LUKE - Weeks 3&4
What did you make of these past few week’s readings?
Quite a lot about money in there – you had plenty of opportunity to apply your ‘Theo-Economic’ lens! (If that means nothing to you, see the last post here)
We won’t focus on money again this week, but rather think about Parables in Luke’s gospel.
There are 24 different parables in Luke’s gospel, a number of which are unique to Luke – including a bunch that we read this past week or so;
The Parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11–32)
The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19–31)
The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector (Luke 18:9–14)
The Parable of the Lost Coin (Luke 15:8–10)
So, we should ask what are those parables talking about that Luke wants to emphasise, and beyond that, why is Luke so keen to use Parables at all?
Way back in September 2023, as we began the daily bible reading plan with Matthew’s gospel, I wrote about Jesus’ use of parables (I had all but forgotten that fact, so don’t expect you to have remembered! Re-read here if you’re interested). Given what we’ve reflected on thus far with regards to the target audience of Luke’s gospel, it makes sense that Parables feature heavily. They have a universal appeal, using common language and imagery to illustrate big ideas. If Luke really is trying to communicate to gentiles, this is a good means of doing so. Slightly differently to Matthew, who often left his parables unexplained, Luke’s parables often feature a little explanatory note within them, which is helpful!
Luke 15, in particular, features a number of parables which explicitly talk about the celebration of a “sinners” repentance over those who have remained faithful.
These stories are clear that, for the author of Luke’s gospel, it is worth emphasising and re-emphasising the lengths to which God would go to reach a “sinner” and the extraordinary amount of joy there is for God when someone turns back to God (or repents).
At our small group last week, we were comparing the ends of Matthew and Luke, noting where their focus contrasted, and the question came out “what is the model of atonement in Luke?”
Throughout this gospel account, there isn’t any clear mention of Jesus dying for the forgiveness of sins, as we see in Mark and Matthew. If that was not how the author of Luke understood things, then what did they understand Jesus’ death as having accomplished?
I think the tones of these parables point us in the right direction.
What is repeated again and again is the call for “sinners” to repent. Even on the cross, the focus is on Jesus’ innocence and the guilt of others. For Luke, I think that the death of Jesus was a demonstration of the love of God, so as to change the hearts and minds of “sinners”. The reader is struck by the difference between Jesus and themselves.
This is close to what is sometimes called the ‘Moral Influence’ theory of atonement. There is also a healthy dose of the ‘scapegoat’ theory, which centres on Jesus, as the purest innocent, dying as a scapegoat for our wrongdoing, but ultimately ending the cycle of scapegoating as we are confronted by the cost of our guilt; the death of God.
One additional piece of evidence is found in a subtle distinction between Matthew and Luke. In both accounts, the temple curtain tears. This is symbolic of the removal of that which separated God from humanity. The curtain separated the Holy of Holies from the rest of the temple, and once a year, on the day of atonement, the High Priest would go behind the curtain to perform rituals to atone for the sins of the people. (We can see the institution of these practices in Leviticus 16, including a specific ritual around a scapegoat which was adapted by the time of Jesus – the scapegoat was no longer just lead into the wilderness but was pushed off a cliff to ensure it did not return… interesting to bare that in mind given what we mentioned about the scapegoat theory!). The temple curtain tearing infers that direct access to God is now available, and no longer is it just the high priest who has that access.
Now, in Matthews gospel, the curtain tears as Jesus breathes his last (Matt 27:50-51) which indicates that it is in the act of Jesus’ death that sins are atoned for and that Jesus death is the act by which we are provided access to God.
In Luke, however, the temple curtain tears just before Jesus breathes his last (Luke 23:45-46). Very slight difference, but Luke’s account appears to say that it is not in the act of Jesus death that access to God is given. That access is granted beforehand!
Make of that what you will, but these small differences result in some substantial theological questions.
Which brings us back to the parables. They are nice stories, but they lay the foundations for Luke’s theology and offer complex insight into Jesus’ understanding of the Kingdom of God.
Maybe, if you get a little extra time soon, go back and re-read some of these parables and, as you do so, ask yourself what Luke is trying to tell us!