Once again, we must look to those whom Paul mentions. For instance, Junia does not get another mention in the Bible. This meant the Gospel permeated all social strata. Many have suggested Theophilus was a Roman. If a wealthy Roman in a high position accepts the Gospel message, this proves the living and active nature of God.
This likely gave those in the early church hope as well. If previous Christ killers like Paul and Roman higher-ups like Theophilus can fall in love with the Gospel message, then God could move any mountain.
First, we learn that God can transform the hearts of any person, no matter what their life circumstance or social strata. Theophilus actually comes into the narrative at a disadvantage: a rich Roman. Romans were already hostile to the Gospel, as it ran counter to their religion. But as we learn in Matthew 19 , those who have wealth or higher positions have a harder time accepting the Gospel because it means giving up earthly wealth or power, in many cases.
Theophilus defies all odds. He said, "I can't figure it out -this kind of people coming from a Bible and a couple of old guys who wanted to live like Jesus Christ.
Maybe we have been using the wrong kind of weapons to make the world over! You might invest yourself in the life of an unbeliever and never see how God blesses that investment. Did you ever stop to think that Luke intended his Gospel for one man, Theophilus? Did you ever stop to think about how God honored Luke's faithfulness? When Theophilus received the Gospel and believed in Christ, I propose that he saw how life-changing and vital this message about Jesus Christ was to him.
As he spread the word, that 25 foot tract was spread down throughout the ages. Have you ever wondered what it will be like when Luke gets to heaven and Jesus says, "Luke let me show you something. These are all of the people throughout history whose lives have been impacted by that little tract you wrote to Theophilus. In the Museum of Science in Chicago, there is a very interesting display.
It is a checkerboard blown up big and placed on a table. In the lower left-hand square, the first square on the board, there is one wheat seed glued into place. There are two seeds on the second square, 4 on the third, 8 on the fourth, 16 on the fifth, 32 on the sixth, 64 on the seventh, on the eighth square, and then they stop, because they are beginning to spill over the square.
Underneath in front of the table there is a bronze plaque that says,. We had to stop with the eighth square because the square could not contain the numbers it had multiplied to by the eighth square. Had we continued to the 64th square, there would have been enough wheat seeds to fill the entire subcontinent of India 50 feet deep! As you consider the truth of this display you can easily see how the early church brought the salvation of Jesus Christ to its world!
Luke and others found a "Theophilus," whether he was in a position of rank or a ditch digger, it made no difference, because the same potential impact is in every person. Anybody who is faithful, available, and teachable can get in on this! You just have to be willing! God will do the rest! There is somebody upon whom some Theophilus is depending and even now waiting. Every person has a measure of potential to be a Luke. The words you speak, the letters you write, the actions you do, should be full of Jesus.
Your Theophilus is waiting and so is the world coming after him. Written by Dr. In "The Acts of the Apostles. When Theophilus received the Gospel and believed in Christ, I propose that he saw how life-changing and vital this message about Jesus Christ was to him and he began to share it with anyone who would read it or listen to him read it.
The driving force behind all of Luke's research and writing is that Theophilus would know the secure truth. A second matter pertinent to word order is a Greek manner to create a unified concept. In such a construction, an author introduces a unified concept by separating the article and the noun it modifies. The contents in-between the article and noun may be central to the unified concept Robertson Two of these unified concepts appear in the prologue.
Loveday Alexander also notes the high style of this clause, with its alliteration and 'sandwiching of noun and article'. Alliteration may again be noted. Luke's stylistic emphasis underlines the importance and nature of the eyewitnesses. What Theophilus is about to read is true - in contrast to the mythological fabrications of the Greco-Roman religions in the world around him.
Thus, Luke uses style and grammar to intensify his statement regarding the credibility of his sources. Credibility and reliability are key foundations for Luke-Acts. These emphases bring Luke's purpose into sharp focus: to give solid evidence, so that Theophilus may be fully assured of the truth. The necessity of accuracy in historical writing. Luke's concern for accuracy in his writing, as carefully presented in the prologue of his gospel, is in keeping with standards for best practices amongst other historians of the Hellenistic period.
The historian Polybius 2nd century BC criticised a certain Timaeus for inventing speeches rather than recording the actual words:.
The special province of history is, first, to ascertain what the actual words used were; and secondly, to learn why it was that a particular policy or argument failed or succeeded [ In this respect Timaeus is an eminent offender, for we all know that his books are full of such writing. Continuing his negative evaluation of the writing of Timaeus, Polybius asserts the necessity of carefully researching a topic through personal investigation:.
Study of documents involves no danger or fatigue, if one only takes care to lodge in a city rich in such records, or to have a library in one's neighbourhood. You may then investigate any question while reclining on your couch, and compare the mistakes of former historians without any fatigue to yourself. But personal investigation demands great exertion and expense; though it is exceedingly advantageous, and in fact is the very corner-stone of history.
It seems that Luke builds his work on the foundations of personal investigation, according to Polybius' advice, employing the exertion and expense that would have been associated with such research.
Lucian 2nd century AD also stressed accuracy in historical writing and the importance of eyewitness investigation. In his work, How to write history, Lucian describes the careful historian:. As to the facts themselves, he should not assemble them at random, but only after much laborious and painstaking investigation. He should for preference be an eyewitness, but, if not, listen to those who tell the more impartial story.
In Luke's case, he used his own eyewitness account for portions of Acts the 'we passages'; Schnabel and sought other eyewitness reports for events where he himself was not present. Luke's accuracy summarised. If 'Luke, the beloved physician' of Colossians is the same Luke as the author of Luke-Acts, 4 we may surmise that the author was accustomed to giving rigorous attention to detail. The abilities required of a physician - careful observation and examination skills - might have transferred to Luke's approach to research methodology.
For a doctor, even a single error in examination or treatment may yield disastrous results. It seems that Luke researched the contents of his gospel with the same meticulous care required of a medical practitioner. Luke's research took him right back to the source of the narrative accounts. Luke consulted eyewitness sources before compiling his narrative Lk in keeping with good practices for ancient historians.
Theophilus had a need for a full and accurate account of Jesus and the events surrounding the spread of Christianity throughout the Roman Empire. This article has provided some key information regarding the possible identity of Theophilus as reader of the Luke-Acts narrative. Theophilus was, likely a person of social and government rank, and a Gentile with a background in Roman and Greek culture.
The generous inclusion of Old Testament texts suggests that Theophilus would have also had a background with the Jewish culture. Theophilus had already received some instruction about Jesus, likely of an introductory nature, at some point. This shows that he had an interest in Christianity, but needed more teaching and factual verification. Theophilus may be assured that faith in Jesus rests on verified historical facts, unlike the mythology surrounding Greco-Roman religions.
Because of this verification, Theophilus may have full confidence in the truth of the message and proclaim it with boldness in accordance with Acts If a Roman official, Theophilus would have had a wide sphere of influence upon people from all walks of life. He also would have had a unique opportunity to explain the message of Jesus to others in like positions.
From this, it would seem that Luke had high hopes for his audience of one. The authors declare that they have no financial or personal relationship s that may have inappropriately influenced them in writing this article. North-West University conducted the research under the supervision of A.
North-West University and F. North-West University. Alexander, L. Bauer, W. BibleWorks version 9, computer software. Bauman, M. Blomberg, C. Bock, D. Bovon, F. Bruce, F. Cadbury, H. Lake eds. Conzelmann, H. DeSilva, D. Dibelius, M. Ling, SCM, London. Dover, K. Eusebius, , The church history, transl. Maier, Kregel, Grand Rapids. Friberg, T. Garland, D. Garrison, R. Gempf, C. Clarke eds. Green, J. See 2 Timothy Luke wants to prove to Theophilus that what he has learned about Jesus is in fact true.
In this vein, Luke even includes the account of Jesus explaining the Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah to two people as they traveled to Emmaus. In the introduction to the Book of Acts, Luke tells Theophilus that this second volume is a continuation of the history he wrote about in the book of Luke. Luke continues the narrative detailing the growth of the early Christian Church after Jesus returned to heaven.
Not only did Jesus rise again, but His disciples spread His teachings throughout many parts of the Roman Empire. We should remember that the books of Luke and Acts were not written for Theophilus only, but also for those in our day, to show the existence and reality of Jesus.
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