The book of acts provides a detailed, orderly, eyewitness account of the birth and growth of the early church and the spread of the gospel immediately after the resurrection of jesus christ. The historicity of the bible is the question of the bible s relationship to history, meaning not just its acceptability as history but our own ability to understand the literary forms of biblical narrative. The new testament quizzes about important details and events in every section of. As you read the pages of scripture, ask yourself, what does this passage tell me about god. Without this historical record, little would be known about the expansion of the church. The title of the book of acts comes from the greek word praxis, a word often used in early christian literature to describe the great deeds of the apostles or other significant believers. The importance of the book of acts the importance of this second of lukes twovolume work can. Acts chronicles the events that took place after jesus resurrection, starting with his ascension into heaven and the outpouring of the holy spirit on his disciples, resulting in the beginning of a mighty work of god in building the church. Timeline of the book of acts dates reference events books written historical events roman emperors c. This is, in effect, an outline of the book of acts see plan and outline below. As such, it provides us with a valuable account of how. Stay connected amidst social distancing receive weekly bible studies to share with family and friends. Intro to acts biblica the international bible society. The book of acts provides a bridge for the writings of the nt.
Acts was read as a reliable history of the early church well into the. The book of acts is a key part of gods plan to reach the whole world. The acts of the apostles, the second volume of lukes twovolume work, continues lukes presentation of biblical history, describing how the salvation promised to israel in the old testament and accomplished by jesus has now under the guidance of. After jesus went up to heaven, they waited in jerusalem.
Acts of the apostles executable outline study resources. A history of the early church gene taylor2an outline of the book i. Also unnamed, but obviously the same author as lukes gospel cf. Luke was a physician, thought to have been a gentile, possibly from antioch co 4. It might appropriately be called some of the acts of some of the apostles since it does not try to describe all of the acts of all the apostles. Includes lessons about the kingdom of christ, church organization and worship, examples of conversion, the nature and purpose of miracles, and the work of the holy spirit. Acts records the apostles being christs witnesses in jerusalem, judea, samaria, and the surrounding world. We hope that you will come to know and love him deeply. Acts was written in greek, presumably by the evangelist luke, whose gospel concludes where acts begins, namely, with christs ascension into heaven.
It might also be called the acts of the holy spirit, as that person of the godhead is very much an active participant throughout the book. Clicking on a chapter will show you the text of that chapter of acts in the bible king james version. The eversion of this book may be purchased from amazon here, and a paperback version here. Acts is the only biblical book that chronicles the history of the church immediately after jesuss ascension. In acts, jesus sends the holy spirit to empower his disciples as they carry. But in acts, several major characters loopdeloop their way around the roman empire. The genre of the book of acts is narrative history with several sermons. This summary of the book of acts provides information about the title, authors, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of acts.
A bible study lesson series about the beginning of christianity as revealed in the book of the acts of the apostles. Rather, the focus is clearly on some of the acts or deeds of mostly peter the key figure in. Preparation for the coming of the spirit, chapter 1 1. The book of acts is also the history of the birth, the founding, and the spread of the church from jerusalem to rome. Acts was apparently written in rome, perhaps between ad 70 and 90, though some think a slightly earlier date is also. People from many nations were beside themselves with wonder at hearing gods amazing acts in their own languages. The book of acts is the only historical record of the birth and early days following christs establishing his church. The blue letter bible ministry and the blb institute hold to the historical. The following outline is intended to be used while studying the book. In the book of acts, we discover how gods multiethnic, international church grew through persecution and missionary journeys throughout the world.
The gospel is preached from jerusalem to all judea chapters 17 the gospel is preached in samaria chapter 8 the gospel is preached to the gentiles chapters 912 the gospel is preached to the ends of the earth chapters 28. Most bible narratives take place in one corner of the near east. While there are some areas of great detail of the acts of the apostles, many times you must use cross references to the gospels of matthew, mark, luke and john as well as some other epistles in the new testament to get the full picture of what was. Acts is the fifth book of the new testament and the fortyfourth book of bible. Acts begins with jesuss charge to the twelve apostles to spread the. The book of acts the acts of the holy spirit the bible teachers commentary an outline and map survey paul j. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. One can extend biblical historicity to the evaluation of whether or not the christian new testament is an accurate record of the historical jesus and of the apostolic age. In order to ascertain the purpose of the book of acts, we must start with the realization that acts is the second part of a two part work. We know the first part of this work as the gospel of luke. It is titled acts to emphasize that this book records the acts of. The gospel is preached from jerusalem to all judea chapters 17.
Author although the author does not name himself, evidence outside the scriptures and inferences from the book itself lead to the conclusion that the. Im currently preachingteaching through the new testament book the acts of the apostles. Author though he does not mention himself by name, the author is undoubtedly luke, physician and frequent traveling companion of the apostle paul. By carefully noting the use of we and they in the book of acts, we glean. The first few times i read acts, all the new city and province names just blurred together in my. The emphasis of the book is the fulfillment of the great commission. As a second volume to lukes gospel, it joins what jesus began to do and to teach 1. Commonly called the acts of the apostles, it is simply titled acts in some of the oldest manuscripts. T he book of acts in the bible, written around 6263 a. The authors primary purpose was to give a detailed account of how men and women were converted to christ and how churches were planted throughout the roman world. This is part of a series of worksheets based on the divisions of the bible. If the book was just before or after pauls release, then it was likely written around 63 a. Jul 30, 20 this is part of a series of worksheets based on the divisions of the bible.
Detailed outline of the book of acts of the apostles peter and the beginnings of the church in the holy land chs. An overview of the book of acts the life of the early church is. The purpose is to help children who are already familiar with many of the bible stories to understand how they fit together to make the whole story of the bible. The lord jesus christ at work by the holy spirit through the apostles in. The connection between the work of the apostles and that of jesus acts 1. Jesus had shown himself alive by many proofs for 40 days.
Paul and the expansion of the church from antioch to rome chs. The historicity of the bible is the question of the bibles relationship to history covering not just the bibles acceptability as history but also the ability to understand the literary forms of biblical narrative. It is a bridge between the gospels and the epistles. This can be extended to the question of the christian new testament as an accurate record of the historical jesus and the apostolic age. The lord jesus christ at work by the holy spirit through the apostles in jerusalem, chapters 17 a. The book of acts in the new testament of the bible is also called acts of the apostles. Luke, the author of the gospel of luke, was a doctor and gentile.
It is titled acts to emphasize that this book records the acts of the apostles through the work of the holy spirit. Acts intro to acts biblica the international bible society. The equipment of the early disciples for their task acts 1. What originally appeared as one work was separated in our bible by the church fathers in order to. The book of acts tells how the multiethnic, international. As such, it provides us with a valuable account of how the church was able to grow and spread out from jerusalem into the rest of the roman empire. This versebyverse bible study and commentary of the acts of the apostles the book of acts or simply acts is indepth but uses plain language that everyone can understand, as well as a format that will engage you. Luke was a companion of paul on his missionary journeys, and in many parts of the book of acts it says we did this or that acts 16. The new testament without the book of acts leaves a great yawning gap.
This title accurately reflects the contents of the book, which is a series of vignettes chronicling the lives of key apostles especially peter and paul in the decades immediately following christs ascension into heaven. Its narrative supplies a bridge connecting the life and ministry of jesus to the life of the church and the witness of the earliest believers. Luke wrote the book of acts acts of the apostles to record how believers were empowered by the holy spirit, worked to spread the gospel of christ, and are a model for the future church. The name jesus in ancient hebrew text yeshua in first century hebrew text. Acts is a fastmoving historical account of the first three decades of the church. Watch our overview video on the book of acts, which breaks down the literary design of the book and its flow of thought. Purpose of the book as indicated previously, the original purpose of both the gospel and acts may have been to assist. If the book of acts were gone, there would be nothing to replace it the last recorded fact about jesus in the gospel of matthew is the resurrection. Outline studies in the book of the acts of the apostles. From the empowering by the holy spirit in chapter 2, the early church made a great impact on all it encountered, the apostles peter and john playing a major role in this early work. The life of the early church is recorded and preserved for us in the book of acts and the epistles. The book of acts free sermon outlines and bible studies.
Acts 1 new international version niv jesus taken up into heaven. Book of acts overview insight for living ministries. The acts of the apostles, abbreviation acts, fifth book of the new testament, a valuable history of the early christian church. Acts of the apostles 4 imprisonment in rome are 6062 a. It will help to keep the whole of the book before you as you work your way through each section. Standing between the gospels and the epistles, the book of acts is a bridge between the life of jesus and the ministry of the apostle paul. The acts of the apostles often referred to simply as acts, or formally the book of acts, is the fifth. Since the book of acts is the continuation of the gospel account of all jesus began to do and teach, it catalogs what jesus continued to do and teach through the holy spirit. The eversion of this book may be purchased from amazon here. Luke wrote the book of acts and the gospel of luke and he dedicated his work to a man named theophilus as mentioned in the summary of the book of luke.
Twopage spread from johannes gutenbergs 42line bible, c. This worksheet focuses on the new testament book of history acts. Gospel glimpses, wholebible connections, theology, practice, and more. Since the text and audio content provided by blb represent a range of evangelical traditions, all of the ideas and principles conveyed in the resource materials are not necessarily affirmed, in total, by this ministry. In only three decades, a small group of frightened believers in jerusalem transformed. Actus apostolorum, often referred to simply as acts, or formally the book of acts, is the fifth book of the new testament. Bible blender november 10, 2010 detailed outline of the book of acts of the apostles 20171014t10.
Acts is certainly intended as a history of the early church, and it is the most. Outline of the book of acts scriptures and topics covered. The acts of the apostles, fifth book of the new testament, a valuable history of the early. The book of acts gives us a history of the work of the early church and the holy spirit, within the theatre of the known world. The author of acts was luke, who also wrote the gospel of luke. The book of acts was written to provide a history of the early church. The blue letter bible ministry and the blb institute hold to the historical, conservative christian faith, which includes a firm belief in the inerrancy of scripture. Oct 04, 2016 watch our overview video on the book of acts, which breaks down the literary design of the book and its flow of thought. In this video i provide a threepoint outline for the entire book of acts. An overview of the book of acts the life of the early church is recorded and preserved for us in the book of acts and the epistles. Acts bible book with full chapters king james version.