It is astounding to see the emphasis on the resurrection within the book of Acts. Christ has risen was the message of the early church. The resurrected Christ was not a minor matter in the mind and message of the apostles. Instead, it was shouted from the rooftops, proclaimed in the synagogues, rejoiced over among Christians, and cherished in death.
However, there is much to cover, as the resurrection was a primary theme in the book of Acts.
The requirement of apostleship
One of the objectives of the book of Acts was to tell of the fulfillment of Acts 1:8. Scripture says, “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” (KJV, Acts 1:8). The book of Acts unfolds in the order given in this verse.
First, the apostles receive power from the Holy Spirit in an upper room in Jerusalem. Then, after recovering power, they minister in Jerusalem. Jerusalem was in the province of Judea. Therefore, after witnessing in Jerusalem, the apostles were to spread out through the province. Then they were to move to the neighboring province of Samaria and then finally to the ends of the earth.
It is also helpful to think of Jesus’ command in Acts 1:8 as relatively synonymous with Romans 1:16, where Paul stated that the Gospel is the power of God for the Jew first and then for the Greek. The reason is that the apostles witnessed first in highly Jewish territory and then spread out to highly Gentile territory in the book of Acts.
But first, it is essential to realize what they were witnessing about. The Gospel is what they proclaimed. However, Judas had just betrayed Jesus, and the eleven disciples needed a new member. Thus, before they went on their mission and received power from on high, they had to choose between two candidates. But the requirements of apostleship restricted many from being considered, for the Bible says, “Wherefore of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, Beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection” (Acts 1:21-22). Therefore, it was essential that the new disciple saw Jesus after He rose from the dead and could be a witness concerning the resurrection.
Now the foundation is laid for many passages in the book of Acts.
Peter’s bold claims
Then Peter begins to build upon the foundation. Shortly after power came upon the apostles, Peter rose to the occasion and shared the Gospel. He told of the resurrected Christ with boldness in His voice. He remembered his denial of Jesus and would never do so in the same manner again. Yes, Peter was a sinner until his dying breath. Yes, he gave into the fear of man again, as recorded in the book of Galatians. However, there was a radical change, and Peter became courageous.
The Bible states, “But Peter standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken at my words… This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses” (Acts 2:14, 32). So Peter lifted his voice to the people in Jerusalem and declared that they were witnesses to the resurrection of Jesus.
Peter chimes in again
While Peter proclaimed the resurrected Christ in Acts 2:32, he was far from being done. Instead, he just got started. In Acts 3, Peter and John are seen as going to the temple in Jerusalem. Thus, they were still witnessing in Jerusalem. Shortly after, Peter miraculously healed a lame man begging at the gate called Beautiful. Upon seeing the lame man walking, the Jews rushed toward Peter and John.
Peter reminded the Jews of their treacherous actions and said, “But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you; And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses” (Acts 3:15). Yet again, Peter speaks of the resurrected Christ and reminds the people that he saw Jesus rise from the dead.
The testimony
In Acts 4, Peter and John are eventually released from the hands of the Jewish leaders. The Jewish leaders had threatened Peter and John not to speak in the name of Jesus Christ. But Peter and John stated, “For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:20). They saw the resurrected Christ and could not keep what they saw a secret.
Instead, they went to their company and told them of their recent persecution. Then their companions lifted their voices to God, and God responded by filling them with the Holy Spirit. But then the Bible states yet again, “And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great peace was upon them all” (Acts 4:33). The contrast presented is astonishing.
After Jesus died, the disciples are said to have been shut up in a room because they feared the Jews. Now after the certainty of the resurrection, the disciples could be persecuted and filled with great peace.
The bold apostles
The apostles were bold in their claims concerning the resurrection of Jesus. The apostles proclaimed, “The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree… And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him” (Acts 5:30,32). Once again, the emphasis of Acts 1:8 shines through a passage recorded later in the book. The apostles were witnesses of the resurrection and wanted the world to know about it.
Peter is not done
Peter denied Christ in the Gospel accounts. However, Peter was later restored and, in one sense, never looked back. He lived out the words of the Apostle Paul, who stated, “Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before” (Phil. 3:12-23). Peter forgot what was behind him and pressed on to lay hold of Christ.
Peter is seen again in the book of Acts, and he states, “Him God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly; not to all people, but unto witnesses…” (Acts 10:40-41). Jesus rose from the dead, but He did not appear to all. Instead, He appeared to His chosen witnesses.
Paul speaks of the resurrection
But then there was Paul. Paul was an apostle untimely born. He witnessed the resurrected Christ but in a unique way. As a result, he also was commissioned by Christ to be a witness of the resurrection. Paul says, “But God raised him from the dead: And he was seen many days of them which came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who were his witnesses unto the people” (Acts 13:30-31). Paul was also convinced that Jesus had risen.
Certainly, nothing short of the resurrected Christ could have stopped Paul in his tracks on the road to Damascus. He was a persecutor of the church, and nothing within the Christian movement would have won Paul over, apart from Christ rising from the dead.
Paul preaches the risen Christ
As a result, Paul would proclaim the resurrected Christ with boldness, much like the other apostles. Paul said elsewhere, “…Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is Christ” (Acts 17:3). Jesus Christ, the Anointed Messiah, has come. He has died for the sins of man, and He rose from the grave.
Final prayer
Father, I thank You for the testimony of the apostles. Their message is clear. Jesus has risen. Help me to rejoice in the resurrected Christ. In Jesus’ name, Amen.