Acts Chapter 1

The Book of Acts

I am told by a close friend that ALL my questions can be answered in the book of Acts.  "If I will just read the book of Acts, I will see."  "If I would take the time to read the book of Acts, all will be revealed."  THIS may very well be the case.  But my plan was to start at the beginning and work my way slowly through the bible.  That all changed when Timothy Team at church started back up and this year, is the study of Acts.  Well, I have been told, this book holds all the answers. So here I am.  

I have spent the last two days reading the whole thing.  And taking notes, and jotting down good stuff, and marking good stuff, and sharing good stuff, and bookmarking good stuff.  And I have decided that I can not, will not do to the New Testament what I am doing with the Old Testament.  The Old Testament study is a LOT of detail with very little story, so it's easy to outline for those of us that are new at this.  The New Testament is very little detail about a whole lot of story.  So I decided I will do a chapter of Acts each week, maybe two a week, and we will go from there. I must say, that it did not hold all of the answers that I seek, but it did confirm some answers I hold dear, and filled me with a lot of information that is quite necessary for understanding.  Those I am eager to share with you.   

There is a lot of stuff in Acts.  Acts is the only book of the New Testament that is considered "History", and outlines the formation of the church of Jesus.

In choosing a version to print here, I know you guys know that I prefer the CJB, however, for this series I thought it best to use an easier to read version, and the NIV is the closest I have found to accurate.  If commentary is warranted I will make sure it stands out differently.  

About Acts - this information was pulled from my NKJV Study Bible for Women, by Nelson.  

Author:  Although not mentioned by name, Luke, the Gentile physician, is believed to be the author of the Book of acts, the companion volume to the Gospel of Luke.  The dear friend and traveling companion of Paul, Luke was an eyewitness to many of the events he recorded in Acts.

Date:  The Book of Acts ends abruptly with Paul in his second year of house imprisonment in Rome, which began around A.D. 60.  Luke does not give information concerning Paul's trial or death (Paul died between A.D. 66 and 68).  Nor does Acts record the Neronian persecution (A.D. 64-68) or the destruction of Jerusalem (A.D. 70).  Scholars believe Luke would have included these important events if he had written Acts after 

A. D. 64.  Thus, Acts was probably written sometime between A.D. 61 and 63.

Purpose:  The Book of Acts provides the history of the early Christian church. 

Audience:  Acts is addressed to a specific person, Theophilus.  While Luke might have written to a specific man by the name of "Theophilus," many have suggested that Luke addressed all those who love God, since "Theophilus" means "lover of God."

    

  

Acts 1 

Jesus Taken Up Into Heaven

1 In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach 2 until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. 3 After his suffering, he showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. 4 On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command:"Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. 5 For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit."6 So when they met together, they asked him, "Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?" 7 He said to them: "It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." 9 After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. 10 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 11 "Men of Galilee," they said, "why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven."

Regarding V.8  "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."  The NIV application commentary:  "In a sense the disciples were already witnesses for they had seen the risen Lord; that was the key to their witness (1:22). But they also needed “power” to be effective witnesses, power that would come from the Holy Spirit. The way the Holy Spirit makes witnesses and empowers witness must cover the entire witnessing process, and this is well illustrated in Acts."

J. Vernon McGee says "In Jerusalem, which applied to us means our home town.  All of Judea is equivalent to our community; and Samaria represents the other side of the tracks, the folk we don't associate with"

There are two ways that we can be filled with the Holy Spirit... Romans 8:9, John 3:3, John 20:21-22. 

A) The INDWELLING is the Holy Spirit coming to live inside you to give you the new birth.  

B) The INFILLING is the Holy Spirit coming upon you to give you the power to be Jesus' witness.  Power is "the ability to do."

Matthias Chosen to Replace Judas

12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day's walk from the city. 13 When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. 14 They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers. 15 In those days Peter stood up among the believers (a group numbering about a hundred and twenty) 16 and said, "Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled which the Holy Spirit spoke long ago through the mouth of David concerning Judas, who served as guide for those who arrested Jesus-- 17 he was one of our number and shared in this ministry." 18 (With the reward he got for his wickedness, Judas bought a field; there he fell headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines spilled out. 19 Everyone in Jerusalem heard about this, so they called that field in their language Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood.) 20 "For," said Peter, "it is written in the book of Psalms, " 'May his place be deserted; let there be no one to dwell in it,' and, " 'May another take his place of leadership.' 21 Therefore it is necessary to choose one of the men who have been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 22 beginning from John's baptism to the time when Jesus was taken up from us. For one of these must become a witness with us of his resurrection." 23 So they proposed two men: Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias. 24 Then they prayed, "Lord, you know everyone's heart. Show us which of these two you have chosen 25 to take over this apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs." 26 Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles. 

*a Sabbath day's walk from the city: was only about 1/2 a mile. Not that this is all they could walk in a days time, but Sabbath day is a day of rest, so the distance would not be very far. 

*Judas bought a field; there he fell headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines spilled out.  (This may appear to be in conflict with other gospel that Judas hung himself, however, once dead by hanging, he would have hung there until he bloated, the rope broke, and he "fell headlong, his body burst open.  It could have been the rope wasn't tied well and he fell on rocks that cut him open.  The item he used to hang himself with may not have been very "sturdy" and gave way.  There are all number of possibles here that could explain the "potential" discrepancy from two different accounts.  I assure you if I tell the same story as my husband, it will be quite a bit different... so I don't see this is conflicting, but rather a later accounting)

*Judas had a place in the ministry.  The ministry was divided into 12 bishopricks, (BISHOPRICK, eccl. law. The extent of country over which a bishop has jurisdiction a see; adiocese.) and with Judas not being there, there was an opening, an area that had no minister.  So they nominated two to take Judas' place.  and Matthias was chosen by lots cast by Peter hoping for God to choose.  Did God choose Matthias.  As J. Vernon McGee points out, we hear absolutely NOTHING about Matthias and what he did.  But we do hear a LOT about Paul, and how the Holy Spirit chose him. 

*Joseph called Barsabbas, was the other choice, not chosen when the lots were cast. 

*Apostolic ministry is mentioned in this passage.  We will discuss apostolic ministry more in depth in a later article.  This is a major contention with the Roman Catholic Church, and something I'm not familiar with completely yet.

For now that is chapter 1, very informative, and some items to review closer.