New “Luke in the Land” Bible Study | Read an Excerpt
July 30, 2024BruceDayneToday we’re sharing an excerpt from Lifeway Women’s new Bible study Luke in the Land by Kristi McLelland. Learn more about this impactful new Bible study!
Many things made Jesus unique as a Rabbi of Israel in the first-century Jewish world. Historically, Jesus wasn’t the only one claiming to be the Messiah. He wasn’t the only one performing miracles. He wasn’t the only one who could heal people. He wasn’t the only one who could cast out demons. Interestingly enough, these weren’t necessarily the things that made Him unique, although they certainly made Him stand out.
Luke emphasized three things that made Jesus a profoundly unique Rabbi in His first-century Jewish world.
1. JESUS PRACTICED TABLE FELLOWSHIP WITH UNLIKELY GUESTS.
He often ate with tax collectors and sinners, with the am ha aretz (people of the land).1 Remember, table fellowship was vitally important in Jesus’s world. Jesus, the great Rabbi, was welcoming, embracing, and accepting sinners at His table, affiliating with them and sharing meals with them.
Jesus earned a negative reputation among religious leaders for this table fellowship practice (Matt. 11:19). I smile every time I read Matthew 11:19, and I often ask myself the question: How much was Jesus eating and drinking with tax collectors and sinners that He was called a “drunkard” and a “glutton”? I imagine it was A LOT!
2. JESUS INCLUDED WOMEN AS HIS DISCIPLES.
In Luke 10, we see Mary sitting at Jesus’s feet. This was a formal phrase, used for disciples of a rabbi. In this well-known story, Mary’s sister, Martha, tells Jesus that she is worried about the work Mary is not helping her with. However, Jesus responds to her, saying, “you are worried and upset about many things” (v. 41). It may be that Mary was upset about more than shared meal responsibilities. Perhaps, her worries included her sister’s position, sitting at Jesus’s feet among the male disciples—an unusual scene around a rabbi at that time.
In Luke 8, we will see a list of female talmidim (Hebrew for disciples) traveling in itinerant fashion with Jesus and the other disciples. Three are listed: Mary Magdalene, Joanna the wife of Chuza, and Susanna; and then we read the phrase “and many others” (vv. 1-3). We know these women were providing financial support along the way. However, if they were only providing financial support, they could have given their financial gifts and stayed home. Instead, they are present— traveling with Jesus and bearing witness to Him bringing heaven to earth, the kingdom of God to the ground.
JESUS CHOSE HIS DISCIPLES.
Jesus’s culture was one in which people chose their rabbis. The lesser reached for the greater. Rabbi comes from the Hebrew root rav, which carries the meaning of “great, large or much.”2 To have the honor of being the disciple of a “great one” was a high honor indeed, one worth pursuing.
Jesus came on the scene and started doing the choosing. The greater was reaching for the lesser and inviting them to be His talmidim (disciples). This would be like Michael Jordan choosing you to play on the Chicago Bulls with him. Or Tiger Woods inviting you to play golf with him in a PGA championship tournament. Or the late Aretha Franklin hearing you sing and inviting you on tour to sing with her. The examples could go on and on.
Can you imagine four, ordinary, common, Jewish fisherman; two sets of brothers—Peter and Andrew, James and John— living an average day in their fishermen lives when Jesus shows up, and chooses them to be four of His disciples? Jesus meets them right where they are. With beautiful, poetic language, he extends an invitation and a calling—“Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people” (Luke 5:10). A great rav of Israel was standing in front of them, choosing and inviting them to go somewhere and do something with Him. The greater was reaching for the lesser.
Want to learn more about the Luke in the Land Bible study? Watch the short video below or view a free sample and teaching video clips at lifeway.com/lukeintheland.
And check out this early release of a bonus session from Luke in the Land as Kristi shares how much this study means to her as she reflects on her time filming in Israel in September 2023.
And here are some fun wallpapers for your desktop and phone! Click the text below to download the wallpapers featuring the road to Emmaus in Israel.
Works Cited
- The Mishnah: Translated from the Hebrew with Introduction and Brief Explanatory Notes (United States: Hendrickson Publishers, 2011), Ketubbot 5:2.
- “Strong’s G5045,” Blue Letter Bible, accessed March 22, 2024, https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g5045/niv/mgnt/0-1/.
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