Still lost in the book of Acts. It feels like I’m reading it for the first time. Two glaring disconnects between what we call “mission/missional” and the early Christian movement. 1. Words. Acts is built around the theme of the progress of God’s word. The book is dominated by speeches. Only one of which is [...]
Category Archives: Early church
Two great commentaries on Acts
23 July, 2011 – 11:39 PM
Still working on the next book about the movement Jesus founded. Here are the two commentaries on Acts I keep returning to. “The Acts of the Apostles (Pillar New Testament Commentary)” (David G. Peterson) “The Acts of the Apostles : A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary” (Ben Witherington) Anyone else have recommendations?
What to do when you don’t know what to do
22 July, 2011 – 5:33 PM
Ever considered how haphazard the mission of the early church was? Jesus’ commission to the disciples was clear, but he has left behind no specific instructions on how the task is to be completed. There were no precedents for what they were trying to achieve. As the story of Acts unfolds, the followers of Jesus [...]
Jesus didn’t wait
21 July, 2011 – 7:35 PM
I’ve been away the last few weeks working on my next book about the mission of Jesus and the early church. Above is the proof that it was all about long walks on the beach with Saffie. Here’s what I’m learning about what Jesus’ ministry looked like . . . Jesus didn’t wait for people [...]
“Shocking innovation” introduced by Jesus
13 July, 2011 – 9:32 PM
The active, expansive missionary work among Jews and Gentiles carried out by the early Christian movement was a shocking innovation in antiquity. Eckhard Schnabel The spread of the Christian movement was not a fluke. Jesus intentionally founded an international missionary movement. In just forty years the Christian missionaries had planted churches in the Roman provinces [...]
Were there “insider movements” in early church?
8 March, 2011 – 4:32 AM
A recurring theme in missiology is the question of whether a follower of Jesus can remain within the faith community of their birth. These expressions of faith are referred to as “insider movements.” Can a Muslim follow Jesus within Islam? Can a Buddhist follow Jesus as the one who completes Buddhism? Is there such as [...]
Acts and the kingdom
15 July, 2010 – 8:44 PM
The kingdom of God was the central theme of Jesus’ ministry. So why does the book of Acts appear to neglect it? The term “kingdom” occurs forty-two times in Luke’s Gospel, but just eight times in his book of Acts. How could such an important theme to Jesus appear to almost vanish for the early [...]
Why Acts?
13 July, 2010 – 12:18 AM
Howard Marshall asks: Q. What’s the significance of Luke combining the story of Jesus and the story of the church in one account? A. He’s telling us the two stories are really one. “Luke: Historian & Theologian (Gospel Profiles, 3)” (I. Howard Marshall)
How Jesus gets the job done
30 June, 2010 – 2:25 AM
The main theme of Acts may be the spread of the word, but Jesus is the key player. Jesus is risen and he reigns. His primary agents in forming and growing his church are the word and the Spirit (David Peterson). The risen Lord sends the Spirit (2:33), inspires preachers (7:55-56), calls and commissions his [...]
How the word conquers the world
28 June, 2010 – 11:03 PM
I read a denominational report recently. The assumption of it’s planning into the future was that of continued decline. Such a far cry from the experience of the church Jesus founded in Acts. Too much of our missional thinking assumes God is absent from the planet and it’s all up to us. We provide the [...]
