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Outsiders: The Story Luke Tells About The People Jesus Loves
Each Gospel in the New Testament aims to accomplish something to show Jesus as the Jewish Messiah and the fulfillment of every to get every person swept up into the drama of God’s coming to convey the scandalous love of a relentless God.Luke has a different approach. Rather than simply learn about Jesus through his book, Luke wants his readers to develop a skill. A habit. Whereas Matthew, Mark, and John write to get us to see Jesus, Luke writes to get us to see as Jesus sees.
The subtle difference is a cosmic shift when played out in reality. Luke’s Gospel is less of a textbook to be studied and more of an invitation to be accepted. Therefore, we might say his purpose is the following.
to magnify the minority, as Jesus does.There’s a modern analogy which I think parallels what Luke was trying to accomplish all those centuries ago when the world first began to be invaded by the kingdom of God.
When I was in grade school, my mom bought a picture for the wall in our basement. It was a repeating pattern of blue and green swirls interrupted by black and orange dots. She hung it right above the couch and then motioned for my brother and me to come stare at it.
As we stared into the very odd picture (which did not match anything else of my mom’s “style”), mom stared back at us. She was just waiting there, anticipating some reaction. Not wanting to disappoint, I told her “yeah mom, I really like it – all the blue and stuff”.
“No” she replied, “what do you see in the picture?” I literally had no idea what she was talking about. Hadn’t I just stared at the picture for the last minute? What else was there to see?
Mom came over, placed her hands on the side of my head to direct my gaze, and told me to look into the picture. “Don’t just look at the swirls” she said, “what are the swirls hiding?”
So I concentrated and stared as hard as my little brain would allow me to. And then…it happened. The picture shifted in my mind’s eye. I started to see the outline of a horse. Just barely at first. But then I got it. I saw the picture beyond the picture.
If you’ve never seen a stereogram (which is the name for this optical illusion), it can be pretty frustrating the first time you try to break through the patterned image. But once you do, once your brain makes the shift between what is out in front and what is underneath, it’s almost impossible to go back. You see the hidden image every time. Your brain adjusts to the new pattern. The deeper picture.
This is what we find in Luke’s Gospel. A stereogram in writing form. On the surface, another perspective of the same Jesus stories. Beneath, an invitation to do everything differently. To see and act and spend and fight and preach and serve in a whole new way.
So how does this radical shift take place? Not by explaining to us a what, but rather, by introducing us to a who.
Welcome to the story Luke tells, about the people Jesus loves…
The subtle difference is a cosmic shift when played out in reality. Luke’s Gospel is less of a textbook to be studied and more of an invitation to be accepted. Therefore, we might say his purpose is the following.
to magnify the minority, as Jesus does.There’s a modern analogy which I think parallels what Luke was trying to accomplish all those centuries ago when the world first began to be invaded by the kingdom of God.
When I was in grade school, my mom bought a picture for the wall in our basement. It was a repeating pattern of blue and green swirls interrupted by black and orange dots. She hung it right above the couch and then motioned for my brother and me to come stare at it.
As we stared into the very odd picture (which did not match anything else of my mom’s “style”), mom stared back at us. She was just waiting there, anticipating some reaction. Not wanting to disappoint, I told her “yeah mom, I really like it – all the blue and stuff”.
“No” she replied, “what do you see in the picture?” I literally had no idea what she was talking about. Hadn’t I just stared at the picture for the last minute? What else was there to see?
Mom came over, placed her hands on the side of my head to direct my gaze, and told me to look into the picture. “Don’t just look at the swirls” she said, “what are the swirls hiding?”
So I concentrated and stared as hard as my little brain would allow me to. And then…it happened. The picture shifted in my mind’s eye. I started to see the outline of a horse. Just barely at first. But then I got it. I saw the picture beyond the picture.
If you’ve never seen a stereogram (which is the name for this optical illusion), it can be pretty frustrating the first time you try to break through the patterned image. But once you do, once your brain makes the shift between what is out in front and what is underneath, it’s almost impossible to go back. You see the hidden image every time. Your brain adjusts to the new pattern. The deeper picture.
This is what we find in Luke’s Gospel. A stereogram in writing form. On the surface, another perspective of the same Jesus stories. Beneath, an invitation to do everything differently. To see and act and spend and fight and preach and serve in a whole new way.
So how does this radical shift take place? Not by explaining to us a what, but rather, by introducing us to a who.
Welcome to the story Luke tells, about the people Jesus loves…
163 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 2, 2019
62 people are currently reading
29 people want to read
About the author
David Ramos
68 books26 followersDavid Ramos is a content marketing and publishing expert with over 10 years of experience writing online. He lives in Cleveland, Ohio (aka The Forest City) with his wife, Breahna, and their dog, Ajax.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
July 21, 2019
Where do you stand?
David Ramos gives us insight into our lives. We are either standing inside the story of Jesus or outside. Most of us want to be inside, up close,and connected. We want to raise our eyes to heaven and declare, " I thank you, God, that I am not like other men. " Ramos, however, demonstrates through a series of vignettes from the gospel of Luke that it is the outsiders who return to their homes justified. Jesus wades through the crowds of insiders and barely notices them, but his attention is arrested by the cry or the touch or the sound of their mite dropping into the offering. He stops and takes notice of the ones the insiders ignore. With Jesus as our example, we do well to stop and notice the outsiders who cross our paths and recognize our own countenance in their faces.
David Ramos gives us insight into our lives. We are either standing inside the story of Jesus or outside. Most of us want to be inside, up close,and connected. We want to raise our eyes to heaven and declare, " I thank you, God, that I am not like other men. " Ramos, however, demonstrates through a series of vignettes from the gospel of Luke that it is the outsiders who return to their homes justified. Jesus wades through the crowds of insiders and barely notices them, but his attention is arrested by the cry or the touch or the sound of their mite dropping into the offering. He stops and takes notice of the ones the insiders ignore. With Jesus as our example, we do well to stop and notice the outsiders who cross our paths and recognize our own countenance in their faces.
October 27, 2019
The author takes you on a biblical journey through the book of Luke looking at the stories of the "outsiders". These are the people we often overlook in typical Bible studies. Instead of the heroic, strong men and women of the faith, they are seen as weak, powerless and not someone we would want to be like. But the truth we can glean from their lives is as equally important as any person from the Bible. One of my personal favorites is the man who is paralyzed and his tenacious friends. Their dogged determination to reach the Savior and unwavering faith in the face of adversity shows us what we can accomplish when we focus on getting to Jesus in our own lives. I return to this story over and over again and enjoyed the author's interpretation of it. I think you'll find this book a refreshing take on a story you thought you already knew.
September 2, 2021
Definitely worth reading
I really enjoyed this book. I like devotions that encourage actually reading Scripture and then studying and going into depth about what we just read. The way he puts the stories of the Bible that we have read time and again into perspective and explains the setting and time period that I wss not familiar with was so helpful. Wish he'd write more like this for more books of the Bible.
I really enjoyed this book. I like devotions that encourage actually reading Scripture and then studying and going into depth about what we just read. The way he puts the stories of the Bible that we have read time and again into perspective and explains the setting and time period that I wss not familiar with was so helpful. Wish he'd write more like this for more books of the Bible.
November 4, 2019
Excellent
Thought provoking. Gives a new perspective on Jesus and His ministry. Most of us are outsiders in one way or another, and Ramos shows how Jesus intended inclusivity, not exclusivity.
Thought provoking. Gives a new perspective on Jesus and His ministry. Most of us are outsiders in one way or another, and Ramos shows how Jesus intended inclusivity, not exclusivity.
January 22, 2025
Inspiring and focused.
Faith inspiring read. Seeking Christians will truly be blessed to realize we are all outsiders not just due to individual circumstances - but more because of our calling to let God arise in our own lives.
Well done!
Faith inspiring read. Seeking Christians will truly be blessed to realize we are all outsiders not just due to individual circumstances - but more because of our calling to let God arise in our own lives.
Well done!
July 16, 2020
I enjoyed this book
Very well written and easy to read. I enjoyed reading the authors different perspectives. A lovely book about Jesus and his great love for us.
Very well written and easy to read. I enjoyed reading the authors different perspectives. A lovely book about Jesus and his great love for us.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews