Transforming Acts: Acts of the Apostles as a 21st Century Gospel

by Bruce G. Epperly

In Healing Marks (Energion Publications, 2012), Dr. Bruce Epperly challenged Christians to take the healings of Jesus seriously as a pattern for how we can become healing communities. Now he turns to the book of Acts as a pattern for the church in the 21st century. He says, “I believe that Acts of the Apostles provides a fluid, open-spirited, and holistic faith for twenty-first century people as well as a vision for congregational transformation and renewal. Anything can happen to those who follow Jesus. Life is adventurous, surprising, and interesting. Worship leads to mission and mission challenges narrow-mindedness and self-imposed limitations. For those who embrace the spirit of Acts of the Apostles, worship will never be boring and every day will be a holy adventure.” This book is not just an exposition of the book of Acts. It is a call to action. But it is more than that. It draws from the lessons of the early church a plan of individual and communal action to live an adventurous life of faith and to change the world. Each chapter includes activities to help you apply the content to your life and mission. Labeled “Transforming Acts” these point to the transforming acts you can take in your personal or congregational life. Acts is a story of a small group of people who set out to do what appeared humanly impossible – change their world. In this book you are invited to become a part of that story, to attempt the humanly impossible, and to bring transformation and renewal to the church and to the entire world.

Genres: New Testament

140 pages, Paperback

First published June 21, 2013

Reviews

[David Ackerman · Rating 5 out of 5]

In "Transforming Acts: Acts of the Apostles as a 21st Century Gospel", Bruce Epperly carefully examines stories from the Biblical book of Acts and brilliantly shows their relevance to life in the world today. He considers these stories from a critical perspective, and he artistically weaves anecdotes and insights into his commentaries on them. By bridging the gap between these waning days of “Christendom” and the spiritual foment that constituted life in the early church, Epperly shows how these ancient narratives offer good news and hope for our day. He rescues the book of Acts from those who view it as merely an appendage to Luke’s gospel, and he shows how it may be better seen as a climax to Luke instead of a denouement. I highly recommend this book to anyone seeking stories of spiritual renewal that are rooted in scripture but not imprisoned by it.

[Christina · Rating 3 out of 5]

I used this with a Bible study group because Epperly approaches the book of Acts from the perspective of a practical theologian who is also a process theologian. The strength of the book is in his application of Acts to the 21st-century church. One weakness is with the New Testament and historical context. Some sessions were stronger than others. He focuses primarily on the first 15 chapters and skips a lot of the stories about Paul's travels.

[Robert D. Cornwall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Over the course of time many have treated the Book of Acts as simply a historical record of the early church or a blue print for church organization and practice. In his reading of Acts, Bruce conceives of it as being gospel for a postmodern age. It offers good news that the Spirit of God is alive and active n our midst, transforming lives and the world itself. It is, he suggests, a word of encouragement to postmodern Christians, who live in a pluralistic context, to let the Spirit lead us on to new spiritual adventures in a word that God loves in Jesus. yes, in Bruce's hands, a biblical text that often appears a collection of dry bones comes to life again.