Peter and Paul in Acts: A Comparison of Their Ministries. David Spell

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Peter and Paul in Acts: A Comparison of Their Ministries - David Spell


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By the end of Acts, Luke has made the case that Christianity is “an independent religious movement in the process of emerging from Judaism to which it is its legitimate successor.”151

      Conclusion

      The second part of this first chapter has highlighted many of the literary issues that are associated with the writings of Luke, and Acts in particular. First of all, the authorship of Acts was discussed. While many scholars do not accept the traditional view that Luke, the companion of Paul, wrote Acts no one has been able to present enough evidence to successfully refute it. Tradition and internal evidence point towards Lukan authorship.

      The dating of Acts was examined next. Authorship and dating are closely related. If Acts is given a late date, such as the early to middle of the Second Century, as many scholars do, then the traditional view of authorship is effectively nullified. If Luke was the author of Acts, then an early date of 60 to 85 AD is not unreasonable. A date in the early to mid-60’s seems to make the most sense in the light of the internal evidence that was presented.

      The relationship between Luke’s Gospel and Acts was the next area that was discussed. A number of themes that are common to both works were discussed. There are numerous literary parallels between the two books. Several of these were highlighted.

      The purpose for Luke-Acts was the next literary topic that was examined. The primary purpose for both works is found in the prologues. There, are, however, numerous other subsidiary purposes that have been set forth as to why Luke wrote these volumes. Several of these were mentioned. The last literary issue that was discussed was the basic message of Acts.

      The next chapter will start the process of looking specifically at Peter and Paul. The focus will be on their relationship to each other in the early church and whether or not they should be considered friends or foes. It will look beyond Acts to their respective letters to see what they had to say about each other.


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