Background to Acts

The Bible book of Acts is volume 2 of Luke's Gospel. Some have called Acts "the Gospel of the Holy Spirit," since it focuses from beginning to end on the work of the 3rd person of the Trinity, the Helper Jesus promised.

Both Luke and Acts are addressed to someone named Theophilus. His identity is unknown. Some commentaries will say it's a generic identify for any believer (Theophilus means, "lover of God"). But I am convinced he was a real person of some learning and position. He is given the title "most excellent" in Luke 1:1, a title of respect usually for a government official. Luke explains that he is undertaking to write an orderly account collating evidence from both written and oral sources to add to the partial knowledge Theophihlus already has (see Luke 1:1-4). If we look at how the book of Acts ends, we see that Paul is under house arrest and awaiting trial in Rome. This means the book had to be written in the early 60's.

I contend with Daniel Wallace and others that Luke-Acts is a trial brief for Paul's defense. Theophilus is an official of the court representing Paul. His case can be discerned from a close study of Luke-Acts. Paul's defense is that Christianity is rooted in Judaism and, as such, deserves the same official recognition that the Romans gave the Jews. Jews were allowed to practice their religion in the Empire and Paul's legal case was that Christians should also be free of persecution. We can see this argument clearly in the deeply Jewish origins of Luke's Gospel as well as in the fact that Jesus is declared not guilty twice by Pilate and by the Roman centurion at the cross. In Acts 1, the ascension of Jesus is not portrayed as a King taking his throne (as in Mark), but as Jesus simply disappearing from view. The disciples ask Jesus if it's time for the kingdom to be restored (verse 6). Jesus says they are all mixed up and they should go back to the city and wait for the Holy Spirit. There's that odd insertion about the Mount of Olives being a Sabbath day's walk from Jerusalem (verse 12); but Luke wants to show the Christians are still obeying Jewish laws.

From history we know that Paul lost his trial and was executed in Rome probably in 67 AD and Peter shortly thereafter. Christianity was not given the protection of Rome, but God will let nothing stand in the way of the Gospel. That is the story of Acts and our own story as we learn what it means to be Christ's witnesses to the ends of the earth.