Sermon Tone Analysis

Overview

The book of Acts is named as such because it details the acts of the Apostles as the gospel was taken from Jerusalem outward to the surrounding Mediterranean world.

It’s an account of what they did to make that happen.

However, it could just as easily be labeled as the Acts of the Holy Spirit through the Apostles, because Luke often described the leading of the Spirit.

Many decisions made by believers was not a result of their own will, but of the Spirit’s will:

While we don’t always get to peek behind the curtain to see exactly what the Holy Spirit is actively doing in our life and in our world, this is a great reminder that the same Spirit that was leading and guiding the early church is the same Spirit that lives in and who is guiding us today.

Don’t miss that.

James Montgomery Boice says this about the book of Acts:

Luke’s history opens up and embraces the entire church age.

At the beginning, we are in contact with the risen Christ and a world of miracles.

This is a world we have very little contact with today.

But then, as the book progresses, we have the feeling that it becomes increasingly like the kind of world we know.

At the end, we find the Christians bearing witness, just as we are called to bear witness, and being persecuted, just as we are often persecuted.

As we study this book we find sound principles of church growth and see the way in which temptation and trials are overcome by the grace of God.

So, before we get into the details, I want to help orient us to this book.

If this book were a house, we are going to step into the engineer’s blueprint to see where the load-bearing walls and rooms are, and why they have been placed there.

Author

Luke, Paul’s traveling companion as seen later in Acts.

He was not among the 12 original disciples, but rather a Gentile physician and historian, which is likely why he is so descriptive, meticulous, and exact in the way he writes.

In fact, because he is so prolific in his detailed accounts, Luke gets the gold star as the one who wrote most of the New testament!

Many of us were taught that Paul wrote more of the NT than any other author and if you were counting by the number of books/letters, you would be correct, but if you calculate by word count, Luke is the clear winner.

He wrote down 37,932 words in the Greek, which beats Paul’s cumulative total of 32,408 greek words.

This makes him the clear winner of the NT writers.

Isn’t it amazing that one NT author who wrote more than the others was a gentile believer?

Even in the way the NT was orchestrated, God was showing his desire to break down the dividing wall between Jew and Gentile and bring the light of his salvation to all men!

Purpose

Acts is part 2 of a 2 part series

Luke and Acts both would have filled up a Papyrus scroll and is one of the reasons it is in 2 volumes, each scroll being about 35 feet in length, which was the most common so that it wasn’t too bulky to carry from place to place.

Purpose- Historical account of how Christianity expanded throughout the known world and the edification of believers.

A Secondary purpose is likely an evangelic/apologetic work, creating a defense of the faith in the eyes of the Romans.

(Apologetics doesn’t mean to give an apology, but to explain the reasons why you believe what you believe).

Luke wanted to prove to Roman citizens that Christianity was not to be feared and should be embraced.

This can be seen in the narrative by how many Roman officials choose not stand in the way of the movement:

Roman official apologizes for imprisoning Paul.

The Proconsul (provincial governor) Gallio will not forbid the Christian message in Corinth

King Agrippa II and Festus (Governor of Judea) both declare Paul hasn't done anything wrong

3rd purpose is that this is a record of Jesus’ work through his new body

When

Before 70 AD and the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem.

Likely in the early 60s AD during Paul’s imprisonment, because that is where Paul is when the book ends.

Main Divisions

Geographically – epicenter with outward ripples (like a rock thrown into a pond).

Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, ends of the earth.

Operationally – Church operated from 2 bases of operations: Jerusalem & Antioch.

Relationally - Peter & Paul - 2 main sections: 1-12 & 13-28.

The first focuses on Peter and the initial expansion of the church.

The 2nd focuses on Paul and his missionary journeys.

Outline of Acts

Prologue 1:1 - 2:13

Jerusalem 2:14 - 7

Judea & Samaria 8 - 12

Ends of the earth 13 - 28

Today, we are going to just get a little taste… a little preview of this incredible story and look at the first few verses.

Verses 1-3.

Theophilus

A summary of his first work: To detail the life and events of Jesus, addressed to a man named Theophilus.

The name Theophilus means ‘friend of God.’

There are a lot of theories explaining who this man is.

Some say he was Emperor Vespasian’s nephew.

Others say he was actually Herod Agrippa II.

Some say he was Paul’s defense attorney during his appeal to Caesar.

Much of this speculation stems from the real possibility that he was a Roman Official, since the title he was given in the Gospel of Luke is the same title is used of other Roman officials like Festus in Acts 26:25.

In the Gospel of Luke:

So here, Theophilus’ title is “Most Excellent.”

This is indeed likely because he held a prominent position in the community and/or that he was wealthy.

Does this then prove that he was a Roman official?

Not necessarily.

It could be an honorary title or one given that is outside the political realm.

It could come as a result of wealth.

Whatever the case may be, if you combine the wealth, stature, and curiosity, it is likely that he the Patron for Luke’s two volumes.

And what really matters is that this man played a key role in the commissioning of a large portion of God’s holy and inspired word that was written down by Luke and we praise God for his involvement!

It is about what he did with what he had.

The Point of Luke’s Gospel

Because Luke was a Historian and Physician, he was incredibly detailed.

If you look closely at the way he describes his work to Theophilus in both volumes, it is clear that his intention was to write it as an apologetic work for the events of Jesus.

Why do I say that?

In the gospel account, Luke tells Theophilus outright that he wants him to have certainty concerning what he had been taught about Jesus’ life and events.

Here in Acts, Luke confirmed that he dealt with all that Jesus BEGAN to do and teach.

So, either Theophilus was a non-believer who was curious and Luke sought to persuade him, or he was a believer and the account was written to provide a firm foundation for his faith.

And if that was true of Theophilus in the first century, then it is true for us in the twenty-first century.

Luke is so detail-oriented in his descriptions of people and places that archeology continues to prove him right.

I want you to know that what you hold in your hand is objective truth and you too can have certainty that it accurately represents the same Jesus who is alive today and who is the only way to be reconciled to the God of all creation.

Now, I want you to pay attention to that word BEGAN.

This word in the Greek is archḗ and according to the Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, it signifies the new beginning of a temporal sequence.

That is a curious way to explain it, since the very next verse describes Jesus’ ascension.

Wouldn’t it have been better to just leave that word out, saying he is dealing with all Jesus did and taught until he was taken up?

When Jesus returned to his heavenly throne, he was done with his job on earth, right?

Absolutely not!

Remember, this book could also be called the Acts of the HOLY SPIRIT through the Apostles.

To say that Jesus began something until he was taken back up, means that it must continue on afterward.

In essence, Jesus had only begun to roll up his sleeves for the work of the gospel during his earthly presence and the point of Acts to to show how he continues the work through his people.

Church - this is a direct charge to you and me!

What Jesus began to do and teach 2,000 years ago is still being done through us today!

We continue to do what Jesus did and teach what Jesus taught.

The work of spreading the gospel to the nations is not over!

This temporal sequence is not describing Jesus’ earthly ministry.

It is describing the Great Commission from the time of Jesus’ first coming to the second coming!

The Command to the Apostles

The next verse says that Jesus began this work until the day he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles, whom he had chosen.

But what commands?