Daily Devotions
Luke
Luke 9:18-21 ( Matthew 14:13-21; Mark 6:27-31 ) "ALONE PRAYING..." Luke 9:18"
Day 109 – Luke 9
Text: Luke 9:18-21 ( Matthew 14:13-21; Mark 6:27-31 )
“ALONE PRAYING…” Luke 9:18
Once again, Luke noted that Jesus set aside time to pray. It is obvious that Luke was deeply impressed with the prayer life of the Lord Jesus. From time to time, Luke would make mention of the fact that Jesus would withdraw into the wilderness to pray (Cf. Luke 4:42; 5:16; 6:12; 9:18).
No matter how big the crowds may be, no matter how tiring the ministry may be, Jesus always made time to pray! We often give the “perfect excuse”. We complain that we just “have no time”!
Luke also noted that the Disciples of the Lord Jesus had not yet mastered the discipline of spending time in prayer, and thus the phrase, “He was alone praying” must be read with poignancy. He was alone… in prayer!
EVALUATION TIME!
As the Disciples joined their Master after He had finished praying, they were asked a startling question,
“Who do the crowds say that I am?”
Luke 9:18
The crowds had not decided as to how they should read Jesus. Their opinions were divided. Luke had been carefully recording what the crowds felt about Jesus at different stages of His public ministry. Had their opinions changed after He had taught and healed in their cities? Let’s trace the various opinions made by the crowds concerning Jesus:-
1. “So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth. And they said, “Is this not Joseph’s son?” Luke 4:22(At Nazareth)
2. “Then they were all amazed and spoke among themselves, saying, ‘What a word this is! For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out!’ ”
Luke 4:36 (At Capernaum).
3. “And they were all amazed, and they glorified God and were filled with fear, saying, ‘We have seen strange things today!’ ” Luke 5:26 (Name of city not stated)
4. “Then fear came upon all, and they glorified God, saying, ‘A great prophet has risen up among us’ and, ‘God has visited His people.’ ” Luke 7:16 (At Nain)
The crowds had been impressed. The power of Jesus was noted! Many glorified God and were amazed at the mighty things that Jesus did!
Had the people made further progress in their knowledge and understanding of who Jesus really was? There had been some progress. Jesus was first regarded as “Joseph’s son” to being “a great prophet”!
The Disciples added to the collection of statements that went around:-
5. Jesus was identified as “John the Baptizer” . Luke 9:19
6. He was also thought to be “Elijah”. Luke 9:19
7. Still others thought that He was one of the “old prophets” who had “risen again”. Luke 9:19
Many opinions! No matter how many miracles Jesus had performed before their very eyes, they did not come to the full truth. No matter what Jesus taught, and how skillfully He taught, the hearts of the people were unable to comprehend who He really was!
“BUT WHO DO YOU SAY THAT I AM?” Luke 9:20
This was a crucial question that the Disciples must get right! The Disciples had been deeply taught! They had been personally taught! Could they comprehend who Jesus was?
Peter’s answer was straightforward! Without hesitation, he replied,
“The Christ of God.”
Luke 9:20
Luke’s recording of Peter’s Confession was very much more truncated. In Matthew’s account of this episode, a greater amount of space was given to explain what is meant by the term, “The Christ of God”. (We must note that though only Peter’s view was recorded, all his fellow-disciples, except Judas Iscariot , shared his belief. Andrew, the brother of Peter, was the one who introduced Peter to the Lord Jesus Christ. Right from the start, Andrew was sure that he “had found the Messiah” John 1:41).
This is understandable, because Matthew was deeply concerned about proving to his Jewish readers that Jesus was indeed none other than the Messiah, the Anointed One of God. Thus, he spent time in his Gospel narrative to explain that this understanding of the identity of Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the Living God, was nothing short of a special blessing and revelation from God Himself (Matthew. 16:16-17).
Luke was writing for a non-Jewish readership. They would not be able to fully appreciate the complexities that surround this profoundly theological truth – of identifying Jesus as the Messiah (Christ) of God. Nevertheless, it was important to state the fact that Peter was correct in declaring that Jesus was indeed the Christ of God. He was the specially Anointed One of God. His miracles especially proved His identity!
A “STRANGE” COMMAND
It was important that Jesus examined the understanding of His Disciples. They must show that they had greater discernment than the multitudes. The Disciples had passed this test! They had come to faith in Jesus as the Christ of God right from the start. Their opinion of Jesus and their faith in Him had not faltered, even though so many had expressed erroneous, defective and contrary views concerning the Identity of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Disciples then heard a strange command from the lips of Jesus. They were told not to make this knowledge known. “And He strictly warned and commanded them to tell this to no one…” (Luke 9:21). Why did Jesus command His Disciples thus?