The Confused Tetrarch and A Mass Meal

This is the Bible study page for the Thursday Night Bible Study Group meeting March 10 to study Luke 9:1-17.  This passage brings up to Peter's confession and the Transfiguration.  There's plenty to discuss just in this passage though.

Be sure to read through a few times in various translations jotting down notes.  You should have plenty of questions, especially if you look through the parallel passages in Matthew, Mark and John! The feeding of five thousand is one of the few things that made into all four Gospels.  Try, in each case to put yourself in the scene with the twelve and Jesus (and some kid with a huge lunch?).

After you've come up with your own questions, look through commentaries, and see what sort of answers and additional questions you come up with.  If you have access to a couple of commentaries, see what differences even between them you see.  These may be favorite stories of Jesus, but they are not always agreed upon by teachers and Bible teachers.

After all that, see if you can come up with a single main point to the "sending out of the twelve", and then a single point to the feeding of the five thousand.  What do you think Luke is saying Jesus' main point is?  Let's share those as we open each section; single summary points.

After all that work on your part, if you feel up to it, go back through with the questions below:

• Jesus gives the twelve "power" and "authority" over both "demons" and "disease".  What do you think the connection is between demons and disease for Luke?  He's a doctor, so why do you think he saw the solution to these two things as "power" and "authority" rather than medicine?
• The two-fold purpose in their being sent is proclaiming good news (preach the gospel) of the Kingdom of God and healing.  How is the same or different today?  If it's the same, why aren't we doing both?
• In Luke's version of this story, they are to take nothing.  At least in Mark they could take a staff.  In Matthew, it's back to nothing, and this isn't in John.  Why do you think it was important to be so dependent on their journey?
• What do you think about the point to remain with the initial hosts?
• "Shake the dust off your feet" has become a cultural idiom within our culture.  In fact we've shortened it to "shake it off" in may cases.  What does this concept mean to you?
• The twelve seemed pretty effective everywhere. What does this tell you about the power and authority Jesus gave them in verse 1?
• The passage about Herod can be somewhat confusing.  What do you think is Luke's basic point in mentioning Herod?
• Herod is concerned because he beheaded John the Baptist, but with the other options, why do you think Herod wants to see Jesus?  Why do you think it was so hard for him to see Jesus?  Who was too busy?
•  The disciples return and Jesus takes them to Bethsaida.  See if you can locate where this might be on a map.  If Bethsaida is a town, why would they need to dismiss the crowd to the surrounding villages? What's the possibility that Luke has "stitched" two accounts together?  There are lots of problems with such a view, but did you have any commentaries that suggested it?
• Jesus tries to get the disciples alone, but welcomes the following crowd.  Why do you think Jesus would have not tried more emphatically to get His disciples some time alone?
• What Jesus does is essentially the same as what the disciples were just doing really well.  Why do you think this is such a foundational ministry concept for Luke?
• The disciples urge Jesus to send the people away, but He tells them to solve the problem.  They've just been doing what Jesus spent the day doing.  Why do you think it was so difficult for them to think ahead to what He was intending do to?
• They had five loaves and two fish. This is a consistent detail among the Gospel accounts.  Why do you think such a detail stuck out so clearly to all four Gospel writers?  Okay, so what is five and two? So, in "biblical numerology" what is the significance of seven?
• Most Gospel writers note that Jesus looks into heaven.  Why do you think this is significant for the blessing?  
• Matthew, Mark and John all make a point of mentioning the grass (John says it's green grass and lots of it).  Why do you think this is not a pertinent point for Luke?
• In each case they gather up 12 baskets of left-overs.  Again, "biblical numerology" is probably a point here, so what do you think it means, especially starting with seven and going to twelve?
• Why do you think this event is so important for understanding Jesus and His ministry that all Gospels include it?

Keep in mind the main point for these two (sending out the twelve and feeding five thousand).  What about these accounts gives you a "wake-up call"?  If your honest about what you see here and in your own life, what do you need to do different?  Jot those down as notes as well!

See you Thursday!