The following thesis involves taking a conceptual investigative study of the Mission of God as seen in the book of Acts. The methodology to accomplish this requires a close examination into that the acts that seem to be attributed to God’s work and missional activity, not only among His people but through them as seen in the book of Acts.
By looking carefully verse-by-verse and chapter-by-chapter, we are able to allow the context of the passages to reveal common and recurring themes of God’s mission. This type of careful examination allows those recurring themes to surface to the top. The discoveries from this analysis is then compared to findings from other scholarly articles, commentaries and theological studies in order to gain a clearer overview of comparison in an effort to gain insight into God’s mission as realized in Acts. By providing this diligence, we gain a stronger insight into the application of how these findings help us not only know Christ better, but also understand how we can make Him known!
The Power of God’s Mission
When seeking God’s mission in the book of Acts, there is little delay in recognizing the promise given to the church when Jesus spoke saying, “but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.” (Acts 1:8 NASB) It is in Acts that we see for the first time the continual indwelling power of the Holy Spirit given, in order to provide the followers of Jesus with a boldness that would ultimately result in signs, wonders and proclamation of Gods’ redemptive message. This seems to be validated in the exposition commentary when it states:
“The early church had none of the things that we think are so essential for success today— buildings, money, political influence, social status—and yet the church won multitudes to Christ and saw many churches established throughout the Roman world. Why? Because the church had the power of the Holy Spirit energizing its ministry. They were a people who “were ignited by the Spirit of God.” (Wiersbe, 1996, Vol. 1, Pg. 402)
Likewise, if we would see the clear mission of God which results in God’s power being manifested in the church’s life, we would then begin to see the proclamation of God’s mission.
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