Mission in the Book of Acts - Essay Example

Mission in the book of Acts Introduction The book of Acts was written by Luke and majorly focuses on two apostles: Peter and Paul as it discusses the events that they went through in the beginning of the early church. The book than any other book in the New Testament shows the origin of the church through the missionary activities that took place among then apostles. It is in the book of Acts that the church and the Christian mission originated from. The book has seven stages of mission. Each of the stage represents various moments and occurrences in communities which make them understand the mission of the society and the church. The stages also show that the nature of missionary in the church emerges from the involvement of the community in particular events with the guidance of the spirit of God. These seven stages are: before the Pentecost, during the Pentecost, the time of Stephen, Samaria and the Ethiopian Eunuch, Cornelius and his household, the apostles in Antioch and the mission to the Gentiles. Stage 1: Before the Pentecost This episode is found in the book of Acts chapter 1. From this chapter, it is evident that the mission of Jesus in the world was to preach to all people, serve them and to witness about the goodness of God. As Luke explains in the beginning of the book of Acts, Jesus appeared to the twelve disciples after his resurrection. Before he ascended to heaven, he gave them instructions not to leave the City, Jerusalem, before they receive the Holy Spirit. The disciples then ask Jesus if the arrival of God’s Spirit meant that the Kingdom of God will reign on earth. Jesus answers them by saying that they need not to know of the right time of the Kingdom of God but instead they will receive power through the arrival of the Spirit of God. He tells them that they will be witnesses in Jerusalem, Samaria, and Judea and to every part of the world for Christ. The commandment of Jesus to the twelve disciples as Luke describes shows the guidance of the spirit of God to the community in the major mission and its identity (1:3-8). After the ascension of Jesus, the disciples did not immediately go to Samaria and Judea; instead, they waited in Jerusalem for the reign of God through the second coming of Jesus. In Jerusalem, they made the number complete by replacing Judas the traitor with Mathias through an election. They ensured that Mathias was like them and was a witness to Jesus. Mathias was with Jesus from the baptism of John until his death and resurrection. This was a preparation for the fulfilment of the great mission that Jesus had ordained. This is because the twelve disciples represented the twelve tribes of Israel. Jesus before his death had also proclaimed that the twelve disciples would rule and judge the twelve tribes of Israel on the thrones they will be seated on. The mission of the disciples was to ensure that the Kingdom of God was restored back to Israel which was the chosen nation of God (Male and Weston, 2013). Stage2: during the Pentecost (Acts 2-5) Contrary to the expectation of the community about the reigning of the Kingdom of God, they experienced the eschatological fulfilment of the mission that Jesus proclaimed during the Pentecost. Instead of the second coming of Jesus, the disciples and believers of Jesus were filled by the Spirit of God and they started talking in tongues. The Holy Spirit endowed people with several gifts such as the gift of prophecy, discernment, speaking in tongues and interpretation of tongues. Peter whom Jesus had prophesied to be the rock and foundation of the church stood and gave a speech to the community who thought that the believer of Christ who were speaking in tongues were drunk. He defended them by saying that what they saw was the effect of the pouring of God’s Spirit as prophesied by Joel. The prophet of God Joel had earlier on spoken about the times of eschatology due to the pouring of the Holy Spirit on the human kind. This is part of the mission of God to save mankind through the redemptive purpose. As seen through the experience on the Pentecost, the disciples of Jesus were on a mission as the remnants of Israel to restore the nation back to God even after they rejected the messiah because they were the chosen nation of God (Acts 2:1-40). The mission of Jesus began to be revealed during the Pentecost as his believers started speaking in various languages that they had never heard of. The people who were in Jerusalem that day were from all over the world and each of them could hear their language being spoken. This was the commencement of the fulfilment of the mission of reaching to the Gentiles. This was the commencement of the birth of the church of Christ. The nations were: Parthians, Medes and Elamites from Mesopotamia, Cappadocia and Judea, Phontus, Phrygia, Egypt, Pamphylia, Libya, Rome, Arab and Cretans. The speech of Peter showed that the mission of Judaism that Jesus predicted was being fulfilled. The main goal of the gospel is to address all nations in every part of the earth which is seen during the Pentecost. At this time, the disciples had not yet understood the mission of reaching the Gentiles because they were more focussed on Judaism. They continued to follow the customs of the Jews and observed the Mosaic law of Moses. They did not have concern on reaching other people outside Jerusalem (Spencer, 2007). Stage 3: Stephen (Acts 6-7) This chapter presents a different thought of the mission of the great commission of Jesus. The disciples of Jesus start experiencing a different environment of Christianity. Contrary to their expectation of being happy in Jerusalem as the remnants of Israel, they are exposed to harsh conditions which make them realize and understand the mission that Jesus was preparing them for by the pouring of the Holy Spirit. In this chapter, the disciples learn how to deal with disputes among believers in the church. The numbers of the disciples of Jesus increases as they begin dispersing to various regions of the earth. This is the commencement of the fulfilment of the mission of preaching the good news to the Gentiles who are not from the lineage of Abraham and David. As Luke explains in the book, the church is formed by people from diverse beliefs and cultures. It becomes difficult for the disciples to settle disputes among believers of Jesus who came from different cultural backgrounds with varying beliefs. The mission of the Holy Spirit is seen as he helps Paul to settle disputes among believers in the church. The church is led by the Holy Spirit in its ups and downs making it to stand firm for the course and mission of Jesus. Luke portrays Stephen as a man who is filled by the Spirit of God, power and grace from God as he performs signs and wonders among people. Some Hellenistic Jews tried to debate with him but he was too smart for them because he had the Holy Spirit in him. When they could not get hold of him, they framed Stephen to the teachers of the Mosaic Law accusing him of speaking against Moses, the sanctuary and the Law of Moses. Due to this accusation, Stephen was arrested and presented before the Sanhedrin. While before the Sanhedrin, Stephen makes a speech that describes the true mission of God to mankind. He explains that the God of the Old Testament was not just limited to one place or one people; instead, he is a living God who wants to save all mankind. He tells the Sanhedrin that Israel which is the chosen nation of God has rejected God by killing his representatives including his son, Jesus Christ. The speech that Stephen makes shows a relation of behaviour of the present generation to that of their fathers. The relation is the opposition of the Holy Spirit and the servants of God. Because of the speech that Stephen made against the Pharisees, he was stoned to death as he confessed that Jesus is Lord. Those who stoned Stephen to death stacked their cloaks at the feet of Saul who by then persecuted Christians. The death of Stephen was the beginning of the persecution of Christians as they fulfilled the mission of Christ of spreading the gospel to various parts of the earth. Persecution of Christians led to the scattering of disciples of all corners of the earth. Due to this, the spreading of the gospel of Christ widens as the community of Christ identify themselves with the great mission unto whom God has called them to fulfil (Male and Weston, 2013). Stage 4: Samaria and the Ethiopian Eunuch (Acts 8-10) This chapter of the book centres on the ministry of Philip in Samaria and to the Ethiopian Eunuch. The Samaritans were despised by the Jews as they were considered to be the lost sheep. Philip who was a disciple of Jesus preached to them and they responded positively to the gospel of Christ as they accepted to be baptised in water. After their baptism, John and Peter imposed hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit. The mission of God becomes clear as the Samaritans who are Gentiles receive the good news and become part of the church of Christ. The conversion of the Ethiopian Eunuch to Christianity is also a clear indication of the mission of salvation to all mankind. God uses Philip through his angel to make the Ethiopian Eunuch to understand the word of God. The angel of God appears to Philip and instructs him to go down to the road heading to Gaza from Jerusalem. The Spirit of God leads him to Ethiopian Eunuch and he teaches him the word of God. He even baptizes the Eunuch and is filled with the Spirit of God. After he finishes his work, the Holy Spirit takes Philip away from the vicinity. The mission of salvation of all mankind from various nations in the world is also seen through the conversion of the Ethiopian Eunuch. Through Philip, God has shown that he has no boundaries and embraces all nations of the earth not just the Israelites who are his chosen nation. The uncircumcised and foreigners were gaining the access of being the people of God (Schroeder and Bevans, 2004). Stage 5: Cornelius and His Household (Acts 10:1-11:18) This chapter focuses on the conversion of Saul from being a zealous persecutor of Christians to being a radical evangelist named Paul. It also focuses on Cornelius who was a centurion. It further explains the mission of the expansion and growth of the people of God. On his way to Damascus to persecute Christians, Saul met Jesus who transformed his life at an instant. His name was changed to Paul and was used by God as a vessel to preach the good news to the Gentiles. This was a fulfilment of the mission of God of making the good news to be known by the Gentiles. Cornelius is a centurion who is a commander of a troop in Caesarea. He is a Gentile who is God-fearing and generous. His characters as a gentile shows that good can come of the Gentiles and should not be seen as being inferior. Through him, God shows that the Gentiles can have his blessings and guidelines as long as they believe in him. He shows the Jews that they are not the only nation that is entitled to the blessings of God. God gives Cornelius a vision whereby a messenger of God tells him to send for Peter who is in Joppa. He does what he is instructed in the vision and sends for Peter. Peter comes to the house of Cornelius and God shows him a vision. The vision was a description of the mission of God as he showed Peter that he had cleansed the Gentiles and he should not despise what he had chosen and accepted. Peter proclaims the good news of Christ to the household of Cornelius and the Spirit of God descends on them despite the fact that they are Gentiles. This incident shows that the Kingdom of is for both the Jews and the Gentiles. Peter then baptizes Cornelius and his household. Step 6: Antioch (Acts 11:19-26) This is the region where there was a breakthrough in the mission of the spreading of the good news to the Gentiles. In this region, both the Jews and Gentiles who had been converted to Christianity lived together without looking at their cultural differences. Here, the gospel was more radical as the message of Christ was preached in a way that was just beyond Judaism. For the first time in Antioch, the disciples of Jesus were for the first time called Christians because of the resemblance of Christ that they portrayed. The Christians had detached themselves from Judaism and its culture as they spread the gospel to all nations. With the help of God’s Spirit, Christians in Antioch become more conscious of their mission of the expansion of the church to various parts of the earth. Stage 7: The Mission to the Gentiles (Acts 12-28) These chapters show the expansion of the mission of preaching of the good news to the Gentiles. It also shows the persecutions that the disciples of Jesus went through as they spread the good news to the Gentiles. James is executed by Herod in chapter 12 and Peter is arrested because of proclaiming the name of God. He miraculously escapes from prison to continue preaching the gospel. Paul is also arrested and escapes the snares of death with the help of God. With the help of the God’s Spirit, Saul and Barnabas are singled out and sent out on a missionary journey by the community. Paul is seen to be preaching in the colony of the Romans in Antioch. The Jews rejected the gospel and Barnabas and Paul made it clear to them that the message was not only for them but also to the Gentiles as well. They explain that the conversion of Israel will take place only when all the Gentiles have heard the gospel. They preached in Pisidian Antioch, Iconium and in Lystra where they narrowly escaped death. Until chapter 28, Luke explains the missionary work of Paul in the whole of Europe and Asia, the pains and struggles that he faced and the opposition of the Jews to the gospel and his preaching to the Gentiles (Male and Weston, 2013). Conclusion The book of acts shows the fulfilment of the commandment of Jesus that the gospel is preached in Samaria, Judah and to the corners of the world. The blessing of God and the acceptance of Jesus was not meant for the Jews alone but it is universal. It is meant for every mankind who were created by God. This fulfils the redemptive mission of God to all mankind. Works cited David, Male and Paul, Weston. The Words Out: Speaking the Gospel Today. Abingdon: The Bible Reading Fellowship. 2013. Stephen, Spencer. Christian Mission. London: SCM Press. 2007. Stephen, Bevans and Roger, Schroeder. Constants in Context: A Theology of Mission for Today. New York: Orbis Books. 2004. Read More