Abstract
In his book, Intrusive God, Disruptive Gospel, Skinner explores how the author of Acts depicts God in his narrative. The work is divided into thirty-two chapters: six ‘road maps’, twenty-five chapters on specific passages in Acts, and a conclusion. Each of the standard chapters provides an interpretation of a selected Acts passage, with a specific focus on the role of God in the text, while the ‘road maps’ attempt to provide some of the wide context from which more specific discussions could emerge. The book also includes an index and a few suggestions of scholarly works for further reading.
Skinner is clear that the focus of the book is not on historical issues (pp. viii, 2), but on the relevance of the book of Acts for contemporary readers. Here he attempts to walk a fine line by not getting bogged down by scholarship while simultaneously discussing the text with nuance. Although he generally succeeds in this, there are times when Skinner takes a position about the historicity (or lack thereof) of a passage that shapes the way he discusses and reads the text (e.g., viewing Philip’s encounter with the Ethiopian, Acts 8:26–40, as a ‘dream’, pp. 60–a66).
One of the strengths of the book is Skinner’s willingness to ask real and pressing questions about how Christians think about God and his activities in the world. He does not shy away from controversial passages, but tries to understand them on their own terms. A good example of this is the way Skinner handles Acts 5:1–11 and the deaths of Ananias and Sapphira (pp. 31–37). It is clear from his comments that he finds this passage to be challenging and that he is not totally comfortable with its inclusion within a scriptural text. Nevertheless, Skinner’s wrestling with the text and his vulnerability in expressing discomfort allow for real engagement with the reader.
The book is written for Christians who have some familiarity with Acts and would be useful for people in ministry (e.g., pastors) as well as for small group discussions. The work has a distinct American flavour as is indicated by the North American analogies and imagery (e.g., pp. xii, 9, 65, etc.) as well as some of his assumptions about the state of the church and the nature of Christianity. Nevertheless, this book could be of use in a variety of contexts, as the questions and struggles raised in the text are not limited to America, but are part of the human endeavour to understand how God might work in the world.