The Acts of the Risen Lord Jesus: Luke’s account of God’s unfolding plan by Alan J. Thompson, Apollos (an imprint of Inter-Varsity Press, England), copyright 2011
Introduction
The Acts of the Risen Lord Jesus by Alan J. Thompson is the twenty-seventh title in the New Studies in Biblical Theology series edited by D.A. Carson. Throughout the book Thompson seeks “to highlight the ‘inaugurated kingdom of God’ as the organizing framework” (18) of the books of Acts.
The idea of an “inaugurated kingdom” is that God’s kingdom and it’s associated promises are here today because Jesus the King has died, risen, and ascended to heaven; however, the kingdom is not here in its fullness because the kingdom in its full and ultimate glory will only come into being at Jesus’ return. Thompson points out how the book of Acts shows that living in the time between the inauguration of the kingdom (Jesus’ ascension) and the consummation of the kingdom (Jesus’ return) means that we already have access to the promises of God’s kingdom, but there will also continue to be opposition to God’s kingdom.
The book begins with an introduction and explanation of the concept of the inaugurated kingdom of God. Following this Thompson discusses the importance and implications of the resurrection of Jesus, the inclusion of both Jews and Gentiles into the kingdom, the Holy Spirit’s role in the kingdom, and finally how the reign of Jesus as the Davidic King affects how Christians understand both the temple and the law of Moses.
Analysis
It’s important to point out that The Acts of the Risen Lord Jesus is not a study of or commentary on the book of Acts as a whole, rather it is a very thorough study of the concept of the inaugurated kingdom of God and of the actions of Jesus, the ascended King, as found in the book of Acts.
A major strength of the book is that instead of focusing on Peter or Paul, Thompson maintains the focus on Jesus. The book of Acts is “the Acts of the Lord Jesus, through his people, by the Holy Spirit, for the accomplishment of God’s purposes” (49). Peter and Paul are of course discussed, but always in the context of how they are acting as Jesus’ messengers and fulfilling Jesus’ commands. Thompson also does a good job of pointing out allusions to the Old Testament found in Acts and drawing out the implications of those allusions.
A Disagreement On Baptism
The one section of the book that I strongly disagreed with was the discussion on the Holy Spirit and baptism found on pages 141-143. At this point Thompson makes some very poor and inconsistent arguments to try and show that the Holy Spirit is not received when one is baptized and that baptism does not necessarily mean that one is a Christian.
Part of the problem that leads to Thompson’s misunderstanding of baptism is that he seems to think one can be baptized without truly believing and trusting in Jesus. He states that “baptism, in and of itself, does not guarantee genuine conversion and the presence of the Spirit” (143). Contrary to this, Peter tells us that baptism is “an appeal to God for a good conscience” (1 Peter 3:21) which implies that one must believe and trust in Jesus in order to be baptized – anything less than that would simply be getting wet.
Except for the section on baptism I did not have any major disagreements with the points made in the book. The Acts of the Risen Lord Jesus is well written and was overall a very enjoyable and informative read.
Writing Style
The Acts of the Risen Lord Jesus is an academic monograph and as such contains lots of footnotes and scholarly references; however, Thompson states that his “main goal is to help believers who read, teach, or preach through the book of Acts” (13) and by and large he accomplishes this goal. This is not a beginner’s introduction to the book of Acts, but it’s also not written at such an advanced level that it requires previous specialization. Any preacher or teacher with a solid understanding of the book of Acts should be able to work through The Acts of the Risen Lord Jesus and learn from it.
Verdict
Because of the section on baptism I cannot recommend this book without reservation, and I would not recommend this book to a new Christian (I think J.W. McGarvey’s New Commentary on Acts of Apostles would be a better place to start). Having said that, I do think that this book is worth a read for those who have a strong knowledge of the Bible and of Acts in particular and would recommend it to those doing an in-depth study of the book of Acts. The Acts of the Risen Lord Jesus, with it’s focus on the importance of the kingdom of God in Acts, is an excellent supplementary read as part of a broader study of the book of Acts.
Studies in the Bible 