All About Luke, The Man
In order to understand the Gospel of Luke, you must first know something about the man who wrote that book.
Luke was the only Gentile writer of the entire Bible. That means his writing was aimed at the Gentiles and not at the Jews. He rarely refers to the Old Testament prophecy that the Jews favored.
Luke was not a disciple of Jesus or an eyewitness of Jesus' deeds. He relied on written sources from others. He carefully investigated and arranged his material, according to Luke 1:1-4.
Luke was also a physician and had the compassion of a family doctor. He was socially minded. That means he favored the downcast, widows, orphans, and the despised.
His name means "Luminous" which means "Light."
He is also the author of The Acts of the Apostles. Therefore, the Gospel of Luke continues in Acts which covers events after the death, burial, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ.
Even though Paul wrote 13 books in the New Testament, Luke's two writings make up more than Paul's. For example, the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles account for 27.5% of the New Testament, the largest contribution by a single author. The Gospel and Luke and Acts are usually taught together in some Bible schools.
Because Luke was Paul's traveling companion on his missionary journey, Luke is mentioned in several of Paul's books such as Colossians, 2 Timothy, and Philemon.
Luke lived to be 84 years old.
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