After praying and asking God for wisdom, choose a passage in Acts that interests you—either a narrative passage or section of a speech in Actsof approximately 3-10 verses—that illustrates a theological theme or teaches a theological truth. Below is a list of examples of particular passages that illustrate or inform the reader about a theological theme:
Community: Early church fellowship in Acts 2:42-47Gospel: The significance of Paul’s pattern of evangelism in Acts 14
The Holy Spirit: The gift of the Spirit received by Cornelius’s household (Acts 10:34-48)
Christology: The ascension Jesus Christ in Acts 1:1-11
Miraculous: The healing of the crippled man at the temple in Acts 3:1-10
Persecution: The stoning of Stephen and the great persecution (Acts 7:54-8:3)
Use of Old Testament: Peter’squotation of the prophet Joel at Pentecost (Acts 2:18-25)
These are examples, and students are not limited to these passages or themes. You may also choose to narrow the focus (such as “Church Conflict in Acts 6:1-7” or “The custom taught by Moses and the council of Jerusalem (Acts 15)” or “Truth and the Holy Spirit in Acts 5:1-11,” etc.). The important thing is to pick a passage of interest and appropriate length and one which contributes to a better understanding of the meaning of an overall theological theme in Acts.
Good news: Up to this point in the course, you have already completed the basic exegetical steps for interpreting a passage and for discussing a theological topic in Acts. You have read the book of Acts in one sitting, and during this term you have outlined the book, observed and noted Luke’s arrangement, style, key persons and events, background information, etc. And in reading your commentaries, you have also gained a general idea of the historical and cultural background of Acts and how to better interpret narrative material.
Now you are ready to take additional general interpretive steps for the interpretive paper. First, read your chosen passage several times, jotting down observations and questions (about the author, audience, purpose, tone, key words, difficulties, etc.). Second, divide the passage into “units of thought” (similar to contemporary paragraphs), and decide which of these “units of thought” (sections) of your chosen passage will be the primary focus of the paper (these divisions may also help in coming up with sub-headings for your paper for the interpretive section). Third, when reading, use different translations and available Bible study tools in determining the significant words and phrases of the passage.
Once you have determined the specific passage and its divisions and have interacted with the text in asking relevant questions, follow the steps below to gather detailed information for the body of your paper:
A. Consider how the chosen passage fits within the overall flow of the book, particularly the preceding and following passages (when writing your paper, keep this information to about two paragraphs).
o How does this passage relate to the author’s purpose in Acts?
o What overall theological emphases of the author in the book of Acts might contribute to a better understanding of the meaning of the chosen passage?
B. Research the cultural-historical background of the passage (consult Commentaries and relevant Bible Dictionaries or helpful background books such as the IVP Biblical Background Commentary by Craig Keener).
C. Make note of any literary devices and their function in the passage.
D. Optional: For key sentences of the passage analyze the grammar and function (consult exegetical commentaries and Hebrew or Greek Grammars).
E. Analyze key words of the passage (two or more):
a. Determine the range of meaning that the author may have intended by (1) consulting other translations and relevant lexicons (BDAG preferred) and (2) see how the author used these key words elsewhere in the book of Acts (and Luke).
b. Optional: Consider how this word used in other books of the New Testament or Old Testament (LXX).
c. If relevant, consider how this word is used in Greco-Roman culture.
d. Based on the above analysis, decide on authorial intent and meaning for the significant word(s) and phrase(s).
F. Investigate how the theological concepts of the chosen passage relate to biblical and theological teaching in Acts.
G. Draw out two (or more) theological truths from the passage and find support for these truths from prescriptive passages from other biblical books.
H. Make an application of one of these truths to a current contemporary context (for ministry or life setting).