And when He has removed him, He raised up for them David as king, to whom also He gave testimony and said, “I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after my own heart who will do all My will.” (23) From this man’s seed, according to the promise, God raised up for Israel a Savior – Jesus – (24) after John had first preached, before His coming, the baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. (25) And as John was finishing his course, he said, ‘Who do you think I am? I am not He. But behold, there comes One after me, the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to loose. (26) Men and brethren, sons of the family of Abraham and those among you who fear God, to you the word of this salvation has been sent.
The Acts of the Apostles was written by Luke, physician and historian and frequent companion of the apostle Paul. In our study today, as Luke records the first and longest sermon of Paul on his first missionary journey, we are given a glimpse of Paul’s strategy for preaching the gospel of Christ Jesus. Paul, a rabbi himself, would visit a strategic city where he would attend the sabbath service at the synagogue. (The Jews also allowed devout Gentiles to also attend these services.). A visiting rabbi would be asked to speak if they wished and Paul would accept and then tracing the prophecy and history of the Old Testament he would emphasize over and over that God promised a Messiah and God keeps his promises. And the Messiah is Christ Jesus
Our verses start today with the removal by God of the first king of Israel, Saul. Then God chose as king, David; devout, obedient and pleasing to God; “a man after My own heart.” But as Paul followed this thread and said that Jesus, of the line of David, was the promised Messiah there is a break in Luke’s narrative. There must have been some reaction in that synagogue as Paul then turns quickly to the testimony of John the Baptist who was known and revered by all Jews. Paul quotes John as an authority identifying Jesus as the promised Messiah.
All of the bible points to Jesus as God’s promised Savior – Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s promise for remedy for sin. What becomes clear in this story of the sovereignty of God is that man has been saved not because of but IN SPITE OF ourselves. God initiated the process of redemption and God elects the faithful. Salvation is of the Lord, beginning to end. This is the purpose of Paul’s sermon and now of his life, to show that Jesus, son of David, is the Christ, the Messiah and the Saviour of all who believe in Him.