Let's Look at Luke -- Historian, Church Worker Quiz

Answer: Luke and Acts

He is credited with writing the Gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts. The Gospel of Luke contains a number of accounts which do not appear in the three other Gospels -- Matthew, Mark and John. Meanwhile, the Book of Acts is seen as a history of the early church and provides a treasure chest of information about how the Gospel spread to the Gentiles in Europe as well as in what is present-day Turkey.

Answer: Theophilus

Theophilus is the correct answer but it is not known who he was. Some believe he was a prominent official in the Roman government while others believe he was a lawyer who represented Paul in his trial before Felix. Some believe Theophilus is a collective name for Christians in general but this view is disputed by many because the Gospel of Luke describes Theophilus as "most excellent," a term for a specific person and not a collective body.

Answer: Doctor

Doctor is the correct answer as Paul identifies him as such in Colossians 4:14. It's highly likely Luke continued to serve as a physician during Paul's missionary journeys. Some theologians believe Paul referred to Luke as a doctor as a testament to the fact he was helping him with health-related matters.

Some also speculate Luke helped Paul cure people on the island of Malta after a shipwreck, as per Acts 28:9.

Answer: False

To the contrary, Paul indicates Luke was the only one who was still with him. Paul, in his personal remarks to Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:9-11, in the NIV Bible, writes: "Do your best to come to me quickly, for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me." It has been said that when things are going horribly wrong, a person quickly realizes who their true friends are.

In this case, Luke proved he was forever faithful.

Incidentally, many theologians believe Paul was executed shortly after he wrote 2 Timothy. If this was the case, Luke was with him to the end.

Answer: John

Yes, John is the correct answer as he is credited with writing the Gospel of John, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John and Revelation. However, it comes as a surprise to many people Luke wrote more of the New Testament than any other writer, including Paul. To determine the results, I took a copy of the New King James large print Bible by Thomas Nelson Bibles. (I selected this one as it is devoid of charts, graphs and study notes which can give an inaccurate score when one is counting the total number of pages written by a writer.) In this particular Bible, Luke wrote 97.5 pages, Paul wrote 88 pages and John 71.5 pages. Actual scores will vary from Bible, of course, due to the size of print and other printing features.

However, the bottom line is this: Whichever Bible you use, Luke will come out on top for most pages written.

Answer: Our dear friend

Paul describes Luke as "our dear friend." In the KJV, he describes him as the "beloved" physician. From references such as this, many people believe Luke was warm and friendly and made friends with practically everyone he met. In addition to this, Luke labored behind the scenes, apparently shunning the limelight.

It's unfortunate many people don't consider Luke as a Bible character, and simply see him as the writer of two books in the New Testament. However, it must be remembered that where ever you see the word 'we' in the Book of Acts, Luke was there. It's just that he didn't use his name. Many believe he did not insert his name into Acts simply because he was humble, and shunned the limelight. Going by the 'we' passages of Acts, Luke was a tireless worker in the early church. He was involved in everything from the conversion of Lydia, the first believer in Europe, to a shipwreck in the Mediterranean Sea.

Answer: True

In addition to including Luke's name in Philemon, Paul also lists it in Colossians and 2 Timothy. Luke's name appears in Philemon 1:24 in Paul's greetings portion of the letter. Other names that appear in the same verse are Mark, Aristarchus and Demas. In 2 Timothy 4:10, Paul writes Demas deserted him "because he loved this world."

It's interesting to note Paul writes of his horrible suffering in 2 Corinthians 11:23-28. He tells of being beaten, flogged, shipwrecked and generally suffering immensely. With Luke by his side for a substantial part of Paul's missionary work, it's quite likely he suffered a similar fate.

Answer: The Prodigal Son

The correct answer is the Prodigal Son, one of the most famous parables in the Gospels. The three other parables (Lamp Under a Basket, The Mustardseed and New Wine in Old Wineskins) can all be found in Luke, as well as in Matthew and Mark. However, there are a number of other parables, similar to the Prodigal Son, that appear in only Luke.

The parables found in only Luke are The Good Samaritan, A Friend in Need, The Rich Fool, The Faithful Servant and the Evil Servant, The Faithful and Wise Steward, The Barren Fig Tree, The Great Supper, Building a Tower and King Making War, The Lost Coin, The Unjust Steward, The Rich Man and Lazarus, Unprofitable Servants, The Persistent Widow, The Pharisee and the Tax Collector and finally The Minas (Pounds).

Answer: Healing of the ten lepers

The healing on the ten lepers is a miracle recorded only in the Gospel of Luke. The healing of Peter's mother-in-law and the healing of a man's withered hand appears in Luke as well as in Matthew and Mark. The miracle involving the feeding of the five thousand can be found in all four Gospels -- Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

Other miracles reported in only Luke include Escape From the Hostile Multitude, Draught of Fish, Raising the Widow's Son from the Dead at Nain, Healing the Infirm Bowed Woman, Healing the Man with Dropsy and Restoring a Servant's Ear.

Answer: True

True. The account can be found in only the Gospel of Luke. (See Luke 23:39-43.) There are other accounts that can be found in only Luke. On top of this, Luke has more reports about resurrection appearances by Jesus than any other writer when you include the book of Acts. Take away the book of Acts, and Luke is still tied for first with John when it comes to details about resurrection appearances.

Luke appears to have been a man with tremendous compassion and special love for the disadvantaged, the downtrodden of society, the outcasts. Time and again we read in his Gospel accounts of the down-and-out winning special favor in the Lord's eyes. We read of people who made mistakes and messed up their lives big time.

The Bible states God's eye is on the sparrow. Well, to paraphrase Luke, God's eye is not only on the sparrow - but on the turkey too! (And for this fact, I am forever grateful.)

Answer: Conversion of Lydia

The conversion of Lydia was the first major event to take place after Luke joined the team. Going by Scripture, she was the first person in Europe to believe in a resurrected Jesus Christ. Scripture also reports that her entire household became believers as well. Lydia was a dealer in purple cloth and many theologians believe she was wealthy.

Answer: Troas

The correct answer is Troas. According to the Thompson Chain Reference Study Bible, Troas was a city 10 miles southwest of the ancient city of Troy in what is now present day Turkey. The ruins of Troas are known today as Eski Stamboul. After Eutychus tumbled out the window and died, Scripture reports Paul raised the young man from the dead.

Answer: 14

Yes, Paul and Luke's ship was battered for 14 days, or two weeks. Scripture leaves no doubt the storm was severe. In Acts 27:18, it states the ship took "such a violent battering from the storm" the crew began to throw the cargo overboard. Acts 27:19-20 tells of the despair felt by the people on the ship: "On the third day, they threw the ship's tackle overboard with their own hands.

When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days and the storm continued raging, we finally gave up all hope of being saved."

Answer: He was bitten by a snake

According to Acts 28:2-3, once Paul's group was ashore, the islanders built a fire and welcomed them. Verse 3 states Paul gathered a pile of brushwood and, as he put it on the fire, a viper, driven out by the heat, fastened itself on his hand.

Scripture states the snake bite had no impact on Paul, much to the amazement of the islanders. Acts 28:4-6, in the NIV Bible, states: "When the islanders saw the snake hanging from his hand, they said to each other, 'This man must be a murderer; for though he escaped from the sea, Justice has not allowed him to live.' But Paul shook the snake off into the fire and suffered no ill effects. The people expected him to swell up or suddenly fall dead, but after waiting a long time and seeing nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and said he was a god."

Answer: Rome

The correct answer, of course, is Rome. While under arrest, it is believed Paul wrote a number of letters to members of the early church. Luke stayed faithfully by his side to the end, Scripture indicates. Incidentally the name Luke is a short form of Lucas which means 'bringer of light'. I find it ironic that never once did Luke attempt to hog the limelight.

Instead, he was content to work tirelessly behind the scenes and enlighten others on the way many Christians believe is the way to salvation.