- Ch. 1-6
- Ch. 6-12
- Ch. 13-18
- Ch. 19-24
The best way for us to get an overview of the story told by Luke in his two volumes is to trace the movements of Jesus and the Apostles.
To do this, I will give a number of references for you to look up, while adding only a few comments. The answers are all factual, no tricks, just write down what you discover and see what emerges. Then you will be ready for my more detailed comments in my response.
Lk 1,9 and 2,41: the city and place at the centre of the overture.
Lk 4,14: Jesus begins his ministry.
Lk 9,17-18: Note the omission at this point of some of Mark's story (Mk 6,45-8,26). Where does Jesus go in Mark's story (Mk 7,31) but does not go in Luke's account?
Lk 9,51: this is an emphatic statement of departure.
Glance through the following chapters and pick up references to the journey. For example (and there are others): 9,52; 9.57; 10,38; 13,31-35; 17,11; 19,1; 19,28. How many chapters cover this journey?
Lk 19,45: the arrival. See also Lk 21,37
Lk 24,48: what is the command of the now risen Lord to his disciples? Contrast Mk 16,7 and Mt 28,10.Look now at my response.
Acts 1,4: we begin with the overlap with the Gospel
Acts 1,8: Jesus sets out the programme for the disciples
Acts 2,5.14: beginning in Jerusalem.
Acts 8,1: the first break from Jerusalem - note the cause.
Acts 9,10; 11,19: further spread of the disciples.
Acts 11,22.27; 15,2; 20,16; 21,15 Jerusalem continues as the centre.
Acts 23,11: Final departure from Jerusalem
Acts 28,14: "And so we came to Rome"Look again at my response.
With that overall view of Luke's two part story, we have the framework in place for us to begin our reading. Our next step will be to get an idea of his aims and purposes. It is about these that Luke opens his Gospel with a formal statement known as his prologue (1,1-4).While these are the opening verses of the Gospel, they are also the beginning of a chapter. We will therefore follow what will be our normal practce and begin with an overview of chapter 1, all 80 verses of it.