CHAPTER 3

We have considered the teaching of `the former treatise' (Acts 1:1), namely, Luke's Gospel, and have found that

its general trend is to stress that aspect of the Gospel connected with the Saviour and the Gentile, as compared with

Matthew, which stresses the Kingly and Jewish aspect. Luke states that the former treatise is a record of `all that

Jesus began both to do and teach'. Are we justified in this deduction? Mark's Gospel ends with the words:

`And He said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature ... these signs shall

follow ... So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, He was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand

of God. And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word

with signs following. Amen'(Mark 16:15-20).

These words prove that the Acts is a continuation of the narrative of what the Lord had begun to do and teach in

the days of His flesh, and that the miraculous gifts of the Spirit were intended to `confirm' the witness. This may be

seen by consulting Hebrews 2:

`How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and

was confirmed unto us by them that heard Him; God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders,

and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to His own will?' (Heb. 2:3,4).

To the same effect is the teaching of the epistles to the Corinthians:

`Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you: So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the

coming of our Lord Jesus Christ' (1 Cor. 1:6,7).

`Now He which stablisheth (confirmeth) us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God' (2 Cor. 1:21).

The `confirming of us with you' of 2 Corinthians 1 shows that the same object is in view, which we have already

seen in Hebrews 2.

Returning to the opening chapter of the Acts, we note that the writer speaks of several things that had already

been recorded by him in the last chapter of the gospel of Luke. The only way to realize this is to compare the two

passages. This we will do.

`And as they thus spake, Jesus

` ... the apostles whom He

Himself stood in the midst of

had chosen: to whom also He

them, and saith unto them, Peace

shewed Himself alive after His

be unto you.  But they were

passion by many infallible

terrified  and  affrighted,  and

proofs, being seen of them

supposed that they had seen a

spirit. And He said unto them,

(It will be seen that what

"Why are ye troubled? and why

do thoughts arise in your hearts?

Behold My hands and My feet,

that it is I Myself: handle Me, and

see; for a spirit hath not flesh and

bones, as ye see Me have". And

when He had thus spoken, He

subject).

shewed them His hands and His