He drew a line

NORSK

I like the idea of drawing lines to the past. It is amazing to see how incidents seeming to be more or less random have been part of a divine plan. Such a line does not end the moment I'm living in right now, but points further.

The narrative Luke wrote for Theophilus may well be compared with a line from Jesus' birth to a strange end point (= how the book of Acts ends). I think most people who read Acts are thinking: Why does it stop here? 

The point is that the line does not stop, but continues to point forward. Acts have in reality no end. Jesus draws a line back to John:

"For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit."
Acts 1:5

This is an affirmation of what the Baptist himself said: 

"I baptize you with water. But one who is more powerful than I will come, …. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire."
Luke 3:16

Although Luke describes a distinction between John's baptism and water baptism in the name of Jesus (Acts 19:1-7), this is also a confirmation that the baptism in the Holy Spirit is something more than the baptism of water, and Jesus' confirmation of what John had seen a few years earlier. What it meant for the first Christians, and what it means for us today, I will have ample opportunity to dig deeper into as the story progresses.

'Manna' for today:

The line in Acts does not end in Rome, but points to the present time and beyond...

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This reflection is part of 'Who acts throug Acts?'