The book of acts

¶ … Book of Acts: Descriptive or Normative?

The book of Acts often brings with it some points of contention because believers seem divided over how the book should be interpreted as far as guidelines for the modern-day church. Some believers think that the book serves as a template, or descriptive guideline, only for the early church. The issues that the early church faced are not the same issues that believers face now and this is reason enough for their thinking. This attitude makes it easy to determine guidelines for today's modern church in that there are no restrictions from the first century with which to contend. Then there are some that believe that the book of Acts should serve as a normative guideline for all churches that claim Jesus as Messiah. This perspective does not choose to draw lines around specific issues and applies all guidelines taught in Acts as guidelines for living with the church today. This mode of thinking makes choices easier in that the Bible is seen as a textbook for living and the book of Acts sets forth not only the preliminary principles for a church but it also provides believers with codes of conduct pertaining to certain issues. While both of these perspectives seem to work for the churches that adopt them, we must realize that they are extreme. Another perspective gives the church freedom to discern what is normative and what is descriptive based upon the doctrinal issue that is to be considered.

The latter attitude is the most beneficial for believers because it is not bound by restraints that are no longer significant. In addition, this perspective is best because there are many guidelines in the book of Acts that do not apply to the contemporary world and there are many issues on which the book is silent. This position allows the book of Acts to remain its important aspect of Biblical history and teaching but it gives each church freedom to examine specific doctrinal issues as they interpret them. When we read the Bible, we should always remember to whom it was written and why. Certainly, the Bible is intended for all but when we examine specific aspects of books in the New Testament, we must remember that the text we are reading is a written response to a very specific account. The book of Acts serves as a guideline only in the normative sense. The book of Acts should serve as a normative guideline for all churches based upon the doctrinal issue at hand. Because the text sets forth a set of principles that relate to how a church should function. However, Acts should not be a descriptive guideline for churches of today. The normative aspects of the book are significant and should still b followed by modern churches because these guidelines keep the body in line with what the act of "church" should be. The responsibility of the church depends upon the believers within it and the world in which they live.

One thing we should keep in mind is that the book of Acts refers to the Acts of the Apostles and what followed those acts that contributed to the development of the early church. One example of how Acts should not be followed in modern culture is the topic of speaking in tongues and performing miracles. Thee acts should be kept in context and readers should understand that the acts that take place in Acts are specific to a generation and an event most commonly referred to as Pentecost. What some refer to as a gift of speaking in tongues should actually be viewed as part of an event that occurred in history that is not normative for today's modern churches. The bible should be seen as a teaching tool for the Christian but it should also be given room to breathe. Believers should also be given credit for thinking for themselves and their generation. The book of Acts was not penned for future believers as much as it was the followers of the early church. When we consider this, we can see how important the book was when the church was still in its early stages. It describes for us what the early church looked like and it paints a picture of believers longing to learn and grow. From this perspective, it is easy to see why the book should be viewed as a descriptive narrative with significant details. To view the book as something more would be to put limits on the church today, which is now certainly at a different stage of growth. The ways set forth in Acts are not the only ways in which to do certain things for a continuously growing body of people that believe Jesus is the Messiah. In other words, the church is completely different today and should be expected to differ somewhat from the methods and practices described in Acts. It should also b noted that this perspective does not diminish the importance or accuracy of Acts; it merely allows room for the "church," as an organic entity, to grow and adapt to the changes it encounters as society changes.