The book of Luke gives us a glimpse of who Jesus is in the New Testament (N.T)
It is written by Luke, a physician by profession, who writes about Jesus, THE PHYSICIAN.
Jesus healed
– the possessed to show that those who are in bondage can be made free and he/she whom Jesus makes free is free indeed (John 8:36)
– the blind to show that darkness is dispelled by the Light (of the World)
– the deaf to show that the good news can be heard
– the mute to show that even the dumb can proclaim the good news
– the paralytics to show that that invalid can be made valid
– the lepers to show the unclean can be made clean
– the shriveled hand to show that the withered can be made whole/stretched to serve
– the lame to show that one can no longer have a lame excuse to not walk in newness of life (Romans 6:4)
and even
– the dead to show that In him is life, life abundant and those who believe in Him, though they are dead yet shall they live (John 11:25).
The one verse summarization of who Jesus is, as portrayed by Luke can be found in the story of Zacchaeus (the seeker) that is recorded in Luke 19:10 which reads “For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Not only does this verse inform us of the PERSONALITY of Jesus Christ, but it also informs us of His PURPOSE and POSITION. Jesus’ personality is a SEEKING personality for He is the Good Shepherd that will go after even the One who is lost (Matthew 18:12) so that His purpose, which is to SAVE all (2 Peter 3:9) who believe is fulfilled and even though He is the Son of God, He took on the form of man, as the Son of man to SEEK and to SAVE.
In Luke, Jesus is portrayed as the Son of man, but what does that title mean. Before we delve into exploring what the title “the Son of man” means, it is interesting to note that the book of Luke is the only gospel that records the childhood of Jesus and gives us a model of how our own children should be raised. The two verses that speak of Jesus’ childhood are Luke 2:40 and Luke 2:52. Luke 2:40 informs us that as Jesus grew, he grew strong in Spirit and was filled with wisdom (the reverence/fear of the Lord) and God’s grace was upon him. Luke 2:52 lays down the four-fold development model as to how we should raise our own children. It states, And Jesus increased in wisdom (mentally) and stature (physical), and in favour with God (spiritually) and man (socially). We must raise our children in the fear of the Lord as well so that they can grow mentally, physically, spiritually loving God and socially loving their neighbor as themselves.
So what does the title “the Son of man” mean? To answer this question, we need to go to the Book of Daniel. Recorded in Daniel 7:13-14 in a vision which gives us a clue. Daniel 7:13-14 reads
13 I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven (Mark 14:62), and came to the Ancient of days (Psalm 90:2), and they brought him near before him.
14 And there was given him dominion, and glory (a Name above all names – Philippians 2), and a kingdom (the King of the Jews), that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him (all knees should bow to Jesus and confess that He is God): his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom (the kingdom of the King of kings) that which shall not be destroyed.
In Luke, Jesus is the Son of man, which means He is the King of kings, with an indomitable indestructible kingdom, who first came to SEEK and to SAVE (heal) all who are lost (dead without God), and who will come with the clouds of heaven to be SERVED.
Points to ponder:
The sheep that refuses to fall into the seeking hands of the Good Shepherd cannot be saved. Jesus is seeking you! Have you placed your life in his hand by believing in Him. If you do, he will place you on his shoulders (Luke 15:5) and lift you up out of the horrible pit/abyss and place your foot on a strong and sure foundation (Psalm 40:2), which is Himself.
And for those who have been Saved by His Grace, are we practicing to serve Him here on earth, for we certainly will be serving him in heaven, when He returns and it may be a good idea to get some practice now.
