The Book of Acts seems to naturally pick up where Luke left off in his Gospel account in which he lays out in detail the life and ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ. Contained in Gospel record written by Luke is a clear “historical record” that begins with the virgin birth of Jesus and continues with His 3-year ministry on earth, providing detail as to His atoning death on the cross, and records the resurrection of Jesus which is the central doctrine of Christianity! (I Corinthians 15) The Book of Acts continues in that “historical” vein in which Luke begins with the commission by Jesus for the apostles (messenger/one who is sent out) to take the gospel to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, an uttermost part of the earth” and records for us in detail just how that is accomplished. Although Luke’s “inspired record” ends in Acts 28 with Paul’s arrival in Rome; contained in the passages between Acts 1 through Acts 28 are an endless amount of historical record that pieces together the early days of the Church. During this study, “The Beginning of an Unfinished Work”, we will explore his historical record as we weave or way through the book of Acts along with the Epistles/Letters written by other New Testament authors.

Introducing the Church – Acts 1

Part 1 in the Series – “The Beginning of an Unfinished Work”

After the resurrection and during the 40 days that Jesus walked the earth prior to his ascension into heaven, Jesus taught about the kingdom and instructs his disciples to return to Jerusalem and await his further instructions about the coming of the Holy Spirit. After the 40 days had been completed, Jesus ascends into heaven (Acts 1:9-11) and the disciples did as they were commanded and returned to Jerusalem.

While gathered together in Jerusalem, the 11 remaining apostles (Judas had hung himself and was now dead), several women including Mary the Mother of Jesus, Jesus’ brothers (these were biological siblings from Mary and Joseph after Jesus was born) who were James (who would become the leader of the Jerusalem church), Joses, Judas/Jude (author of Jude), and Simon, along with other disciples (120 in all) began to seek the Lord through prayer while awaiting the coming of the Holy Spirit. One of the tasks of the apostles was to find a replacement for Judas who betrayed Jesus and eventually killed himself. They were looking for an individual who was a witness to the earthly ministry of Jesus and an eyewitness to the resurrection. The two men that were nominated to fill Judas’ position was Joseph called Barsabbas and Matthias. After a time of prayer and seeking the Lord’s direction, they chose Matthias. Now that Matthias has been chosen, all was ready for the birth of the Church on the Day of Pentecost as described in Acts 2.