Jesus’ Divinity & the Message in Acts
(An appendix to my self-study course on Acts)
John Hepp, Jr.

Jesus’ Divinity. The Bible makes it clear that Jesus is divine. He has the same nature as God His Father. He is the pre¬existent Creator who came to earth. Notice these evidences of Jesus’ divinity.
• In Old Testament prophecies it attributes to Him divine names and descriptions (Isa. 7:14, “Immanuel”; Isa. 9:6, “Mighty God”; Micah 5:2, “His goings forth are from…the days of eternity”).
• It records Jesus’ claims about His unique relationship to His Father (Luke 10:22; John 5:17-18). He is the “only Son” (John 3:16).
• It affirms that all things were made by Him and for Him (John 1, Col. 1, Heb. 1).
• It calls Him both the “Word” and “God” (John 1:1; 20:28).
• It says that even before He “emptied Himself” in the Incarnation, “He existed in the form of God” (Phil. 2:6-7).
• It claims that “in Him all the fulness of Deity dwells in bodily form” (Col. 2:9).
• In the baptismal formula (in Matt. 28:19), it puts His name on the same level as those of the Father and the Holy Spirit.
• It accords Him, along with “Him who sits on the throne,” the worship of “every created thing” (Rev. 5:13).

Jesus’ divinity is certain. It is also important. A merely human Jesus could never bring full salvation. But in spite of all this evidence and importance, His divinity was not a theme in Acts. We can conclude that it was not taught to the unconverted but was saved for the converted.

Jesus’ Messiahship. The Book of Acts tells us how Messiah began to build His church. Among other things, it summarizes many of the sermons preached during those years. Sermons aimed at pagans began with the Creator who revealed Himself. Sermons for people who knew Scriptures all had the same main theme: Jesus is the Messiah. Evidence was given for His Messiahship—mainly His miracles and His resurrection. Implications of His Messiahship were announced, such as, His authority (He is Lord) and His return to earth to set up His eternal kingdom and to rule. Using the powers He has demon¬strated, He will oversee the “restoration of all things, about which God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets” (Acts 3:21; cf. Matt. 19:28). He will resurrect His followers and enable them to rule with Him.

Acts often summarizes the message as Jesus’ Messiahship (Acts 5:42; 9:22; 17:3; 18:5,28; etc.). This is the same good news that the first three Gospels preach. Those who believe it respond by being baptized in Jesus’ name. They receive forgiveness for their sins—and Messiah’s greatest gift, the promised Holy Spirit.

An Explanation of This Procedure. After the truth of God and creation is estab-lished, why does the saving message in Acts focus on Jesus’ kingship rather than His divinity? Because His kingship is the proper foundation of Christian faith. It correctly relates the hearer to God’s Word and its promises. Messiah is the One victorious over death and given all authority to fulfill those Scriptures