Acts 1:1–3

 ¹ The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, ² until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen, ³ to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.

Preamble: 

The Book of Acts was recorded and written by the Apostle Luke who was an early  Gentile disciple who is also referred to as the beloved physician by the Apostle Paul for his ongoing faithfulness (Col. 4:14). Luke then spent much time with the Apostle Paul during his Gospel preaching ministry and church missionary endeavours; including imprisonments with him; and as such was not only an eye witness and servant of all that the Lord did through Paul, but Luke also was an eye witness of the Lords mighty Works through the other apostles, and the early church as well. And so, Luke in recalling these events, now opens by reminding a disciple named Theophilus of the Gospel that Luke by the Holy Spirit had also recorded and written for the church that he had previously sent to him (Luke 1:1-4), a Gospel which itself bears witness to the Lord Jesus Christ’s Words and Works. Now in that Gospel the Lord Jesus Christ before His Ascension had promised that all of His disciples would be baptized with the Holy Spirit after His departure (Luke 24:48-53). This then is the Apostle Luke’s recording and recounting of what occurred when that took place, and what transpired afterwards, as the disciples now being born-again and baptized with the Holy Spirit began doing many mighty works and deeds to bear witness to the Lord Jesus Christ’s Person and Resurrection, specifically is their speaking with great boldness of speech, even in the face of death, as the newly poured out Holy Spirit enabled them all to do so. Thus, in the Book of Acts we see the fulfillment of the Lord Jesus Christ’s Promise of the Holy Spirit’s outpouring into believers’ persons and lives and how He immediately transformed not only those disciple’s persons and lives, but also, by the same Holy Spirit He continues to do so in every believer since! The Book of Acts then is the only Holy Spirit recorded history of the early church, which itself is the Lord Jesus Christ’s body of believers, that continues to grow upwards and outwards by faith in and obedience towards His Person by His Word given us through His chosen Biblical apostles in the Holy Scripture.

Commentary

Vs. 1 “The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach,”

 To begin Luke recalls his writing and sending his Gospel to a disciple named Theophilus, in which Luke told of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, that is what Jesus began to do and teach to and through His chosen apostles. However, as Luke notes these things that are recorded in the Book of Acts are not the end of the Lord Jesus Christ’s works through His people, rather they are just what He began to do in establishing the early disciples and church. For we who believe in Him all know that His Works both through us, individually as well as collectively, are ongoing, for He will continue working through us all until He returns!

 Vs. 2 “until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen,”

 Jesus then Personally both did the works of the Gospel as well as taught His Word while He was here until the day in which He was taken up, that is until His Ascension back to heaven in the Presence of His chosen apostles whom He through the Holy Spirit had given His commandments too. Thus, while present with them and then later as the church was born and grew Jesus continued to Guide His people through His commandments given us by His chosen apostles. The commandments then in the N.T. Scripture are then the commandments of the Lord Jesus Christ.

 Vs. 3 “to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.

 The Lord Jesus Christ’s many appearances to His disciples after His Crucifixion unto death and then Resurrection from the dead are well recorded in the Gospels. Therefore, having revealed Himself to them by many infallible proofs Jesus during the forty-day time period from His Resurrection to His Ascension taught and instructed His chosen apostles concerning many things pertaining to the Kingdom of God. In doing so Jesus was preparing them for the roles that He ordained that they would fulfill in serving Him.

Scripture Quotations

New King James (1982):Thomas Nelson.