Handout 1 – The Rise of Early Christianity © Mark Stephens 2010

Bibliography

Craig L. Blomberg, From Pentecost to Patmos (Leicester: Apollos, 2006), 9-23.

Gordon D. Fee and Douglas Stuart, How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth (Grand
Rapids: Zondervan, 2003), 107-125
Brian Rosner, “Acts and Biblical History,” in Winter and Clarke [eds.], The Book of
Acts in Its Ancient Literary Setting [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1993], 65-82

Introduction

Central historical and theological questions in the rise of early Christianity.

 Historically - How did Christianity go from being a Jewish sect to a majority

Gentile religion?

 Theologically – What was God doing in this process?

Primarily relying upon Acts, supplemented by other sources (Paul’s letters,

contemporary historians, archaeology).

Acts as both history and theology – interpreting God’s hand in the events of the early
Christian movement

The Problem of Reading Acts

Problem 1 – Most Christians do not read the book of Acts.

Problem 2 – Many Christians already think they know Acts

Handout 1 – The Rise of Early Christianity © Mark Stephens 2010

Key Questions:

a. Is a definable, regular pattern of church in the book Acts.

b. Did Luke intend to give us a manual for how to do church

Learning how to read the book of Acts

Authorship – Who wrote it?

Genre – What type of book is it?

Purpose – What is the book meant to do for the reader?

Occasion – Who was the book originally written for?

Authorship

Much could be said about authorship, but here only two facts need to be understood:

1. The author of Acts is the same as the author of the Gospel of Luke

Here it is instructive to compare the prefaces to each book:

Since many have undertaken to set down an orderly account of

the events that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were
handed on to us by those who from the beginning were
eyewitnesses and servants of the word, I too decided, after
investigating everything carefully from the very first, to write an
orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you
may know the truth concerning the things about which you have
been instructed. (Luke 1:1-4)

In the first book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus did
and taught from the beginning until the day when he was taken
up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to
the apostles whom he had chosen. (Acts 1:1-2)
Handout 1 – The Rise of Early Christianity © Mark Stephens 2010

It is vital to note here the Acts positions itself as the continuation of the story
begun with Jesus…

Luke’s agenda is not to write the story of Jesus, followed by the story of the early
church… Rather, his design is to write the story of the continuation and fulfillment of
God’s project—a story that embraces both the work of Jesus and of the followers of
Jesus after his ascension. From start to finish, Luke–Acts brings to the fore one
narrative aim, the one aim of God (Green 1995: 47)

2. The author of Acts is a well-educated Gentile, a second generation

Christian, and a sometime travel-companion of Paul

 The universal testimony of the early church was that the author of Acts
is Luke, the man called “the beloved physician” in Col 4:14 (see the
discussion in the introduction to a major commentary).

 He appears to have been a Gentile, since Paul distinguishes him from

his “fellow-Jews” in Col 4:11.

 That Luke sometimes travelled with Paul, and was therefore a first-
hand eyewitness of some of the events in Acts, is indicated by the
presence of “we” sections in Acts, in which the author speaks in the
first person as a participant (see 16:10-27; 20:5-21:18; 27:1-28:16)

Luke’s background, education and ethnicity is potentially significant for his narrative
concerns.

Genre

The problems with the title – the Acts of the Apostles.

The two prefaces to Luke and Acts (see above) seem to indicate some kind of history
writing. But what kind of history writing?

 Biography (of Paul, Peter, the Holy Spirit?)

 Romantic History (Historical Novel)

Handout 1 – The Rise of Early Christianity © Mark Stephens 2010

o The presence of novelistic features in the storytelling.

 Historical Monograph

o a recounting of events which focuses on a limited period, or a limited

theme.

 Theological History

o In a similar fashion to OT narrative, God and his plan are at the centre
of the Acts narrative.

o Brian Rosner, “Acts and Biblical History,” in Winter and Clarke [eds.],
The Book of Acts in Its Ancient Literary Setting [Grand Rapids:
Eerdmans, 1993], pp.65-82

The final two appear to have the best of it.

Acts is a highly selective piece of theological history focussed

around particular themes.

Purpose

Examine the narrative frame:

Jewish Setting -----------------------------------------> Gentile Church

Jerusalem ----------------------------------------------> Rome

Peter ----------------------------------------------------> Paul

Handout 1 – The Rise of Early Christianity © Mark Stephens 2010

Examine the subsectioning of content

 Where are the structural markers which break up the text?

 The repetition of editorial summaries, which usually include one (or more) of
the following:
a) a geographical note; or
b) a note about church growth; or
c) a note about the word of God increasing

These come at 6:7, 9:31; 12:24; 16:5; 19:20.

The word of God continued to spread; the number of the disciples increased
greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the
faith. (6:7)

Meanwhile the church throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and
was built up. Living in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit,
it increased in numbers (9:31)

But the word of God continued to advance and gain adherents (12:24)

So the churches were strengthened in the faith and increased in numbers daily.
(16:5)

So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed. (19:20)

In each case the narrative seems to pause for a moment before it takes off in a new
direction of some kind.

Examine the Programmatic Texts

Luke 3:6 – “all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”

Acts 1:8 “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and
you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of
the earth.
Handout 1 – The Rise of Early Christianity © Mark Stephens 2010

“The key to understanding Acts seems to be in Luke’s interest in

this movement, orchestrated by the Holy Spirit, of the Gospel
from its Jerusalem-based, Judaism-oriented beginnings to its
becoming a worldwide, Gentile predominant phenomenon. On
the basis of the structure and content alone, any statement of
purpose that does not include the Gentile mission and the Holy
Spirit’s role in that mission will surely have missed the point of
the book” (How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth, 2nd edn, 100)

Occasion

Who was Theophilus?

 new Christian, or a “seeker”, who Luke is seeking to instruct and reassure.

 Implied Reader is meant to be:

1. Assured that Gentile Christianity is part of God’s purpose.

2. Encouraged to continue witnessing in the face of opposition.
3. Defended their integrity before Rome and Judaism.

What Luke’s purpose is not:

a. Giving full “lives” of the apostles – Peter and Paul both have large chunks of
their life missing.

b. Luke has no interest in defining the ideal church for us.

c. Luke has no interest in the expansion of Christianity in other directions.

d. Luke has no interest in standardizing Christian experience

Handout 1 – The Rise of Early Christianity © Mark Stephens 2010

A conundrum: Luke-Acts; Luke/Acts; Luke and Acts?

Different types of unity - authorial unity  theological unity  narrative unity.

Is there a difference between calling Acts – volume 2, and calling it a sequel?

 Is Acts meant to be read in light of its predecessor?

 Did Luke pen his Gospel with a sequel in mind?

 Why weren’t they read together?

Implications for our reading?

An introduction to scholarship on Acts

Conservative and Evangelical Scholarship

 Predisposed to view the text as trustworthy

 Scholarship generally conducted within and for the

 Both Protestant and Catholic scholarship.

Differing concerns from historical to theological concerns.

Technical Level Commentataries – Darrell Bock (BECNT), David Peterson (Pillar),

Luke Timothy Johnson (Sacra Pagina), F.F. Bruce (NICNT), Ben Witherington

Popular Level Commentaries – Larkin (IVPNTC), Marshall (TNTC), Stott (BST)

Other conservative/evangelical thinkers to look out for – Steve Walton, Joel Green,
Conrad Gempf, Max Turner, Bruce Winter, Richard Bauckham, Beverly Gaventa.

Non-Evangelical through to Liberal Scholarship

 Either neutral towards the text, or often predisposed to view the text
negatively – hermeneutic of suspicion
Handout 1 – The Rise of Early Christianity © Mark Stephens 2010

 Often doesn’t care as much about contemporary church life – sometimes more
interested in the text as a literary artefact of early Christian history.

 This kind of scholarship often revels in undercutting the established beliefs of

the church.

 Protestant, Catholic, and non-Christian interpreters.

Some names to look out for: Martin Dibelius, Hans Conzelmann, Gerd Ludemann,
Philip Vielhauer, Ernst Haenchen, Jacob Jervell(?)

The Somewhere in Betweens

Many other scholars do not fit in either category

Martin Hengel, James D.G. Dunn, C.K. Barrett.