Good News Of Great Joy: Lessons From The Gospel Of LukeSample

"Introduction: The Gospel of Knowing For Sure"

The Gospel of Luke was written to give greater certainty about the person and work of Jesus Christ. Knowing that some people—even faithful believers—sometimes have their doubts about “the Good News of Great Joy,” Luke sat down to write “the Gospel of Knowing for Sure.” The Gospel of Luke is a historically accurate, painstakingly researched, and well organized account of the life of Jesus. It is a systematic and chronologically narrated biography of Jesus Christ written so that you and I may have certainty concerning the things that we have been taught (Luke 1:4). 

We believe the gospel, but sometimes we are tempted not to, and thus we long to have greater assurance of our faith. The Westminster Confession of Faith wisely admits that “faith is different in degrees, weak or strong,” and that it “may be often and many ways assailed, and weakened” (14.3). If we are sometimes tempted to have our doubts, this does not mean that we are not Christians. It simply means that we are sinners who are struggling to live by faith. But God calls us to grow in our faith, seeking what the Confession calls “the attainment of a full assurance, through Christ” (14.3). 

How do we know for sure? Luke gives us the answer at the beginning of his Gospel. We do not become certain by looking at our own outstanding spiritual performance. If the assurance of our faith rested on our own ability to follow God, we could never be sure. Nor does assurance come by going back to the moment when we first trusted in Jesus, as if our conversion experience could save us. Assurance does not come by looking within or by having some special experience. The only way we become sure of our salvation is by looking to Jesus. 

The following devotional guide for the Advent, Christmas, and New Year season searches the Gospel of Luke for references to the “Good News of Great Joy” as it relates to Christ’s birth, death, and resurrection. These pages explore the “Good News” in the context of Jesus’ life on earth as well as through the various ways in which it was communicated to and through faithful believers like Zechariah and Elizabeth, John the Baptist, the Virgin Mary, the women at the empty tomb, and Jesus’ disciples.