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Week 44. Day 1. Acts 1.
Introduction to Acts.
Acts continues not just the story, but also the main themes of Luke. Luke presented the ministry of Jesus, culminating in the cross and resurrection, Jesus’ coronation. Acts presents the continued ministry of Jesus, now enthroned and reigning, ministry done through his apostles. The characteristic of Jesus’ ministry in Luke is that it was done in the power of the Holy Spirit, and the same will be true for the apostles in Acts, with the Spirit being poured out on them at Pentecost.
Because of the significance of some of the events in the early chapters of Acts, we’ll move more slowly at first, and cover a larger section next time.
Acts 1
1:1 – The book of Luke is what Jesus began to do and teach, so Acts must be what Jesus continues to do and teach!
In 1:6 the disciples ask Jesus a question. Jesus’s response in v8 corrects 4 different misconceptions, and is a programmatic statement for the book as a whole.
- ‘Lord, are you…’ --> ‘You will receive power’
Jesus will continue his mission, but he will do it through his disciples, as he will be taken up to heaven imminently.
- ‘at this time’ --> 'when the Holy Spirit comes on you'
The giving of the Spirit will be THE great turning point in the progress of the kingdom of God
- ‘restore the kingdom’ --> 'you will be my witnesses'
The kingdom will not advance by force (as the disciples perhaps expect) but by the proclamation of the good news about Jesus.
- ‘to Israel’ --> 'in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria,and to the ends of the earth'
Jesus plan, and indeed the plan all along, is not just salvation for Old Testament Israel, but for the whole world. Acts is the first time in Scripture we really see salvation moving into the non-Jewish world.
1:12-26 How is Matthias chosen as an apostle? What criteria must he meet?
NOTE: Days 1-5 of each week contain the scripture reading for that week. Day 6 has just the 'key chapters'. If you want a briefer version of this plan that still takes you through the whole Bible, you could just read the key chapters featured on day 6. Day 7 has the podcast video where we discuss the week's reading.
Scripture
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The Bible OverBrew is a friendly virtual book group, helping you read the Bible in big chunks, preferably with a mug of tea! Maybe you've tried to read through the Bible before, but gave up when it felt confusing or too intense? We are here to help you! We provide notes and questions to guide your reading, and note ‘key chapters’ if you don’t have time to read it all. In our podcast at the end of each week we draw out the key themes, and how it all points to Christ. We’d love you to join us!
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