Bible Study Series. Acts 1:1-3. Luke was a careful historian who recorded the events in earliest Christianity. We can learn some things and apply them to our lives
As I will write in every introduction to Acts, friendly greetings and a warm welcome to this Bible study! I write to learn. Let’s learn together and apply these truths to our lives.
I also translate to learn. The translations are mine, unless otherwise noted. If you would like to see many others, please click on this link:
At the link to the original post, next, I write more commentary and dig a little deeper into the Greek. I also offer a section titled Observations for Discipleship at the end. Check it out!
In this post, links are provided in the commentary section for further study.
Let’s begin.
Scripture: Acts 1:1-3
1 The earlier account I wrote up was about everything, O Theophilus, which Jesus began both to do and teach 2 until the very day he was taken up, after he instructed, through the Spirit, the apostles whom he had chosen. 3 After he suffered, he presented himself alive to them with many convincing proofs, by appearing quite visibly to them, before their eyes, for a period of forty days, and speaking about the kingdom of God. (Acts 1:1-3)
Comments:
1:
Theophilus was a real person with a noble rank, probably of the equestrian order or procurator rank. He had a very cool name. It literally means “friend of God,” “lover of God,” “beloved of God,” or “dear to God.” But let’s not over-spiritualize it—it really was a man’s name, common enough over the centuries. No one wrote a dedication to a symbol. But see the final application, below, where I challenge you about being God’s friend.
Read the first four verses to find out more about Theophilus.
2:
It is very important for Luke to establish the chain of authority from the beginning (cf. Acts 1:21-22). He keeps this theme of early discipleship from the beginning in the preface to his Gospel (1:1-4). This theme will be important when Peter leads the way to choose the next apostle to replace the betrayer Judas (Acts 1:12-26).
His replacement had to be a follower from John’s baptism to their current time. Paul, later called an apostle, who came late on the scene, would not have fit that replacement requirement. That’s why Luke wrote in Acts 1:1, “Everything that Jesus began both to do and teach”: And now he is about to continue to do and teach, but through his apostles (and now us). (See vv. 21-22 for more comments.) Jesus chose the apostles, and he chooses you too in your own service to him. A volunteer in children’s church? To stack the chairs? To be on the parking lot team? Lead a small group or bring refreshments?
“he through the Spirit instructed”: He commanded them through the Holy Spirit, and he commands you today through the Holy Spirit. He does this through Scripture, so daily or regular reading is essential, but he also does this through his still small voice to whomever has a still mind that does not race around but can calm down to receive his whispers. His sheep hear his voice (John 10:3). The Spirit can also command you through godly leaders as well, but those leaders must always conform to the clear teaching of Scripture. Personal words and counsel must always be evaluated and judged by Scripture with a humble heart.
Polhill: “And the same Jesus who taught them during his earthly life would continue to instruct them through the presence of the Spirit once they experienced the Spirit through the presence of Jesus. Formerly they had experienced the Spirit through the presence of Jesus. After Pentecost they would experience Jesus through the presence of the Spirit” (p. 81).
3:
“convincing proof”: Appearing to the disciples alive is the best “convincing proof.” His divine mission was to carry on the kingdom after his resurrection. He is sealing his apostles and disciples with his mission, etching it in their minds that he was alive and was about to direct his church, even today.
“appearing quite visibly”: The good news is that his appearances have not stopped. Renewalists believe that he can appear to those whom he wills, in visions or dreams or personally. But we must be careful here, too, because Satan can appear as an angel of light and deceive people (2 Cor 11:14). His appearances must conform to his revealed teaching in Scripture. Warning here:
Calling Leaders by Name to Repent
“Forty days”: is not continuous, but in intervals. In other words, the sovereign Lord was not their roommate, but appeared to them whenever the Father and he willed it so.
Here are the basics about resurrection in the New Testament:
1.. It was prophesied in the OT (Ps. 16:3-11; Is. 55:3; Jnh. 1:17)
2.. Jesus predicted it before his death (Mark 8:31; 9:9, 31; 10:33-34; John 2:19-22)
3.. It happened in history (Matt. 28:1-7; Mark 16:1-8; Luke 24:1-8; John 20:1-8)
4.. Power used to resurrect Jesus:
a.. Power of God (Acts 2:24; Eph. 1:19-20; Col. 2:12)
b.. Christ’s own power (John 10:18)
c.. Jesus is the resurrection (John 11:25-26)
d.. Power of the Spirit (Rom. 8:11; 1 Pet. 3:18)
5.. Nature of Christ’s resurrection
a.. The same body that died was raised (Luke 24:39-40; John 20:27)
b.. It was a physical body
(1)) He ate (Luke 24:41-43; John 21:12-13; Acts 10:40-41)
(2)) He could be touched (John 20:27; 1 John 1:1)
(3)) It was a gloried body (1 Cor. 15:42-44; Phil. 3:21)
(4)) He passed through locked door (John 20:19, 26)
(5)) He ascended into heaven (Acts 1:9)
c.. It was also a transformed and glorified body
12. Do I Really Know Jesus? What Was His Resurrected Body Like?
And for a review of the basics, please click on this post:
11. Do I Really Know Jesus? He Was Resurrected from the Dead
You can also go to youtube to find out the evidence for it. Look for Gary Habermas or Mike Licona.
For a table of his appearances and other facts, please see:
14. Do I Really Know Jesus? He Appeared to His Disciples
“speaking about the kingdom”: Jesus spoke often about the kingdom of God. He ushered it in, and at the birth of the church in Acts 2 it was about to expand beyond Israel. It is for everyone who receives him into their hearts and becomes his followers. When that happens, they enter into his light; receive clarity; enjoy an intimate relationship with the Father through Christ and the Spirit; live a consecrated life through his resurrection power and in the Spirit and by his power. And so the kingdom makes all the difference in the world—by creating a new world, and in it a new you, a new life.
Bible Basics about the Kingdom of God
Questions and Answers about Kingdom of God
Basic Definition of Kingdom of God
1 Introducing the Kingdom of God (begin a ten-part series)
In the book of Acts, the kingdom seems more general (1:3, 8:12; 19:8; 20:25; 28:23, 31), but it also can mean the kingdom of the new age (14:22).
Schnabel (comment on v. 3) insightfully points out that Acts ends with the kingdom of God, the last verse (28:31), so the kingdom forms an inclusio or enclosure or framework or two bookends for Acts. Therefore, God’s sovereign and gracious rule was preached throughout Acts, even if Luke does not always spotlight it in various verses.
Here is the introduction written by Jewish historian Josephus (lived c. AD 37-100) to his work Against Apion:
‘In my history of our Antiquities, most excellent Epaphroditus, I have, I think, made sufficiently clear … the extreme antiquity of our Jewish race … Since, however, I observe that a considerable number of persons … discredit the statements in my history …, I consider it my duty to devote a brief treatise to all these points … to instruct all who desire to know the truth concerning the antiquity of our race. As witnesses to my statements I propose to call the writers who, in the estimation of the Greeks, are the most trustworthy authorities on antiquity as a whole’ (Jos. Ap. 1:1–4).
No, Luke did not copy Josephus. Instead, the excerpt shows that Josephus was following a long tradition for introducing a book, and Luke was also following the same long tradition.
Here is Josephus’ introduction to his second book Against Apion:
‘In the first volume of this work, my esteemed Epaphroditus, I demonstrated the antiquity of our race … I shall now proceed to refute the rest of the authors who have attacked us’ (Jos. Ap. 2:1f.).
The above brief introduction to Book Two looks a lot like the preface to the Book of Acts, the second volume to the Gospel of Luke. Once again Luke did not copy from Josephus (the chronology is off), but he is fitting in to a long-standing literary tradition.
Source: I. Howard Marshall, The Gospel of Luke: A Commentary on the Greek Text. The New International Greek Testament Commentary (Eerdmans, 1978), p. 40.
To conclude ….
We shouldn’t make too much of the literal meaning of his name, Theophilus. It means “friend of God.” However, let me use it cautiously. Are you a friend of God? He wants to befriend or “friend” you. As you follow him and his Son, and allow the spirit to flow through you, he wants to “like” your life, in somewhat the same way you “like” your friend’s posts in social media. Only his “like” is a word of encouragement. Your friend presents himself in the best light possible. But God likes you even when you are not at your best. He accepts you the way you are, even at your worst. You are dear to him. But he loves you too much to let you remain as you are. Let him change you.
Grow App for Acts 1:1-4
1.. Jesus instructed, through the Spirit, the apostles. These instructions are found in the four Gospels. Name an instruction in one of them that has instructed you, in your study and listening.
2.. The resurrection is the bedrock of the Christian faith. Why? (Read 1 Cor. 15:3-4 and 1 Peter 1:3).
RELATED
The Historical Reliability of the Book of Acts
Book of Acts and Paul’s Epistles: Match Made in Heaven?
SOURCES
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