Review article
SALVATION OF JEWS AND GENTILES IN LUKE-ACTS. NARRATIVE ANALYSIS OF SELECTED PASSAGES
Piotr Blajer
; Studium Biblicum Franciscanum, Jerusalem, Izrael
Abstract
The salvation that Jesus offers to the whole world, first to the Jews (as heirs of God’s promises) and then to the Gentiles, is at the core of the theology of Luke-Acts. The “failed mission” in the synagogue of Nazareth presents the content of Jesus’ preaching and demonstrates that the proclamation of a year acceptable to the Lord is at the center of his mission. It defines the salvation of God offered through Jesus’ preaching and ministry. The entire ministry of Jesus, as Luke describes it, is a faithful implementation of the program inaugurated in the synagogue of Nazareth. By healing and performing exorcisms Jesus liberates all those who are oppressed by Satan and held in any kind of captivity, be it physical or moral. The theme of salvation, so central in the Gospel, continues in the Book of Acts. The apostles, obedient to the command of the risen Lord, proclaim the forgiveness of sins first to Jews and then to the ends of the earth. Although reading the Acts of the Apostles one may get the impression that the mission among the Gentiles is nothing more than a side effect of Israel’s refusal to accept salvation, the acceptance of salvation by Cornelius and his house, the descent of the Holy Spirit upon them (see Acts 10:1-48) as well as Paul’s visit in Antioch in Pisidia (see Acts 13:16-52), clearly demonstrates that the mission among the Gentiles is anything but accidental.
Keywords
Hrčak ID:
271039
URI
Publication date:
14.1.2022.
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