A Theology of Luke and Acts: God's Promised Program, Realized for All Nations

Biblical Theology of the New Testament

by Darrell L. Bock, Andreas J. Köstenberger (Editor)

This groundbreaking work by Darrell Bock thoroughly explores the theology of Luke s gospel and the book of Acts. In his writing, Luke records the story of God working through Jesus to usher in a new era of promise and Spirit-enablement so that the people of God can be God s people even in the midst of a hostile world. It is a message the church still needs today. Bock both covers major Lukan themes and sets forth the distinctive contribution of Luke-Acts to the New Testament and the canon of Scripture, providing readers with an in-depth and holistic grasp of Lukan theology in the larger context of the Bible.

I. Howard Marshall A remarkable achievement that should become the first port of call for students in this central area of New Testament Theology.

Craig S. Keener Bock s excellent exploration of Luke s theological approach and themes meets an important need in Lukan theology. "

Genres: Theology, Reference, Biblical Studies, Christian

496 pages, Hardcover

First published May 8, 2012

About the author

Darrell L. Bock is a New Testament scholar and research professor of New Testament studies at Dallas Theological Seminary in Dallas, Texas, United States. Bock received his PhD from Scotland's University of Aberdeen.

Reviews

[Craig Hurst · Rating 5 out of 5]

Last year, under the editorial direction of Andreas Kostenberger, Zondervan began the Biblical Theology of the New Testament Series. The first installment was Kostenberger's contribution A Theology of John's Gospel and Letters. The BTNT series seeks to provide a biblical theology of the entire NT in eight volumes with a biblical/thematic approach.

This year the next volume is A Theology of Luke and Acts by well known Luke commentator Darrell Bock. Darrell Bock has written a few other books on Luke and Acts: Luke (IVP), Luke (NIVAC), Luke (BECNT), and Acts (BECNT). A Theology of Luke and Acts is not a commentary but rather a thematic look at the biblical theology of Luke and Acts as a literary unit.

PURPOSE OF LUKE-ACTS

The essential purpose for Luke-Acts is "to show that the coming of Jesus, Christ, and Son of God launched the long-promised new movement of God. The community that has come from his ministry, the suffering these believers experienced, and the inclusion of Gentiles are part of God's program promised in Scripture." (p. 29) According to Bock, Theophilus needed assurance that this new movement (Christianity) was a legitimate work of God given the amount of persecution it underwent. Luke assures him that the persecution is not a judgment of God but rather part of the plan of God to spread the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ to all nations.

UNITY OF LUKE-ACTS

There has been a long history in regards to the unity of Luke and Acts. Bock's argument is that Luke and Acts are to be read together, as was intended by Luke. After handling the objections to the unity of the two books Bock responds with the argument that Luke and Acts are to be viewed as Luke-Acts on the basis of literary and theological grounds rather than their shared authorship (p. 60). Two of the literary aspects that point to their unity are the beginning of both books (Lk. 1:1-4; Acts 1) and the clear connection between Luke 24 and Acts 1. "The two volumes link together in the telling of the ascension, which concludes Luke and also begins the book of Acts." (p. 65) One of the other subtle literary pointers to their unity is the geographical movement of the books. Luke begins in Jerusalem and Acts ends in Rome (p. 66) In regards to the theological point of unity, well, that's the main content of the book. In each chapter Bock discusses the contribution of both books towards the biblical theological theme discussed. Through the pairing of these books side by side the theological unity of the books clearly shines through.

BIBLICAL THEOLOGICAL THEMES

The bulk of the book is taken up by the intent of the book - to provide a biblical thematic look at Luke-Acts together. In the seventeen chapters dedicated to the major themes in Luke-Acts we see discussion on God as the primary acting agent in the book (chap. 5), Jesus as the promised Messiah and bringer of the new era of salvation (chap. 7), the Holy Spirit (chap. 9), Israel (chap. 12), the church (chap. 14), the law (chap. 18) and eschatology, judgment and hope (chap. 20). With few exceptions, each chapter tackles 2-3 common themes and brings them together through a common thread.

There are a number of elements which Bock utilizes in order to discuss the many themes within Luke-Acts:

1. Infancy Material of Luke - Perhaps the predominate and driving lens through which Bock sees and draws out the various biblical theological themes of Luke-Acts is in the infancy material of Luke 1-2. Chapter after chapter Bock anchors his discussion within Luke's infancy material. It is truly the bedrock for the various theological themes in both books.
2. Israel and the Church - As a Progressive Dispensationalist (though he never mentions this in the book) Bock is committed to the position that since the OT promises were given to national Israel they will be fulfilled to a reconstituted national Israel. However, this does NOT mean Gentiles will not partake in these blessing and promises. In fact, from the beginning with God's promises to Abraham they were always in view as being recipients of God's promises and blessings. Though it shows up from time to time throughout the book, Bock primarily fleshes out his view of how this works out in the chapters on Israel (chap. 12), the Gentiles nations (chap. 13) the church (chap. 14) and ecclesiology (chap. 19).
3. Word Studies - One way in which Bock picks out the major theological themes is by observing the dominate words used by Luke in both books. Here Bock provides a great example for the reader on the proper use of word studies. For instance, in chapter ten on salvation, Bock discusses all of uses of the sozo word group.
4. OT Background - A reading through of any chapter will alert the reader to the fact that Bock sees Luke-Acts as having their roots in the OT. This is one of the great strengths of the book. As Bock discusses in the book, it is this anchoring in the OT which Bock uses to show that Luke believed what God was doing through Christ, during and after his life on earth, was rooted in the OT plan of God for all nations.
5. Continuity of Themes in Both Books - As each chapter bears out, Bock begins with the theme under discussion in Luke and then moves to Acts. It is here that the theological unity of the books shines through. What Luke begins in his gospel he continues in Acts.

CONCLUSION

In Bock's words, the canonical theological contribution of Luke-Acts is that it "presents the continuity of Israel's story with the new era that Jesus brought and the new community that his ministry generated." (p. 447) Though much of national Israel rejected Jesus and His message, many still believed and God did not reject His people. There was a remnant that believed (which is typical of believing Israel in the OT). In Christ and through the Holy Spirit, God is continuing to pursue His people and spread the gospel to all nations.

A Theology of Luke and Acts is a very readable biblical theology of Luke-Acts. Bock has done a great job synthesizing the biblical theological themes that no doubt run through his commentaries. Though not a commentary, this is an essential book along side Bock's, or any other commentators book on Luke and Acts, as it gives the reader the big picture of what Luke wrote to Theophilus and for us. It is clearly organized, exegetically mindful, OT rooted, eye-opening and lay friendly.

[William Stapleton · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are elements of biblical theology, and a wider view of what God has been doing since the beginning, that can only be seen when we look at Luke and Acts together as the ongoing work of a single writer. In his Gospel, Luke presents Jesus as the Suffering Servant, based on the prophecy in Isaiah 53:1-12. In Acts, the same writer, Luke, switches the focus to the Exalted Servant, based on Isaiah 52:13-15. This perspective brings into view all of God's plan for the salvation of the world. Seeing these two interlocking elements of God's plan as a single story adds a dimension unavailable any other way.

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bock takes the Lukan books together and traces major themes throughout the two books. The continuity shows Luke and Acts to truly be a two volume work. The book has brief sections at the beginning providing concise commentary and then most of the book is arranged topically, bringing together references from both books that contribute to the topic at hand. It is a helpful book for studying either Luke or Acts separately, or both books together.

[Ethan Ross · Rating 4 out of 5]

not a bad read, i think it went really well with my class discussions and offered insight that i may not have usually considered

[Jason Osorio]

Good theology and several topics on Systematics.

[Dan Absalonson · Rating 5 out of 5]

An easy to read thorough study of the connected books of Luke and Acts.

[Charlene Hios · Rating 5 out of 5]

another excellent bunch of ink by Bock and friends

[Abram K-J · Rating 5 out of 5]

I reviewed this book as part of Zondervan's blog tour of A Theology of Luke and Acts. Blog tour participants each select a chapter on which to focus their review, i.e., a major theological theme.

I focus my review on chapter 16, "How Response to Jesus Divides: The Opponents, the Crowds, and Rome as Observer of Events in Luke-Acts." But first, the book more generally.

A Theology of Luke and Acts consists of three parts. Part One briefly addresses introductory matters (context, unity of Luke-Acts, extensive book outlines, etc.). Part Two covers the theology of Luke-Acts.Part Three then briefly concludes with Luke-Acts's place in and contribution to the New Testament canon.

Bock has spent the last 30 years in Luke and Acts. Many (myself included) consider his Baker commentaries on each book to be the standard among recent evangelical Luke-Acts works. (See Luke (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament) (2 Volumes) and Acts (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament).) Bock writes that this new volume "has allowed me to put together in one place many things I have said before in many distinct volumes."

The author balances in-depth scholarship (extensive footnotes and a 16-page bibliography give the reader more to explore) with winsome, practical insight into the Biblical text. Of "discipleship and ethics in the new community" (chapter 15), for example, he writes,"Discipleship is both demanding and rewarding. According to Luke, it is people-focused, showing love for God and then treating others with love that parallels the love of the Father. In Acts, one sees little of the church serving itself and much of the church reaching out to those who need the Lord. For Luke, the people in the highly effective early church look outward."

For the preacher, teacher, or student working his or her way through Luke and Acts, this is a book to have at hand.

Chapter 16 addresses "How Response to Jesus Divides: The Opponents, the Crowds, and Rome as Observer of Events in Luke-Acts." Bock notes that in his pre-Jerusalem ministry, "it is the Pharisees and teachers of the law who interact the most with Jesus among representatives of official Judaism," often occurring together in Luke as a pair: "Pharisees and teachers of the law." The Pharisees, who ridicule, question, and oppose Jesus, are "the key foil for Jesus until he gets to Jerusalem." At that point, says Bock, "the chief priests and teachers of the law take over that role with much more hostility. ...Their opposition is part of the picture of a divided Israel for Luke." Jesus' "new way" and claims of authority "brought reaction from those who liked the old wine."

"Crowds," by contrast, "often note Jesus' presence or press upon him in his ministry" in a non-oppositional way. Noting the blind man's cry from the crowd of "Son of David" ("a messianic confession of great significance"), Bock says that those "on the fringe" or margins of the crowd are "often more sensitive" to the mission and message of Jesus. Jesus interacts with the crowd, Bock says, as teacher and healer, and yet "the crowd as a group thinks of him only as a prophet (Luke 9:18)." In Acts, the crowds are more easily swayed, "being incited or worked up to oppose the new movement."

Rome is a mixed bag. "After Jesus, her actions protect the Christians from the hostile desires of Jewish leadership, but do so with an injustice that will not recognize their rights or release them." And yet they are still for Luke "the unseen agent of providence in their acts," even though they may not be aware of it.

It is easy to imagine Bock's chapter on varied reactions to Jesus aiding the preacher or teacher, especially one who wants to elaborate on the famous "Who do you say that I am?" question of Jesus. Bock guides the reader through key texts in Luke and Acts to survey various Jewish, crowd, and Roman reactions to Jesus, whose coming, if nothing else, "generated a reaction."

I can also easily envision someone referring to other similar chapters for a quick yet thorough overview of how Luke treats other theological themes: women and the poor (chapter 17), Israel (chapter 12), salvation (chapters 10 and 11), and so on. A Theology of Luke and Acts is worthy of Bock's other work on those two texts, and serves as a useful reference guide.

As a blog tour participant, I received a free review copy of the book from Zondervan, but without obligation to write a positive review.

[Jimmy Reagan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Respected scholar Darrell Bock delivers in this volume on his topic of the theology of Luke and Acts. Mr. Bock, already hailed as having given us the best modern exegetical commentary on Luke, writes on a subject here he has given many years of his life to study.

You will find all the usual suspects on the study of Luke and Acts–the connection of Luke and Acts, salvation, Christ, the Holy Spirit, women, and the poor. But there’s more. Things I hadn’t thought much of in regards to Luke and Acts, all laid out in a cogent, clear, persuasive form. As you would expect, he interacts much with other scholars and their opinions as he travels along his subject. As a pastor I can’t help but see some of that as the straitjacket the scholarly world has wrapped around itself. Still, he is concise enough that his text holds interest. If you are like me, you so think of Luke as one of the Gospels that you at times forget its special connection to Acts.

Zondervan asked we reviewers to pick one chapter and particularly review it. I chose the one that I felt I had the least knowledge of–”The Law in Luke-Acts” (Chapter 18). It really didn’t seem to me Luke or Acts had a lot to say on that subject.

Mr. Bock shows us that the scholarly world has had occasion to analyze the subject recently. He laid out the basics clearly in 3 paragraphs. I appreciate Mr. Bock fairly representing other viewpoints while telling his conclusion. In doing so he dodges the problem of becoming so immersed in details, as many do, that they forget a conclusion was why we went digging in the first place. I don’t have to agree to enjoy the evidence being weighed and a conclusion being drawn.

He concludes that “… in the end law-abiding for Luke is only a consideration for Jewish believers, while Gentiles must be sensitive to certain practices tied to the law.” His idea seems to be “law-sensitive” is the orientation of Luke and Acts, and that it carries “realized promise” but no “salvation benefit.” Of course it has no salvation benefit, and I doubt Luke is really “conservative” in regards to the Law. More likely, to my mind, it’s Jewish person-sensitive since Christ has uprooted what has been deeply ingrained into the very fiber of their people. I’d say it’s more a sensitivity to the complications of a progressive revelation.

He also masterfully discusses the issues of whether or not the Law failed, or at least how should what Jesus did be accounted for with the Law. He lays out all the possibilities available to form an opinion. I left it thinking that the Law failed in doing what people imagined it would while it fully succeeded in all the Lord planned for it to do.

He traced things like Sabbath incidents and gave us the data that is needed to form our opinions. Mr. Bock succeeds because he gave me what I needed to decide for myself. And he did it well. The whole book delivers in this way. I suspect this book will be popular among scholars, students, and pastors. As for me, it will hold a prominent place on my shelves and will be the first volume I reach for on questions of Luke-Acts theology. What better recommendation could a pastor possibly give?

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 .

[Tim Liddell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great lots of good explanations

I think I'll go back and re-read some chapters.I still need 11 words this is dumb why can't I just submit

[Prayson Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Darrell Bock, I believe, adequately and successively presented Lucan Christology. His chapter is a treasure mine for those who are passionate about Christology.

“Luke consciously reveals who Jesus is with a step by step approach” writes Bock, “gradually connects a series of ideas into a coherent portrait of Jesus” with his “from earth up” Christology(p. 177).

Jesus is portrayed as the Son and King (Luke 1:31-35), the One who divides Israel (Luke 2:34-35), a King and Servant who declares and brings God’s deliverance (Luke 1:69 2:49 3:22, 4), much superior to John the Baptist (Luke 7:18-35), more than a prophet (Luke 9:7-9), the Christ (9:20), Suffering Son of Man (Luke 9-19), the One with authority to forgive sin and to judge on the end of time (Luke 19 -20), the heir to the vineyard, the Son who is slain and the Lord ruling at God’s side are, to mention the few, descriptions Bock set forward to show Luke’s coherent portrait of Jesus(p. 177-80)

The climax of chapter 8 arises when Bock contended “[t]he key passages for Lucan Christology come in the middle of his two books as Jesus heads for death and then is raised from the dead”(p. 180)

Luke 20:41:44, echoing Psalms 1101, brings a question that shows, given the context, that “Lord” is a better or more comprehensive title than “son of David”. Bock explained:

Luke has affirmed Jesus as Davidic son in both the infancy material and the genealogy, so the remark is not a rejection of Davidic sonship. Rather, Jesus is probing the prioritization of the emphasis between the idea of Davidic sonship and the idea of Messiah being Lord.”(p. 180)

Bock concluded that, “this text shows Luke as moving the reader from seeing Jesus just as the promised Anointed One to seeing him as Lord”. He then goes further to shows that the answer to Jesus’ question began in Luke 22:69.

Jesus, on trial, answered the Sanhedrin with the title of “the Son of Man”, claiming to be the one who will seats in authority at God’s side and ruling with God. This was a blasphemous claim according to Sanhedrin’s view since “[i]n early rabbinic tradition, only God sits in heaven.”(p. 181)

“With strong irony, the Jews think that Jesus is on trial,” writes Bock, “ but what they do to him does not matter, since he is the true Judge. The very remarks that the Jewish leadership thinks lowers God’s stature, in fact, shows how exalted Jesus is”. (p. 182)

[Josh · Rating 3 out of 5]

A significant work of scholarship. At times I felt the writing style could have been improved, and I disagree with certain aspects of Bock's eschatology, but on the whole this is a very valuable work for understanding Luke and Acts. I'll be referring back to this one as we preach through the book of Luke.

[Jordan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent book that only gets 4 stars because I personally didn't like the way it was organized. It is done in a more topical way than a chronological order, though to be fair, I'm not sure how else you would do it.

[Brian LePort · Rating 3 out of 5]

Solid intro to Luke-Acts from an evangelical perspective.