Reading the Gospels Together How do you begin a gospel? – Part 3 Luke begins his gospel in yet another way. Since it is almost certain that Luke also had Mark’s gospel before him as his primary source, Luke also made the choice to lay Mark aside for the time being and begin his gospel in a different way. Like Matthew, Luke will pick up Mark’s story later on. But, like Matthew, Luke’s use of Mark will no longer be the beginning. There are really two beginning to Luke’s gospel that we need to notice. First of all, Luke provides his readers with a preface. The first four verses of Luke’s gospel serve the purpose of telling Luke’s readers a number of things. First of all Luke assures his readers that he has carefully followed all the events he is about to relate. Luke has done his homework and can be trusted. For modern readers these words of Luke also provide a powerful insight into the writing of the gospels and how we might understand the Bible as the inspired Word of God. Luke tells us of others who have also written about these events. Luke has followed them and Luke intends to use them as is evident from Luke’s use of Mark. The Bible is not the inspired Word of God because God dictated it to those who wrote. The Bible is not only the inspired Word of God it is also the creation of human people and they are responsible for what they write. Their inspiration is precisely that God was involved in their lives just as God is involved in ours. But God chooses to honor the humanity of people. That is a frightening and yet magnificent thing. Human beings matter. And Luke helps us to see that with his preface. Secondly, Luke tells his readers that his motive is to provide them with the truth about those things that they have received as instruction. How we understand what Luke means by truth is crucial. When Luke speaks about providing his readers with the truth, is he worried about historical accuracy? Most likely he was not thinking about truth in this way. Rather Luke was concerned about the veracity of the gospel. The truth Luke was telling was the truth that makes a person a part of God’s kingdom. He was concerned with the proclamation of the gospel. Readers of Luke’s gospel can know that if their hearts and minds are open this gospel will lead them to faith and relationship with God.