A little background on this blog..... I am a student at BYU-Idaho taking a New Testament class. As part of the class we were assigned to a special project throughout the whole semester. I chose to create a blog to share my insights and what I am learning.

This class is the second half of the New Testament so we have begun in the Acts.

Acts 1 A Special Witness of Christ

In chapter one of Acts verses 1-11 it talks about the apostles being able to see Christ after he has been resurrected. They were told that it was him by heavenly messengers after he had returned up to heaven.

In the topical guide we see many references to the sightings of Christ after his resurrection. I found three that I really enjoyed:
- Luke 24:39 Christ is in the presence of his apostles and he tells them to feel his hands and feet to know that he is real and of flesh & bone. The scars he has is a testimony that he was the same who suffered and died for our sins.
- 3 Nephi 11:15 (in the Book of Mormon) Christ appeared to the Americas to bear witness of himself. He again told the people to feel his wounds and know that he is real.
- John 20:29 Thomas said he would not believe without seeing. Christ appeared to him and told him that now that knows that Christ lives because he has seen him. I hope to have more faith than Thomas.

A comparison between Luke 1:1-3 and The Acts 1:1 we see that Luke is making a second appearance in his promise to testify of Christ.

The doctrine of the resurrection of Christ is so central in the preaching of the witnesses of Christ because if he has not been resurrected then they are preaching in vain. We are blessed with the power of prayer to receive personal witness that their testimonies are true.

3 Nephi 27: 13-14 Christ was sent to the world for the purpose of breaking two bonds of death that hold us back from returning to our Father in Heaven. Spiritual death which is commonly known as sin. Physical death when our body is no longer functioning. Through the Atonement of Christ we can repent of our sins and through his resurrection we have the blessing to become resurrected beings as well. His gospel is centered in helping us return home to our Father.

The gift of the Holy Ghost was a blessing bestowed upon us as followers of Christ after he left so we might still be guided by him. He explained this to his apostles before he was crucified.

How can we be modern Apostles of Christ?

In Acts 1:21-26 it explains how Apostles were appointed.
- vs 21 those who have accompanied the Lord. In our time this could mean our level of faithfulness to the Lord.
- Become baptized. This doesn't mean any baptism but one with proper authority.
-Become a witness of Christ. Live, act, and talk of Christ. A witness that He lives.
-Pure/humble heart

The Bible Dictionary states "The word means 'one sent forth'. It was the title Jesus gave to the twelve whom he chose and ordained..... The calling of an Apostle is to be a special witness of the name of Christ in all the world...."

With this background we can see that in order to be a modern Apostle of Christ we need to live in accordance of his teachings and testify (where ever we are in the world) that HE LIVES. We need to show our faith in action by show others what we believe by the way we live. It is more than weekly, it is daily!