Spirit as Gift in Acts

John D. Griffiths, Ph.D. (2020), Flinders University, is a Lecturer of Biblical Studies at Alphacrucis College. He has published articles on the Holy Spirit and ecology, including “Wonders in the Heavens Above, Signs on the Earth Below: Pacific Islands Pentecostalism, Climate Change and Acts 2,” (Springer, 2020).

• Introduction1The Spirit as Gift in the Previous Research1.1Gonzalo Haya-Prats1.2William H. Shepherd1.3Max Turner1.4Craig Keener1.5Summary2A Fresh Approach to the Spirit as Gift2.1The Spirit and the Greco-Roman World2.2The Spirit and Sociological Models3Reading Acts1 Methodology1Sociological Approaches to the New Testament1.1An Outline of the Social-Scientific Approach1.2Comparison with Socio-Historical Criticism1.3Critiques of Sociological Approaches1.4Implications for this Study2Sociological Approaches to Gift-Giving in the New Testament2.1The Context Group and the Taxonomy of Reciprocity2.2John M. G. Barclay’s Reconfigured Gift Theory3Conclusion2 Sociological Approaches to Gift-Giving1Marcel Mauss and Gift-Giving2The Exchangist-Structuralist Gift3The Economistic Gift4The Impossible Gift5The Sociability of Gift-Giving6Conclusion3 Gifts in the Greco-Roman World1Gifts and Sociability in the Greek Literature1.1Δωρεά in the General-Soldier Relationship1.2Plutarch and Gift-Giving1.3Josephus and Gift-Giving1.4Appian and Gift-Giving1.5Summary2Gifts and Sociability in Latin Literature2.1Livy, Valerius Maximus and Gift-Giving2.2Cicero and Gift-Giving2.3Seneca and Gift-Giving2.4Summary3Conclusion4 The Summary Statements1The Translation and Difficult Phrases1.1The Translation of Acts 2:42–47, 4:32–35, 5:12–161.2Issues with Translation2Approaching the Summary Statements3The Spirit and the Summary Statements4Conclusion5 Witnessing, Teaching, Wonders and Joy1The Testimony of the Apostles2The Teaching of the Apostles2.1Teaching and Social Space2.2Teaching in Complementary Couplets2.3Teaching and the Reinterpretation of the Hebrew Bible2.4Summary3Signs and Wonders4The Great Joy5Conclusion6 The Gift of the Spirit and Prayer, Praise and Gratitude1Prayer1.1Prayer in the Summary Statements1.2Prayer and Gratitude1.3Prayer, Gift-Giving and the Spirit1.4Summary2Praising God2.1Praise and Gratitude2.2Praise and the Spirit in Acts2.3Summary3Conclusion7 Gift-Giving and the Lukan Jesus1The Sermon on the Plain1.1The Golden Rule1.2Credit and Reward1.3Divine Repayment1.4Summary2Gift-Giving and the Sharing of Meals3Conclusion8 The Communal Sharing and Sharing of Meals1The Descriptions of the Communal Sharing1.1Shared Property or Shared Access1.2Communal Sharing as Distribution1.3Wealth in Acts 3–51.4Summary2The Various Allusions in the Communal Sharing2.1The Hebrew Bible2.2The Friendship Tradition and Utopian Ideals2.3Ancient Associations2.4Kinship Sharing2.5Summary3Shared Meals4Conclusion9 The Gift of the Spirit and Communal Sharing1The Gift of the Spirit and the Communal Sharing2The Great Grace upon the Community3The Gift of the Spirit and the Promise of Reward4Imitation in the Communal Sharing5The Gift of the Spirit and the Sharing of Meals6Conclusion10 The Unity of the Community1The Gift of the Spirit as Transcending Status1.1The Joel Quotation in Relation to Gender, Class and Age1.2The Gift of the Spirit and Regional Identities1.3The Gift of the Spirit and Ethnic Identities1.4Summary2The Unity of the Early Jesus Community3Sharing all Things3.1κοινὰ τὰ φίλων in the Primary Sources3.2The Gift of the Spirit and 3.3Summary4ConclusionConclusion1Areas of Further Research2Implications for Pentecostal PneumatologyBibliographyIndex