Luke–Acts

Introduction
    These two canonical books constitute the largest collection of NT material written by any NT author. Traditionally ascribed to Luke, the volumes are probably from the hand of one of Paul’s companions, though this has been disputed recently. (For the debate and a defence of Lukan authorship, see D. L. Bock, Luke 1:1–9:51, BECNT [Grand Rapids, 1994], pp. 4–7.) These volumes are the only NT works that explicitly link the life of Jesus to the origins of the early church.
    What is Luke trying to do in these two volumes? He is in a new religious movement that is part of a culture which values its rich, ancient heritage more than innovation. He is in a movement that claims to have its roots in Jewish hope but which is receiving a hostile reaction from Jews and is becoming increasingly more Gentile. He is in a movement that claims to originate with the one true God and yet has a leader who was crucified. How can he explain all this and reassure members like Theophilus (Luke 1:3–4) that they belong in this movement and that it is really from God? Luke–Acts attempts to explain how God has acted in the life of Jesus and the early church to do a work he promised long ago in the OT scriptures (Luke 24:44–49). Two key elements make up the bulk of Luke’s case: the life of Jesus and the gift of the Holy Spirit. Given who Jesus is and what he does from his exalted place at God’s right hand, Theophilus and other readers of Luke–Acts can know that the message of forgiveness and inclusion the church preaches is a genuine message of salvation sent from God.

Why a Hyphen in Luke–Acts?
    Though separated in the canon (because Luke is a gospel and Acts is not), Luke–Acts clearly should be seen as a united work. This unity is signalled in Acts 1:1, when the author refers to Luke as ‘the first book’. Luke overlaps with the beginning of Acts; both tell the story of the ascension. The key theme of the Messiah as the bringer of messianic blessing in the gift of the Spirit runs through both volumes (Luke 3:15–17; Acts 10–11). Finally, the use of geography in both volumes reveals their unity. The movement from Jerusalem to Galilee, back to Jerusalem, and then from Samaria to the ends of the earth shows how the gospel has moved beyond the nation of Israel to encompass all humanity (Acts 1:8; Luke 3:4–6; Is. 40:3–5; Ps. 72:8). This point is important for biblical theological reasons. The volumes were intended to be read as containing one story and a unified theological argument.

Key Themes

God’s activity in fulfilment
    Dominating Luke–Acts from the beginning is an emphasis on how the events of Jesus’ life and that of the church result from the divine initiative and realize the divine promise. In the very first verse, Luke speaks of ‘events fulfilled among us’. Luke 1–2 presents the births of John the Baptist and Jesus in a style reminiscent of Jewish Scripture and using many citations and allusions to the history of Israel. Everything about these opening chapters, which form a prologue to the two volumes, tells the story in a way that declares that God is again at work in a powerful way. Whether through the invoking of prophetic hope or the acknowledgment of recurring patterns of divine activity, Luke proclaims and explains how God is powerfully at work again. Even the suffering of Jesus and the early community are explained in these terms, so that Luke–Acts is preaching, apologetic and theodicy. How can God’s people suffer as the church does? Is not that suffering really a sign of God’s judgment and rejection of their claim? Luke asserts that suffering was part of God’s design from the start. Whether in the announcement that the Son of Man must suffer in Jerusalem, or in the accounts of the persecution of leaders like Peter and the career of Paul, the narrative makes clear that suffering is a key part of God’s plan (Luke 9:22, 44; 17:25; 18:32–33; 24:7, 46; Acts 4:25–31; 26:15–18).
    In addition, the presentation of Jesus’ identity is accompanied by references to the ancient Scriptures, whether in citation or allusion. Jesus is the Son (Ps. 2:7; Luke 3:21–22). He is the one at the right hand of God (Ps. 110:1; Luke 20:41–44; 22:69; Acts 2:30–36). He is the rejected stone that is none the less exalted (Ps. 118:22; Luke 20:17; Acts 4:11). He is to be the returning Son of Man (Dan. 7:13–14; Luke 21:27). In fact, he is Lord of all, so the gospel can go to all (Luke 20:41–44; Acts 2:30–39; 10:34–43).
    That the activity of ministry is a fulfilment of Scripture also emerges in Jesus’ answer to John’s question in Luke 7:18–22. Here Jesus uses several eschatological texts from Isaiah to show that his ministry is one of fulfilment and so marks him out as ‘the one to come’ (Is. 29:18; 35:5–6; 42:18; 26:19; 61:1). The activity and preaching of the early church, including the outreach to Gentiles and the rejection of much of Israel, are also explained in these terms (Acts 2; 3; 10–11, 13; 15; 26:12–23).

The Messiah as the bearer of forgiveness and the Spirit
    Another key theme running through the two volumes is the offer by Christ to all people of forgiveness and the Spirit. References to forgiveness are linked to related images of the one who comes as the bringer of peace and the one who leads people out of darkness (Luke 1:76–79; 24:46–47; Acts 13:26–41). The Messiah is the distributor of the Spirit (Luke 3:15–17; Acts 2:30–36; 10–11); the gift of the Spirit demonstrates that the inclusion of Gentiles in the messianic blessing results from the divine initiative. John the Baptist identifies the eschatological sign of Messiah’s presence as his baptizing ‘with Spirit and fire’. Peter’s Pentecost address endorses this view: Israel can know that God has made Jesus both Lord and Christ because the promised Spirit has been poured out by Jesus from on high (Luke 24:49; Acts 2:32–34). The gift of the Spirit to Cornelius is the sign that Gentiles have been included in the fullness of messianic blessing (Acts 10:44–48; 11:15–18), a point supported by Luke’s account of Paul’s ministry. The Spirit is seen as the source of enablement and of direction for the church in its mission, the one through whom Jesus oversees its life (Luke 24:49; Acts 13:1–2).

The response of repentance, reaching out to those outside
    Another key theme is that of response to the message, summarized in terms of repentance or turning. The people of God are called to reach out to those who previously were thought to be excluded from the hope of salvation (Luke 3:8–14; 5:32; Acts 3:19; 5:31; 26:18). Jesus actively pursued outsiders: he taught lepers, tax collectors, immoral people, the blind, the poor, the humble and the lost in general (Luke 1:46–55; 4:16–21; 7:22–50; 15:1–32; 19:1–10). The church’s commission is to preach the message of repentance and the forgiveness of sins (Luke 24:47). Eventually even non-Jews were included, as God worked actively to extend his blessing to the end of the earth (Acts 1:8; 10–11; 15:14–21; see Nations).

As the Messiah suffers, so must the church
    Yet another interesting theme is how the task and suffering of the Messiah become those of the church. Nothing reveals this more vividly than Paul and Barnabas’ defining their ministry in terms of the Servant (Acts 13:47; Is. 49:6). Their activity, like that of the church, is an extension of the work of Jesus, the original Servant. Thus the rejection of the church by the nation and by the world as it appears in Acts 4:24–30 should not be surprising. This is also a part of the church’s call.

A people different from the world
    Their reception of God’s blessing requires those allied to Jesus to be different from the world. The church is to serve in the world without expecting blessing from others in return (Luke 6:20–49). Their behaviour is to go beyond what sinners do for one another. They are to concern themselves with ministry to people who cannot pay them back (Luke 14:12–14). A glance at the church’s ministry in Acts, in which people go to places where they know the reaction will be hostile, shows that this message was taken seriously.

Conclusion
    Luke–Acts teaches that God is at work in the new entity called the church. The church has old roots, as it results from God’s activity in fulfilment of his ancient promises. Even the death and resurrection of Jesus show that he is now at God’s right hand administering the promised blessings, such as the Spirit, which are made available to those who repent and seek his gracious forgiveness. Those who respond can share in the calling and enablement of the messianic Lord and become light to a world that otherwise would not know how to please God.

Bibliography
    D. L. Bock, Proclamation from Prophecy and Pattern: Lukan Old Testament Christology (Sheffield, 1987); F. Bovon, Luke the Theologian: Thirty-three Years of Research (1950–1983) (Allison Park, 1987); P. F. Esler, Community and Gospel in Luke–Acts (Cambridge, 1987); I. H. Marshall, Luke: Historian and Theologian (Exeter, 31988); I. H. Marshall and D. Petersen (eds.), Witness to the Gospel: The Theology of Acts (Grand Rapids, 1998); R. F. O’Toole, The Unity of Luke’s Theology: An Analysis of Luke–Acts (Wilmington, 1984); M. Strauss, The Davidic Messiah in Luke–Acts: The Promise and Its Fulfillment in Luke’s Christology (Sheffield, 1995); R. C. Tannehill, The Narrative Unity of Luke–Acts: A Literary Interpretation, 2 vols. (Philadelphia, 1986, 1990); D. L. Tiede, Prophecy and History in Luke–Acts (Philadelphia, 1980); M. M. B. Turner, Power
    from on High: The Spirit in Israel’s Restoration and Witness (Sheffield, 1996); J. B. Tyson (ed.), Luke–Acts and the Jewish People: Eight Critical Perspectives (Minneapolis, 1988); J. A. Weatherley, Jewish Responsibility for the Death of Jesus in Luke–Acts (Sheffield, 1994).
D. L. BOCK