It should also be noted at this point that each time Paul mentions Luke, he also mentions a man named Demas. o Who was the former book written to? Why Did the Philippians Send Paul a Gift? Once again, this is due to his education. This post is adapted from Darrell Bock's Theology of Luke and Acts online course.. To determine when Acts was written, we need to evaluate the evidence from both Luke and Acts, because the two books were written together, with Luke appearing slightly before Acts.. At first glance, it seems that the book of Acts was written around the same time of the last events it describes. Did he ever appear before Caesar? When reading Acts, you can see the crowds, and hear the clamor. It's importance is that it was written about another man who existed around the same time that the author felt was the Messiah. Following Paul and Silas’s dramatic and miraculous release from prison chains, the Philippian jailer cries out these words in desperation. Read More on This Topic The following post is adapted from Robert H. Gundry’s online course, New Testament Survey. What book of the Bible is filled with lights, visions, and action? Author: The book of Acts, also called Acts of the Apostles, does not specifically identify its author. While there are several books which fit this description to some degree, none does it on such a grand scale as the book of Acts. Copyright © 2020 HarperCollins Publishers. He may have put some of these in a diary at the time of the events. In spite of opposition and persecution, the Church marches on, unabated. Also available were written sources, such as the decree of the Jerusalem Council (Acts 15:23–29) and perhaps Aramaic or Hebrew documents relating the early events of Christianity in and around Jerusalem. Let's take a look at some of the most intriguing things in Acts and develop a new appreciation for this fascinating book. It is titled "Acts" to emphasize that this book records the "Acts of … Luke, the physician, is its author–the same man who wrote the gospel by his name. A man of Macedonia stood and pleaded with him, saying, ‘Come over to Macedonia and help us.’  Now after he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go to Macedonia, concluding that the Lord had called us to preach the gospel to them. Luke wrote mainly about the ministry of the Apostle Paul and included a few records about Peter and the other Apostles. You can follow him on Youtube and listen to his podcasts on Spreaker. While Matthew and Luke both tell the story of the woman with the issue of blood, it is Luke who tells of the more intimate details. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance” (Acts 2:1-4). Yet the narrative of his voyage to Rome makes up one of the “we”-sections. But presumably he would have seen that space was running out and formed an appropriate conclusion. Repeatedly, Luke describes Christianity as a kind of fulfilled Judaism, and cites favorable judgments concerning Christianity and its proponents by various kinds of local and provincial officials. Special attention goes to showing that Christianity deserves continued freedom because it derives from Judaism, which has legal standing, and because it does not pose any threat to the Roman government. Just as his Gospel opens with a dedication to Theophilus, so also does Acts. “Men, you know that we have our prosperity by this trade. Michael is the author of, The Lights In The Windows, a book concerned with the need for the Church to evangelize. Since Luke in his own words, “had perfect understanding of all things from the first,” he set forth to write an orderly account of those things which had been fulfilled; i.e., the life and ministry of Jesus. His scholarly approach is readily evident and shines forth magnificently. All over the world, people are being saved every day. In this way Luke hopes to dispel prejudice against Christianity and win sympathy from the likes of Theophilus, whose designation “most excellent” in Luke 1:3 may indicate influential political position as well as aristocratic, or at least middle-class, social standing (compare the address, “most excellent Festus,” to a Roman governor in Acts 26:25). Acquitted? Such an apology was needed, because Christianity had started with the handicap that its founder had died by crucifixion, the Roman means of executing criminals, and because disturbance arose wherever Christianity spread. What happened to Paul? Acts was written in Greek, presumably by St. Luke the Evangelist. He wrote: “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church.” Each time in the book of Acts, and throughout history, when Christians are persecuted beyond measure, forced to go underground, or are scattered, the Church grows. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Praise the Lord! Support for such accuracy comes from striking parallels of expression between Peter’s sermons in Acts and 1 Peter and between Paul’s sermons in Acts and his letters. Evidence within Acts supports authorship by Luke: Just as his Gospel opens with a dedication to Theophilus, so also does Acts. Compiled & Edited by BST & Crosswalk Staff, Compiled & Edited by BibleStudyTools Staff, California - Do Not Sell My Personal Information. If you have any questions, please review our. 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. Luke, the author of the Gospel of Luke, was a doctor and Gentile. In order to answer this question, we read from Luke 6:13-16: “And when it was day, He called His disciples to Himself; and from them He chose twelve whom He also named apostles:  Simon, whom He also named Peter, and Andrew his brother; James and John; Philip and Bartholomew;  Matthew and Thomas; James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called the Zealot;  Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot who also became a traitor.”. Title As the second book Luke addressed to Theophilus (see Luke 1:3), Acts may originally have had no title. But those passages set out the possibility of martyrdom at the hands of hostile Jews in Jerusalem, not at the hands of Caesar in Rome; and the remainder of Acts tells of Paul’s escaping martyrdom at the hands of such Jews and of his exoneration by Roman officialdom. Archaeological findings support the accuracy of Luke’s account. This is the manner in which Luke wrote — and we are so grateful to have yet another uplifting example of his writing. But his first volume, the Gospel of Luke, closes with a sense of completeness even though he probably intended already to write Acts. The book of Acts affords us a front row seat to the monumental, and sometimes cataclysmic events of the early Church. And we were staying in that city for some days” (Acts 16:9-12). Luke is able to transport you to the prison where Paul and Silas praised their way to deliverance. You can follow him on Youtube and listen to his podcasts on Spreaker. In Acts the narrative progresses to Rome, center of the world. All Rights Reserved. As in his Gospel, Luke slants the book of Acts toward Gentiles, especially those with open-minded interest in the historical origins of Christianity. Books and articles that equip you for deeply biblical thinking and ministry. For the material in Acts, Luke drew on his own recollections where possible. Acts is the last book in the New Testament that tells a story; the rest of the books are letters and visions from that time. Traditionally called, “The Acts of the Apostles,” it could be more properly titled, “The Acts of the Holy Spirit,” because it is His power that resonates from nearly every page. If so, was he condemned? There's never been much contention about the authorship of Acts. He was an educated man, and we learn in Colossians 4:14 that he was a physician. You will quickly note two things from this verse. Acts was apparently written in Rome, perhaps between 70 and 90 ce, though some think a slightly earlier date is also possible. They were both co-laborers with Paul, as evidenced in Philemon 24 and Colossians 4:14 respectively: “…as do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, Luke, my fellow laborers.”, “Luke the beloved physician and Demas greet you.”. Though it does not prove that he wrote Luke-Acts, frequent use of medical terms agrees with Luke’s being a physician. These parallels can hardly have arisen by chance; and no other evidence exists to indicate that Luke imitated or used in any other way the letters, or that Peter and Paul imitated Acts when writing their letters. Luke was not one of the 12 disciples. Many suggestions are offered to explain the abruptness of this ending, but they are all speculation, and they all have holes: Luke wrote Acts, therefore, when Paul had been in Rome for two years (about AD 63). Some scholars regard the speeches and sermons in Acts as literary devices improvised by Luke himself to fill out his stories. Luke, more than any other, pays careful attention to detail when describing the condition of those whom Jesus healed.

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