Waters of Life

Biblical Studies in Multiple Languages

Search in "English":
Home -- English -- Acts - 002 (Introduction to the Book)
This page in: -- Albanian -- Arabic -- Armenian -- Azeri -- Bulgarian -- Cebuano -- Chinese -- ENGLISH -- French -- Georgian -- Greek -- Hausa -- Igbo -- Indonesian -- Portuguese -- Russian -- Serbian -- Somali -- Spanish -- Tamil -- Telugu -- Turkish -- Urdu? -- Uzbek -- Yiddish -- Yoruba

Previous Lesson -- Next Lesson

ACTS - In the Triumphal Procession of Christ
Studies in the Acts of the Apostles
PART 1 - The Foundation of the Church of Jesus Christ in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and Syria - Under the Patronage of the Apostle Peter, Guided by the Holy Spirit (Acts 1 - 12)
A - The Growth and Development of the Early Church in Jerusalem (Acts 1 - 7)

1. The Introduction to the Book and the final Promise of Christ (Acts 1:1-8)


ACTS 1:1-2
1 The first book I wrote, Theophilus, concerned all that Jesus began both to do and to teach, 2 until the day in which he was received up, after he had given commandment through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen.

Many people have written numerous books, which if lined up would become a big and high mountain. One day, they will burn up in the flame of God’s anger, for all the words of men are worthless, boastful, and empty.

But the two books Luke the physician wrote will shine in the Day of Judgment more brilliantly than the sun itself. They will never pass away, but will rise up high before the throne of God. Luke, the evangelist, described in his gospel the deeds and the words of Christ. He mentioned His deeds before His words, for Christ came not only as a teacher, but also as a Savior to the whole world. The evangelist wanted to glorify Him. He showed us how sinners had repented in Jesus´ presence, confessing their sins to become justified by their faith in the Lord’s grace. The thief crucified alongside Christ had experienced the same when he entered with Jesus into the blissful expanses of Paradise. Luke’s gospel is a book of great joy. An angel came to proclaim this joyous news upon the birth of the child in the manger. The Lord Himself had become incarnate, in order to seek and to save that which was lost. Today we testify, with thankfulness to God, that many people have been saved through Luke’s gospel. The power of eternal life streams from its black letters into the minds and hearts of believers.

Theophilus, the high ranking Roman official, had experienced the wonderful salvation of Christ. So he entrusted Luke, his Greek friend and physician, with the task of gathering the details about the life of Jesus of Nazareth, in order to record an exact history of the gospel of salvation in the Roman Empire. The Roman governor was not satisfied with mere sentimental feelings, but wanted the historical foundations for his living faith. The educated Luke wrote these two books, addressing them to his governor, to establish him in his spiritual life and to equip him as a believer for his office as an important servant in the Roman Empire. He testified to him that there is no hope for our troubled world except in the living Christ Jesus.

All the countries of our world will pass away. All philosophers are unprofitable, even if they could produce us with the intellectual evidence of their genius minds. Christ did not build His kingdom upon the intelligence of bright thinkers, nor did He rely on the power of mighty armies, but instead chose ordinary people and illiterate fishermen, calling them to become apostles. His choosing of the lowly and harmless also meant His rejection of the great, strong, and clever of the world. God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.

This is exactly in harmony with the designs of the Holy Spirit, who strengthens those who are not mighty, and gives life to those who are pining away. Christ did not perform His works on His own, but at all times in unity with the Holy Spirit, standing fast in the will of His Father. God the Father, the Holy Spirit, and Christ Jesus are a complete unity, which surpasses our understanding and knowledge. The Holy Trinity had determined from eternity past to build His church in the midst of this lost world, and to spread heaven among the dead of the earth. The history of God’s salvation began with the choosing of the apostles, whom Christ called, trained, and commissioned to preach to men. Luke, the evangelist, described the movement of these men the Lord had chosen, having recognized the power of God´s love dwelling in these harmless fishermen. They were the true new miracle in the world, and the only hope for a better future.

In order to pave the way for this miracle, the resurrected Christ did not remain among His disciples in the world, as a managing King would do to spread His kingdom in an organized, strategic way. Instead, He ascended to heaven. The Lord was not afraid of mistakes that might be committed by His disciples, for He knew that the Holy Spirit would indwell them, enabling them to complete His work. He ascended to heaven, free from worry and fear. He rose to His Father, and sat down at the right hand of God, as one with Him, reigning with Him, building His holy church in an evil world, overcoming all the powers against God, and saving millions of people. Luke was astonished by the miracle of growth of this hidden kingdom of God on earth. He described this development in his second book, from its starting point in Jerusalem, to its ending in Rome.

PRAYER: O living Lord, Jesus Christ, we worship You. We bless You for Your love and for Your hidden glory, which works in Your church, even today. Thank You for Your kindness that has reached us, too. Help us to recognize Your acts in this book about the honorable apostle´s acts. We want to glorify You greatly in seeing their teaching practically realized in our lives.

QUESTION:

  1. What was the content of Luke’s first book? What was the content and purpose of his second book?

www.Waters-of-Life.net

Page last modified on March 17, 2015, at 05:35 PM | powered by PmWiki (pmwiki-2.3.3)