The book of Acts was letter written by Luke to someone names Theophilus (pronounced the-off-fill-us). The gospel of Luke was also written to this man.
The gospel of Luke told the story of Jesus’ life and His death for our sins. The book of Acts begins with Jesus going back to heaven and the apostles going into the world to teach the gospel. The book of Acts is a history of the early church.
Though it is called the Acts of the Apostles, the book only tells about the work of the apostles Peter and Paul as well as Phillip who was not an apostle.
The first seven chapters describe the beginning of the church (Acts 2) and its growth in Jerusalem. Acts 8 describes the work of the preacher Phillip and his work in Samaria, not far from Jerusalem.
Acts 9 begins with Saul’s persecution of the church. When the Christians were persecuted, they left Jerusalem and went to faraway cities and preached the gospel.
While persecuting the church, Jesus appeared to Saul. Soon Saul, whose name was changed to Paul, preached the gospel of Jesus throughout the world.
Acts 10 and 11 describes the first time that the gospel was preached to people who were not Jews. This meant that the gospel was the message of salvation for all people, not just the Jews.
Acts 12 describes King Herod’s attempt to quiet Peter. However, an angel let Peter out of prison. Later, Herod died because he accepted worship as if he were God.
Acts 13-14 describes Paul’s first preaching journey to spread the gospel into foreign cities.
Acts 15 describes a disagreement in which the Jewish Christians thought that non-Jewish Christians should keep the Old Law. The apostles, with the authority of God, decided that Christians did not have to keep the Old Law.
Acts 16-18:22 describes Paul’s second preaching trip to foreign cities; Acts 18:23-21:16 describes Paul’s third preaching journey. The rest of Acts describes Paul’s trouble with the Jews and a trip to Rome for judgment.
Facts About Acts
