ACT-02 Structure and Content

As a teacher, I sometimes have the opportunity to travel in many countries around the world. Before each trip, I always make sure I understand two important things. First, I need to know where I am going. And second, I have to know how I will get from place to place. Will I take an airplane? Catch a bus? Or use some other form of transportation? Well, something similar is true when we read the book of Acts. It helps to know where the story is going and what literary techniques or strategies Luke uses to guide us to our destination.

This is the second lesson in our series The Book of Acts. In this series, we’re exploring the record of the early church as it continued the ministry of Jesus. We’ve entitled this lesson “Structure and Content” because we’ll be looking at the ways Luke organized his material and at the message he intended to teach.

Our exploration of the structure and content of Acts will divide into three parts. First, we’ll examine the book’s rhetorical strategy and how Luke’s approach to writing Acts should influence the way we interpret it. Second, we’ll examine the book’s content. And third, we’ll suggest a model for the modern application of Acts. Let’s look first at the rhetorical strategy of the book of Acts.

Whenever we read a book in the Bible, it is important to become familiar with the way the author persuades his readers of his points of view. We have to ask questions like: Why did the author write this book? What authorities did he appeal to in order to establish his case? And how did he design his book to guide his readers to the proper conclusions? The answers to these questions yield so many insights that we should never ignore them.

As we approach the book of Acts, we’ll focus on three aspects of Luke’s rhetorical strategy. First, we’ll speak of his stated purpose. Second, we’ll mention his reliance on authority. And third, we’ll speak of some structural patterns he employed throughout the book. Let’s start by examining Luke’s stated purpose for writing the book of Acts.

When people write works of significant length and complexity, they normally have many intentions and purposes. As Luke wrote his two-volume work of the gospel of Luke and the book of Acts, he no doubt hoped that his writing would impact his readers in many different ways. So, we have to be careful not to oversimplify his purposes. Even so, Luke explicitly stated that he had a purpose for his work.