1:1-11 The Promise of the Spirit and the Ascension
In the first book, O Theophilus, I have 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. He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.
And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, âyou heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.â
So when they had come together, they asked him, âLord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?â He said to them, âIt is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.â And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, âMen of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.â
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Overview: A recurring concern for exegetes of Acts is to explain how Christ continues his work among believers. Therefore, the beginning of Acts establishes that Christ will be present in a new way, namely through the Holy Spirit. This new mode of Christâs presence also addresses the initial misunderstanding about the restoration of the kingdom. Rather than an earthly political reign, exegetes understand Acts as a record of Godâs indwelling work in the church and world, sometimes through human obedience and other times despite human disobedience. The meaning of the divine acts consists of recognizing Christâs Spirit as an agent in establishing Godâs spiritual kingdom, in which believers stand as witnesses to and coparticipants in Christâs life and work. At the same time, exegetes seek to offer guidance for how to demonstrate faith and trust in a risen Lord. This then leads to the dual emphasis by the Reformation commentators on Godâs activity and human works, which are not mutually exclusive but are held in tension. Believers are empowered to witness, proclaim and share, yet the source of their confidence is Christâs power.
1:1-3 Dedication to Theophilus
Who Was Theophilus? Johann Spangenberg: Whether the evangelist Luke had a good friend by this name or whether he understood by this little word Theophilusâwhich translated means âGodâs friendââevery lover and friend of God should not worry us. This is certain, that Luke in this book intended to instruct not just one person but every lover and friend of God in the highest things that are beneficial and necessary for salvation. Brief Exegesis of Acts 1:1.
The Unity of Luke-Acts. Desiderius Erasmus: Clearly I wanted to join this book of Luke together with the earlier one. Whereas [Luke] embraced evangelical history in two volumes, of which he wrote both to the same Theophilus, and beginning the later book, he makes mention of the earlier, as if to say âI was afraid of the rest, that Acts might seem to distract from the Gospels.â Although this history is something other than a part of the Gospel, still, in my judgment, it is not insignificant. If in fact in that matter the church is described as a grain of wheat, planted alone, this book describes its being born, opening its own leaves little by little and bringing forth fruit. Which unless we had known this by Luke, in what ways Christ will have left the earth, where, in what place, by what ways would that promised Spirit have come, by what beginnings would the church have started, by what things would it have been polluted, for what reasons would the church have grown, if we had not known a good part of the gospel? And would that holy Luke would have continued this narrative longer, just as he had commenced it, and likewise, would that he had touched on not a few of the deeds of the rest of the apostles! Annotations on Acts 1:1.
Christâs Person and Work Are the Sum of the Gospel. John Calvin: Now we see that the sum of the gospel comprises these two partsâthe teaching of Christ and his actsâin that he not only brought people the comission committed to him by the Father but also accomplished in deed all that could be required of the Messiah. He inaugurated his kingdom, he reconciled God by his sacrifice, he expiated the sins of people by his own blood, he subdued death and the devil, he restored us to true liberty, he won for us justice and life. But that all that he did and said might be ratified, he attested himself by his miracles to be the Son of God. So the words âto doâ extend also to the miracles, but they must not be restricted to these only. From this we must note that those who simply know the bare history do not have the gospel, unless there is added to it a knowledge of the teaching, which reveals the fruit of the acts of Christ. For this is a holy knot, which may not be dissolved. Therefore whenever mention is made of the teaching of Christ, let us learn to join to it the works as seals by which its truth is established and its effects shown forth. But, in order that the death and resurrection of Christ may be profitable for us, and that his miracles may have their value, let us be equally attentive to the words that he speaks. For this is the true rule of Christianity. Commentary on Acts 1:1.
Though Not Visible, Christ Is Present in His Church. John Calvin: By these words Luke reminds us that Christ though he departed from the world did not thereby abandon his concern for us. For in establishing a perpetual government in the church, he gave proof of his will to provide for our salvation. Indeed he has given assurance of his intention to be present in power and succor to his own people even to the endâeven as in truth he is present by his ministers. Luke means therefore that Jesus did not depart without first having provided for the government of the church whereby we recognize his concern for our salvation. Commentary on Acts 1:2.
What Were the âMany Proofsâ? Johann Eck: During this forty-day delay all that was necessary for Christ to prove the truth about his resurrection took place, for on this article of faith everything is founded. . . . From Easter day, when he first appeared, to the ascension, when he last appeared, forty days elapsed in which he appeared to many, as is now narrated; and Saint Paul indicates even more appearances [than just these recorded in Acts], for he appeared to Saint James and then five hundred brothers. Now the arguments and testimonies of his resurrection are documented in the gospel. He ate with them, he showed them the wounds in his hands, his feet and his side, he showed them his flesh and bone. âFor a spirit,â he says, âdoes not have flesh and bone as you see that I have.â Yes, Saint Thomas even placed his finger in the wound of the Lord. He also ate fish and honey with them. All of these things were arguments, testimonies and proofs of his resurrection. First Sermon on the Feast of Christâs Ascension (1531).
The Apostles Experienced the Risen Christ with Absolute Certainty. MoĂŻse Amyraut: Since they saw him several times with their own eyes during the span of forty days, they conversed with him so familiarly that they took their meals together, they examined the scars from his wounds, they heard him speaking things concerning the gospel and the kingdom of God for which reason he had come. All the senses that can give people the certainty of something, and there were none that did not fully testify to the truth of this. Paraphrase sur les Actes des Saints Apostres 1:3.
Jesus Prepares His Disciples Thoroughly. Desiderius Erasmus: The chief point of these deeds was that everyone be persuaded that Jesus had truly died and had truly come to life again on the third day, not in what merely appeared to be a body but in that same mortal bodyânow immortalâwhich he bore on earth and which had been buried lifeless in the tomb. Accordingly, he did not think it enough to present himself alive again to his disciples merely once; he appeared to them frequently, and not as ghosts usually do, but showing with various clear proofs that he had assumed again a living body. For this reason, he remained on earth for forty days, during which, however, he wanted to be visible to no one except his own.
Not only did he present himself to them to be seen with their eyes, to be heard with their ears, to be touched with their hands, but he lived with them in close association and took food with them; and no other sign of a living body is more certain than this. Meanwhile, he often spoke with them about the kingdom of God, calling to mind what he had done and taught before his death so that they might eventually recognize that everything had happened as he had predicted. At the same time he warned them what they were either to do or to expect in the future. Paraphrase of Acts 1:3.
1:4-5 âWait for the Promiseâ
âThey Should Not Depart but Wait.â Rudolf Gwalther: Now Saint Luke sets forth very diligently [Christâs] last conversation and actions with his apostles, partly so that we might perceive the endeavor and good will of Christ toward us and partly to declare what things are chiefly necessary for the ministers of his Word. First of all, he proves the truthfulness of his resurrection by many arguments, for six weeks. Because this is the ground of our salvation, whoever does not understand and know it will not prevail in preaching the gospel. Second, he expounds and opens the mysteries of the kingdom of God, both because he would put out of their mind the opinion conceived by common error of a merely earthly kingdom of Christ and because they should perceive the right ways in which they ought to handle the business of our faith and salvation through preaching the gospel. To these two he adds a third point, that is, the promise of the Holy Spirit, which he repeats and confirms by grave testimony. Homily 3, Acts 1:4-5.
âHe Will Baptize You with Fire.â Martin Luther: How is this said in German? [Can it mean,] âI will baptize you with waterâ? How? Especially since being burned by fire blackens and does not clean us. In contrast water washes and makes us clean. Exactly! [This] fire should not blacken or burn but rather baptize and wash white, so it must be a fire above all other kinds of fire, since [usually fire] blackens where it has been and everything smells and is charred. . . . But Christ [said], âI will send fire of such a kind in which they were baptized as in water. It will not consume them but will give them life and strength. It will not blacken but whiten.â Therefore, this fire of Christâs is of a different nature, etc. The text is clear: âYou will receive the power of the Holy Spirit.â . . . In this passage he also calls the Holy Spirit an excellent fire, because it makes what is blackened and dead white and alive. Therefore he calls it baptism, because it is abundant with the Spirit, as Paul says. [This baptism] is not performed with little droplets, as when something is dipped in water, but instead we are plunged into this baptism, as if someone wanted to drown us. So, the Holy Spirit does not flutter down in a flickering flame but [rushes down] in fire! By this fire you all are plunged and overwhelmed so that it seems as if there is nothing in you other than fire. As a fish in water, so are you in fire. . . . Through the abundant outpouring of the Holy Spirit [Christ] wants to subsume Christianity, so that those drifting and living in the midst of this heavenly fire will not be consumed and charred, but will be made...
