Christ's Continual Ministry

Introduction

The Purpose of Acts

who is Luke and who is he writing to

The Acts of the Risen Lord Jesus: Luke’s Account of God’s Unfolding Plan Authorship and Audience

I am assuming throughout this study that the same author wrote both the Gospel of Luke and the book of Acts, that this author is Luke, the ‘sometime companion of Paul’, and that he probably wrote Acts sometime before AD 70. Who was Luke writing for?19 The attempt to locate a particular ‘Lukan community’ is fraught with difficulty and has now been largely abandoned. The lack of any reference to a particular community, coupled with the general nature of the prologue of Luke’s Gospel, makes any such historical reconstruction for a particular locality tentative at best.21 Thus clues must be examined in the narrative itself for descriptions of who the readers implied by the narrative may be

First, regarding Luke’s purpose, in the opening verse of his Gospel, Luke tells us he is joining others in compiling a narrative concerning ‘the things that have been fulfilled among us’ ().

The Acts of the Risen Lord Jesus: Luke’s Account of God’s Unfolding Plan Reassurance concerning God’s Purposes: The Purpose(s) of the Book of Acts

What Luke’s audience needed, however, was ‘certainty’ or ‘assurance’ about what they had been taught. When Luke’s Gospel and the book of Acts are read in the light of this preface, it appears that Luke is writing to provide reassurance to believers about the nature of the events surrounding Jesus’ life, death, resurrection, the spread of the message about Jesus, and the nature of God’s people following Jesus’ ascension.

The Acts of the Risen Lord Jesus: Luke’s Account of God’s Unfolding Plan Reassurance concerning God’s Purposes: The Purpose(s) of the Book of Acts

What Luke’s audience needed, however, was ‘certainty’ or ‘assurance’ about what they had been taught. When Luke’s Gospel and the book of Acts are read in the light of this preface, it appears that Luke is writing to provide reassurance to believers about the nature of the events surrounding Jesus’ life, death, resurrection, the spread of the message about Jesus, and the nature of God’s people following Jesus’ ascension.

The Acts of the Risen Lord Jesus: Luke’s Account of God’s Unfolding Plan Reassurance concerning God’s Purposes: The Purpose(s) of the Book of Acts

At the beginning of Luke’s Gospel (1) the links between the OT and Luke’s writing are indicated (‘the things that have been fulfilled among us’). At the end of Luke’s Gospel (2) the links between (a) the OT (‘everything must be fulfilled … Law … Prophets … Psalms’) and (b) the account of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection in Luke’s Gospel (‘about me … the Christ will suffer and rise’) are confirmed, and the links between (a) the OT and (c) the spread of the Gospel in Acts are also identified (‘everything must be fulfilled … and repentance and forgiveness … will be preached’). At the beginning of Acts (3) the link between Luke’s Gospel and Acts is highlighted (‘in my former book …’). These three texts indicate that Luke intends Acts to be read as a continuation of this line as he recounts the continued outworking of God’s saving purposes

The certainty for Theophilus and other Christians

I. A Review (1-3)

Christ’s Ministry in Word and Deed (1)

I. Christ Continues to Teach and Preach (1)

Christ Commissioned the Apostles (2).

II. Christ Commissioned the Apostles as his primary undershepherds (2).

Christ Was Resurrected (3)

Christ Ascended (2)

II. A Preview (3-5)

The Risen and Ascended Christ

The Kingdom of God

i. LIving between the times (Already but not yet)

A Waiting Congregation in Jerusalem

The Promise of the Holy Spirit

III. An Overview

Christ is still at work (v.1 Began to do and teach)

Christ work did not end with the Ascension

IV. Christ Will Work through his church by the Holy Spirit. (4-5)

The Risen Christ is at work through the ministry of the apostles and their proclamation of the Word of God

The Risen Christ as the suffering servant who overcame sin and death provides the strength necessary for his people to overcome whatever suffering they face.

The Risen Christ is bringing total restoration to the True Israel of God and advancing his kingdom as he rules over it at the right hand of the Father

The Risen Christ will empower his church to fulfill the commission to advance his kingdom by pouring out the Holy Spirit to indwell his followers.

This is all Christ’s Ministry - This is the Acts of the Risen Jesus Christ

We can do nothing apart from Jesus, not a single person saved, sanctified, changed, transformed.

With him all things are possible, wherever the gospel is preached Jesus is preaching, whenever the word is preached you are listening to jesus. He is still the Logos,

He has not taken a place of rest, he is on the throne ruling and reigning and his ministry and his kingdom will never end.

And because of that alone we have hope