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Overview of Acts of the Apostles

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Acts of the Apostles Overview Intro: Acts is the sequel to the Gospel of Luke. In Acts, we see how the mission of Jesus is carried out through His disciples after He ascended into heaven. Luke’s Gospel records what Jesus “began to do and teach” during his earthly ministry (Acts 1:1), while Acts treats what Jesus continues to do and teach through his followers, after He was taken up to heaven and the Holy Spirit descended on them (Kurz, 13). In short, in Acts, we see the Holy Spirit powerfully at work through Jesus’ disciples, who in turn, wills to work through you. Below is a breakdown of percentages of the most prolific writers in the NT (138,020 words): • Luke (Gospel of Luke and Acts) 27% • Paul (13 letters) 23% • John (Gospel, 3 letters, Revelation) 20% Who: While the author of Acts is not named within Acts itself, the tradition as early as the second century attributes both the Gospel of Luke and Acts to Luke. According to tradition, Luke was from Antioch in Syria. Eusebius says, “Luke who was born at Antioch, by profession a physician.” Col. 4:14 refers to Luke as the beloved physician. Scholars debate whether Luke was a Gentile Christian or a Hellenistic Jew. If Luke was a Gentile, he would be the only Gentile author in the New Testament. Additionally, Irenaeus (130 – 202 AD) says that Luke was Paul’s follower (Gadenz, 16). Luke accompanied Paul on some of his journeys, e.g., he writes in the first-person plural (“we”) in certain sections of the Acts of the Apostles: 16:10-17; 20:5-15; 21:1-18; 27:1-28:16. That said, Luke was present at some events in the latter half of Acts (Kurz, 15). Audience: Acts 1:1 addresses Theophilus (“loved by God” or “lover of God”), the same person addressed in the Gospel (1:3). If Theophilus is a person, he may have been a wealthy Christian who helped Luke get the two volumes copied and distributed. When: Acts covers about a 30-year period of the first century. Scholars debate when Acts was written. The majority of modern scholars argue that the book was written after the destruction of the Temple (70 AD). Traditionally, Acts has been dated in the late 60s. Themes: Acts serves as a hinge in salvation history. Luke’s Gospel relates how God fulfilled all of His promises in the life, death, and Resurrection of Christ. Acts relates how God brings the activity of Jesus (i.e., His words and deeds) to the nations by the Holy Spirit through the Church. Some major themes include: Power of the Holy Spirit; power of preaching (longer speeches and sermons), disciples imitating Christ (including martyrdom – St. Stephen), the importance of community life, and mission journeys with all their uncertainty. Acts Today: Acts presents a powerful paradigm for the life of the Church today (Kurz, 18). In Acts, we see the Holy Spirit powerfully at work through the apostles, deacons, and ordinary believers drawing people to Christ. Additionally, as vast numbers in the first century Church 1 were ignorant of Christ and a biblical worldview, so we see a familiar landscape in the world today. As we will see, Peter and Paul will present a metanarrative (or a way of seeing and being in the world), that includes creation, sin, evil, redemption, and God’s judgment. In short, Acts gives us a clear lens to see how we can bring Christ to the world today. Structure: Stephen K. Ray and Jennifer Phelps (Catholic Study Scripture International) 1. Prologue (1:1 – 5) 2. Ascension to Pentecost (1:6 – 2:13) A. Ascension of Jesus (1:6 – 14) B. Replacement of Judas (1:15 – 26) C. Pentecost (2:1 – 13) 3. The Gospel in Jerusalem (2:14—8:3) A. The Descent of the Holy Spirit (2:14 – 47) B. Peter’s Ministry and First Imprisonment (3:1—4:31) C. Donations and Discipline (4:32—5:11) D. Peter’s Ministry and Second Imprisonment (5:12 – 42) E. Selection of the First Deacons (6:1 – 7) F. Stephen’s Ministry and Martyrdom (6:8—7:60) G. The First Persecution of the Church (8:1 – 3) 4. The Gospel in Judea and Samaria (8:4—12:25) A. Philip’s Ministry in Samaria and Judea (8:4 – 40) B. The Conversion of Saul (9:1 – 31) C. Peter’s Ministry in Lydda, Joppa, and Caesarea (9:32—11:18) D. Conversions of Gentiles in Antioch (11:19 – 30) E. Persecution of the Church, and the Death of Herod Agrippa (12:1 – 25) 5. The Gospel to the End of the Earth (13:1—28:31) A. Paul’s First Missionary Journey: Cyprus and Asia Minor (13:1—14:28) B. The Council of Jerusalem (15:1 – 35) C. Paul’s Second Mission Journey: Asia Minor, Greece, Ephesus (15:36—18:22) D. Paul’s Third Missionary Journey: Asia Minor, Ephesus, Greece (18:23—21:14) E. Paul’s Arrest in Jerusalem and Imprisonment in Caesarea (21:15—26:32) F. Paul’s Journey to Rome (27:1—28:16) G. Paul’s Ministry in Rome (28:17 – 31) Gospel of Luke Acts of the Apostles Galilee to Jerusalem (9:51-19:44) Jerusalem to Rome (new center) https://christianity201.wordpress.com/2012/06/03/the-great-empowerment-for-the-great-commission-as-prayer-pattern/ 2 .
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    EQ 66:3 (1994), 197-215 Anthony Buzzard Acts 1:6 and the Eclipse of the Biblical Kingdom Mr Buzzard, who teaches at Atlanta Bible College, Morrow, Georgia, argues that many biblical scholars have not done justice to the future hope of a divine kingdom involving Jerusalem and the land of Israel which he finds expressed in Acts 1:6. Many of the scholars discussed belong to the Reformed tradition, and it is right that we should give attention to the alternative point of view expressed by the writer. The relation of the political and the spiritual elements in the understanding the Kingdom of God is not easy to state, and fresh light on it is greatly to be welcomed. Few passages of Scripture have suffered more at the hands of hostile commentary than Luke's brief and brilliant summary ofJesus' last conversation with his apostles. It is in the nature of 'famous last words' that they communicate something of supreme importance. It is swprising, then, that the disciples' last question to their Master should have been the target of the indignation of so many commentators. The apostles' enquiIy related to Jesus' and Luke's favorite theme, the kingdom of God. They asked: 'Lord, has the time now come for you to restore the kingdom to Israel?' (Acts 1:6.) There has been a common tendency among expositors to treat the Apostles' question as utterly out of tune with their Lord's teaching. Their enquiry is supposed to reveal a tragically inadequate under­ standing of Christianity's central theme. How, it is asked, could these associates ofJesus still cling so stubbornly to the crude notion of a theocratic restoration of the kingdom as the renewal of the Davidic empire on earth, 1ypical of the allegedly false hopes of Judaism? Fortunately, the argument continues, the coming of the Spirit at Pentecost rescued the apostles from their crudely literal understand­ ing of the kingdom of God and banished forever theJewish national hope they were harboring.
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