Discern the mood of the disciples.
4 While he was with them, he commanded them not to leave Jerusalem,
but to wait for the Father’s promise.
“Which,” he said, “you have heard me speak about;
5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit in a few days.”
6 So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, are you restoring the kingdom to Israel at this time?”
7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority.
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you,
and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem,
in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
remain focused on telling others about Jesus.
review Understand the Context (PSG, p. 11).
The book of Acts is the second part of a two-volume work
In the first part, the Gospel of Luke,
he was writing to provide “an orderly sequence” of the life and ministry of Jesus
The second part, the book of Acts, continued to unpack Luke’s mission and message.Acts explains how the work Jesus started continued through His people, even as He returned to heaven.
Acts recounts how the body of Christ, the church, continued the ministry that He began.Reading the book of Acts can be a challenge
For example, it’s not always easy to know which parts of the book are prescriptive and which are purely descriptive.
Readers sometimes feel a tension between what is applicable for us today
and what is simply a record of how the Spirit moved in the first century.
However, some of the stories recorded in Acts are one-time events that are not meant to be repeated.A second way that reading the book of Acts can be a challenge
Some sections of Acts are clearly prescriptive for us today.
God provided timeless principles that we can glean for advancing His kingdom through missions and evangelism efforts.
we are challenged to be both bolder and wiser in how we share the gospel in whatever context the Lord places us.Acts provides a blueprint for our lives today.
The Great Commission is just as relevant for modern Christ followers as it was in the first century.
We are still called to be His witnesses, whether that’s in our Jerusalem or He leads us to the ends of the earth.
Emphasize the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Affirm the Spirit’s role in sharing the gospel
and our need as believers to rely on Him
to accomplish the Great Commission.
the significance of the areas Jesus mentioned.
Note that these regions provide a basic outline for the Spirit’s work in the book of Acts.