Luke was known as the beloved physician in Colossians 4:14. In his book of Acts, Luke uses the pronoun we beginning in Acts 16, suggesting he was a traveling companion and close friend of the apostle Paul. In fact, scholars have suggested Luke’s gospel is different than the other 2 synoptic gospels, Matthew and Mark, because Luke was influenced by Paul’s teaching.
However, as I was meditating on the book of Acts, a thought came to my mind. Was Luke able to successfully heal each of his patients? If not, did Luke hear or see Jesus personally heal someone that medicine and science of his day failed him? John 21:25 tells us that the Bible limits Jesus’ miracles to only the gospels. If every detail was expounded upon, we might likely discover that doctor Luke had become one of Jesus’ patients.
The passage which suggests my theory is found in Luke 5:27-32. The context is the calling of Matthew, a descendant of the tribe of Levi, to become one of Jesus’ disciples. Up until now, the disciples had been blue collar workers, common people, fishermen. Here, Jesus adds a tax collector to his group of 12, completed in Luke 6:12-16. This appears to fascinate Luke, yet Jesus’ words in Luke 5:31-32 likely perked his interest further. According to Jesus, the righteous don’t need a doctor. The righteous are expected to be able to take care of themselves. Jesus’ main concern here are the sick and sinners. Upon hearing Jesus’ words, Luke was likely transformed, leading him to become a patient and follower of Jesus.
by Jay Mankus
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