Acts: Misfits on a Mission
The Non-transactional Spirit
In Acts 8, there are two main figures on which the narrative focuses: Simon, the Sorcerer, and Philip, the apostle. In these two we see contrasted two approaches to Christian faith. One views faith as a transaction, a quid-pro-quo. The other views faith as a movement of the Spirit as a witness to Jesus. Transactional faith is very common in Western forms of Christianity. In this message, Andrea Roles helps us to recognize the difference and to move toward God’s…
God’s Mission, Not the Twelve’s
Jesus instructed his Galilean disciples in Acts 1:8 to be his witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth. However, when the Twelve are slow to carry God’s mission beyond Jerusalem, God uses Hellenistic Jews Stephen and Philip (who were delegated for food distribution) to preach and evangelize in and outside of Jerusalem.
The Prophet and the Wonk
Today in the United States and in the American church, there are a lot of reasons for the church to speak truth to power like the apostles in Acts 5. This prophetic role is essential. We are allegiant to Jesus and his Way is our law, even if that sets us at odds with the laws of the nations in which we find ourselves. Luke, however, masterfully juxtaposes the apostles prophetic stance with their solution-oriented administration of the cultural conflict…