The Acts of the Apostles: Spreading the Word
Overview
In The Acts of the Apostles: Spreading the Word, Lawrence Farley explores Acts as the sequel to Luke. He treats the book as an apology for the Christian faith as the fulfillment of Judaism, a Gospel for all peoples, a faith that poses no threat to Roman government or society, and the greatest adventure story of all time. In The Acts of the Apostles: Spreading the Word, Farley works from a literal translation of the original Greek and examines Acts section by section, explaining its meaning in contemporary language.
Top Highlights
“Just as Jesus once spoke to His disciples ‘by the Holy Spirit’ while with them, so after His Ascension He continued to speak to them by the Holy Spirit through the prophets of the Church. The mode of speaking may have changed, but the Lord continued to guide His people.” (Page 19)
“In Luke’s statement that the wind came from heaven, we detect echoes of the prophecy of Ezekiel 37:9. In that prophecy of the resurrection of the nation, Ezekiel first prophesied to a valley of dry bones, which came together and were covered with sinews and skins. Then he prophesied to the breath and the Spirit (the Hebrew ruach means both breath and Spirit), and from the four winds the Divine Ruach came into the former corpses so that they lived. Thus God promised He would put His Spirit within them (Ezek. 37:14). The coming of the Pentecostal Spirit ‘from heaven’ thus fulfilled this word of the Divine Ruach coming ‘from the four winds.’ This was no earthbound wind, but one that came straight from the throne of God in heaven.” (Page 31)
“In ecstasy he said to them, ‘Behold, I observe the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!’” (Page 91)
“Thirdly, Luke intends to show how God guides the Church by His Holy Spirit, controlling every facet of its expansion” (Page 14)
“The word rendered same-impulse is the Greek omothumadon, a favorite word of Luke’s (used ten times in Acts). It indicates the united purpose of the Church, a harmony of heart and will that testifies to the grace and presence of God. During those days, the apostles were not simply loitering about the city. They were seeking God in fervent prayer and adoration. The use of the article (Gr. te proseuche; the prayer) perhaps indicates formal Jewish liturgical prayer.” (Page 26)
- Title: The Acts of the Apostles: Spreading the Word
- Author: Lawrence R. Farley
- Series: The Orthodox Bible Study Companion
- Publisher: Ancient Faith
- Print Publication Date: 2012
- Logos Release Date: 2013
- Era: era:contemporary
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
- Subject: Bible. N.T. Acts › Commentaries
- ISBNs: 9781936270620, 1936270625
- Resource ID: LLS:CTSPSTLSSPRDNGW
- Resource Type: Bible Commentary
- Metadata Last Updated: 2024-03-25T19:32:38Z