Welcome to the New Testament

We start our reading from the New Testament with the gospel of Luke. Luke wrote both the book of Acts and the Gospel of Luke, most likely around the same time. Many think that it was written around 60-61 AD. Many think that he wrote the book of Acts around 61-62 AD and that is why the book of Acts ends so quickly as Paul is still awaiting trial in Rome. One of the most interesting things about both the Gospel of Luke and Acts is who Luke was writing to.
It says in verse 3 that he wrote the letter to "most excellent Theophilus." When someone was called most excellent they were generally very important political figures and some believe this person was a relative of Caesar. Others think it was just a general statement by Luke because the name Theophilus means "Lover of God" so they say it was written for all who love God. Others say that this was the person that had paid for Luke's education to become a doctor, and the list goes on and on.
While this does not have anything to do with salvation, baptism, or any other great theological issue it is neat to think about all those in the New Testament that we really don't know anything about. Of course we know Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. We have all heard of Peter, and Paul, but who was Theophilus? Was he a friend of the church? Was he a believer at all? Was this an influential person that Luke was trying to convert so the gospel could be advanced even further? Perhaps we will never know. Like the Old Testament, the New is full of mystery and wonder for those who dare to read it and dwell on such things. It's gonna be a great Fall for those who continue to stick with the 1-92 challenge.

Do some of your own research on this guy and see what you can dig up.