Preaching Luke Acts

"The gospel of Luke and the book of Acts provde researchers with new perspectives on some of the deepest longings of our time: the search for a transcendent perspective on the meaning of life, yearning for community, and other issues that resonate with contemporary concerns. In this book, Allen raises up common motifs that occur in Luke and Acts and shows how these motifs can be used for effective preaching." --

Acts is the sequel to Luke's gospel and tells the story of Jesus's followers during the 30 years after his death. It describes how the 12 apostles, formerly Jesus's disciples, spread the message of Christianity throughout the Mediterranean against a background of persecution. With an introduction by P.D. James

In this engaging introduction to the New Testament, Professor Dale B. Martin presents a historical study of the origins of Christianity by analyzing the literature of the earliest Christian movements. Focusing mainly on the New Testament, he also considers nonbiblical Christian writings of the era. Martin begins by making a powerful case for the study of the New Testament. He next sets the Greco-Roman world in historical context and explains the place of Judaism within it. In the discussion of each New Testament book that follows, the author addresses theological themes, then emphasizes the significance of the writings as ancient literature and as sources for historical study. Throughout the volume, Martin introduces various early Christian groups and highlights the surprising variations among their versions of Christianity.

The context for this book is rooted in the life of the local church. We desire to integrate biblical scholarship and homiletical theory with the task of preaching Luke/Acts. Our prayer is that the responsible integration of these resources will increase the ability of the Holy Spirit to empower preachers for faithful proclamation of God's word. To that end we give God the glory. - From the editor's Introduction.

Author raises up common motifs that occur in Luke and Acts and shows how those motifs can be used for effective preaching.

""The contributors represent varying outlooks in New Testament study so that the book offers a continuation of the current debate rather than a set of agreed conclusions. The editors of this symposium deserve our thanks for bringing together this series of useful essays which no student of the social teaching in the New Testament and of Luke's writings in particular ought to miss."" --I. Howard Marshall, Professor of New Testament Exegesis, University of Aberdeen ""Various phases of Luke's challenge (to the powers of his day) are discussed in some detail by the contributors to this symposium; and, in consequence, much light is thrown on Luke's purpose in writing. I am happy to commend this new volume of studies to the serious attention of students and teachers of the New Testament and early Christian history."" --F. F. Bruce, Rylands Professor of Biblical Criticism and Exegesis, University of Manchester ""These lively, provocative, and well-informed essays center around the thesis of Dr. Richard J. Cassidy in his Jesus, Politics, and Society, in which he challenges the notion that Luke-Acts was written as a political apologetic. The result is a stimulating debate, as though one were participating in a discussion, at once learned and relevant, on the exegetical issue of Lukan redaction, and of course, on the moral question of Jesus' attitude toward civil authority."" -Howard Clark Kee, William Goodwin Aurelio Professor of Biblical Studies, Boston University ""Here we have ten studies which sharply probe aspects of the political Luke and/or Luke's political Jesus, including a study by Cassidy himself as well as studies which take him to task on various counts. All told, Political Issues in Luke-Acts is an extremely valuable showcase of the most current research in Luke-Acts and its societal concerns."" --Edward C. Hobbs, Professor of Religion, Wellesley College, Visiting Professor of New Testament, Harvard University Richard J. Cassidy serves as Professor of Sacred Scripture at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit, Michigan. His most recent books are Paul in Chains: Roman Imprisonment and the Letters of Paul and Four Times Peter: Portrayals of Peter in the Four Gospels and at Philippi. He is currently completing a commentary on St. Paul's Letter to the Philippians. Prior to his death, Philip J. Scharper served as an editor of Commonweal, was the American editor of Sheed and Ward, and was the founding editor of Orbis Books. He received seven honorary degrees and numerous awards for his contribution to religious publishing. With his wife, Sally, he authored more than thirty nationally televised religious documentaries, which have received twenty international and national awards, including several Emmys.

In Preaching Luke–Acts, David Schnasa Jacobsen and Günter Wasserberg introduce preachers to the big picture about Luke–Acts. They provide helpful guidance in seeing how an understanding of the larger scheme and purpose of these books can inform and enliven one's preaching of the texts. They demonstrate that the author of Luke–Acts wrote out of a specific set of pastoral concerns, and they then relate these concerns to a contemporary context. For example, they provide specific help in understanding the strain of anti-Judaism that runs through the writing. They provide well-detailed examinations of several Luke–Acts texts drawn from the lectionary, placing them in the context of the overall pastoral and theological purpose of the book and outlining a possible sermon to be preached from the text.

This study examines one significant theological theme in Luke-Acts, that of 'The plan of God'. It traces the way this theme is developed throughout Luke-Acts, both through direct statements by the writer and through various associated means such as divine appearances, signs and wonders, the fulfilment of prophecy, and indications of fate as of necessity. Dr Squires locates Luke's use of this theme in the context of the history-writing of the Hellenistic period, noting numerous passages in those works which illumine Luke's theological purposes. His book shows how the notion of the plan of God is used by Luke as he writes to confirm his readers' faith, encouraging them to bear witness to this faith, and equipping them for the task of defending it.