Recipient of the book of acts explained

A pivotal point in the book of acts is when saul of tarsus the apostle paul meets jesus on the road to damascus and is converted. Book 1 philip and pat juler book 2 chun kertyoo book 3 reg and marjorie vines book 4 david clines book 5 john and grace robertson book 6 bob and vic mccallum book 7 chue petnamngern book 8 vic and jean fleming in the present book, as in my other books, my aim is to provide biblical reference material that bridges two gaps at the same time. Luke, the author of the gospel of luke, was a doctor and gentile. The new testament can be divided into four main sections the four gospels, the book of acts, the twentyone epistles, and the book of revelation. Gardnersuggests theophilusmayhave been lukes benefactorin this writing. The gospel of luke and the book of acts are closely related. The acts of the apostles, the second volume of lukes twovolume work, continues lukes presentation of biblical history, describing how the salvation promised to israel in the old testament and accomplished by jesus has now under the guidance of the holy spirit been extended to the gentiles.

A personal catastrophe does not explain it either because luke already wrote enough to fill his scroll. They are addressed to the same individual, theophilus, and the second volume refers to the first. Its subject and intention is nicely summarised by the words of the lord in chapter 1. The book is filled with some of the finest saints ever to live, coming into contact with some of the most evil enemies of the cross ever to trouble the church. We will after the first of the year actually begin a verse by verse study of the book of acts. If the book was just before or after pauls release, then it was likely written around 63 a. Introduction to the book of acts study resources blue letter bible. We read of the evangelistic methods and message of the early apostles and preachers 3. And it proposes to show the continuation of all that jesus began both to do and teach. However, formatting rules can vary widely between applications and fields of interest or study.

Acts 2 new international version niv the holy spirit comes at pentecost. First, acts combined with the gospel of luke makes up over onefourth of the entire new testament. The writer refers to himself only as james, a servant of god and of the lord jesus christ. Through the power of the holy spirit, they lived out a triumphant faith in the face of opposition and persecution, established order for the growing movement, and took the gospel to the ends of the earth. God took a christianhating murderer and transformed him into historys greatest christian evangelist, the author of almost half the books of the new testament.

There are different ways to divide the book of acts. Three angels broadcasting network 3abn 3,690,604 views. Second, the we passages found in sections of the latter half of the book acts 16. Written by the same author and for the same purpose, both were addressed to a christian named theophilus and were designed for the purpose of presenting to him a complete and well authenticated narrative of the early history of the christian movement. Authorship of actsluke is the author of the book acts. In luke, heisaddressedas mostexcellent, whichwasatypeof title used for those in the roman government acts 23. The book of acts provides a detailed, orderly, eyewitness account of the birth and growth of the early church and the spread of the gospel immediately after the resurrection of jesus christ. Both books are addressed to theophilus, the authors patronand perhaps a label for a christian community as a whole as the name means beloved of god, and the preface of acts explicitly references my former book about the life of jesusalmost certainly the work we know as the gospel of luke. They include 21 of the new testaments 27 books, extending from romans to jude.

According to the book of acts, james, the brother of john, was killed by herod agrippa i acts 12. The book focuses primarily on the acts of two apostles, peter and paul. The internal evidence in acts for this conclusion is twofold. Purpose of the book as indicated previously, the original purpose of both the gospel and acts may have been to assist. The initial question regards the identity of theophilus, the one for whom the book is written. Acts is a fastmoving historical account of the first three decades of the church. In only three decades, a small group of frightened believers in jerusalem transformed. Third, the early church writers attribute the third gospel and the book of acts to luke. In the book of acts, we discover how gods multiethnic, international church grew through persecution and missionary journeys throughout the world. The 28 chapters of the acts of the apostles provide a wide variety of compelling characters, both good and bad. The acts of the apostles is a unique and therefore crucial book of the new testament. Acts free bible commentary on the book of acts in easy english. This gospel is a companion volume to the book of acts, and the language and structure of these two books indicate that both were written by the same person.

The book of the acts of the apostles forms the fifth, and last, of the historical books of the new testament. As mentioned in the origin of the bible, the book of acts is actually a letter written to theophilus by luke, the doctor who accompanied paul on his latter missionary journeys and used his medical training to carefully record what paul and the other apostles said and did as inspired by god. Acts is the only biblical book that chronicles the history of the church immediately after jesuss ascension. Theophilus, who was the personal recipient of the dedication in the prologue to. These chapters are the high water mark of acts, theologically speaking. The difficulty with this date is in explaining lukes use of mark since. This video explains the transitional book that is the book of acts, and how it starts with jews to jews, and slowly changes to gentiles, as the jewish nation as a. The book of acts is a thrilling account of the early church discovering what it means to be christian. Acts concerns the very vital period in christian history between the resurrection of jesus and the death of the apostle paul, the time when christian ideas and beliefs were. This work, originally out in 1857, has proved helpful to many, though it is now far out of date as to literature commenting on acts. Some question whether origen doubted the authenticity of james, 1 but his.

The book of acts, which continues the narrative that luke began in his gospel, is especially important because it was the first written history of the christian church. As such, it provides us with a valuable account of how the church was able to grow and spread out from jerusalem into the rest of the roman empire. Stay connected amidst social distancing receive weekly bible studies to share with family and friends. Romans, 1 and 2 corinthians, galatians, ephesians, philippians, colossians, 1 and 2 thessalonians, 1 and 2 timothy, titus, and philemon.

The importance of the book of acts one can hardly overstate the importance of the book of acts or its contribution to the canon of scripture. The recipient of the book, theophilus, is the same person addressed in the first volume, the gospel of luke see introduction to luke. While there are some areas of great detail of the acts of the apostles, many times you must use cross references to the gospels of matthew, mark, luke and john as well as some other epistles in the new testament to get the full picture of what was. It opens with a greeting to theophilus, who was also the intended recipient of lukes gospel. Acts reading guide devotional reading plan youversion bible. For example, pauls speech to the ephesian elders in acts chapter 20 has an. Characters of the acts of the apostles bible study guide. Acts of the apostles 4 imprisonment in rome are 6062 a. The book of james a detailed commentary basic training bible ministries page 2 introduction to james background of the book the epistle of james is one of the general epistles, including 1 and 2 peter, 1, 2 and 3 john, and jude.

Nine of these book are letters to local churches like the ones in galatia. In acts, for example, he has timothy circumcised, while he denies the. Mar 23, 2015 this video explains the transitional book that is the book of acts, and how it starts with jews to jews, and slowly changes to gentiles, as the jewish nation as a whole rejects jesus christ, and. Intro to acts biblica the international bible society. Read one chapter each day and spend time with god using the devotionals and questions provided. Church persecution at the hand of saul of tarsus acts 8. But ye will receive power, the holy spirit having come upon you, and ye shall be my witnesses both in jerusalem and in all judaea and samaria and to the end of the earth. Each section forms an integral part of the new testament, and only by seeing the relationship of the different parts to the whole can the new. The same theophilus is addressed, and in the first chapter the story is resumed just at the point where the gospel left off, save that a few extra details are given of the lords words. The recipient the recipient of the book was a man named theophilus, meaning one who lovesgod.

This would indicate it was matthew, mark, luke, or john. It is a bridge between the gospels and the epistles. Jesus had shown himself alive by many proofs for 40 days. That larger book has been called one of the best commentaries on this book of scripture. Acts with book summary versebyverse bible commentary. The galatians felt pressured to seek salvation from the law of moses, even though they had already accepted the grace of christ. Commentary on the book of acts of the apostles by matthew. The authors name does not appear in the book, but much unmistakable evidence points to luke. For assurance of our own salvation, we can compare our own conversion experience with those in acts.

The book of acts new international commentary on the new testament kindle edition by bruce, f. There has been much debate as to the purpose of acts. Thirteen of these epistles were written by the apostle paul. The ending of acts with paul in rome forms an inclusio with the words of jesus at the ascension in acts 1. The book of acts tells how the multiethnic, international. If the book of acts were gone, there would be nothing to replace it the last recorded fact about jesus in the gospel of matthew is the resurrection. A good study bible we recommend the following features. Introduction to the acts of the apostles free online bible. Luke records many examples of conversion in the book of acts e. This is the story of christianitys beginnings and how evangelism played. Explain the importance of the apostles being baptized with the holy spirit.

The title as we know it comes from the second century and only partially discloses the theme of the document. F download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Discuss the establishment and nature of the lords kingdom. At one time the gospel of luke and the book of acts were joined together as one book with two volumes. Apostles preaching to jews and gentiles, or, the acts. You pick up your bible and see the ministry of jesus ending in the gospel of john. Its narrative supplies a bridge connecting the life and ministry of jesus to the life of the church and the witness of the earliest believers. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the book of acts new international commentary on. The book of acts in 3 minutes thechurchatbrookhills org. Therefore, we must be sure to get the message god was teaching peter. He transposed a few incidents from marks gospel to the time of the apostlesfor example, the material about clean and unclean foods in mark 7 is used in.

Which also said, ye men of galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven. The book of acts is the link between the gospels and the epistles. He is also a contributing author to the gathering storm and the zondervan kjv commentary. You can find the best commentary on acts for you using the tools on the right side. Clearly, the author ofthe book of luke is also the one who penned the book of acts. It alone presents an extensive picture of early church life and history. By its opening words the acts of the apostles is linked in the clearest way with the gospel of luke. Acts intro to acts biblica the international bible society. The book of acts new international commentary on the new. Apr 19, 2011 revelations mark of the beast exposed 22 revelations ancient discoveries duration. The main issues revolve around whether he is a man perhaps a greek official for whom luke acts is an apologetic for the gospel or a kind of generic. Except for 1 peter and 1 john the catholic epistles have played more of a part in molding the christian church than pauls letters. This e book is a shorter and more popular commentary on acts. May 02, 2020 the book of acts shows how god essentially took a group of fisherman and commoners and used them to turn the world upside down acts 17.

James is the first of the catholic or general epistles which gain their name because they lack any specific address. Jan 02, 2020 the epistles of the bible are all found in the new testament. Besides linking the gospel narratives on the one hand and the apostolic letters on the. When the various new testament books were formally brought together into one collection shortly after a. Philip, peter and johns ministry to the samaritans as well as. Book of hebrews explained go to hebrews index title.

James, the son of zebedee and james, the son of alphaeus, but it is unlikely that either of these wrote the letter. This versebyverse bible study and commentary of the acts of the apostles the book of acts or simply acts is indepth but uses plain language that everyone can understand, as well as a format that will engage you. To continue the story begun in the gospel of luke ac 1. The acts of the apostles, fifth book of the new testament, a valuable history of the early christian church. The book of acts provides a bridge for the writings of the nt. The book of acts, also called acts of the apostles, does not specifically identify its author. Revelations mark of the beast exposed 22 revelations ancient discoveries duration. But stephen reminded the jews that god was bigger than any temple. Im not sure exactly which sunday marching into january, but we will do that. Joseph a alexander acts commentary 1857, 1866 over pages. The book of acts is an important book for understanding the actions of the apostles, mostly paul and peter, after jesuss ascension into heaven. Pauls epistles, as many circumstances in them are referred to by the narrative contained. And on this account it has been generally placed at the end of the four gospels. Witnesses to the world, his body of work includes a biblical commentary on hebrews and coauthorship of the popular bible prophecy commentary.

Since luke is an otherwise littleknown figure, there is no logical reason to attribute the authorship to him, unless he is in fact the author. Acts includes apostles, prophets and miracle workers. Book of acts overview insight for living ministries. Matthew henry 18 october 1662 22 june 1714 was an english commentator on the bible, who published his works in 1706, sixvolume exposition of the old and new testaments 17081710 or complete commentary, provides an exhaustive verse by verse study of the bible, covering the whole of the old testament, and the gospels and acts in the new testament. This is the second lesson in our series the book of acts. Commentary on the book of acts bible study lessons. A history of the early church gene taylor2an outline of the book i. It is titled acts to emphasize that this book records the acts of the apostles through the work of the holy spirit. As a second volume to lukes gospel, it joins what jesus began to do and to teach 1. The temple in this book called acts was the third temple. The genre of the book of acts is narrative history with several sermons. Actus apostolorum, often referred to simply as acts, or formally the book of acts, is the fifth book of the new testament. Some have concluded that theophilus was the magistrate who heard pauls case in rome and that acts and luke was a legal brief in pauls defense isbe, theophilus 3. As it is expected, the book of acts has a similar literary style as the gospel of luke because it is the second volume of lukes account.

Let me mention just a few of the reasons why actsand thus our study of this bookis so important. T he book of acts in the bible, written around 6263 a. Most can be obtained from a good religious bookstore. Acts 2 niv the holy spirit comes at pentecost bible. Imagine what it would be like if the book of acts wasnt in the bible. This reading guide was written by newspring staff and volunteers to guide you through the book of acts in 28 days. In luke,heisaddressedasmostexcellent,whichwasatypeof. I believe the lesson god teaches peter in acts 10 and 11 is one of the most prominent and one of the most crucial theological truths in the book of acts. The new testament without the book of acts leaves a great yawning gap. Bruce also wrote a larger 580 pages and more scholarly commentary on acts as part of the new international commentary on the new testament nicnt series. The following is a brief presentation of approximate dates of events in the book of exodus. We do not recommend loose translations or oneman translations. The book of acts in 3 minutes thechurchatbrookhills org youtube. In this passage, luke is restating the great commission challenge jesus gave in luke 24.

The tradition from the earliest days of the church has been that luke, a companion of the apostle paul, wrote the books of luke and acts colossians 4. Stephen said some words from the book by the prophet isaiah isaiah 66. It is an important book in understanding how we can be directed by the holy spirit and the role of jesus lessons in our lives. Workbook on the book of acts church of christ in zion. For many basic details verse by verse, it still is of good value and often will help on word meaning and. These letters were sent out as circular epistles to be passed around and read in several locations.