1. We have studied many letters from Paul and others who have been influenced by Paul. Pick your favorite letter and explain the major aspects of it and why you liked it. One of my favorite letters of Paul is Galatians. Paul here is writing to a group of churches in the Roman province of Galatia, in Asia Minor (now modern day Ankara, Turkey) (New American Bible). Paul is writing to this region because other missionaries had arrived there proclaiming a different version of the gospel. The other missionaries were called “Judaizers” and they were insisting on Gentile circumcision and keeping Jewish Law. They were also questioning Paul’s authority, saying that he had not been trained by Jesus himself and that his gospels did not agree with that …show more content…
When Paul heard of this situation, he wrote this letter of defense of his apostolic authority and of the correct understanding of the faith. “He set forth the unique importance of Christ and his redemptive sacrifice on the cross, the freedom that Christians enjoy from the old burdens of the law, the total sufficiency of Christ and of faith in Christ as the way to God and to eternal life and the beauty of the new life of the Spirit.” (New American Bible) Galatians overall is a summary of basic Pauline theology. I choose the book of Galatians because it justifies how through faith alone we are the children of God in Christ Jesus. Paul warns us that if we live by the flesh and not of the spirit, we will not inherit the kingdom of God. This is especially important in today’s world with all of the temptations such as: greed of money, impurity, hatred against others, idolatry, selfishness, drinking …show more content…
It is said in 2 Corinthians that Paul had experienced divine intervention in his personal life and afterwards continued to receive mystical visions. His relationship with God, Christ, and the unseen world was dynamic and creative. (Harris) Paul believes that the eschatological consummation of history is at hand. Paul’s letters thus burn with special urgency to believe in the Lord and in his salvation. “God will soon rescue us [believers] from this present age of wickedness and establish his direct rule over a renewed creation.” (Galatians 1:4) Paul reiterates that those who believe must then prepare for the impending visitation, pursuing lives of unblemished virtue. (Harris) I think that this urgency that Paul writes about is important to Christians because if we didn’t have an importance for our actions, then we would be lost with no direction or sense of eagerness. But since Paul writes about Christ coming of age and rescuing the believers, we have a direction (towards Christ) and a sense of urgency because Christ is coming soon. A central part of Paul’s thought is his conviction that, in Jesus, God achieves the world’s salvation. (Harris) One of Paul’s most influential concepts was his understanding that the faith in Christ Jesus delivered him from sin more effectively than had obedience to the Mosaic Law. Paul’s personal experience of divine mercy, expressed through a revelation of Jesus, convinced him
and he tried to reform one’s conscience to the word of God. Carson explained what it takes to become an apostle and showed how Jesus impacted Paul’s life. Paul understood when he became saved he was transformed by the blood of Jesus; however, he understood the need to be flexible for winning souls. Paul realized the need to be like others to gain access to people for the sake of evangelism. Paul understood
“The Gospel For Those Broken By The Church” by Dr. Rod Rosenbladt Rod Rosenbladt paints a fantastic picture in his presentation “The Gospel For Those Broken By The Church.” He discusses how the church can often push people away from the Gospel, and, by extension, God. He explains how pastors push people away from Christianity and why many of the “alumni of the Christian faith” are feeling how they do: why some of them feel angry, and why some others feel sad about the Christian faith. Rosenbladt’s presentation, in many ways, mirrors Paul's presentation of the Gospel in the first eight chapters of his letter to the Romans. In said letters, Paul explains how we are all God’s apostles, how we try to uphold the law, and even though we fail
The Apostle Paul is most popularly known for his letters in the Bible. Paul’s early life was marked by religious zeal and brutal violence. In fact, Paul wasn’t known as Paul in the beginning, he was known as Saul. Saul was a very scary lawyer. He believed he was doing the will of the Lord by killing
For Centuries the interpretations of Paul’s letters have been centered on them apparently being of Judaist works and legalistic. Kent L. Yinger’s 105-page book, The New Perspective on Paul: An Introduction, Yinger studies the history of NPP via E.P Sanders 1977 publication of Paul and Palestinian Judaism: A comparison of Patterns of Religion. He details Sanders views and main arguments of NPP in the book since these are what laid the groundwork for the new perspective. He uses historical background and an outline format in each chapter as a method to illustrate new aspects to the perspective of Paul. Yinger, who is pro-NPP, attempts to introduce these topics in lame terms to prevent confusion and create clarity in understanding the new
Message: Paul’s Final Greetings from the Jail Cell After reviewing the passages in Book of Philippians it was very apparent that Paul had a beginning and end story to tell & write about. The Final Greeting: is the most intriguing part of book of Philippians which depicts the events that lead up to the writing in which he wrote the four (epistles) letters from the jail cell, and the shortest of them all were that of which came from the smaller books listed in our New Testament Bible. The shortcomings of the message had such a powerful influence that one should be able to hear if not see that the message was giving thanks to Philippians Church people.
He questions how the empirical validity influences the spiritual myth. The reader of the “Paul statement” can infer not only Paul’s perceptions, but also their own regarding the passages while overlooking the historicity of the Pauline statement. Similarly Paul’s experiences within the context of the reading provide validity for while influencing the reader’s own experience. This mythologizing of the text allows a bridge between the original message and what is relevant to the reader within the empiricism of the text.
The letter then ends with Paul saying that he explained the best he
Throughout Paul’s letter to the Galatians, Paul argues that adhering to the circumcision requirement prescribed by the law will not bring one into a covenantal relationship with God. Rather, receiving God’s inheritance depends solely on God’s actions. By that logic, Paul reasons that the inclusion of Gentiles into God’s covenant is the result of God’s sovereign will the, and the Gentile’s willingness to take on the law’s requirement of circumcision has no bearing on God’s choice to adopt. In fact, the pericope of Galatians 4:1-7 suggests that strictly adhering to the law can impede one from experiencing the benefits of inclusion into the promise because it involves a glorification of human striving rather than a resignation to the sovereign
“Then maybe it was God,” I said.” 254 The character of Paul Bonin alludes to the conversion of the Apostle Paul from the new testament. Paul’s witness to Jefferson’s conversion dramatically changes his moral code and life. 14.
Paul Washer delivers a dire appeal to the Christian pastors and church leaders that have been believing and teaching a false gospel. He lists ten indictments against the modern Church system in America. His first indictment, that he explained, was about the denial of the sufficiency of scripture. Paul told the audience about how the social sciences have taken precedent over the Bible and have become a primary influence in the churches. He questioned, if the Bible is sufficient or do we have to bring in every so called social science and cultural study in order to know how to run a church?
This quoted evidence illustrates the depths of Paul’s
In my opinion James and Paul do not disagree in their teaching regarding salvation. They approached the same subject from different perspectives and delivered the emphasized on the fact that genuine faith in Christ produces good works. Paul was worried about the salvation of the people as well. In his writings he let know that receiving salvation is a gift of God and that no one can purchase salvation thru good works alone. Paul wrote to the Galatians out of a deep concern that they were forsaking the gospel, that he preached.
However, he also believed that salvation came through faith in Jesus Christ rather than by obeying Jewish law. His criticism of Jewish legalism was not directed at Jewish people as a whole, but at a specific group of Jewish religious leaders who were promoting a distorted view of the law. Paul’s major point of discontent seems to have been Jewish Christians trying to pressure gentile converts into following the law of Moses.
What is the big deal about Galatians? The question about Galatians has a spiritual answer that gave me the insight to understand what Christianity went through to stay focus on the truth of God. From reading our text, the work of infiltration from other beliefs has caused a group of churches in Galatia to have serious issues by worshiping other gods. The Galatians were noted for their impetuousness, fickleness, and love for new and curious things in life, but had their reasons. Different non-Christians leaders epitomized their belief by controlling or manipulating others who believed in the real God.
Paul’s pneumatology found in his writings has been a matter of interest in recent New Testament scholarship. Gordon Fee has been a great contributor in this area and in Paul, the Spirit and the People of God he outlines the various elements found in Pauline pneumatology giving us greater insight into this subject. In this paper I will highlight some of these elements that are unique to Paul and are not found in the Synoptic Gospels and Acts. The first distinctive of Pauline pneumatology is the way he sees the Spirit as God’s personal presence. For Paul, the coming of the Spirit meant that God had fulfilled the promises He had made to Jeremiah and Ezekiel when He said, ‘I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel’ (Jer. 31:31), and