‘The former treatise I made, O Theophilus, concerning all that Jesus began both to do and to teach, until the day in which he was received up, after that he had given commandment through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen, to whom he also showed himself alive after his passion by many proofs, appearing to them by the space of forty days, and speaking the things concerning the Kingly Rule of God.'
Luke reminds Theophilus of what he has previously written. In his first volume (his former treatise) he has informed him of all that Jesus began to do and to teach until He was ‘received up', that is, taken up into heaven after preparing His disciples for what lay ahead.
Note the inferences that we can obtain from these words.
· Firstly that Luke's Gospel had only included a description of ‘the beginning' of Jesus' ministry, what He ‘began' to do and to teach. The implication therefore is that His ministry will now continue through the teaching of the Apostles. Thus he stresses that Jesus had not come just to be a teacher, He had come to establish a forward going movement which must now carry on until it has reached out to the whole world with the message of the Kingly Rule of God (compare Acts 1:8). In the words of Matthew 16:18 He had come to build a new congregation of Israel. Thus Jesus' claims were unique. None other made such claims.
· Secondly that He had given commands to His Apostles through the Holy Spirit concerning their carrying on of His ministry (Luke 24:31-38; Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-18; John 20:22-23). Note how the Apostles are seen here as having already been powerfully influenced by the Holy Spirit, and as having received Jesus' commandments through Him, something further made clear in Luke 24:44-48; John 20:22. Pentecost would not be the beginning of the Holy Spirit's ministry for them.
· Thirdly it is clearly affirmed that He has been received up into heaven. It is necessary for it to be made clear that Jesus has satisfactorily fulfilled His own mission and has returned to His Father (Acts 1:4; Acts 1:7), by Whom He has been received as the One Who has accomplished His mission and by Whom He has been given His rightful place (compare John 17:5), which we later learn to be His throne as both Lord and Messiah (Acts 2:36).
· Fourthly he stresses that Jesus had shown Himself alive to His Apostles after His crucifixion with ‘many infallible proofs', appearing to them a number of times ‘over a period of forty days' (see for examples of these appearances Luke 24:13-43; Matthew 28:9-19; Mark 16:9-20; John 20:11-29; John 21:1-23). He wants it to be clear that what is to be spoken of is not based on a hope and a prayer. It is based on something of which specific and definite proof was given. We should note this continual stress by Luke on the certainty of what is being spoken of. Far from just ‘believing', the words of eyewitnesses have been called on (Luke 1:2), and these eyewitnesses men who had had certain and infallible proofs presented to them. He and the Apostles knew what a great claim they were making and wanted it known that it was not done in a corner. Physical proof had been given. Paul has previously laid the same emphasis on these infallible proofs of which he too had learned from eyewitnesses (1 Corinthians 15:3-8). They based their positions on certainties.
· Fifthly he stresses the connection of all this with the proclamation of the Kingly Rule of God. Thus the book commences with the primary nature of this (‘the things concerning the Kingly Rule of God' - Acts 1:3) and ends in the last verse of the final chapter on the same note (‘preaching the Kingly Rule of God, and teaching the things concerning the Lord Jesus Christ' - Acts 28:31). The message that they were going forward to proclaim was that the Kingly Rule of God had now begun, that it was to be entered into by faith in, and submission to, Him, and that it would finally culminate in enjoying His Kingly Rule in Heaven.
In the light of this fact we must consider what the New Testament says about the Kingly Rule of God.
Excursus on the Kingly Rule of God (of Heaven) In The New Testament.
One problem we have in understanding the idea of ‘the Kingdom of God' is that we tend to think of a kingdom as being a piece of land with boundaries. To us a ‘kingdom' is a country. But in ancient days a King's ‘kingdom' extended to wherever he could exercise his power. There were no fixed boundaries. It was not an area of land. It represented a number of people or peoples over whom he held sway. The Bedouin chieftain was ‘king' over his people as they travelled around, wherever they were. They were available to do his bidding and owed their loyalty to him. Wherever he exercised his power, regardless of location, he was king. Thus if you were surrounded by a group of the chieftain's men in the desert you were in his ‘kingdom', you were under his kingly rule. The word ‘basileia', therefore, means rather ‘Kingly Rule' than ‘Kingdom' and points to God's personal and effective rule over those who own Him as their king, and who respond accordingly..
When the term occurs in the New Testament we always have to consider its context. The Jews were on the whole very much expecting the establishing of a physical Kingly Rule where their King would rule and would gain worldwide supremacy so that they would have a position of authority over the world. He would make them ‘top nation'. Often the references to the Kingly Rule of God has this in mind (e.g. Matthew 18:1; Luke 17:20; Luke 19:11; Acts 1:6).
These particular verses refer to men's wrongly held views of the Kingly Rule of God. But Jesus made very clear that the Kingly Rule was not to be expected in this way (Luke 17:21; John 18:36). His Kingly Rule was not of this world (John 18:36). Rather it was now present in Him, and men must respond to it from their hearts and come in submission and obedience to God and to the Lord Jesus (Matthew 7:21-22). In order to see and enter into it men must be born from above (John 3:5-6). Then one day it would be revealed in its full glory when the King returned, having first gone away, and those who were His would then enter the everlasting Kingdom (Luke 19:12; Luke 21:31; Luke 22:16; Luke 22:18; Mark 14:25).
It may well be that we are to see a growth of conception between the Kingly Rule of God which was declared once Jesus had been pronounced by the Father as His Son (Mark 1:11) and that which resulted when He was raised from the dead and received His crown and His throne (Matthew 28:18; Acts 2:36; Luke 19:12). In both cases the Kingly Rule of God demands man's response to Christ as King, but the first was after His proclamation as God's appointed king, while the second was after His official coronation, when He had redeemed His people for Himself. We must not, however, overstress the differentiation. Jesus was on earth as king from the beginning (Matthew 2:2; Luke 2:11).
This may be illustrated by (roughly) what did happen when new kings were established.
· First they gathered supporters, and set up a base, hoping also that a statement of support would have been given by the old king.
· Then their name was put forward by their supporters, and they selected those who were to help them to the throne by using their influence and winning over support.
· After this they saw off any rivals often by violence.
· Then, if they were successful, once their position was established they were publicly crowned.
· Then the announcement of their coronation would be made to all their subjects.
· After that they may well have to consolidate their position against rivals, because kingship over the whole was not yet established.
· Then they would finally have to deal with all those who had previously followed their rivals who would be forced or cajoled to submit.
We can to some extent compare here the situation with Adonijah and Solomon in 1 Kings 1. Each was seeking to establish his kingship. Each gathered his supporters. But it was Solomon who was successful, and who moreover obtained the approbation of the old king. We can also compare to some extent the conflict between David and Ishbaal/Ishbosheth (2 Samuel 2-4).
So we may see in the case of Jesus:
· The He was born King (Matthew 2:2; Luke 2:11).
· That at His baptism Jesus was named as the rightful heir, and God's choice for the throne. He was declared King (Mark 1:11).
· Then He went about establishing the basis of His Kingly Rule (as portrayed in the Gospels) and gathering His supporters who would help to establish His rule (Mark 1:15; Matthew 5-7).
· Then He acted to redeem His people, defeating unseen foes who were against them, and at His glorification His Kingship was confirmed by official enthronement (Matthew 28:18; Mark 16:19; compare Luke 24:51).
· Then once, He had received His throne, His kingship was to be proclaimed to the world and the people be won over to accept it (Acts 1:8; Acts 2:36).
· Then finally He will appear in His glory and enforce His rule on those who have resisted it.
· Then He will deliver up His kingship to His Father (1 Corinthians 15:24).
The Kingly Rule of God was promised at Jesus' birth when the angel announced that He would be ‘called the Son of the Highest', and that He would ‘receive the throne of His father David', and ‘of His Kingly Rule there would be no end' (Luke 1:32-33). There is a real sense in which these three phrases not only explain three aspects of what He had come to do, but also the three stages of that Kingly Rule.
1). It began openly when He was ‘called the Son of the Highest' and was announced as the Son of God (Mark 1:11) and went out to proclaim the Kingly Rule of God (Heaven).
2). It was further established when He was enthroned as King after His resurrection, and ‘received the throne of His father David' (Acts 2:36).
3). It will come to its final culmination when He has finally established His everlasting kingdom, overcome all opposition, and hands it over to God so that ‘of His Kingly Rule there will be no end' (1 Corinthians 15:24).
1). The Kingly Rule of God Began To Be Established When the King was Acknowledged By His Father And Began To Gather His Followers.
The Kingly Rule of God began when Jesus had received the Holy Spirit and was told, ‘You are My Son' (Mark 1:11; compare Psalms 2:7).
From then on He went out in order to proclaim that the Kingly Rule of God was ‘at hand' or ‘had drawn near' (Mark 1:14-15), so that those who submitted to Him and believed on Him entered under the Kingly Rule of God. Indeed the fact that Jesus cast out evil spirits by the Spirit or finger of God was the proof that the Kingly Rule of God had come to them (Matthew 12:28; Luke 11:20). It was present there among them, evidenced by the power that the King exercised. It had come with power (Mark 9:1), a power to be revealed in the Transfiguration, and in Christ's resurrection and enthronement and what followed (Mark 9:1;; Luke 9:27; Matthew 28:18). The sick who were healed, and those who refused to listen to His Apostles, had both ‘come near to the Kingly Rule of God'. It had been revealed to them and offered to them. They had had to choose whether they would submit to the King and obey Him (Luke 10:9; Luke 10:11).
Those who came under that Kingly Rule were greater than John the Baptiser in his prophetic role (Matthew 11:11; Luke 7:28; Luke 16:16), for in it he was only pointing forward as a prophet. He was pre-kingdom, the last in the line of the Torah (Law) and the Prophets (Luke 16:16). He was the preparer of the way (Acts 3:2-3). Yet even so through his ministry the tax collectors and prostitutes (representing the most despised kinds of men and women) who repented for the forgiveness of sins under his ministry (Mark 1:4; Luke 3:3), and entered ‘the way of righteousness', came under ‘the Kingly Rule of God' (Matthew 21:31-32). So John was very much involved with the introduction of the Kingly Rule of God, and it could be described in terms of entering the way of righteousness (the way of forgiveness and obedience to God). But his office as prophet and preparer of the way was ‘lower' than the office of servant under the Kingly Rule of God which had now come, because it was simply preparatory, while the latter was the great reality. The actual Kingly Rule was now being exercised by Jesus under God. What the prophets had promised was here. Thus what Jesus brought was something greater than John could offer. (And John entered it when he deferred to Jesus).
Since John's day the Kingly Rule of God allowed violence and the violent took it by force (Acts 11:12). That is, it could be entered by those who made a determined effort, and refused to be put off (compare Mark 9:47; Acts 14:22). For the Kingly Rule of God was being proclaimed and men were pressing into it (Luke 16:16). It could not be entered easily. It required intensity of purpose and a true change of heart, ‘repentance for the forgiveness of sins', but it was very much a present experience for many. The purpose of this saying in Matthew 11:11 is in order to represent Jesus and His followers as ‘greater' than John the Baptiser because He and they are bringing about the new age, the new Kingly Rule, that John pointed to.
When the Pharisees asked when the Kingly Rule of God would come, Jesus replied that when it came it would not be seen by looking around, but by looking within, for ‘the Kingly Rule of God is within you' (Luke 17:20-21). It was not a grand outward display, but a changing of heart and mind and a submission in loyalty to God.
Some would translate this as ‘the Kingly Rule of God is among you', signifying that it was present in Him and His disciples, but that they (the Pharisees) could not see it. Either way the thought was that it was present in Jesus and was to be responded to from the heart, and that the Pharisees were missing it because they were looking for the wrong kind of Kingdom. Only through response to Jesus and the work of the Spirit could the Kingly Rule of God be known. Except a man be born of the Spirit he could not see or enter into the Kingly Rule of God (John 3:5-6).
When the disciples prayed they had to remember that this Kingly Rule of God had, even at the time when Jesus was speaking, to be sought above all else (Matthew 6:33). Once they sought this they would not need to pray for food and clothing, for everything else would be added to them. That is why when they went out to preach they were to take no extra food or clothing (Matthew 10:9-11). They had entered under the Kingly Rule of God, and would be fully provided for with regard to all their physical needs. Thus as they went out to proclaim it they were to pray for its extension daily, praying, ‘your Kingly Rule come, your will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven' (Matthew 6:10). The Kingly Rule thus consisted in men responding to Him and doing His will on earth. In other words God's Kingly Rule was coming in that men responded to the preaching of Jesus and began to do what He taught them, and they were to pray that this might become true of more and more. Responding to the King and the teaching that He had brought would equate to entering under the Kingly Rule of God.
The Kingly Rule of God (Heaven) belonged to those who were poor in spirit, to those who were persecuted for righteousness sake (Matthew 5:3; Matthew 5:10; Luke 6:20). They were humble and contrite, and willing to undergo persecution precisely because they had come under God's Kingly Rule. On the other hand it was hard for those who had riches to enter the Kingly Rule of God, because then their riches would have to be placed at His disposal (Mark 10:23-25; Luke 18:24-25), and they found it hard to give them up. To put the hand to the plough and then to turn back was to be not worthy of the Kingly Rule of God (the submission to the King had then ceased - Luke 9:62). And in order to be esteemed under the Kingly Rule of God it was necessary not to break God's commandments, or teach men to do so (Matthew 5:19). That would be rebellion. That is why only those whose righteousness exceeded that of the Scribes and Pharisees, (who did by their teachings cause men to break the commandments - Mark 7:8-13; Matthew 23:1-36), could enter it (Matthew 5:20). This clearly indicated that entry into His Kingly Rule did not come about by following the teachings of men but by responding in submission and obedience to the King. Those who listened to the teaching of Jesus and responded to it entered that Kingly Rule, which involved not only calling Him ‘Lord, Lord', but doing what He said, doing the Father's will (Matthew 7:21). Thus the Scribe who on learning of the two great commandments said, ‘Teacher, you have said the truth', was told that he was not far from the Kingly Rule of God (Mark 12:34). All that was now required was his full response to Jesus in accordance with what he had learned.
The mystery (a hidden secret now revealed) of the Kingly Rule of God was made known to them precisely because the significance of His parables was made clear to them (Matthew 13:11; Mark 4:11; Luke 8:10). And this consisted of the fact that the word of the Kingly Rule of God was being sown, and those in whom it produced fruit were within the Kingly Rule of God (Matthew 13:19-23). In another parable the good seed which grew and flourished were the children under the Kingly Rule of God (Matthew 13:38). One day all who did not so flourish would be removed in judgment, and then the righteous would shine forth as the sun under the Kingly Rule of their Father (Matthew 13:43).
There would thus initially be a time when the Kingly Rule of God coexisted in the world with those who were unresponsive to the King, but in the end these latter would be dealt with and then God's Kingly Rule would be fully manifested (Matthew 13:41-43). This brings home the dual aspect of the Kingly Rule of God, the present and the future. On the one hand there are those in this present world who are within the Kingly Rule of God, and on the other there are those who are rejecting that Kingly Rule. (There are also those who are professing to be under the Kingly Rule of God, but are not in reality under it - Matthew 13:47; Matthew 18:34). But in the future, within God's everlasting Kingly Rule, the righteous will shine forth within the Kingly Rule of their Father. It was this future Kingly Rule from which Israel would regret being cast out of when they saw that Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and all the prophets were welcomed there, while they were excluded (Luke 13:28). And to that Kingly Rule would come people from all parts of the world (Luke 13:29).
For the Kingly Rule of God is at present like a net gathering up all within it, and once they are gathered up, all that is not fit for it because of lack of response to Him will be removed (Matthew 13:47). Those who are truly instructed concerning the Kingly Rule of God bring out what is old (God's instruction in the Old Testament) and what is new (the teaching of Jesus which expands and explains that teaching). They study God's word and eagerly hear the teaching of Jesus (Matthew 13:52). Thus the Kingly Rule of God is powerfully at work, reaching out to seize men, and then sifting them, and removing the bad from among them.
To Peter and the other Apostles were given the keys of the Kingly Rule of God so that they could ‘bind and loose', that is open it up to all who will respond to it (which Peter does in Acts 1-15) and determine how it should be regulated and what manner of lives Christians must live (Matthew 16:19; Matthew 18:18). They would make clear the requirements of God which bound all who followed Him. To enter the Kingly Rule of God one must become humble, open and responsive like a little child (Matthew 18:1-4; Matthew 19:14; Mark 10:14-15; Luke 18:16-17). Those who have entered under the Kingly Rule of God are like servants to a king, and they will in the end have to give account and will be dealt with according to their behaviour (Matthew 18:23-35; Matthew 25:14-45). They are like labourers who have hired themselves out to a master, and at the end of the day all receive the same reward, for it is within the master's gift (Matthew 20:1-16). In Jesus' day the many tax-collectors and prostitutes were entering the Kingly Rule of God, revealed in the fact that they became obedient sons and daughters of the Father, while the more religious were delaying and in danger of missing their opportunity (Matthew 21:28-32). Thus the Kingly Rule of God would be taken away from those who professed to serve God but did not recognise their sinfulness and repent, that is from the old Israel (the vineyard), and would be given to a new nation of Israel who would produce the fruits required by God (Matthew 21:43) becoming branches of the true vine (John 15:1-6), and entering the new congregation of Israel (Matthew 16:18).
The Kingly Rule of Heaven was like a King calling people to the wedding of His Son, Who when many refused to come, destroyed them, and also cast out the one who refused to wear the clothing provided by the King (Matthew 22:1-14), while those whom He called in from the highways and byways, who responded to Him and who wore the clothing He provided, celebrated and rejoiced, for they were within His Kingly Rule. Indeed the condemnation of the Pharisees lay in the fact that they themselves did not enter under the Kingly Rule of God, while at the same time they prevented others from entering, ‘shutting up the Kingly Rule of Heaven from men' (Matthew 23:13).
Thus while there may not be agreement on the interpretation of all the passages mentioned, they are sufficient to establish that the Kingly Rule of God could be entered and experienced under the ministry of Jesus. It was not just something for the future. They could already experience ‘eternal life', the life of the age to come, while they lived out their lives on earth (John 5:24). They could accept Jesus as their King and follow Him, as sheep follow a shepherd (John 10:27-28).
2). The Kingly Rule of God Continued And Was Confirmed When Jesus Was Glorified And Received All Authority in Heaven and Earth.
This aspect of His Kingly Rule clearly follows on from the previous one and much of what is written there applies here also. But the situation is now crystallised and the proclamation of Jesus as King and Lord is made more strident. A clear reference to Jesus as receiving authority and power through His resurrection is made in Matthew 28:18; Acts 2:36; Luke 19:12, and we are probably to see this as tying in with the crowning of the Son of Man in Daniel 7:13-14, which spoke of the Son of Man coming to receive His Kingly Rule. It was this passage which partly lay behind Jesus referring to Himself as the Son of Man.
This is the aspect of the Kingly Rule that Acts is mainly seeking to present. Acts is calling men to respond to the risen and glorified Lord and Christ and enter under the Kingly Rule of God (Acts 1:3; Acts 8:12; Acts 19:8; Acts 20:25; Acts 28:23; Acts 28:31). It is a Kingly Rule into which all Christians are transferred (Colossians 1:13). And as Paul could further say, ‘The Kingly Rule of God is not meat and drink, but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit' (Romans 14:17). ‘The Kingly Rule of God is not in word but in power' (1 Corinthians 4:20), bringing men to salvation through the preaching of the cross (1 Corinthians 1:18).
The Good News of this Kingly Rule of God had to be preached in all the world for a witness to all nations, before the end could come (Matthew 24:14; Acts 1:8). Compare Mark 13:10 where it is called simply ‘the Gospel, the Good News', and Luke 24:47 where it is called ‘repentance and forgiveness of sins -- preached in His name'. These differing references stress what the content is of the preaching of the Kingly Rule of God. It is to hear of Jesus Christ, to respond to Him, and to repent and receive forgiveness of sins.
Then at the end those who were His would enter the everlasting Kingly Rule of Heaven (Matthew 25:34), inheriting eternal life (Matthew 25:46). And then will Jesus ‘drink wine' (celebrate) with His own under the Kingly Rule of His Father, within the Kingly Rule of God (Matthew 26:29; Mark 14:25).
3). The Everlasting Kingly Rule Of God When His Own Have Been Made Perfect Is Yet Future For Those Who Are His.
The third aspect of the Kingly Rule of God is when men finally enter the everlasting Kingdom, when they finally come into God's presence in total and complete submission and worship. It is spoken of throughout the New Testament. When the Son of Man comes in His glory (Matthew 25:31) the whole world will be judged and His people will ‘inherit the Kingly Rule which was given them from the foundation of the world' (Matthew 25:34), and ‘will go away into eternal life' (Matthew 25:46) rather than going into everlasting punishment (Matthew 25:31-46). Then will the King drink wine with them (a picture of celebration) in the Kingly Rule of God (Matthew 26:29; Mark 14:25; Luke 22:16; Luke 22:18). The coming of this Kingly Rule will be prepared for by the signs of the end (Luke 21:31). It is then that men will weep and gnash their teeth because they will see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and the prophets entering it, together with people from all parts of the world, while they themselves are cast out (Luke 13:28-29; Matthew 8:11). And then will the righteous shine forth as the sun within the Kingly Rule of their Father (Matthew 13:43).
This expectation of the future Kingly Rule of God (‘His heavenly Kingdom') is prominent in the letters of Paul. Flesh and blood will not inherit it (1 Corinthians 15:50) nor will those who live openly sinful lives (see 1 Corinthians 6:9-10; 1 Corinthians 15:24; 1 Corinthians 15:50; Galatians 5:21; Ephesians 5:5; 2 Thessalonians 1:5; 2 Thessalonians 2 Thessalonians 4:1, 18; see also James 2:5; 2 Peter 1:11). Putting all this in the words of Jesus in John, men can receive and enjoy eternal life (life more abundant) now (John 3:15; John 5:24; John 10:28; 1 John 5:13) and then enjoy it later to its fullest degree in Heaven (Matthew 25:46; Titus 1:2).
End of Excursus.
‘The former (proton) treatise.' In classical Greek ‘proton' meant the first of a series, but by 1st century AD it had come to be used more slackly and could therefore here simply mean the first of two. This rather than the alternative (proteros) is regularly found in the papyri which confirms this.
‘O Theophilus.' (Compare in Luke 1:3 ‘most excellent Theophilus'). The addressing of a treatise to an important figure was common practise, even when the intention was that the treatise should be read widely (Josephus makes a similar ascription in Contra Apion). For the address ‘most excellent' compare Acts 23:26 where it is the address to a Roman governor. It may therefore indicate a high level public official. On the other hand it could equally be used as a courtesy title as addressed to an important man, and the fact that here in Acts, in the only ascription in the book, Theophilus is addressed without the title (in contrast with Luke 1:3) may point to the latter, and to the fact that Luke was on friendly terms with him. The name Theophilus was a common one (it means ‘friend of God') and there are no real grounds for suggesting that it was a pseudonym, especially in view of the fact that addressing a treatise to an important person was common practise.
‘Appearing to them by the space of forty days, and speaking the things concerning the Kingly Rule of God.' It may well be that Luke intends us to see in the reference to forty days a reminder that when Moses went to meet God in Mount Sinai in order to receive the covenant he did it twice for ‘forty days'. Here then was the present equivalent, with the disciples meeting with Jesus over a period of forty days, resulting in their officially receiving the new covenant in His blood, through which would result the establishment of God's Kingly Rule on earth over all who responded to Him. In view of Jesus' dismissal of their question concerning the restoration of the Kingdom to Israel (Acts 1:6-7), he clearly cannot here mean a future literal Kingdom of Israel. Rather is Luke stressing that the true Kingly Rule of God is that which is being established through the witness of the disciples. It is a Kingly Rule in which they will obey His voice on earth (‘your kingly rule come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven' - Matthew 6:10), but which will one day for them and for all believers result in the enjoyment of that Kingly Rule of God in Heaven.
It is clear from Luke that this ‘forty day' instruction included Jesus teaching them about His Messiahship (Luke 24:26; Luke 24:46 compare Matthew 28:18-19), evidencing to them from the Old Testament the significance of His coming (Luke 24:27; Luke 24:32; Luke 24:44-45), and stressing to them the need for universal witness and obedience to His teaching (Luke 24:47-48 compare Matthew 28:20; Mark 16:15). This was what the Kingly Rule of God was all about, the arrival of God's chosen King as promised by the prophets, and a demanded response to Him of trust, obedience and witness.