Luke 2

Some Bible experts say Luke got the history wrong when he said Jesus was born “after Quirinius became Syria’s governor” (Luke 2:2). As pointed out in the footnote, “Roman records report that in AD 6, perhaps a decade after Jesus was born, Rome appointed Quirinius as governor of Syria and ordered him to take a census of his district, which included what are now Israel and Palestinian Territories. Rome wanted this body count of Jews so they could estimate future tax money the empire could expect from them. There’s nothing on record yet about Quirinius conducting a census earlier, when Jesus was born. One theory is that Quirinius served two terms since this was ‘the first census,’ implying another one came later.” What do you think about that?

If you’re going to take a census, why order people back to their ancestral hometown, which required Joseph to make a four-day journey each way to “Bethlehem” (Luke 2:4)? Why not count them right where they are? There is no indication in Roman history that the Romans ordered people back to the home of their ancestors. As pointed out in the footnote, what do you think of the theory that says in this case the Romans may have been accommodating Jewish tradition that places a lot of value on family heritage?

When Joseph made the long trip south, “He took his fiancée, Mary, who was pregnant” (Luke 2:5). She wasn’t just pregnant. She was ready to deliver. Why do you think Joseph took her with him? A few guesses:

• They were married, though they had not had sex, which may be why Luke described Mary as “his fiancée” (Luke 2:5)—more literally, “pledged to him.”
• Joseph didn’t want to miss the birth of his son.
• Joseph was the only one willing to look after Mary at this point.
• Joseph didn’t want Mary to be alone when she delivered Jesus.

Jesus was born to poor parents in what amounts to a barn. His first bed was “a feeding trough” (Luke 2:7). So what? How could his humble beginnings have affected his life and his ministry?

The first birth announcement on record went to shepherds working the night shift, “keeping an eye on their sheep” (Luke 2:8). If God has a flair for the dramatic and a taste for metaphor, what do you think the value was in an angelic announcement like this to shepherds whose status on the social ladder was lower than dirt?

An angel told the shepherds that the child born in Bethlehem “is your Savior. He’s the Messiah, your Lord” (Luke 2:11). What kind of Savior do you think the shepherds thought the boy would be? In other words, how do you think they expected the Messiah to save them?

If the birth story of Jesus was this remarkable, why do you think Luke is the only one who writes about it? The other three Gospels skip these fascinating details. Matthew barely touches on the birth of Jesus. Mark and John don’t talk about the birth at all.

Twelve-year-old Jesus got separated from his parents for three days during the Passover celebration in Jerusalem. When his parents finally caught up with him and Mary started to scold him, he had an odd response: “Why did you have to search for me? I had to be here at my Father’s. Didn’t you know that?” (Luke 2:49). His parents didn’t know what he was talking about, and scholars today are left guessing. What guess would you toss into the mix?

LIFE APPLICATION. After the shepherds saw Jesus, “They couldn’t stop talking about what God’s angels had told them about this child” (Luke 2:17). If you consider yourself a follower of Jesus, what do you think are some of the most important things you have to say about him?

LIFE APPLICATION. Mary and Joseph dedicated Jesus because he was their first child, and Jewish law required that the first child be dedicated to God: “Dedicate every oldest son in every family to me” (Luke 2:23). If you have ever dedicated a child to God or had your child baptized, how did it make you feel? And if your child grew up and moved out, did it hit you that though you had once symbolically entrusted your child to God’s care, with your child leaving and out of your reach, you now had to literally entrust God with your child’s care?

LIFE APPLICATION. Jews had been waiting for a Messiah to free them from the Romans who had taken over their country. Simeon was an old man holding on to life until he could see the Messiah with his own eyes. That done, Simeon told God, “You are sending me off in peace, as you said you would” (Luke 2:29). What keeps dying people hanging on? What are some of the things they wait for, so they can die in peace?