Walk with Me

It is generally recognized that Acts was written in the first century sometime prior to 70 A.D. by Luke, who is believed to be a highly educated physician.  It is a common view that Luke spent some time with Paul as is evidenced by Paul’s writing in Colossians 4:14 “Luke the beloved physician greets you…” 

In Acts, also referred to as the “Acts of the Apostles,” Luke provides a very detailed history of the early church.  Although the title “Acts of the Apostles” would lead you to believe that the book of Acts would describe accounts of several disciples, the book details only Peter and Paul’s ministries.  It is believed that Luke collected the content for Acts through careful, deliberate research and eyewitness accounts of the events recorded in Acts. 

The first 11 plus chapters of Acts describe the promise by God of the gift of the Holy Spirit after Jesus’ ascension to heaven.  It provides detailed accounts of Peter’s preaching of the Gospel to the Jews in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria.  Stories of healing by Peter and the other Apostles and the development of the church community and discipline are described throughout the early chapters of Acts.  The chapters tell of the capture of Stephen and his subsequent death by stoning after his wonderful, Holy Spirit-inspired speech to his captors.  The book introduces us to Philip and then to Saul, who encounters Jesus and is converted from a persecutor of Christians to a bold proclaimer of the Gospel with his new name of Paul.

The latter half of Acts describes Paul’s preaching of the Gospel throughout Asia Minor and Europe and his multiple missionary journeys.  It concludes with Paul’s teaching in Rome and his imprisonment there.

In summary, the book of Acts is unique in that it is the only explicit book of history in the New Testament primarily focusing on the early formation of the Christian church as a separate religious tradition from Judaism.  It has been used repeatedly through the centuries as an authoritative text for how to structure a church, its essential characteristics, and some of the tensions that exist in living our life together.