Peter and Paul in Acts: A Comparison of Their Ministries. David Spell

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      David Spell

      WIPF & STOCK - Eugene, Oregon

      PETER AND PAUL IN ACTS

      Copyright © 2006 David Spell. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in critical publications or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without prior written permission from the publisher. Write: Permissions, Wipf & Stock, 199 W. 8th Ave., Suite 3, Eugene, OR 97401.

      ISBN: 1-59752-784-X

      Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

      Spell, David

      Peter and Paul in Acts.

      viii + 212p.; 23 cm.

      Includes bibliography

      ISBN: 1-59752-784-X

      EISBN 13: 978-1-62189-537-4

      1. Bible. N.T. Acts—Criticism, interpretation, etc. 2. Bible. N.T. Acts—Theology. 3. Paul, the Apostle, Saint. 4. Peter, the Apostle, Saint. I. Title.

      BS2510 .564 2006

      Manufactured in the U.S.A

      Acknowledgements

      No work of this magnitude would be complete without thanking those who have supported or encouraged me in some way. First of all, thanks to my beautiful wife, Annie, and our daughters, Sarah and Rachel. Thanks for your patience, understanding, and support. I love you all so much!

      Thanks to my father-in-law, Dr. George W. Keitt, Jr. You were an excellent sounding board in the early stages of this study and I appreciate all of your helpful suggestions. Thanks to my parents, Charles and Pat Spell. Your encouragement, example, and support have never wavered. I am blessed to have parents like you.

      Thanks to Pastors Dean Sweetman and Catherine Reynolds at Christian City Church, Lawrenceville. You provided the spark that I needed to undertake this endeavor. It is an honor and pleasure serving with you.

      Introduction

While the New Testament book of Acts is traditionally known as “The Acts of the Apostles,” it is primarily the story of only two apostles, Peter and Paul.1 Luke lists all of the apostles by name in Acts 1:13. After that, however, there are only passing references to any of the others, such as John and James, the sons of Zebedee.2 The apostles are referred to throughout the rest of Acts only in a group context. A few examples should suffice. In Acts 5:12 Luke says, “The apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders among the people.” They were arrested as a group in Acts 5:18. The apostles sent Peter and John to Samaria in Acts 8:14. The apostles were present at the Jerusalem Conference in Acts 15:2, 22-23. This is also the last time that the apostles are mentioned as a group in Acts.

After the initial listing of the Twelve in Acts 1:13, John and James, the sons of Zebedee are the only other apostles listed by name besides Peter and Paul. John is shown in two different passages working with Peter. John and Peter are together in Acts 3–4 where Luke recounts Peter’s healing of the lame man at the Temple, and then their subsequent hearing before the Sanhedrin. Peter and John are also sent to Samaria together in Acts 8 to pray for the new believers so that they might receive the Holy Spirit. Cullman says that in both of these narratives, John, “plays little more than the role of an extra.”3 In each of these passages, Peter does all the speaking and generally dominates the scene. John’s brother, James, is later mentioned by name, but only as the first apostle to be martyred in Acts 12:2.4

As one works their way through the Book of Acts, it becomes evident that instead of documenting the ministries of all the apostles, Luke chose to structure his book around the ministries of only two of them, Peter and Paul. Even though Luke only shows Peter and Paul both being present at the Jerusalem Council in chapter 15,5 and never shows them working together, he does show them “as parallel figures” in the early church.6 Gundry echoes this thought in the way that he outlines Acts. He sees chapters 1–12 as being devoted to Peter’s ministry to the Jews and chapters 13–28 as being devoted to Paul’s ministry to the Gentiles.7 While this may be a convenient way to outline Acts, a thorough study of the book shows that there was quite a bit of overlap in the target audiences that both men were trying to reach. Paul, in his efforts to reach the Greek world, never completely abandoned his attempts to win the Jews,8 and even though Peter’s ministry was primarily to the Jews, he was the first apostle to take the Gospel to a Gentile audience.9

      This book will examine the apostolic ministries of Peter and Paul within the framework of The Acts of the Apostles. While other New Testament writings will not be ignored, Acts will be the primary source that we will examine. The primary question that will be guiding the study is, “How do the ministries of Peter and Paul, as discussed in the Book of Acts, compare and contrast with each other?” There are also a number of other questions that will be explored:

      1. What is the basic purpose behind the writing of Acts?

      2. What is the basic message of Acts and how does this affect the way that Peter and Paul are depicted?

      3. What does Acts reveal about Peter’s practices of evangelism and church planting?

      4. What does Acts reveal about Paul’s practices of evangelism and church planting?

      5. What were the areas of similarity between Peter and Paul?

      6. What were the areas of dissimilarity between Peter and Paul?

      7. Were the ministries of Peter and Paul largely complementary or contrasting?

      As these questions are answered, the reader should go away with a greater understanding of how the apostles conducted their ministries. These insights from the first Century should provide us with invaluable revelations that can be applied to our ministries in the twenty-first Century.

1 I. Howard Marshall, The Acts of the Apostles, Tyndale New Testament Commentaries, (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1980) 34. “Luke’s story is very much structured on the careers of the two Christian leaders, Peter and Paul.”

2 David J. Williams, Acts, New International Biblical Commentary, (Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, 1995) 14, “Of the original twelve apostles, we read a good deal of Peter, a little of John, James, Judas, and nothing at all of the others, except for an occasional mention of ‘the apostles.’”

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