CHAPTER SEVEN

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

 OBJECTIVES
• At the end of this chapter you will be able to:
1. Discuss Luke the author and his purpose in
continuing the narrative.
2. Trace the spread of the gospel, highlighting
Peter’s and Paul’s roles.
3. Describe the early church, its birth, early
development and emerging concerns
4. From the good news of Jesus Christ as Acts
describes it and from the examples of the early
churches, make application to your own life
and to your own church today.
 FOREWARD
• Acts of the Apostles is intended to continue the
Gospel shows narrative of “all that Jesus began
to do and teach until the day he was taken to
heaven, (Acts 1:1,2)
• The author’s subsequent records of what
happened shows how the members of the new
way (Christians) grew steadily.
• The Acts and the Gospel of Luke bracket the
mid-point of all history-Jesus’ death, resurrection
and ascension.
 (Cont)
• Luke, is believed to be the author of both the
Gospel and Acts of the Apostles.
• He writes like an historian, recording carefully-
researched facts (Acts1:1)
• He summarizes speeches and reports on
Church councils. He documents on the emerging
patterns of the church organization in the tiny
scattered communities
• There is much of the holy spirit’s work.
 (Cont)
• Luke also writes as a lover of people, a pastor
• Acts like Luke’s Gospel is full of brief, pictures
and very human character sketches like
Barnabas, Cornelius; the first gentile convert,
Lydia; a full-gospel business-woman, and the
fatally-foolish Ananias and Sapphira his wife, as
well as Peter and Paul, the Apostles whose
“acts” are crucial for the spread of the Gospel.
 (Cont)
• It is very clear in Acts that Luke is a
missionary
• Luke is part of the action, he is also pre
occupied with the geographical details of
the spread of the Gospel, “in Jerusalem
and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the
ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8
 THE MINISTRY OF PETER AND
PAUL
• Luke highlights Peter’s divine insight, which
paved the way for the spread of the Gospel to
the gentiles (Acts 10).
• Paul is the focus in the rest of the Acts after his
conversion, who is the first missionary to the
gentiles, the first Christian theologian.
• Paul’s conversion, missionary journey.
Determined message and concern for the new
communities of believers, provide wonderful
Christian literature for relating early Christian
times all over the Mediterranean World.
 KEY VERSE IN THE BOOK OF
ACTS
• “And the Lord added to their number daily
those were being saved.” (Acts2:47) and
“so then, God has granted even the
gentiles repentance unto life.” (Acts 11:18)
 ACTS IN OUTLINE
1:1-11 Jesus’ parting instructions AD.33
1:12-8:1 The Church in Jerusalem
8:2-12:25 Expansion in Palestine
13:1-14:28 Paul’s 1st Missionary
journey AD.46-8
15:1-35 The council in Jerusalem AD.49
15:36-18:22 Paul’s 2nd Missionary
journey AD.49-52
18:23-19:41 Paul’s 3rd Missionary
journey AD.55-57
20:1-26:32 Paul in Jerusalem and
Caesarea
27:1-28:31 Paul’s mission in Rome AD.61
 LUKE THE HISTORIAN
• From the first 2 verses of Acts (1:1,2) the author
of Acts is the same Luke who authored the
Gospel of Luke. Acts is a continuation of the
story began in Luke’s Gospel.
• The historian appears to envision the events at
the end of the Gospel (Jesus’ death and
resurrection)
• The events described in the first 11 verses of
Acts act as the mid-point of history. A new age
begins (Acts 1:12) where the Gospel must go
forth to all Nations.
 (Cont)

• The age of the Church and the age of the

Holy Spirit. So Luke’s historical picture
would look like this:
1. Jesus present at Creation.
2. Jesus’ life, death, resurrection and
Ascension
3. Jesus will come again at the end of time
 (Cont)
• Besides John the Baptist and Jesus upon
whom the Holy Spirit of God rested, the
Old Testament shows how the Holy Spirit
of God inspired the Prophets.
• Prophet Joel had fore seen a day when
the Spirit of God would be poured out on
all Flesh. The blessing of God would rest
on all his people.
 READ ACTS 2:1-47
THE DAY OF PENTECOST
• On the day of the Pentecost, while the
disciples were meeting together in one
place, the Holy Spirit descended on them
in what looked like flames of fire, settling
on each of them
• Filled with the Holy Spirit each of them
began to speak in other tongues as were
enabled by the Spirit.
 (Cont)
• Many devout Jews at this time had come to
Jerusalem from every nation for the festival of
Pentecost.
• They were overwhelmed at hearing their own
languages spoken by these men and women.
• The Holy Spirit used the disciples to speak of the
wonderful things God had done in and through
Jesus Christ.
• Peter explained what had happened and the
truth about God and Jesus Christ. Many were
touched and 3000 believed that day.
 (Cont)
• Believers became many and started to
treat each other as brothers and sisters,
sharing all that they had so that all could
benefit from God’s gift.
 ORGANIZATION OF THE
CHURCH
• The first believers waited patiently in the upper
room for Jesus’ promise of power (Acts1:12-26)
• The community of believers increased in
numbers.
• Leadership became focused
• Apostles’ teaching was experienced.
• Fellowship was enforced in the context of eating
together in homes.
• They were under girded by traditional Jewish
prayers and a radical concern for one another.
 (Cont)
• Believers rapidly outgrew both Jerusalem
and their homes. This resulted in the need
of Deacons (Acts 6)
• The birth of the new faith created threat to
the old religion and traditional beliefs. This
resulted into persecutions that many
believers fled Jerusalem without Apostles.
• This led to the rise of prophets and
teachers (as in Antioch)
 APPOINTMENT OF ELDERS
• In Acts 13, Paul and Barnabas were
Commissioned as both prophets and
teachers of the church at Antioch of Syria.
• Elders were appointed in the dispersed
communities by Paul and Barnabas (Acts
14:23)
 WHAT LUKE RECORDS
• He gives accounts of public events of
significance to the new believers, although this
has met with criticism by scholars in the past.
• Scholars argue that in his attempt to report
favorably on the spread of Good News, he was
biased on what he selected to record.
• Of course with no Video camera, he recorded
speeches and dialogue at confrontations and
trials from memory or from the memories of
other witnesses.
 LUKE THE PASTOR
• Luke’s position as a physician makes us
understand his interest in the human side of
history (the integration of knowledge).
• Luke takes pains to help readers identify with
the new believers in Acts: Barnabas mentoring a
headstrong colleague whose gifts surpassed his
own. (Acts 15:36-41)
• Luke also identifies us with the friends of Dorcas
when Peter raised her from the dead (Acts 9:36-
41)
• Eutychus at an interminable meeting (Acts20:7-
12)
 (Cont)
• Luke shows how the growing movement is
delightfully and richly peopled for us.
 THE GENTILES HEAR THE
GOOD NEWS: THE
CONVERSION OF CORNELIUS.
• Cornelius, a Roman Officer, was a devout God
fearing.
• He was generous to the poor and prayed to God
regularly.
• God appeared to him in a vision acknowledging
his prayers and gifts to the poor.
• God told him to call for Simon Peter from Joppa.
 PETER, A DEVOUT JEW
• Peter, a devout Jew, observed the law and
Jewish traditions.
• As the custom required, at noon time he
went up to pray, while feeling hungry.
• He saw a vision in which the sky opened
and large sheet was let down, containing
all sorts of animals, reptiles and birds.
• A voice said to him, “Get up, Peter; kill and
eat them”.
 (Cont)
• From Peter’s background, he could not eat
foods declared unclean.
• But God told him to eat, declaring that he
had made all things clean.
• Peter did not understand the meaning of
the vision.
• Later, Peter received a messengers from
Cornelius inviting him to go with them to
Cornelius’ house.
 (Cont)
• On arriving, Cornelius related to Peter his vision
he got from God.
• Peter filled with the Holy Spirit, preached to
Cornelius and his household. They received the
Holy Spirit, believed and were baptized in the
name of Jesus Christ.
• Peter understood that God was teaching him
through his vision, that all people had been
made clean too and were acceptable to God.
Gentiles and Jews were alike.
 SAUL’S CONVERSION
(ACTS 9:1-22)
• This is another human-interest story from
Luke that says about human condition
before and after repentance primarily for
its significance for the spread of the
Gospel.
• Saul was zealous for the Jewish religion.
• He began a campaign of persecuting
believers in Jesus Christ.
 (Cont)
• To achieve this he obtained letters from the
Jewish and Roman authorities permitting him to
capture anyone who was a believer as far as
Damascus.
• He intended to seize Christians who were
running away from persecutions in Jerusalem
not to spread to other cities.
• He also wanted to advance his own career as
reputed Pharisee ( During Amin’s regime one
would do all it took in order to keep his
reputation)
 (Cont)
• On his way to Damascus pursuing his
mission, a light from heaven suddenly shone
down on him and he fell on the ground and
became blind.
• Jesus challenged him why he was persecuting
him.
• Saul in confusion inquired “Who are you Lord?”
• Jesus made himself known to him and gave him
instructions on how to regain his sight.
 (Cont)
• He remained blind for three days.
• With the help of Ananias of Damascus, Saul received his
sight back and was baptized .
• To those who had known him, they were surprised to see
the change that had taken place in Saul’s life.
• This became more and more a proof that Jesus was
indeed the Messiah.
• From then onwards Saul became Paul, a light to the
gentile world.
• After Acts 12, the focus is on a Saul turned Paul.
• This brings us to out third part of our lesson focusing on:
 LUKE AS MISSIONARY
• Luke is both an historian of the earliest
Christian missionary work, and he is also a
missionary himself.
• From Luke’s narrative, he indicates that he
joined the travels of Paul.
• This gives us a first hand information and
experience about the strategies and the
message of the early Christian missionary
efforts.
 STRATEGIES OF MISSION
• Antioch was the third largest city in the Roman
Empire, (after Rome and Alexandria)
• A number of believers landed, scattered from
Jerusalem by persecutions and the wind of the
Spirit.
• The Antioch community became famous for two
reasons:
• At Antioch believers were first called Christians.
• From Antioch community, Paul and Barnabas
were commissioned as evangelists and sent
aout.
 READ ACTS 13:1-52
• After Paul and companions were commissioned,
they visited centers of population and trade.
• They began in the Synagogue and taught Jews
and God fearers about good new of Jesus the
Christ.
• Usually persecution forced people to move
• Paul designed follow up visits to do further
teaching and identifying emerging leaders
• As a strategy for the spreading of good news,
Paul would write to these new communities
 MESSAGE AND MISSION
• In the Synagogue where audiences assembled, Paul’s
preaching is similar to that of Peter as read in Acts 2
• Acts is the last narrative piece in the New Testament.
Our next assignments will be examining the letters of
Paul to the communities.
• The letters gives us a complete portrait of Paul. A person
of immense energy, with urban Jewish background,
influenced by Greek language and thought
• From Paul’s conversion, we see a changed Paul who
dramatically proclaims with vigor the Christ whom he
consistently persecuted
 (Cont)
• He persevered with his sense of mission
to take the Gospel to the Gentiles, and
consistently preached Justification by
Faith, apart from the Law of Moses as
exemplified in his sermon in
Antioch(Acts13:38,39). “And the Lord
added to their number daily those who
were being saved.”