Overview & Additional Resources

Book Overview

The book of Acts was written by the same author that wrote the Gospel of Luke and is the direct follow up to the Gospel. Acts provides the history of the early church with an intent focus on the spread of the empowerment of the Holy Spirit to spread God’s kingdom to the entire world. The book shows the spread of God’s church from Jerusalem to Judea to Samaria to the ends of the earth. This spread is was met with great opposition. Therefore there is a prominent focus on the communal life of the church and its response to persecution.

More info here - Bible Project Guide to Acts

Themes to Look For:

  • Acts of the Holy Spirit

  • The Church

  • Prayer

  • Joy in Suffering

  • Jesus’ Mission

  • Self-Sacrifice and Faithfulness

Important Definitions:

  • Theophilus – person(s) to whom the Gospel of Luke and Acts are addressed. Literally “God’s friend”

  • Hellenists - Greek speaking Jewish Christians

  • Hebrews – Hebrew speaking Jewish Christians

  • Deacon – from the Greek word meaning “servant”. A man ordained tot assist the Apostles by ministering to the needs of the Church.

  • Church – Greek word Ekklesia literally meaning assembly. Seen as either the entire of God’s people throughout the world or a local assembly of believers.

  • Gentile – a word used to designate a person who is not Jewish.

  • Pentecost – the biblical event described in Ch. 2 where the Holy Spirit was poured out on his disciples.

  • God-Fearer - A gentile who worshiped the one true God in synagogues and accepted the morality of Judaism but was not circumcised.

  • Gospel - commonly translated “good news” referring to the good news of Jesus Christ and the salvation made possible by his crucifixion, burial, and resurrection.

  • Kingdom of God - The sovereign rule of God found in heaven and increasingly amongst his people.

  • Apostle - Meaning “one who is sent” referring to those that Jesus chose specifically to represent him.

How to Read Acts

Questions to ask for understanding:

  • What specifically does this say about Jesus / God?

  • What specifically does this say about human nature?

  • What warnings are there?

  • What sins should we avoid?

  • What commands or examples are there to follow?

Things to look for while reading NT Narratives:

  • Narrative Elements - Setting, Characters, Plot

  • Old Testament Quotes and Allusions

  • Stories or Characters that can be compared and contrasted

  • Repeated words or phrases (Ex: “the word of God increased”)

  • Vivid Imagery

  • Themes (Ex: “Jesus’s spreading church”)