<Tr> <Td> Ascension of Jesus (24: 50--53) This box: <Ul> <Li> view </Li> <Li> talk </Li> <Li> edit </Li> </Ul> </Td> </Tr> <Ul> <Li> view </Li> <Li> talk </Li> <Li> edit </Li> </Ul> <P> Following the author's preface addressed to his patron and the two birth narratives (John the Baptist and Jesus), the gospel opens in Galilee and moves gradually to its climax in Jerusalem: </P> <Ol> <Li> A brief preface addressed to Theophilus stating the author's aims; </Li> <Li> Birth and infancy narratives for both Jesus and John the Baptist, interpreted as the dawn of the promised era of Israel's salvation; </Li> <Li> Preparation for Jesus' messianic mission: John's prophetic mission, his baptism of Jesus, and the testing of Jesus' vocation; </Li> <Li> The beginning of Jesus' mission in Galilee, and the hostile reception there; </Li> <Li> The central section: the journey to Jerusalem, where Jesus knows he must meet his destiny as God's prophet and messiah; </Li> <Li> His mission in Jerusalem, culminating in confrontation with the leaders of the Jewish Temple; </Li> <Li> His last supper with his most intimate followers, followed by his arrest, interrogation, and crucifixion; </Li> <Li> God's validation of Jesus as Christ: events from the first Easter to the Ascension, showing Jesus' death to be divinely ordained, in keeping with both scriptural promise and the nature of messiahship, and anticipating the story of Acts . </Li> </Ol>

Where does the book of luke take place