Jesus, the Centurion's Servant and the Widow's Son

It's easy, when reading through Luke, to think that the stories he includes are just random pieces he picked out from the assorted events of Jesus' life.  We know that Luke only includes a small portion of all the many things Jesus did.  So we also know that Luke didn't include stories in order to give us a complete picture of everything Jesus ever said and did.  So why does Luke include the stories he does?

Every story he includes in his account has layers of meaning.  It's helpful (and kind of fun) to sort through the different reasons for why each story is included. 

For the story of the Centurion and the Widow, we think of Deuteronomy 10v18: He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the foreigners residing among you, giving them food and clothing.  We also think of the teaching in Luke 6v36: Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.  These stories connect the work of Jesus with the original Torah; it also connects his teachings with Torah, as well as his works.  Jesus is a man, a teacher, a prophet, a healer of integrity.

This story of the Centurion and the Widow connects Jesus with the great prophet Elijah, who was sent to a foreign widow to heal her son (see also Jesus' straight-up talk with his neighbors at Nazareth).  Malachi (the last prophet of the OT) ends his prophecy by declaring that Elijah will return and will turn (same word as "repent") the children to their Fathers (Israel to God) and Father to the children (mercy and forgiveness).

This story of the Centurion and the Widow show Jesus as very human: he is amazed by the centurion's faith, and he is moved to compassion by the widow's mourning.  The healing of the centurion's servant was initiated by the town elders (who argued that Jesus OUGHT to heal the servant because of all the good stuff the soldier had done for the town).  Jesus was open to requests even if made with mixed motives.  The healing of the widow's son came about as a random act of kindness.

Up through Luke 9v50, Jesus' ministry is concentrated in the Capernaum area, in Galilee.  This reminds us of Isaiah's prophecy in 9v1: but in the future [God] will honor Galilee of the nations...the people walking in darkness have seen a great light....  Luke is giving us specific stories that reveal how the light of God was breaking through in Galilee - raising of the dead, healing of foreigners, healing on the Sabbath, healing of the paralyzed, the demon-possessed, the leprous, the blind, the deaf, the lame, etc.  And all of this also sets up the next story of Jesus and John the Baptist.  But that's another post.

So know do you see more reasons for why Luke included the story of the Centurion and the Widow?