The ABC's of the Bible- Theophilus

THEOPHILUS [thih AHF uh luhs] (lover of God) —

a Christian to whom Luke dedicated the Gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts (Luke 1:3; Acts 1:1). The fact that Luke spoke of Theophilus as “most excellent” indicates that he was a prominent man of high rank and possibly a Roman. He may have chosen the name when he was converted to Christianity. According to tradition, both Luke and Theophilus were natives of Antioch in Syria. Much speculation surrounds Theophilus, but little is known for certain about him. (Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Dictionary)

Imagine having two books written with you in mind that survive for over 2,000 years. Clearly God used this man as motivation for Luke's writing of the most thorough account of the life and ministry of Jesus. To borrow the inspired words in Romans, "Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!" (Romans 11:33)

Grace and Peace,
Stephen