That provision related to the sabbath, not the first day of the week, the Lord's day. On the first day of the week, Christians were to assemble, break bread, preach the Word, and present the offering; but every day of the week was a holy day for them.
5.
Is the Lord's day the first day of the week? The expression is found only in Revelation 1:10. Acts 20:7 indicates that the first day of the week was the day of meeting for the church.
6.
What, then, is the significance of the sabbath to the Christian? It is a type of rest in heaven. See Hebrews 4:9.
Summary
In this chapter Luke gives a condensed statement of some of the most interesting and important events in the Galilean ministry of Our Lord. He completes his report on a series of complaints against Jesus. The two mentioned in this chapter are based on Jesus-' supposed breaking of the sabbath. He tells of the selecting of the Twelve and the teaching of the multitudes. The lessons Jesus taught on that occasion are similar to those of the Sermon on the Mount as presented by Matthew.
The complaints about working on the sabbath are based on two different types of work. One was, according to the Jews, actual work on the holy day, for the disciples of Jesus pulled off the heads of grain and rubbed them in their hands to get the grain. But Jesus pointed out that they hadn-'t been reading the Bible or, if they had, they hadn-'t understood the meaning of David's action when he used the bread that according to law was for priests only and gave it to his men to keep them alive. The Son of Man who explained this Scripture to the Jews is also Lord of the sabbath and allowed His men to gather the grain for food on that holy day.
The other work was the merciful work of healing a man with a withered hand. Jesus knew what they were thinking, so He told the man to stand up in the midst of the group where everyone could see him. Then He commanded him to stretch forth his hand, and it was restored. The senseless fury of the complainers asked only, What can we do to get rid of Him?
Selecting the twelve apostles was one of the most important tasks in the ministry of Jesus. He spent all night in prayer before making the choice. Luke gives their names and tells something about some of them, closing his report with Judas who became the traitor.
After choosing the twelve, Jesus came down with them and stood on a level place where a large crowd from Judea and Jerusalem and even from Tyre and Sidon had gathered. They had come to hear Him and to be healed of their diseases.
The lesson began with the four Beatitudes and the four Woes. Then Jesus spoke of conduct toward enemies and others. In four brief statements of truth, He warned against following blind guides, false teachers, hypocritical judging, and conduct that is like trees producing corrupt fruit.
He closed the lesson with a warning about the necessity of true obedience. He warned against calling Him Lord, Lord and not doing what He said. He showed them what this meant by the illustration of the two houses, the one built on rock, the other had no foundation.
Questions
1.
What are the five complaints against Christ as given in Chapter s five and six?
2.
On what issue were the two presented in this chapter based?
3.
What was the original law about work on the sabbath?
4.
What are the two types of work about which the complaints were made?
5.
How does Jesus-' reference to David justify His disciples conduct?
6.
What did Jesus say about His own relation to the sabbath?
7.
What was unusual about the presence of the man with the withered hand in the synagogue on that sabbath when Jesus was present?
8.
For what were the Pharisees hoping?
9.
How was the issue brought to the test?
10.
What did Jesus tell the man to do? Why?
11.
What question did Jesus ask?
12.
What did He do just before He told the man to stretch forth his hand?
13 What effect did the miracle have on those who were hoping to find a cause to condemn Jesus?
14.
What did the enemies of Jesus plan to do?
15.
What did Jesus do before selecting the Twelve?
16.
What are some of the facts about the prayer life of Jesus?
17.
How long did Jesus pray on that occasion?
18.
What is an apostle?
19.
Why was Jesus called the Apostle?
20.
What principle is to be observed in explaining the use of the word apostle?
21.
In what sense did Paul refer to James the Lord's brother as an apostle?
22.
Was Peter's authority as an apostle different from that of the other apostles?
23.
What is known about Andrew?
24.
Why did Jesus call James and John Sons of thunder?
25.
What may be said of the three who are commonly thought of as being the inner circle of apostles?
26.
What of the two named Judas?
27.
What are some of the difference between Matthew's account of the Sermon on the Mount and Luke's report of the lessons Jesus taught after selecting the Twelve?
28.
Why did the people want to touch Jesus?
29.
What four classes are called blessed?
30.
What is the distinction between them and the ones mentioned in the Beatitudes of Matthew 5:1-12?
31.
On what four classes are the woes pronounced?
32.
What did Jesus mean when He said, Beware when all men speak well of you?
33.
How can you love your enemies?
34.
What rule of conduct toward others did Jesus give?
35.
Is it possible to obey Jesus-' command about love?
36.
What did He mean by the reference to blind guides?
37.
What did He mean by saying that a disciple is not above his teacher?
38.
What kind of judging did He forbid?
39.
Why did He say that a tree is known by its fruits?
40.
What did He say about calling Him Lord, Lord?
41.
How did He illustrate the necessity of obeying His word?