Week Forty-Five Reading Assignment:
John 16 - Acts 17
In one sense, Acts is the most important book in the New Testament. It is the simple truth that if we did not possess Acts, we would have, apart from what we could deduce from the letters of Paul, no information whatever about the early Church.
Luke's chief purpose is set out in the words of the Risen Christ in 1:8, "You shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judaea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth." It was to show the expansion of Christianity, to show how that religion which began in a little corner of Palestine had in not much more than thirty years reached Rome.
A great New Testament scholar has said that the title of Acts might be, "How they brought the Good News from Jerusalem to Rome."
(William Barclay, The Daily Study Bible Series: The Acts of the Apostles)
Luke's chief purpose is set out in the words of the Risen Christ in 1:8, "You shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judaea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth." It was to show the expansion of Christianity, to show how that religion which began in a little corner of Palestine had in not much more than thirty years reached Rome.
A great New Testament scholar has said that the title of Acts might be, "How they brought the Good News from Jerusalem to Rome."
(William Barclay, The Daily Study Bible Series: The Acts of the Apostles)
This Week's Teaching Video: New Testament Geography
Character Profile: Anatomy of DiscipleshipHe is the most familiar of Jesus’ twelve disciples, and as such Simon Peter serves as a marvelous model for us.
When we first meet him, he is a fisher-man, along with his brother Andrew. According to John’s Gospel, Andrew was instrumental in introducing Peter to Jesus. Later, Jesus Himself calls both Peter and Andrew to follow Him. He said that He would change their vocation, making them fishers of men. Both dropped their nets, left their boats behind, and followed Jesus. Peter’s following is not uneventful. He witnesses remarkable things, while sleeping through others. He gets some very important stuff right, and in the next breath gets very important stuff wrong. He has enough faith to step out onto the water, but not enough to keep him from sinking. His devotion is heartfelt enough to proclaim his unyielding faithfulness to Jesus at the Last Supper, but that faith-fulness does not even survive the night. Thorough it all, however, Jesus does not give up on Peter. Instead, He continues to teach and to challenge Peter, He gives Peter the personal opportunity to re-establish his devotion to Jesus after the Resurrection, and He makes Peter “the rock upon which I shall build my church.” In Acts, we see the fruits of Jesus’ patient discipling. Peter becomes the key spokesman at Pentecost, the leader of the Jerusalem Church, and the initial conduit through which they gospel went out to the Gentiles. He had become a fisher of men, indeed, and we may find that his path of disciple-ship looks very much like our own. |
What to Watch for This MonthAs you finish the fourth Gospel, reflect on the ways in which the Gospels are similar and the ways in which they are different from one another. What one or two things struck you as distinctive about each Gospel?
We typically associate the following themes and emphases more with the Old Testament than with the New: holiness, judgment, animal sacrifices and offer-ings, separation of God’s people from other peoples, covenants, circumcision, Law. Reflect on how these themes and emphases appear, if at all, in the New Testament. Based on this most recent reading of the Gospels (not based on the precon-ceptions that we may all carry into our reading) what would you say were the major themes of Jesus’ teachings? What continuity does Jesus see between the Old Testament and Himself? His teachings? The kingdom of God? What continuity does Paul see between the Old Testament and the gospel of Christ? In what ways does the New Testament church resemble the church today? In what ways does the New Testament church seem very different from the church today? As with the Prophets, the Epistles give us a glimpse into the contemporary struggles of God’s people. What sins, failures, issues, and struggles seem prevalent in the early church? We noted in our reading of the prophets that God uses a variety of methods for communicating His word. Identify the different methods He uses in the Gospels and in the early church. At the end of a day’s reading, it might be helpful to ask, “If I didn’t know anything about God except for what I read today, what would I know about Him?” |
"I like to think of the fourfold Gospel book, or Tetraevangelium, as the keystone in a Roman archway. The keystone is essential for holding together both sides of the archway, and it alone enables the arch to stand and serve as an entryway. So too, the fourfold Gospel book functions as the portion of Holy Scripture that is so fitted and placed that it holds together the archway with its two sides—the Old Testament Scriptures on the one side and the rest of the New Testament writings on the other."
(Jonathan Pennington)
(Jonathan Pennington)