Most Excellent Theophilus

As I was preparing for my next Sunday school study on the life of Jesus, I was stopped in my tracks three lines into the Gospel of Luke:

Having carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I also have decided to write a careful account for you, most honorable Theophilus, so you can be certain of the truth of everything you were taught (Luke 1:3-4, NLT).

The NIV uses the scripting, “most excellent Theophilus.”  The only other time this Theophilus is mentioned in the Bible is in the beginning of Acts, when Luke addresses that letter to him as well.  Upon further study of online reviews, it seems clear that this is literally all we know about him.  Two of the most historic and culture-changing letters were written to him, and later canonized to become scripture and read by billions over two thousand years. It appears he may have been a person of rank, given the description “most excellent Theophilus.”  Yet all we really know about him is his name, and all that really matters is that he completed one big task for all future civilization, which was to share these letters.  

It appears that this is a personal letter, sent directly to him.  Clearly it was a letter of significance, which was long and intended for beyond average use.  If Theophilus was truly a man of influence, it was his task to use that influence to share this story in more lasting ways.  The Bible tells us only what we need to know.  We can conclude he was given a wealth of important information in the form of two personal letters, and he shared them in lasting ways. 

I wonder how our perspective would change if we looked at our lives in a similar way.  We spend so much time focusing on our job, our hobbies, our responsibilities, and our daily routines.  Yet all that really matters in the whole scheme of man is what we do for God’s kingdom.  Theophilus likely had a job, hobbies, responsibilities, and daily routines too, and all we know about him and all that is recorded about him as a man of rank during his time is this— he got two letters from Luke, and he shared them.  

We can never know the lasting influence we will have in God’s plan.  In the end, the story is not about us, our accomplishments, or our abilities.  We are called to be faithful and obey.