Luke, the author of the book of Acts, begins by alluding to the previous book he wrote… the Gospel of Luke. Let’s take brief note of this chapter that prepares the reader for the establishment of the Lord’s church.
THE SCOPE OF LUKE (1:1-2)
Acts is a sequel to the Gospel of Luke which recorded the things “Jesus began to do and teach” (v. 1). In Luke 4, which is the beginning of the Lord’s public ministry, Isaiah is quoted in verses 18-19 showing that Jesus came to heal (perform miracles) and preach the good news. This is what He did and taught. In healing mankind’s diseases (and performing other miracles), Jesus showed Himself to have power over the physical world and confirmed that He was from God and in fact was God (the Word) manifested in the flesh (see Jn. 1:1-3, 14). Jesus came to proclaim the Good News to a lost world. The timeline of Luke’s Gospel account was basically from the beginning of the public ministry of Jesus, until the time He ascended to the Father. The book of Acts picks up from that point, as the apostles carry on the mission of Christ, commenced with the birth of the church.
THE WITNESS OF THE APOSTLES (1:3-5). The end of the book of Luke chronicles for us the witness of the apostles to the resurrected Christ. (See 1 Cor. 15:5-8 for the most complete record of witnesses of the resurrected Lord.) This witness was crucial to being an apostle (see Acts 1:21-22). It was during the course of these forty days, between the resurrection and the ascension, that Jesus appeared to the twelve, and continued teaching them about the kingdom.
THE PROMISE OF THE FATHER (1:4-8)
Before His ascension, Jesus instructed the apostles to wait in Jerusalem for the promise of the Father, which is clearly related to the coming baptism of the Holy Spirit that the apostles would receive (see again vv. 4-5). Before discussing this further, note that when the Holy Spirit comes upon them, they shall be witnesses for Him beginning in Jerusalem (v. 8). Jesus had previously foretold the apostles of this event, assuring them of the guidance of the Holy Spirit that would come upon them and enable them to perfectly reveal the teachings of Christ (see Jn. 14:26-27; 16:13). Additionally, and significantly, we can discern with confidence that this coming of the Spirit would signify the beginning of the kingdom, or the church.
We can reason as follows: Jesus said in Mark 9:1, “Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God after it has come with power.” We learn two things in particular here: (1) The kingdom will come soon (or, in that generation) and (2) the kingdom will come with power. In Luke 24:49 Luke also says that the “promise of my Father” will come “with power from on high.” So the promise of the Father is going to come with power and will signify the beginning of the kingdom. Remember that some of the final instructions Jesus gave to the twelve involved going to Jerusalem to wait for the “promise of the Father” (1:4). In Acts 2 we see the apostles together on that first Pentecost day after the resurrection and then the Scripture says in verses 2-4: “And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.”
Clearly, the apostles were baptized in the Spirit and received miraculous powers enabling them to speak in tongues. The sermon that Peter preached as the Spirit moved him also makes the connection between the events that are witnessed here, connecting them to OT prophesy about the “last days” (2:17), the final era (or the Christian Dispensation). Later in the sermon Peter refers to the reception of the Holy Spirit which has been seen and heard (v. 33). With this reception of Holy Spirit, the apostles of Jesus are ready to fulfill the commission of Acts 1:8 (see also Mt. 28:18-20; Mk. 16:15-16; Lk. 24:46-47). In fact, Acts 1:8 can be thought of as a basic outline of the book of Acts, as it traces especially some of the noticeable work and teaching of Peter and Paul.
As we conclude, we should observe an extremely important application. Back in Acts 1:1, Luke noted that his previous book was about what Jesus began to do and teach. The work of our Lord did not end when He ascended to heaven. Jesus continued to work through the apostles (see Mt. 28:20) and early church. Today, as we work the works of God, and teach the Gospel of Christ, Jesus continues to work through us!
Daren Schroeder
