Daily Bible Reading 24th February 2026 // Luke 1:1-4
1 Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, 2 just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us, 3 it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, 4 that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.
It should hardly need saying that the gospels were written from the standpoint of the resurrection and ascension of Christ and in the glad power and joy of Pentecost and the coming of the Spirit. They were therefore written - as Paul puts it in Romans 1:17 from faith to faith - that is, from the standpoint of faith and with the purpose of eliciting the response of faith in others, and building it up. This is surely the underlying purpose and concern in all Scripture - the creation and development of faith and the establishing of the Christian life on a strong and stable foundation. This is explicitly stressed by Luke in the introductory verses of his gospel, in the words: '...know the certainty of the things wherein thou hast been instructed', that is, that the Scriptures might become the foundation and basis of your life. This pattern and procedure that Luke says he is going to follow - 'things most surely believed among us' - is the message which the Holy Spirit is pleased to honour in the creating of faith in the hearts of men. Consider Acts 10:34-43. This is an important passage for scholars of the New Testament, for it is generally held to give a true synopsis of what is known as the 'apostolic kerugma', the fundamental message of the gospel as preached by the apostles of the early Church - the birth, life, ministry, death, resurrection and ascension of Christ, on the basis of which the offer of forgiveness is made and proclaimed to all who believe. This is the 'gospel', the good news concerning Jesus, which both brings faith to the birth, and establishes it in the lives of believers.