Events

Following previous public lectures on the missional interpretation of the Bible, the nations in the Psalms, and Reading the Bible with the Global Church, this year Prof. Steve Walton, Professor of New Testament at London School of Theology joins us to consider the Acts of the Apostles as the Mission of God.

Action plans for mission are widely used today: but are they right? Who really drives mission? In the Acts of the Apostles, the church is frequently slow to recognise and get on board with what God is doing. Mission among the Gentiles happens slowly and is a result of God's initiative, not the church's plans - and this reflects the wider point that it is God who drives the story of Acts forward, not the believing community. This challenges some modern emphases on the role of the church in mission.

In this lecture, Steve Walton will explore the work of God in Acts, and reflect on this key feature of Acts in the light of the emphasis on missio Dei (the 'mission of God') in contemporary missiological thinking.

Prof. Walton has taught at LST since 1999 and has a special interest in Luke-Acts, Paul and New Testament Greek. Among other publications, he is the co-author of a popular textbook on the Gospels and Acts (in SPCK’s Exploring the New Testament series) and is currently working on the Acts volume in the Word Biblical Commentary series.  He is a retired international volleyball referee and now works in training and developing other referees, which takes him around the world from time to time.
 

The Redcliffe lecture in Bible and Mission is organised in partnership with Bible Society and Wycliffe Bible Translators. It is an activity of Redcliffe's Centre for the Study of Bible and Mission