Dec 30, 2017
What should a true, New Testament church look like? For an answer to that question, many have turned to the book of Acts. They see in Luke’s account a detailed, God-ordained agenda for the church of Jesus Christ in any and all ages. But is that what Luke was really out to provide? Was he writing a manual on church polity and ecclesiastical methodology? In Acts 2:42-47, we have some very familiar verses that some would use as proof that Luke is out to describe and prescribe that proper manifestation of the church for not only the 1st-Century, but for the 21st. But while there are some aspects of the early church that we can find helpful, we must not lose sight of Luke’s primary objective in writing this book. He opened up with the words, “In the first book, O Theophilus”, referring to the gospel that bears his name. Then he stated that in his gospel he “dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen” (Acts 1:1-2 ESV). Now, in Acts, the second half of his treatise, he is dealing with all that happened after Jesus was taken up. He is chronicling the events surrounding the coming of the Holy Spirit and the spread of the gospel. And while we can learn a great deal about the church, Luke seems much more interested that we learn about the work of God among His people through the presence and power of the Spirit.