The Acts of the Apostles

Message:   Rev. Dr. Stanley C. Sneeringer, Pastor

       Messiah Lutheran Church, Fort Wayne, IN

We turn tonight to the book of Acts of the Apostles.  In Acts, Christians continue to proclaim Jesus as the Messiah to the Jewish people and as Lord to the Gentile non-Jews.  But to Jews and Gentiles alike, Jesus is proclaimed as the Savior who brings salvation to all, right here, right now.

If you will remember, the Acts of Apostles is the second volume of a two-volume work.  Luke’s first volume is the third gospel of the same name.  You may also remember that Luke in his first volume was more interested in the gift of salvation in the here and now than in some time in the future.  Jesus saves people by setting them free NOW to live the life God wants them to have NOW.  In Luke’s gospel, Jesus brings salvation to all different types of people in all sorts of different circumstances: people who are possessed by evil spirits are saved by Jesus when he makes the demons leave; sick people are cured; hungry people are fed; lepers are cleansed; the blind receive their sight; people with various physical disabilities are healed.  In all these cases, Jesus saves people by setting them free to live now the life God wants them to have.

Acts teaches that after his ascension, Jesus did not leave us to fend for ourselves.  In fact, at the end of Luke’s gospel, when Jesus ascends into heaven, he does not really leave.  The ascension is not so much a departure as it is an exaltation or enthronement.  Jesus goes “to the right hand of God” where he remains present and accessible.  In the book of Acts, we will see that Jesus continues to save people by answering their prayers and intervening on their behalf.  He continues to change people’s lives by sending them his Spirit.

The book of Acts is often called “the gospel of the Holy Spirit.”  In the first chapter of Acts, Jesus promises his disciples that the Holy Spirit will come upon them.  In Luke’s gospel, reference is made to the Holy Spirit being promised by God and by John the Baptist.  In this book we will be reminded as we listen the Spirit was also promised by Old Testament prophets as well.  In other words, what God, Jesus, John and the prophets all promised comes to pass in the second chapter of Acts and elsewhere.  The disciples of Jesus are “clothed with power from on high.”

The book of Acts has four different accounts of people being filled with the Holy Spirit: Jews in 2:1-13; Samaritans in 8:14-24; Gentiles in 10:44-48; and disciples of John the Baptist in 19:1-7.  The four stories have similarities, but there is no clear pattern to them.  Receiving the gift of the Spirit seems to be linked in some way to baptism but sometimes the Spirit is given before baptism and sometimes after.  Clearly, the emphasis in Acts is on the Holy Spirit as a gift: the exalted Jesus may give the Spirit whenever and however he chooses.  Much confusion and conflicting theology has been based on these four accounts: Do you receive the Holy Spirit at Baptism?  Does it come after?  Is there a difference between receiving the Holy Spirit and being filled with the Holy Spirit?  How do you know you have the Holy Spirit?  The questions are endless.

On three occasions, people who receive the Holy Spirit begin miraculously to speak in foreign languages.  This phenomenon, called “speaking in tongues,” is also discussed in one of Paul’s letters (1 Corinthians 12-14), though the practice described in Paul’s letter seems somewhat different from what we read about in Acts.  Here it is more like a reversal of the Tower of Babel story in the Old Testament where the world is confounded by language.  Here the disciples are given the ability to speak in all kinds of languages the common good news applicable to all people of Jesus of Nazareth.  Here in Acts, “speaking in other languages” is not the same as what we think of when we Lutherans here the phrase, “Speaking in Tongues.”

If these matters remain a bit unclear, there can be no doubt at all as to why the Spirit is given: the Holy Spirit empowers followers of Jesus for witnessing.  Just before he ascends into heaven, Jesus tells his disciples, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” 

The Book of Acts is thus the story of the beginnings of the church, its trials and tribulations, its harmony and disharmony, its successes and failures.  Half of the book is about the Apostles and the other half is about Paul.  When you come to the end of the book, it seems to end uncompleted.  In the final verse, (28:31), the missionary Paul is witnessing for Jesus in Rome, proclaiming that he is Messiah and Lord, just as was announced in the first two chapters of Luke’s gospel.  Still, the “ends of the earth” have not been reached.  There are more who need to hear the good news, and Acts assumes that others will follow Paul in taking up the call to as Matthew puts it, “to make disciples of all nations.”

In the gospel of Luke, Jesus’ disciples exhibit numerous human failings, just as they do in the gospels of Mark and Matthew.  In the book of Acts, however, these defects are all but overcome.  In Luke’s gospel, they argued about which of them was the greatest; in Acts fellowship and good will seem to be the rule.  Before, Peter cowardly denied that he even knew Jesus, but now he boldly witnesses to Jesus in the face of persecution and death.

What is the difference?  Obviously, receiving the power of the Holy Spirit has transformed the disciples (now called apostles) into far more effective witnesses than they had been before.  But there is something else: the transforming power of what we would call “Christian education.”

In Luke’s gospel, Jesus tells to his followers that everyone who is fully taught will be like their teacher.  This is an amazing statement.  Can Jesus really mean that his disciples will become like him when they have learned all they need to know?

The verse may give us ready answers for people who think Christian education is only for children or who wonder how much learning is enough: Luke says if we haven’t become like Jesus yet, then we still have more to learn!  At the same time, the statement helps us to define one goal of Christian education: the transformation of human beings into the image of Christ.

Still, it is an amazing statement.  And, what’s more amazing is that as the story continues, the projection actually appears to come true.  After his resurrection, Jesus spends 40 days instructing his disciples and opening their minds to understand the Scriptures.  From this point on, the disciples demonstrate a keen awareness of Scripture more than they had ever known before.  They have learned from Jesus’ teaching and it makes a difference in their lives.

Martin Luther used to say that Christians are to be “little Christs” in this world, bringing the same grace and word of salvation to others that Jesus brought.  This is how the apostles appear in Acts.  We know from other sources, such as Paul’s letters, there were problems in the early church not mentioned in Acts.  The accent in Acts is on possibilities.  Even here, the apostles are careful to point out that they are only human beings.  Still, they do carry on very effective ministries of transforming the world about them through the good news of Jesus.  Their enemies accuse them of “turning the world upside down,” though from another perspective it might be said that they are turning it right side up!

In Luke and Acts, the combination of spiritual power and scriptural teaching transforms people into effective witnesses for Christ.  These two books are very optimistic not only about the continuing power of Jesus to save but also about the possibilities of ordinary people becoming “little Christs” who witness for Jesus in an upside down world.

Next week: Paul Letters.