Luke 9: The Chapter That Turns Toward Jerusalem

This is a long chapter doing a lot of structural work. The twelve are sent out with power and nothing to carry. Five thousand are fed from five loaves. Then, alone with the disciples, Jesus asks who people say he is, and Peter answers: “The Christ of God.” Within the same breath Jesus predicts his own suffering and death — a title and a cross, handed over together.

Read it in the terminal: bible luke 9

Glory on the mountain, failure at the bottom

Eight days later Jesus is transfigured before Peter, John, and James, talking with Moses and Elijah about his coming departure at Jerusalem. Coming down the mountain, the disciples who stayed behind have failed to heal a boy in convulsions — glory and inadequacy sit right next to each other in this Gospel.

What it actually costs

Three would-be followers get three different, uncomfortable answers: foxes have holes, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head; let the dead bury their own dead; no one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom. Discipleship here has no fine print — it’s stated plainly and it’s demanding.

“If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me.” — Luke 9:23

“No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the Kingdom of God.” — Luke 9:62

Questions for study

1. Why does Peter’s confession get followed immediately by a prediction of suffering rather than triumph?
2. What is the significance of Moses and Elijah discussing Jesus’s departure specifically at Jerusalem?
3. Why does Luke place a failed healing right after a scene of glory?
4. Which of the three would-be followers’ excuses is closest to your own hesitation?

cd .. cd ~ (back to terminal)