The Holy Spirit As Legitimator of Mission in Luke-Acts by Francis
1 Overcoming Resistance: The Holy Spirit as Legitimator of Mission in Luke-Acts by Francis Innocent Otobo BST, GradDip (Biblical Studies) A thesis submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Divinity 2019 2 Abstract This thesis argues that the Holy Spirit in Luke-Acts functions to legitimate the mission to the nations for the Jewish followers of Jesus, whilst at the same time engaging with Greco-Roman pneumatic experiences to encourage Gentile (‘ethnic’) believers in their acceptance of the faith. This is a more unifying reading of the role of the Holy Spirit in Luke-Acts than has been proffered by earlier scholars in that it also affirms previous insights into Lukan connections with the ‘Spirit of the Lord’ and prophecy in the OT, and with broader mission themes. Using a narrative approach together with careful exegesis of selected texts, I show that the Spirit is used to address the challenges of ethnic diversity in the implied audience of the Lukan communities — for both the resisting Jewish Christian reader and those from diverse ethnic backgrounds. The thesis builds on the work of many scholars who have argued for the relationship of the Spirit in Luke-Acts to missiological themes (Conzelmann, Penney, Turner, Leeper, Hur, Gibbs, Zwiep); the connection between the Spirit and prophecy (Conzelmann, Menzies, Turner) and to the OT traditions in particular (Shepherd, Hur, Stronstad); the Spirit and the Jews and Gentiles (the ethnē) (Evans, Kuecker); and the legitimating role of the Spirit in more general terms (Shepherd, Turner, Bonnah). In so doing, I argue that the presence of the Spirit at key points of the narrative in both the Lukan Gospel and Acts legitimates the mission to the ethnē in contexts where there is ongoing resistance, both for those resisting and those who are being attracted by the signs of the Spirit.
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