The book of Acts contains a strong geographical component. Yet readings of Acts typically ignore or marginalise geography's contribution to the construction of the narrative's theology. In this book Matthew Sleeman argues that Jesus' ascension into heaven is foundational for establishing the 'spatiality' of Acts, showing that the narrative's understanding of place and space is shaped decisively by Christ's heavenly location. Drawing on recent advances in geographical theory, Sleeman offers a 'spatial' interpretation that expands our vision of how space and place inform the theological impulses of Acts. Presenting a complement to conventional 'temporal' readings of Acts, he sheds new light on the theology of the book, and suggests new ways of reading not only Acts but also other New Testament texts. Sleeman's work combines innovative biblical scholarship with accessible and informative geographical analysis, and is suitable for those with research and teaching interests in human geography or biblical studies.

Acts is the sequel to Luke's gospel and tells the story of Jesus's followers during the 30 years after his death. It describes how the 12 apostles, formerly Jesus's disciples, spread the message of Christianity throughout the Mediterranean against a background of persecution. With an introduction by P.D. James

The gospel of Luke presents an ecological symphony that reveals a Jesus connected to Earth. His ministry touches all aspects of creation, human and non-human, and invites disciples into an ecological asceticism. This same spirit continues in the Acts of the Apostles. In this Earth Bible Commentary on Acts, Michael Trainor allows our environmental concerns to shape his interpretative approach, and thus ecological nuances emerge. Luke's household of disciples, imbued with the spirit of the risen Jesus, to embrace the world and bring to it a word of reconciliation, embark on this mission. This formally begins at Pentecost with their reception of God's creative and renewing Spirit that empowers them as Earth's children. From this moment an explosion of activity moves them over Earth's lands, beginning in Jerusalem, Earth's navel (Acts 1.1-8.1), into Samaria, the space in-between that navel and Galilee, the garden of God's earthly delights (Acts 8.2-11.17), to the ends of Earth, Rome (Acts 11.18-28.33). As we trace Luke's vast geographical journey around the Mediterranean, key moments highlight fresh environmental insights that offer new hope for contemporary disciples seeking ecological affirmation at this particular time in world history.

Acts of the Apostles is normally understood as a historical report of events of the early church and serves as the organizing centerpiece of the New Testament canon. In this book, Drew W. Billings demonstrates that Acts was written in conformity with broader representational trends and standards found on imperial monuments and in the epigraphic record of the early second century. Bringing an interdisciplinary approach to a text of critical importance, he compares the methods of representation in Acts with visual and verbal representations that were common during the reign of the Roman emperor Trajan (98-117 CE). Billings argues that Acts adopts the rhetoric of Roman imperialism as articulated in the images and texts from the period. His study bridges the fields of classics, art history, gender studies, Jewish studies, and New Testament studies in exploring how early Christian texts relate to wider patterns in the cultural production of the Roman Empire.

Ascension Theology places the doctrine of the ascension in the context of the biblical narrative of descent and ascent, in order to shed light on 'the upward call of God in Christ Jesus' and on the eucharistic community that hears and answers that call. It is a book for the Church as well as the academy. Ascension Theology also offers a contemporary account of the Eucharist itself. It addresses the relation of the heavenly session of Christ to the conflicting currents of the present age, and the transformation to the life of the world to come. Specialist and non-specialist alike will find much to ponder in its traditional yet controversial claims.

In comparison with other aspects of Jesus’ life and ministry, his ascent into heaven has often been overlooked within the history of the church. However, considering its placement at the end of the Gospel and the beginning of Acts—the only narrative depictions of the event in the New Testament—the importance of Jesus’ ascent into heaven is undeniable for Luke’s two-volume work. While select studies have focused on particular aspects of these accounts for Luke’s story, the importance of the ascension calls for renewed attention to the narratological and theological significance of these accounts within their historical and literary contexts. In this volume, leading scholars discuss the ascension narratives within the ancient contexts of biblical, Second Temple Jewish, and Greco-Roman literature; the literary contours of Luke-Acts; and questions of historical and theological significance in the wider milieu of New Testament theology and early Christian historiography. The volume sets out new positions and directions for the next generations of interpreters regarding one of the most important and unique elements of the Lukan writings.

Themelios is an international, evangelical, peer-reviewed theological journal that expounds and defends the historic Christian faith. Themelios is published three times a year online at The Gospel Coalition (http://thegospelcoalition.org/themelios/) and in print by Wipf and Stock. Its primary audience is theological students and pastors, though scholars read it as well. Themelios began in 1975 and was operated by RTSF/UCCF in the UK, and it became a digital journal operated by The Gospel Coalition in 2008. The editorial team draws participants from across the globe as editors, essayists, and reviewers. General Editor: D. A. Carson, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School Managing Editor: Brian Tabb, Bethlehem College and Seminary Consulting Editor: Michael J. Ovey, Oak Hill Theological College Administrator: Andrew David Naselli, Bethlehem College and Seminary Book Review Editors: Jerry Hwang, Singapore Bible College; Alan Thompson, Sydney Missionary & Bible College; Nathan A. Finn, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary; Hans Madueme, Covenant College; Dane Ortlund, Crossway; Jason Sexton, Golden Gate Baptist Seminary Editorial Board: Gerald Bray, Beeson Divinity School Lee Gatiss, Wales Evangelical School of Theology Paul Helseth, University of Northwestern, St. Paul Paul House, Beeson Divinity School Ken Magnuson, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary Jonathan Pennington, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary James Robson, Wycliffe Hall Mark D. Thompson, Moore Theological College Paul Williamson, Moore Theological College Stephen Witmer, Pepperell Christian Fellowship Robert Yarbrough, Covenant Seminary

J. L. Moles (1949–2015) made fundamental contributions to the fields of ancient (especially Cynic) philosophy, Greek and Roman historiography and biography, Latin poetry, and New Testament studies. These two volumes gather together all of his major articles and reviews, along with six previously unpublished papers. The papers display Moles’ individual and sometimes iconoclastic approach, his impressive range in both Classical and New Testament texts, and his unrivalled abilities in close reading. This is volume 1.

There is a growing recognition that God’s design is for us to read Scripture alongside the whole church in all of its cultural and linguistic diversity. Exploring the New Testament in Asia is a textbook for students and scholars of the New Testament to help the church hear and see the good news of Jesus anew. This collection of essays offers theological reflections on New Testament themes from Asian perspectives, while addressing contextual issues in light of the New Testament. Touching on topics such as salvation, holiness, poverty, ethnic tensions, reconciliation, honoring elders, persecution, and hospitality, the scholars in this book demonstrate the importance of a varied contemporary context for understanding the New Testament. The result is a theological contribution that is both contextually relevant and biblically faithful.

Some of today’s problematic ideologies of racial and religious difference can be traced back to constructions of the relationship between Judaism and early Christianity. New Testament studies, which developed contemporaneously with Europe’s colonial expansion and racial ideologies, is, David Horrell argues, therefore an important site at which to probe critically these ideological constructions and their contemporary implications. In Ethnicity and Inclusion, Horrell explores the ways in which “ethnic” (and “religious”) characteristics feature in key Jewish and early Christian texts, challenging the widely accepted dichotomy between a Judaism that is ethnically defined and a Christianity that is open and inclusive. Then, through an engagement with whiteness studies, he offers a critique of the implicit whiteness and Christianness that continue to dominate New Testament studies today, arguing that a diversity of embodied perspectives is epistemologically necessary.