Summary
We find this volume a strong example of the NIV Application Commentary approach. It helps us hear Acts in its own world, then brings the text into ours with care and balance.
Fernando keeps our attention on the risen Christ building His church by the Word and Spirit. We are repeatedly drawn back to mission, suffering, and gospel courage in ordinary congregations.
Why Should I Own This Commentary?
We should own this commentary when we want help moving from explanation to application without flattening the text. It makes us slow down, ask what the passage meant, and then ask how the same truth should shape a congregation today.
We also benefit from the way it models responsible connections. Application is not a leap, it is a bridge built from context, themes, and the book’s own aims.
For those of us teaching with Reformed convictions, this format fits well. We can press the gospel, call for repentance, and aim at the heart, while keeping the argument anchored in what the text actually says.
Closing Recommendation
We recommend this as a mid level companion for preaching and teaching. It is clear, pastorally alert, and consistently useful when we need help turning study into sermon work.
Used alongside a more detailed exegetical volume when needed, it gives us a steady route from text to life.
As pastoral next steps, we can visit the Bible Book Overview, browse Top Recommendations, and use the Reformed Commentary Index to build a wiser working library.
Ajith Fernando
Ajith Fernando is a Sri Lankan Christian leader and Bible teacher of the contemporary era, writing from an evangelical tradition with a deeply pastoral and missional lens.
He is best known for work on Acts and for decades of ministry shaped by evangelism, discipleship, and public witness. Fernando helps pastors read Acts as the account of the risen Christ advancing His gospel through the Spirit, highlighting prayer, courage, suffering, and the costly joy of mission.
He remains valued because he writes with realism, tenderness, and moral seriousness, and because his application arises from lived ministry rather than abstract theory. Recommended titles include Acts in the NIV Application Commentary, The Call to Joy and Pain, and Discipling in a Multicultural World.
Theological Perspective: Broadly Evangelical