Acts Survey 1

Survey of Acts

General Materials: Narrative/History

The Book of Acts is a historical narrative written to a man named Theophilus (1:1)
presumably by Luke. Acts is the second half of a larger Lukan work written to Theophilus as an
“orderly account” (Luke 1:3) of all that “Jesus began to do and to teach” (Acts 1:1). The book is
a chronicle of the exploits of the apostles after the ascension of Christ (1:9) and empowerment of
the Holy Spirit (2:1-4). The book gives an account of the Apostles as they seek to fulfill the
commission of Christ to be his “witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the
ends of the earth” (1:8). Although there are a multitude of characters presented in this work there
are two major players who dominate the book: Peter and Paul.

Specific Materials: Chapter Titles

Chapter 1. Commission, Selection, Promise, Ascension and Waiting.
Chapter 2. Promise fulfilled, Peter Preaches and 3000 converted.
Chapter 3. Miracles: Peter and John.
Chapter 4. Persecution, Prayer and Possessions.
Chapter 5. Internal and External Problems.
Chapter 6. The Seven and Stephen.
Chapter 7. Stephen and Saul.
Chapter 8. Philip and Samaria: The Church’s Witness to Judea and Samaria.
Chapter 9. The Conversion of Saul and Peter’s Miracles in Joppa/Lydda.
Chapter 10. Peter and Cornelius’s Household.
Chapter 11. Unity of Ministries: Peter, Barnabas and Saul.
Chapter 12. Peter’s Jail Escape in Antioch and the Death of Herod.
Chapter 13. Barnabas & Paul: The Church’s Witness to the Ends of the Earth
Chapter 14. Reaching Out Farther.
Chapter 15. Church Problems.
Chapter 16. Paul & Silas: The Church’s Witness to the Ends of the Earth Continues.
Chapter 17. Reaching Out Farther.
Chapter 18. Reaching Into Corinth.
Chapter 19. Reaching Into Ephesus.
Chapter 20. Setting Out for Macedonia and Pressing Toward Jerusalem.
Chapter 21. Arrival and Arrest at Jerusalem.
Chapter 22. Paul Speaks to the People (21:37-22:29)
Chapter 23. Paul Speaks to the Religious Leaders Who Plan His Death (22:30-23:35)
Chapter 24. Paul On Trial Before Felix.
Chapter 25. Paul On Trial Before Festus.
Chapter 26. Paul’s Apologetic to Agrippa.
Chapter 27. The Tumultuous Journey To Rome.
Chapter 28. Arrival and Trial In Rome.

Outline of Acts
I. Preparation By The Spirit To Establish the Church (1:1 – 2:47)
a. Luke’s purpose for writing (1:1-3)
b. Promise of the Spirit, Commission and Ascension of Jesus (1:4-11)
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c. Events Before the Outpouring of the Spirit (1:12 – 26)

i. Wait and Pray (1:12-14)
ii. The selection of Matthias (1:15-26)
d. The Outpouring of the Spirit (2:1-4)
e. Events After the Outpouring of the Spirit (2:5 – 47)
i. Peter explains what is happening to the curious crowd (2:5-21)
ii. Peter preaches Christ to the curious crowd (2:22-36)
iii. The curious crowd responds and 3000 converted (2:37-41)
iv. The New Testament Church begins (2:42-47)
II. The Church’s Witness in Jerusalem (3:1 – 8:3)
a. Healing of the lame man (3:1-26)
b. Persecution, Prayer and Possessions (4:1-37)
c. Internal Problems & External Persecution (5:1-42)
d. Solving the Internal Problem & Greater Persecution (6:1-15)
e. Stephen and Saul (7:1-8:3)
III. The Church’s Witness in Judea and Samaria (8:4 – 12:25)
a. Philip preaches (8:4-40)
b. Saul the persecutor is converted & church has temporary peace (9:1-31)
c. Peter (9:32-12:25)
i. Miracles (9:32-43)
ii. Preaching / Conversion of Cornelius (10:1-11:18)
d. Ministries United (Peter, Barnabas and Paul) (11:19 – 12:25)
IV. The Church’s Witness to the Ends of the Earth (13:1 – 28:31)
a. Paul’s First Journey (13:1 - 14:28)
b. Church Problems (15:1 – 41)
i. The question of circumcision (15:1 – 35)
ii. Ministries Divided: Peter and Paul part company (15:36-41)
c. Paul’s Second Journey (16:1 – 18:22)
d. Paul’s Third Journey (18:23 – 21:17)
V. Paul: From Jerusalem to Rome (21:18 – 28:31)

Section I: Major Structural Relationships:

- Preparation and Realization (with causation and instrumentation)
o I.a. & I.b. form and introduction by the author summarizing for the reader the things
Jesus said and did before he was taken up to heaven and the instructions He gave to
the disciples and promises the Spirit.
o I.c. details the disciple’s obedience to Jesus command leading to the climax of I.d.
where the disciples are filled with the Spirit. The Spirit is the instrumentation for I.e.
o I.e. accounts is a summarization of 4 immediate effects caused by the Spirit: a
presentation of the gospel (2:5-36); a response to the Gospel (2:37); instructions as to
how to respond to the Gospel (2:38-39) and 3000 are converted (2:40).
o The New Testament church is born “and the Lord adds to their number daily those
who were being saved” (2:47)
o The theme of this section appears to be the empowerment of the Spirit as
instrumentation for the disciples to fulfill Acts 1:8
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Section II: Major Structural Relationships:

- Causation with Instrumentation

o The baptism of the Spirit and the daily growth of the church had many effects
(Section I).
o II.a. the healing of the lame man causes the persecution of II.b. but is also a tool to
bring the believers closer in prayer and possessions II.b.
o II.c. seems to be caused by the II.b. – kind of a two sided coin of what can be in the
church and what is often found in the church – the result of this event is “great fear
seized the whole church and all who heard these events” (5:11).
o II.d. The problem is solved but greater persecution arises through the instrumentation
of the Apostles healing ministry (5:12-15).
o II.d. persecution is the instrumentation leading to Stephen’s arrest and eventual
murder but this event causes the reader to be introduced to the character of Saul.

Section III. Major Structural Relationships:

- Introduction/Realization/Instrumentation

o III.a. introduces us to the showing the reader the realization of Section I.b. or Acts
1:8. That is, the witness to Judea/Samaria. This preaching by Philip is brought about
by the instrument of persecution against the church by Saul (8:1-3).
- Pivot
o III.b. is a pivot in the history of the church as it gives us the narrative of Saul’s
conversion while on his way to further persecute the church.

- Realization (by instrumentation with causation)

o III.c. Peter is brought back into the picture after Philip’s preaching and the pivot of
Saul’s conversion. We pick back up with the preaching to Judea/Samaria. Again this
is the realization of I.b. (acts 1:8) caused by the persecution and scattering of the
church out of Jerusalem.
 God’s desire to fulfill 1:8 seems to be the tool used to convince Peter of the
need to preach the Gospel to the Gentiles. God’s desire comes in the form of
a vision to Peter the Jew and involves the clean and unclean animals. This
dream causes Peter to reflect on the nature of the Gospel and when he
preaching to Cornelius’s house and they receive the Spirit it is not surprise to
him – like it is to the others around.
o III.d. the opening of the gospel to the Gentiles through Peter is cause for a uniting of
ministries which sets in order the opportunity to expand into the third area of
evangelization – the ends of the earth.
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Section IV. Major Structural Relationships:

- Pivot

o After Chapter 12 we hear virtually nothing about Peter and the book pivots to telling
the story of Paul and his journeys.

- Causation (with instrumentation)

o IV.a. because the ministries of Barnabas, Peter and Saul are united the church
council determines it is time to begin the missionary effort to the ends of the earth.
Barnabas and Saul are “set apart” and they received their commission by the laying
on of hands by the prophets at Antioch.
 The commissioning of Barnabas and Saul is the instrument by which the
“ends of the earth” would be able to hear and respond to the Gospel

- Preparation/Pivot (with causation)/Realization

o IV.b.i. appears to be a time of preparation to be able to settle issues about the

relationship between Judaism and Christianity. The Jerusalem council is preparing to
meet the issues of culture and context so that the Gospel can be effectively preached
in areas with a larger pagan audience.
o IV.b.ii. – the connection between the letter concerning the issue of circumcision
appears to be the cause of the pivot wherein ministries are divided (15:36-41).
o IV.c. – Paul’s second missionary journey seems to be one of bringing the news about
the decision concerning circumcision as well as preaching the Gospel. The
preparation at the council of Jerusalem is now being realized after the pivotal
moment when Paul chooses to continue to work in regions where the Gospel has not
been preached. This decision is the cause of IV.c and IV.d.

Section V. Major Structural Relationships:

- Causation (with instrumentation and realization)

o The spreading of the Gospel causes the one time persecutor to become the object of
persecution. The effect of which is Paul being brought to Rome on trial for his life.
o This is however the realization of Acts 1:8.

Strategic Areas:

Section I.
Acts 2:47 – “So the word of God spread…” This is strategic in that the church had experienced
great growth but there was still a vision to continue and now “a large number of priests” had
believed.
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Section II.
Acts 9:31 – Here we see the church enjoying a time of peace after the conversion of Saul but also
the church is still growing in numbers as they live in the “fear of the Lord.”
Acts 12:24 - This a short statement thrown into the middle of the account of Herod’s death but
preceded the missionary sending of the church through Barnabas and Saul.

Section III.
Acts 16:5 – Here again we are reminded that the churches have been “strengthened” and has
grown “in numbers.”
Acts 19:20 – Not only is the church growing but the “word of the Lord” is spreading and
growing in power.
Acts 28:31 – Paul is able to “boldly and without hindrance preach the kingdom of God and
taught about the Lord Jesus Christ.” This appears to be a summarization of the church’s efforts to
preach the Gospel to the ends of the earth. It is, nonetheless, an unusual ending as it seems be
very open-ended.