The Book of Acts: Doctrine or History Book?

The Lord spoke to me a great deal about two men in the early days of my walk with the Lord. One was Joseph son of Jacob and the other was David son of Jesse. I spent a lot of time reading Genesis and 1st and 2nd Samuel. Both men's lives helped to form the basis of the doctrine of discipline in Christ where Spirit-led discipline eventually leads to holiness. I noticed correlations in their lives from reading these books, specifically with regards to how they were both caught up in the same process of Declaration, Distress, Development and Demonstration.

To explain this process more specifically......

God declared to both men what they were destined for.

• Joseph to have rule over his brothers and his father's entire household.
• David to have rule as king over all Israel.

God plunged both men into unexpected distress and rerouted them onto a narrow path in ways that were unimaginable.

• Joseph was sold into slavery.
• The King who David had served faithfully rejected him and tried to kill him.

Both men found themselves in long seasons of spiritual development.

• Joseph in Potiphar's house and in prison.
• David on the run for his life for many years with a limited measure of rule over discontented men.

Both men found themselves in the perfect place with God demonstrating his original intent in their lives.

• Joseph as ruler over all Egypt, second only to Pharaoh.
• David first over Judah and eventually over all Israel.

The books that contain the history of these men's lives form the basis for understanding God's 4 fold process: Declaration, Distress, Development and Demonstration. Many others see what I have seen. Many through history, many today. These things are easy to comprehend when one applies themselves to spiritual truth in Christ. Yet it is the books of historical record that teach us the doctrine.

Jesus himself drew on David's experience at Nob as recorded in a historical text to establish the supremacy of law of the Spirit in mercy, justice and faithfulness:

"He answered, 'Haven't you read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He entered the house of God, and he and his companions ate the consecrated bread- which was not lawful for them to do, but only for the priests. Or haven't you read in the Law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple desecrate the day and year are innocent? I tell you that one greater than the temple is here. If you had known what these words mean, ' I desire mercy, not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the innocent. For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.'" Matthew 12:3-8

"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices - mint, dull and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law - justice, mercy and faithfulness." Matthew 23:23

 
The Bible is very clear that all scripture is God-inspired and God-breathed. And they are all profitable for the establishment of doctrine in the appropriate context in the Spirit of God.

"All scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, correction, reproof and for instruction in righteousness - that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works." 2 Timothy 3:16,17

This applies to all Scripture, including the book of Acts. Acts is profitable for doctrine!!!

I do understand that the Levitical worship is not in play in Christ Jesus. Things such as the meaning of what the Sabbath is has now changed. All types and shadows of the Old Covenant are now fulfilled in Christ. The Sabbath, as an example, is about entering into his rest and walking by faith into his work (Hebrews 3 and 4, James 2:14-24). We now serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the old way of the written code. I understand that.

"But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code." Romans 7:6

But within the context of the law of the Spirit of life we draw upon testimony of biblical characters which by it's very nature is historical and in written form. Their lives can and do serve as a basis for constructing the manifold-wisdom of God that creates an ever unfolding essence of who we are in Christ.
 
What some teachers are saying is that because the process of subsequently receiving the baptism of the Spirit as witnessed in Jesus' own baptism, and further in the books of Acts is not later outlined with clear grammar between Romans and Jude, it is no longer a valid process for believers today. They say this process of subsequent baptisms with the evidence of power, prophecy and tongues is no longer in play even though we see subsequent baptisms in the life of Christ himself at the Jordan river along with all of the believers throughout the book of Acts.

O.K. If that is true then why do those 21 books (Romans to Jude) not set other rules, expectations and traditions for believers to follow with regards to the workings of the Spirit? Not once to my knowledge does it evidence any other distinct procession of the order of the three baptisms of water, spirit, fire. If this is not the order of God then where is it spelled out in the apostolic epistles? Where is the replacement theology for the doctrine of subsequence as we witness it in Acts 2, 8, 10, 18 and 19? Where is it at?

Jesus himself was not baptized with the Spirit until after his water baptism by John. Was he full of wisdom and pure of heart with the grace of God on him? Yes.

"And the child grew and became strong. He was filled with wisdom and the grace of God was upon him." Acts 2:40

"And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and with man." Luke 2:52

Jesus set a pattern for all things. He was baptized in water by John son of Zechariah and then the Spirit came down upon him in the form of a dove. See Matthew 1:15-17 and John 1:33.

What about the Israelites coming out of Egyptian bondage? They were baptized by passing through the sea (Water) and into the cloud (Spirit).

"For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea.....Now these things occurred as examples (types).."1 Corinthians 10:1,2,6

What do these events symbolize? Were they random occurrences with regards to historical events or were they carefully orchestrated by the Lord God of Israel who was Christ Jesus himself.

"They drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them and that rock was Christ." 1 Corinthians 10:4

Even Elisha was baptized in water by passing through the Jordan.

"...Elijah and Elisha had stopped at the Jordan. Elijah took his cloak, rolled it up and struck the water with it. The water divided to the right and to the left, and the two of them crossed over on dry ground." 2 Kings 3:7,8

Yet he did not stop there. As Elisha persisted by not taking his eyes off of his master Elijah, he was later endued with a double portion of Elijah's anointing.

"When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, 'Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken from you?' 'Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit,' Elisha replied. 'You have asked a difficult thing,' Elijah said, 'yet if you see me when I am taken from you, it will be yours- otherwise not.'   As they were talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind........He (Elisha) picked up  the cloak that had fallen from Elijah and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan. Then he took the cloak that had fallen from him and struck the water with it. 'Where now is the Lord, the God of Elijah?' he asked. When he struck the water, it divided to the right and to the left, and he crossed over. The company of the prophets from Jericho, who were watching, said, 'The spirit of Elijah is now resting on Elisha.' 2 Kings 2:9-15 

Both of these events were a foreshadowing of the coming subsequent baptisms of both water and Spirit. Elijah was a type of Christ to his servant Elisha. Elijah was not the Christ. He was only a type of Christ, just as Joseph son of Jacob was a type of Christ to his brothers in Egypt.

Let everything be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses. The historical foreshadowing of this subsequent baptism of both water and Spirit can be seen in the examples above. So why not believe? 

Now is the time of God's favor brethren. Now is the day of salvation and deliverance.

JEB