SOMETIMES, IT SEEMS like Hollywood is running out of ideas for new movies. Some sequels seem completely unnecessary and poorly written, designed only to sell tickets. And then there are the remakes. Classic animated films like DreamWorks’ 2010 How To Train Your Dragon, for example, or Disney’s 2002 Lilo and Stitch both got live-action makeovers in 2025. Both were commercial successes—which was the point of making them in the first place—but neither rated as highly as the originals, and neither was…well, original.

Or consider the original Star Wars movie, Episode IV: A New Hope, released in 1977. I remember the exhilaration of seeing that film with a friend. When we left the theater, we were pumped; if we had been going home in an X-wing fighter instead of a car, we would have blasting things off the road.

Then came Episode VII: The Force Awakens, released in 2015. I saw that one in the theater, too. Technically, it wasn’t a remake—but in many places, it sure felt like one. I was especially ambivalent about the climactic ending. On the one hand, it was the ending the story needed, and was therefore satisfying. But on the other, I was thinking, Really? You couldn’t come up with something new? If you haven’t seen the movies, watch them together and judge for yourself.

Now: imagine reading all four gospels in a row for the first time, one after the other. You’ve just finished reading Matthew and Mark, and now you’re starting on the gospel of Luke (the evangelist, not the Jedi). As you move through the story, you repeatedly think to yourself, Yes, yes, that sounds familiar. Didn’t I just read about that? Then you get to John, and are surprised by how different it is. Indeed, it’s the similarities between Matthew, Mark, and Luke that make the uniqueness of John stand out in bold relief.

You’re not wrong. The fourth gospel is markedly different than the other three; that’s why scholars refer to Matthew, Mark, and Luke collectively as the Synoptics, meaning that these three gospels share a common point of view.

It would be a mistake, however, to treat Luke as a mere remake of Mark. Yes, some of the scenes are identical. But there’s much that’s unique to Luke, and such differences help us understand what Luke is wanting to accomplish in his version of the story.

Think, for example, about how Luke begins and ends the gospel. Nobody else narrates the birth of John the Baptist, the relationship between Elizabeth and Mary, or Mary’s song glorifying God. At the other end, nobody else mentions how the risen Jesus appeared to two of his followers on the Emmaus Road, nor how he appeared to the Eleven afterward, nor how he subsequently ascended into heaven.

In between, there are several miracle stories unique to Luke, such as the raising of a widow’s dead son in chapter 7, or the healing of ten lepers in chapter 17. And there are numerous parables which appear only in Luke, such as the story of the so-called Good Samaritan in chapter 10, or of the Prodigal Son in chapter 15, or of the Pharisee and the tax collector in chapter 18.

But again, this isn’t simply a matter of Luke including things that others leave out. We can’t just do a cut-and-paste, taking what’s unique to Luke and dropping it into one of the other gospels. Luke includes these stories for a reason.

For example, consider Mary’s song in Luke 1, the canticle known in church tradition as the Magnificat. When Mary visits her cousin Elizabeth, who’s pregnant with John the Baptist, Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit and blesses Mary for being the one who will give birth to the Savior. In response, Mary praises God aloud. Her song ends with these words:

He has helped his servant Israel,
    remembering to be merciful
to Abraham and his descendants forever,
    just as he promised our ancestors. (Luke 1:54-55, NIV)

Later, when Joseph and Mary take the baby Jesus to the Jerusalem temple for his consecration, a man named Simeon takes the infant in his arms and praises God:

Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,
    you may now dismiss your servant in peace.
For my eyes have seen your salvation,
    which you have prepared in the sight of all nations:
a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
    and the glory of your people Israel. (Luke 2:29-32)

What Luke is conveying through these episodes is that God’s ancient promises to Abraham are fulfilled in Jesus—and that the salvation promised is not merely for the Jews, but for the Gentiles. Luke, remember, was a companion to Paul and was deeply involved in the Gentile mission. It makes sense that he would begin his telling of the story of Jesus on a note that anticipated the story of the book of Acts.

Or consider Jesus’ post-resurrection appearances to his disciples on the road to Emmaus and in Jerusalem. When Cleopas and his friend fail to recognize the risen Jesus, and tell him—ironically!—how confused they are about the resurrection, Luke tells us that Jesus “explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself,” from Moses to the Prophets (24:27).

Similarly, later in Jerusalem, Jesus told the Eleven, “Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms” and then “opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures” (vss. 44-45). This reinforces the theme that everything that happened in the story of Jesus was the fulfillment of ancient prophecy.

Such a message should have resonated with Jews. But why would that matter to a Gentile like Luke?

The continuity between the gospel and the prophecies of old was of great practical importance. The Roman Empire was ready to crush any uprising that it viewed as subversive, but it was also tolerant and respectful toward ancient religions, including Judaism.

So, how was the empire to view Christianity? As an upstart religion? Or as the true expression of ancient Judaism? Luke wanted Theophilus to understand and promote it as the latter, to reassure Gentile converts that Rome would tolerate their existence.

The Jesus movement, in other words, was the embodiment of God’s longstanding plan for his people. But what kind of people would they be? Let’s consider what Luke has to say about that next.