Great Expectations

4 December 2022 to 29 January 2023

Luke the Physician was likely an outsider and a second-generation follower of Jesus.
It appears from his writings he was deeply interested in people, and how the story of Jesus was relevant to everyone. Regardless of ethnicity, gender, socio-economic or class status, Luke’s gospel is a collection of stories of Jesus interactions with people. It is clear from this gospel that Jesus seeks to include everyone, even when it meant challenging the established social and power structures and those who benefit from the status quo.

Series Schedule

4 Dec	Intro: who wrote Luke & why? Luke 1:1-4	Matt
11 Dec	A Surprising Hope: Zechariah’s Song. Luke 1:5-80	Michael
18 Dec	The Coming King: Mary’s Song. Luke 1:26-56	Kylie
25 Dec	Birth of Jesus. Luke 2:1-21	Matt
1 Jan	The Boy Jesus. Luke 2:22-52	Matt
8 Jan	The Trial in the Wilderness: Baptism & Testing. Luke 4:1-15	Fiona
15 Jan	Jesus in the temple: Luke 4:14-30	Michael
22 Jan	Understanding Purpose: Luke 4:31-44	Matt
29 Jan	Jesus the Partygoer: Luke 5:27-39	Sean

Luke begins his story before Jesus’ birth and discusses the expectations of people who understood, or thought they understood, what was going to happen. He then shows how Jesus often confounded those expectations in beautiful and powerful ways. 

This gospel is based on research and investigation, as one would expect from a physician. Luke is not proposing theories or attempting to promote philosophical or religious ideas. Instead, his gospel is a report based on his findings.

As we explore this gospel, we will find he writes of a Saviour who embodies the value of ‘welcome’ that is Hobart Baptist’s theme for 2023. We will also find it a valuable roadmap for how we can navigate following Jesus in Hobart in the twenty-first century.

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