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Colossians 1:1, 1 Corinthians 15:10

God Made Me Who I Am!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
January 5, 2023

Paul has no trouble introducing himself in his letters as an Apostle. He does that in nearly all of his books. His letter to the Colossians begins, “Paul, an Apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother.” I love the way Paul begins his letters to the churches. He often introduces himself as a servant or slave of Christ Jesus. It is often taken to be a statement of humility and it sure is that, but it is also a statement of authority. It is one of both humility and authority. Moses and other huge figures in the Bible call themselves “servants” and what they mean is often someone who speaks with authority from God. It appears that this is the way Paul intends his claim to Apostleship to be understood here. He was directly appointed as such by Jesus Christ on the road to Damascus. It’s an undeniable reality. When I retired from the Navy, I was a Chief Petty Officer. They called me “chief.” Many of my Navy friends will still do that on occasion and the correspondence I get from the Navy always refers to me as “chief.” I have the promotion certificate, the entries in my service record, and every other evidence that I am indeed a “chief.” I was appointed to that rank by the proper authority and am confident in that status. Paul was appointed to his role as an Apostle of Jesus Christ, by the appropriate authority and he is confident in his status.

He accepts himself and God’s plan for his life. This is an important concept for us all. We might not be what we once thought we would be. We might not be all that someone else is. We might not be what others might want us to be. But, like Paul, we are what we are, “by the will of God.” Elizabeth Elliot, in her book “Let Me Be a Woman”, records the story of Gladys Aylward. She was a lady who was unable to accept her physical appearance and was disappointed in the way God made her.  Ms. Aylward told how when she was a child she had two great sorrows. One, while all her friends had beautiful golden hair, hers was black. The other, that while her friends were still growing, she had stopped. She was about four feet ten inches tall. But when at last she reached the country to which God had called her to be a missionary, she stood on the wharf in Shanghai and looked around at the people to whom He had called her. “Every single one of them,” she said, “had black hair. And every one of them had stopped growing when I did.” She was able to look to God and exclaim, “Lord God, You know what you’re doing!”

He knows what He’s doing with you and me also! The Mississippi Mass Choir sings this song with an upbeat melody and inspiring lyrics.  “God made me. He made me who I am. Come on and say it with me God made me! God made me. He made me who I am (He made me). Put a smile on your face, and lift your head and say God made me (He made me) He made me who I am. You may be feeling down, but pick yourself up! God made me (and sing), made me who I am! So repeat these words after me and sing it: I’m a conquer, I’m victorious, I won’t be stopped. Come on say it to yourself,  I won’t be stopped (say it) I’m a believer. I’m an achiever, I won’t be blocked, I won’t be blocked. Don’t let the devil steal your joy, and you know why? Because God, God made me. He made me who I am. God made me He made me who I am!” In his first letter to the Corinthians Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:10, “By the grace of God, I am what I am.” And so am I. And so are you!! Yep, God knows what He’s doing and it will all become clear someday for each of us.

 

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Philippians 1:1, Acts 16:10

The Joy of a Clear Vision

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
January 4, 2023

When Solomon, the wisest man in the world, is giving his end-of-life advice in the book of Ecclesiastes he says in 8:15, “I commend joy, for man has nothing better under the sun but to eat and drink and be joyful, for this will go with him in his toil through the days of his life that God has given him under the sun.” The book of Philippians is Paul’s commendation of joy to us also. James Boice introduces his study of the book by saying, “The letter to the Philippians is one of the most joyous books in the Bible. All the way through the letter Paul speaks of inner joy, of inner happiness—sixteen times in four brief chapters. And he does it in such an artless way we know that the one who advised the Philippians to ‘rejoice in the Lord always’ had himself found the true source of joy. He had not only learned in whatever state he was to be content; he had learned to rejoice in whatever state he was. He overflowed with rejoicing.”[1] We can too!

It was a dream in which Paul had a vision that moved him to travel to Philippi. On his 2nd missionary journey, he found himself back in Asia Minor looking for a destination to the east. But he didn’t feel at peace about any of his choices. He never even considered going west into Macedonia. That would take him to Europe! He didn’t want to go to Europe! But God wanted him to! In the vision Paul saw a man crying out to him for help, pleading with him to come to Europe. Acts 16:10 says, “And when Paul had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.” It’s interesting to me that in Acts 10 it took three visions from God to motivate Peter to answer the call for help from a gentile outside his comfort Zone. Paul seemed to grasp the significance right away. He became the New Testament’s greatest visionary. He had the vision to reach people in Rome and as far west as Spain.

Paul knew his mission well: to preach the Gospel! Paul had a divinely appointed mission, but no divinely inspired vision. That’s why he was frustrated on his 2nd missionary journey until God gave him the vision to go west into Europe. Nothing ever happens if there is no vision fueled by the conviction that this is what God wants “us” to do. Each Christian has a divinely appointed mission; to contribute their time, energy, and resources to the overall mission Jesus gave the church to “make disciples.” It is vision that energizes the fulfillment of a mission. Vision is strategic. It gives us direction! It clears the confusion. It informs us on how we as individuals can uniquely fulfill our mission. Vision enables us to understand how we as individuals are distinct from other Christians. It informs us of where our life is taking us. It is a vision that inspires and energizes us. It also makes life meaningful and fills us with joy! That’s why Paul said, “…immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia.” With a clear vision of what God wants us to do with our lives, joy will, “go with us in our toil through the days of our life that God has given us under the sun.”

[1] Boice, James Montgomery. 2000. Philippians: An Expositional Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.

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Ephesians 1:1

Call me “Saint Chuck”

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
January 3, 2023

In his letters to the Corinthians, he includes another believer in his “from” column. He includes Sosthenes in his first letter and then Timothy in the second letter. But Ephesians doesn’t include anyone else. It is simply from Paul. It begins, “Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus.” He emphasizes the fact that his apostleship is not of his own making but an appointment by Jesus Himself according to the will of God. Then, he calls his addressees “saints.” The final phrase “faithful in Christ Jesus” has been understood in several ways. The emphasis is on their behavior on the one hand and a focus on the object of their faith on the other. I take the latter view. This describes what Paul means by “saints.” He’s not talking about behavior. He’s talking about their faith. Therefore, you might say Paul is addressing all believers in Jesus in Ephesus. This of course has a practical extension for you and me as well as believers.

Las Vegas is known for gambling and the main strip of buffets and entertainment. Hollywood is the home of movie stars. Salem, Massachusetts is well known for the witch hunts of the past. Washington, D.C. is the seat of our national government. Milwaukee is the home of brewers. Detroit makes cars. And Ephesus during Paul’s day was known for Satanic Activity. Paul’s address to these believers focuses on spiritual warfare ending with instructions on how to dress for battle. When I preached through this book over 20 years ago, I divided it up into three major sections as I felt they dealt with spiritual warfare. The first three chapters deal with what I called “Basic Training” for the foot soldier of Christ. This part teaches us what a believer needs to know to be a good soldier. You must know who you are in Christ, and what you have. The second section, Chapters 4, 5, and part of 6, deal with the campaigns themselves while the final part, Ephesians 6:10 and following deal with outfitting the troops for warfare.

The first thing we need to know is that faith in Jesus makes us saints! It’s not some declaration made by some ecclesiastical authority years after your death, but it is declared here and now. Every believer in Jesus is a saint. Every commentator worth his salt has observed that the phrase “in Ephesus” is missing from several of the oldest and most reliable manuscripts of this book. The evidence has been considered so strong by some that they have left this phrase out in their translation. (check the Revised Standard Version, the Jerusalem Bible, Goodspeed’s translation, Moffatts translation, and several others.) Nonetheless, this letter was a circular letter. It was written to be sent to several, maybe many, churches in Asia. This would explain the old manuscripts with the space for the geographical location left blank. Further, one ancient collector of the books of the Bible, Marcion, called this letter the one “to the Church at Laodicea.” Now, I have to tell you about the churches in Rev 2 & 3. Seven churches are addressed. The first on the list is Ephesus the others follow the order of a traveler coming from the seaport of Miletus, traveling north; first Ephesus, then Smyrna, then Pergamum, then traveling west to Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and finally to Laodicea. In the letter to Pergamum, John says that he knows that they are sitting on the throne of Satan. Remember the town officials in Acts 19 who settled the crowds down by reminding them that all Asia worships the Goddess Artemis. Satan’s control through idolatry was experienced in all these cities. Spiritual warfare is commonplace everywhere! THE POINT IS: The most ancient texts give us a form letter from God to (a blank geographical place.) Thus for our purposes, it’s perfectly appropriate to translate the text “to the saints living in (Just fill in your city). God preserved this book for us because of its specific application to all Christians everywhere. This letter is addressed to you and me as believers and it calls us “saints.” You can call me “Saint Chuck.”

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Galatians 1:1, Acts 13

Set Free By God’s Grace

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
January 2, 2023

F.F. Bruce names his book on the life of the Apostle Paul, “The Apostle of the Heart Set Free.” Bruce, one of the most respected theologians of the 20th century, was profoundly moved by the author of Galatians and “the exhilarating release effected by his gospel of redeeming grace.” Bruce wrote, “Paul’s pre-eminent contribution to the world has been his presentation of the good news of free grace—as he would have put it (rightly), his re-presentation of the good news explicit in Jesus’ teaching and embodied in his life and work. The free grace of God which Paul proclaimed is free grace in more senses than one—free in the sense that it is sovereign and unfettered, free in the sense that it is held forth to men and women for their acceptance by faith alone, and free in the sense that it is the source and principle of their liberation from all kinds of inward and spiritual bondage, including the bondage of legalism and the bondage of moral anarchy.”[1] The message Paul proclaimed of the free grace of God is best seen in his writing to the believers in Galatia.

The first word in the letter is “Paul.” Up to Acts 13:9, The Apostle was called by his Jewish name, Saul. It made him acceptable to his Jewish audiences. His role changed radically when he joined Barnabas and John Mark on the first missionary journey to Galatia. To begin with, the trip was led by Barnabas, who brought his cousin, John Mark, along. Both Barnabas and John Mark were solid Jewish believers. I would argue that they intended to go to the Jews only, but while on the Island of Cyprus, a “Jewish” false prophet attempted to prevent the governor, Sergius Paulus, a Roman Official, from accepting the faith. Then, Paul stepped up and cursed the false “Jewish” prophet with blindness. Sergius Paulus became the first gentile convert under the Apostle Paul’s ministry. It is interesting that after Acts 13:9, Saul becomes Paul from that point on. Some early church fathers think Saul took his gentile name at that time to honor his first convert, who had the same name. But I see it as part of God’s plan to move Paul from a Jewish focus to a gentile focus. Being of the tribe of Benjamin (As we read in Philippians), I’m reasonably sure that his parents named Saul after the first King of Israel. Saul, the King, was head and shoulders taller than most of the men in Israel at that time, making him stand out. It is interesting that “Paul” means “small” or “little.” Maybe that was an intentional change for this proud Pharisee who was humbled, knocked to his knees, and blinded by the Lord. Paul’s blindness led to his salvation, but not so with the “Jewish” false prophet. Instead, it led to the salvation of Paul’s first gentile convert. The Jews who insisted on forcing the Law into the salvation equation were as furious with Paul’s message as the Religious leaders of Jesus who put Himself above the Law. Religious people hated Jesus. Religious people hated Paul. Religious people are violently opposed to a salvation message freely offered to irreligious people.

The second thing worth noting in Galatians 1:1is that Paul calls himself an “Apostle – not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised Him from the dead.” Paul’s apostleship to the gentiles came directly from God. As Rushdoony observes, “Paul is emphatic because there was a major effort to belittle his calling, his teaching, and his person.”[2] This attack on Paul came from the Judaizers who insisted on connecting obedience to the law with salvation by grace through faith. Paul preached a Gospel that put the person and work of Christ at the center. It forced each person to see their sinfulness and their need for a savior. It took God’s divine intervention to get his attention in this hyper-religious Pharisee’s life. It takes divine intervention today as well for religious people to get the truth of the Gospel. Jesus did not come to set up another religion but to destroy all religion. It always takes divine intervention to set man free from the law of sin and death.

[1] Bruce, F. F. 1977. Paul: Apostle of the Free Spirit. Milton Keynes, UK: Paternoster.

[2] Rousas John Rushdoony, Romans & Galatians (Vallecito, CA: Ross House Books, 1997), 315.

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2 Corinthians 1:1

Welcome to Sainthood!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
January 1, 2023

In his 2nd letter to the Corinthians, Paul sends it to the church and names Timothy as “our brother.” In 1st Corinthians, it was Sosthenes; in 2 Corinthians, it is Timothy. He addresses the letter to the church in Corinth but then adds that it is also to all the saints in Achaia. The first verse reads, “Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To the church of God that is at Corinth, with all the saints who are in the whole of Achaia.” Some might suggest that the phrase “with all the saints who are in the whole of Achaia” is another way of saying that all these people are with him, meaning they support the content of his letter. But it appears that Paul is addressing them along with the church at Corinth. He is sending greetings to all the believers in the area. Rome had broken up the area into two provinces. Macedonia is the northern province, and Achaia is to the south. Paul is addressing the entire Roman province as well as all the believers in every location.

Paul is addressing the “saints.” We often think of a saint as one recognized as such by the Roman Catholic Church. According to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, “There are three steps to sainthood: a candidate becomes ‘Venerable,’ then ‘Blessed’ and then ‘Saint.’ Venerable is the title given to a deceased person recognized formally by the pope as having lived a heroically virtuous life or offered their life.  To be beatified and recognized as a Blessed, one miracle acquired through the candidate’s intercession is required in addition to recognition of heroic virtue or offering of life. Canonization requires a second miracle after beatification.  The pope may waive these requirements.”[1] This is not what Paul means when he addresses the Corinthians as saints. It appears that any believer in Jesus Christ is a saint. Especially when you realize that the word “saint” refers to someone set apart by God. Sainthood has to do with faith, not works. Guzik says, “It is remarkable that Paul freely calls the Corinthian Christians saints, considering their many problems. We often use the term saints differently today, applying it to the ‘super-spiritual’ instead of those who are set apart by a relationship of trust in Jesus Christ.”[2]

This idea is one of the significant differences between Protestants and Catholics. Protestants, on the whole, see all believers as saints. “The word saints here carries none of the twentieth-century ideas of canonization, rather its use reflects the fact that all believers are called of God to be his special possession.”[3] Grace Theological Seminary says, “So, what does saint mean? In its most basic sense, a saint is a “holy one,” someone who is set apart for God’s special purposes. As a result, every follower of Jesus Christ is a saint. In most of his letters, the apostle Paul refers to the recipients as saints, including the church at Corinth, where there were significant moral and theological problems!”[4] Pratt says, “‘Saint’ in the Old Testament occasionally refers to priests, but in the New Testament it designates all believers (Rom. 1:7). It basically means ‘holy ones’ or ‘sanctified ones.’ Paul did not have a special class of believers in mind. He wrote to every believer, no matter what their spiritual condition.”[5] When this came up in my sermons, I often referred to myself as “Saint Chuck.” My mother, who raised me as a Catholic, used to get mad at me when I’d do that. My sister said, “You!! I know you too well. I grew up with you, and you have the gall to call yourself a saint.” Yet, it’s not a matter of righteous living. We all fall short. It’s a matter of faith. If you are a believer in Jesus, “Welcome to Sainthood.”

[1] https://www.usccb.org/offices/public-affairs/saints

[2] David Guzik. 2013. 2 Corinthians. David Guzik’s Commentaries on the Bible. Santa Barbara, CA: David Guzik.

[3] Kruse, Colin G. 1987. 2 Corinthians: An Introduction and Commentary. Vol. 8. Tyndale New Testament Commentaries. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

[4] https://seminary.grace.edu/what-does-saint-mean/

[5] Pratt, Richard L., Jr. 2000. I & II Corinthians. Vol. 7. Holman New Testament Commentary. Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers.

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1 Corinthians 1:1, Mark 3:32-35, Romans 8:14f

Dear Brother and Sister

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
December 31, 2022

Paul begins his letter to the Corinthians by identifying himself and a person well known by the Corinthians as being the senders of the letter. He writes, “Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and our brother Sosthenes.” Paul needs to address some pretty serious issues in the church at Corinth that will be difficult for some to receive so he identifies himself as a God-appointed apostle of Jesus. This “Functions to bolster his standing in a community where at least some were questioning his authority.”[1] Paul identifies himself as an apostle of Jesus in all except four of his epistles. The stress in this title seems to rest primarily on the source of his calling, not on his position. It was not his own choosing. Later in the book, he tells his readers “By the grace of God, I am what I am.” It was the conviction of his calling by God that gave Paul such boldness and confidence throughout his ministry as is readily seen in his writings. He can therefore address the issues because of his calling. In verse two he reminds the readers of their “calling” to be holy people.

We don’t know much about this “Sosthenes” but there was such a man in Acts 18:17. He was a ruler of the Corinthian synagogue and was taken and beaten by the Jews while the Roman Prefect of the province, Gallio, did nothing to stop it. It seems that he was a Jew who was very possibly beaten because he became a Christian. “We cannot be certain that the Sosthenes who joined Paul in writing to Corinth had earlier been a leading Corinthian Jew, but it is at least possible, and perhaps more than possible. There is no doubt that Paul is the senior partner; or that Sosthenes genuinely is a partner.”[2] Some suggest that Sosthenes was Paul’s amanuensis or secretary and did the actual writing of the letter. This too is possible because he’s not mentioned in the letter again. But regardless of his role Sosthenes is referred to as “our brother.” Thus the readers in Corinth must have been familiar with Sosthenes and this added credibility to Paul’s letter.

In several of the epistles, the addressees are referred to as “brothers.” Some of the modern translations change that to read “brothers and sisters” because the term is general and includes both just as the term “mankind” includes both genders. We see this also frequently in the book of Acts. By the time of Paul’s letter, it was already a common practice to call each other brother and sister. This practice led the pagan world around them to accuse the Christians of incest. The early church was also accused of cannibalism because they partook of “the body and blood of Jesus” during the solemn assemblies. Both of course were ridiculous charges. When Jesus was told that his mother and brothers were looking for Him, he replied, “Who are My mother and My brothers? […] Whoever does the will of God, he is My brother and sister and mother” (Mark 3:32-35). It’s not the physical relationship that Jesus refers to but the spiritual connection they have through their common faith in Jesus. Romans 8:14-16 explains: “For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, Abba! Father! The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.” The same chapter says: “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, in order that He might be the firstborn among many brothers” (Romans 8:28-29). Jesus Christ is the only Son of God. But God adopts humans into His family so that they all become spiritual brothers and sisters.

[1] Ciampa, Roy E., and Brian S. Rosner. 2010. The First Letter to the Corinthians. The Pillar New Testament Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.

[2] Barrett, C. K. 1968. The First Epistle to the Corinthians. Black’s New Testament Commentary. London: Continuum.

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Romans 1:1, Galatians 1:15-16

Called and Set Apart for the Gospel

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
December 29, 2022

James Montgomery Boice begins his comments on the opening verse of the book of Romans with this little story: “Lord Lyttleton and Gilbert West were two nineteenth-century English barristers. They were unbelievers who one day took it upon themselves to disprove Christianity. West undertook to write against the resurrection of Jesus, while Lyttleton’s task was to disprove the factuality of Paul’s conversion.” They began to research the data and “West told Lyttleton that there was something on his mind that he felt he should share.” He was becoming convinced of the truth of the resurrection. Lyttleton also admitted the strength of the evidence regarding Paul’s conversion. ‘Gilbert, as I have been studying the evidence and weighing it by the recognized laws of legal evidence, I have become satisfied that Saul of Tarsus was converted as the New Testament says he was and that Christianity is true; I have written my book from that perspective.” West replied that in a similar way he had become convinced of the truth of Jesus’ resurrection, had come to believe in Jesus, and had written his book in defense of Christianity. Today their books are found in many good libraries.”[1] I have not considered Paul’s conversion as important as Jesus’ resurrection. However, if the resurrection is not true, we are, as Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:19, “… of all people most to be pitied.” Boice echoes a similar sentiment regarding Paul’s conversion. “If Paul was not converted as a result of seeing the risen Lord while on the road to Damascus, as he claimed, and if he did not receive his gospel by a direct revelation from Jesus Christ, then Paul was a charlatan, his writings are not true, and Christianity is bereft of its single most important teacher after Christ.”

Paul identifies himself with four distinctives in the opening verse of Romans. “Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God.” First, he uses his conversion name: Paul. The fact that Saul, the Jewish Rabbi, became Paul the Christian convert is as radical conversion as one would ever see. He was named after the first King of Israel who stood head and shoulders above his contemporaries. The word “Paul” in Greek means “small.” Second, the giant Saul who persecuted the believers and took part in Stephen’s murder had become, not a king, but a slave or servant of Jesus. He identifies himself as such. Some argue that this term applied to Moses and others in the Old Testament is a term of honor. But I think Moo has it right. He says, “The connotations of humility, devotion, and obedience are never absent from the OT phrase and are surely primary here also.”[2] Thirdly, Paul says he’s “called” to be an apostle. He did not appoint himself. He knew that God was the one who had called him. Hughes says, “At the base of Paul’s self-perception was the fact that his lifework was God’s doing. What a comfort—what a motivation!”[3]

Finally, Paul knows he was “set apart.” It wasn’t something that came to God but was part of God’s eternal plan. Paul affirms this truth in Galatians 1:15-16, “But when God, who had set me apart before I was born and called me through his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, so that I might proclaim him among the Gentiles, I did not confer with any human being.”  The word for being “set apart” is the same word from which the word “Pharisee” comes. They saw themselves as set apart to proclaim the law. Paul was one of them. But he knows that God’s plan for him was not to promote the Law, but the Good News of Jesus Christ. Paul was confident in who he was and that God had uniquely called him and set him apart for a particular task. The same is true for you and me!

[1] Boice, James Montgomery. 1991–. Romans: Justification by Faith. Vol. 1. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House.

[2] Douglas J. Moo, The Epistle to the Romans (NICNT; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1996), 41.

[3] Hughes, R. Kent. 1991. Romans: Righteousness from Heaven. Preaching the Word. Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.

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Acts 1:1-3, 28:31

The Holy Spirit & The Kingdom of God

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
December 29, 2022

The book of Acts in the New Testament is Luke’s second historical record. He begins it, “In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them for forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.” It’s written again to a man named Theophilus or maybe to “Lovers of God” which is what the literal rending of the name means in Greek. In his Gospel, Luke connected Jesus with all of mankind’s history and then recounted the life of Jesus, His works, His teachings, and His death including his resurrection and appearance to many after his resurrection. The first account, the Gospel, covers the time of Jesus’ ministry on earth and post-resurrection. The second account, the book of Acts, covers the following 30 years and is the spread of the Gospel over the next 30 years. It ends with Paul in prison in Rome. Boice says, “Some scholars think that Luke had probably planned a third as well, dealing with Paul’s release from prison and his further ministry to the western part of the Roman Empire.”[1]

The phrase “by many proofs” was Luke’s way of saying that the evidence for Christ’s resurrection was undeniable to all. The Handbook for Translators says, “In ways that proved beyond doubt translates one Greek word which is a very strong term meaning clear and evident proof. Proved beyond doubt may be restructured as ‘he showed them clearly’ or ‘showed them so clearly that people could not doubt.’”[2] In chapter seven of this book, we’ll read about the first person to be martyred for believing in Jesus. The certainty of Jesus’ resurrection fueled the church throughout its history from this book even to today. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 15:19, “If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.” It is the hope we have for the next life that fuels every Christian. According to this passage, Jesus taught about “The Kingdom of God.” His teachings fully convinced his followers that there was another life to be experienced that fueled their lives on earth. Luke begins Acts by telling his readers that the primary message of Jesus during his resurrection involved the “Kingdom of God.” This historical account ends the same way. The final verse of the book (Acts 28:31) tells us that Paul spent his last days, “proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance.”

The book is sometimes labeled “The Acts of the Apostles.” An Orthodox website tells us, “St. Luke never gave a formal title to his work, intending it to simply be a sequel to his Gospel—a continuation of the story of Christ’s Kingdom on earth—whereas our current title was added by a later hand. But it has been well said that St. Luke’s history may be properly called The Gospel of the Holy Spirit; for it relates the birth, growth, and victory of the Holy Spirit’s work in the life of the apostles.”[3] Hughes agrees with that assessment and adds, “It is also a book with a splendid theme, tracing the work of the Holy Spirit through the birth, infancy, and adolescence of the Church. Its title could well be ‘The Acts of the Holy Spirit’ or ‘The Acts of the Risen Christ Through the Holy Spirit Working Through the Church.’ Acts forms the perfect counterpart and contrast to the Gospels. In the Gospels the Son of Man offered his life; in Acts the Son of God offered his power. In the Gospels we see the original seeds of Christianity; in Acts we see the continual growth of the Church. The Gospels tell us of Christ crucified and risen; Acts speaks of Christ ascended and exalted. The Gospels model the Christian life as lived by the perfect Man; Acts models it as lived out by imperfect men.”[4]

[1] Boice, James Montgomery. 1997. Acts: An Expositional Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.

[2] Newman, Barclay Moon, and Eugene Albert Nida. 1972. A Handbook on the Acts of the Apostles. UBS Handbook Series. New York: United Bible Societies.

[3] https://www.suscopts.org/resources/literature/757/the-acts-of-the-apostles-or-the-gospel-of-the-holy/

[4] Hughes, R. Kent. 1996. Acts: The Church Afire. Preaching the Word. Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.

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