Luke: The Most Gentile Gospel

Four Views, One Good News

Four Views, One Good News is a four-part series exploring the unique emphases of each gospel writer. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John each tell the story of Jesus from a distinct angle—but together they proclaim the same good news.

“for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.”
‭‭Luke‬ ‭2‬:‭30‬-‭32‬ ‭ESV‬‬

In this series of posts, we’re looking at the distinctives of each Gospel writer. We’ve seen Matthew—a Jew writing to Jews about the Jewish Messiah. We’ve seen Mark—a Roman writing to Romans about the Son of Man. Today we come to Luke: a Gentile writing to Gentiles about Jesus, the Light of the nations. Later, we’ll see how John presents Jesus as the eternal Word made flesh.

How Do We Know Luke Was a Gentile?

Luke is only mentioned by name three times in Scripture, all by Paul (Colossians 4:14; 2 Timothy 4:11; Philemon 24). In Colossians 4:10–14, Paul lists greetings from “the only men of the circumcision among my fellow workers for the kingdom of God.” After that group, he adds, “Luke the beloved physician greets you, as does Demas.” Paul’s wording strongly suggests Luke was not Jewish.

There’s some scholarly debate—was Luke a Hellenistic Jew (a Greek convert to Judaism) or a Gentile Christian? Either way, he was not Jewish by birth.

Another clue is Luke’s style. His vocabulary is more polished and “classical” than Matthew’s or Mark’s. Think of the difference between C.S. Lewis and John Grisham. Both write in English, but Lewis’s prose carries Oxford, England in its bones, while Grisham’s carries Oxford, Mississippi. Luke’s Greek reflects a Hellenistic education.

How do we know Luke is writing for Gentiles?

Several markers point to a Gentile audience:

• His recipient. Luke addresses both his Gospel and Acts to a man named Theophilus—a Greek name meaning “lover of God.”
• His historical anchors. Luke situates events in relation to Roman rulers. Of all the New Testament writers, only Luke names emperors: Augustus, Tiberius, and Claudius. He even alludes to Nero as the “Caesar” to whom Paul appealed.
• His genealogy. Matthew traces Jesus back to Abraham, the father of the Jewish nation. Luke traces Him all the way back to Adam, the father of us all.
• His choice of stories. Luke highlights Jesus’ interactions with Gentiles and outsiders. He alone records the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10) and the healing of the grateful Samaritan leper (Luke 17). In Nazareth, what nearly got Jesus thrown off a cliff was His reminder that God once showed mercy to Naaman the Syrian and the widow of Zarephath—both Gentiles (Luke 4:24–27). Again, only Luke includes this.
• His portrayal of Roman centurions. Luke mentions them more often than the other Gospels, and always in a favorable light.

Savior of All Nations

My favorite distinctive in Luke’s Gospel is his emphasis on Jesus as Savior for all peoples. When the angels announced His birth to the shepherds—another story only Luke tells—the message was:

Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.”
—Luke 2:10

And when Simeon held the infant Jesus in the temple, he saw more than Israel’s hope. He saw “a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel” (Luke 2:32). Once again, only Luke records this.

Seventy For the Nations

IHere’s one more detail. In Matthew 10, when Jesus sent out the Twelve, He told them: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel” (Matthew 10:5–6). Not surprisingly, Luke leaves out that limitation.

Instead, in Luke 10, Jesus sends out seventy others (some manuscripts say seventy-two). Why seventy? According to Jewish tradition, there were seventy Gentile nations on earth. That’s also why seventy bulls were sacrificed during the Feast of Tabernacles—the one feast where Gentiles were welcomed (see (Day 051: A Festival for The Rest of Us).¹

Luke is quietly but clearly showing us: the mission is for the whole world.

The Ox of Sacrifice

Take another look at the stained-glass image at the top of this post. The symbol for Luke has always been the ox, representing sacrifice. Luke’s Gospel emphasizes that the sacrifice Jesus made was for all people—Jews and Gentiles alike.

Thanks be to God.

1. Schorsch, Ismar The Seventy Bulls of Sukkot Jewish Theological Seminary (online) accessed 10/05/23. ↩︎

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