Paul’s Letters: Jesus the Universal Lord

1. CHAPTER EIGHT Paul’s Letters: Jesus the Universal Lord

2. Life of St. Paul - Saul of Tarsus, future St. Paul, was an extraordinary disciple of Jesus - 13 of 27 New Testament books are attributed to him but he probably only wrote seven - He persecuted Christians before his revelation - Was baptized by Ananias - His upbringing in Tarsus made him familiar with Gentile religions, philosophies, and customs

3. -Paul engaged in three extensive missionary journeys: Journey 1 Island of Cyprus and the Asia Minor locales

4. Antioch was starting point and visited first journey locations and other cities Journey 2

5. Antioch was again the starting point. He revisited some cities from his second journey, but remained in Ephesus for three years Journey 3

6. Letters of Paul 1 Thessalonians - Earliest NT writing • Dates from only twenty years after Jesus’ life - Encourages Thessalonians, defends his proclamation of the gospel, shares news of his travel plans, and addresses two issues: 1.) Advised the Thessalonians to remain holy 2.) Assured them that Christians who had died would rise one day and live with the Lord forever

7. Letters of Paul Galatians - First of Paul’s so-called “great” letters - Paul expresses anger toward the Jewish-Christian evangelists who introduced division in his Galatian churches - Doctrinal section of Paul’s letters answers his opponents charges - Paul uses a scriptural argument to defend the truth that faith brings about a right relationship with God

8. Letters of Paul Philemon - Paul encourages his friend Philemon to accept back his runaway slave as his brother - Paul does not want Philemon to punish the slave, and hints towards freeing him. - Paul is trying to show that the slave is also transformed in Jesus Christ, and therefore a brother

9. Letters of Paul 1 Corinthians - Corinth had a reputation for permitting every known vice and being immoral - Paul wrote a letter to warn them away from immorality - Body of the letter has the following themes: • Divisions in the Corinthian church • Problems in Christian morality and living • Problems in Christian worship • The Resurrection

10. Letters of Paul 2 Corinthians - Neither the first nor second letter had much impact, so Paul wrote a third letter harshly critical of Corinthian abuse (letter is now lost) • Major problem this time was false teachers who had influenced the Corinthians to go against teachings of Paul - Titus brought good news about Corinthians: they were beginning to respond to Paul’s word and reject false teachings

11. Letters of Paul 2 Corinthians - In response to good news, Paul wrote 2 Corinthians - The body of the work deals with: • Paul’s past relationships with the Corinthians • His ministry among them • Praise for their repentance • Appeal for the collection for the church in Jerusalem • Defense of his ministry against false teachers

12. Letters of Paul Romans - Paul’s letter of introduction to the Christians living in Rome - Longest letter and his deepest theologically - Treats in more detail some themes Paul introduced in Galatians - Central theme is: Faith in Jesus’ death and resurrection reconciles us to God

13. Letters of Paul 5 Key Points in Romans: A description of the human condition before Christ Justification through faith in Christ Salvation and Christian freedom God’s plan for Israel Christian behavior

14. Deuteropauline Letters - Six letters might have been written by a close disciple of Paul - Reflect Paul’s thought, but have different vocabulary, style, theological themes, content, and historical context

15. Deuteropauline Letters 2 Thessalonians - Some thought Paul wrote it shortly after his first letter to the Thessalonians to address a misunderstanding about his teaching about the resurrection -Current scholars favor that it is a pseudonymous letter • Written under someone else’s name -Readers are told that Jesus will not come again until certain signs take place - People need to prepare themselves with patience and prayer

16. Deuteropauline Letters Colossians -Colossian, Philippians, Philemon, and Ephesians are the “Captivity Letters” • Each reveal that its author was imprisoned - Few doubt that Paul wrote Philemon and Philippians - Scholars believe one of Paul’s disciples wrote Ephesians and Colossians - Colossians was written to counteract some teachings that claimed Christ’s death and resurrection were not enough for salvation

17. Deuteropauline Letters Ephesians - Likely the work of a secretary or admirer of Paul - Draws out more explicitly some of the themes in Colossians - More of an essay than a letter Body has two main divisions: 1.) Mystery of salvation related to the Church 2.) Paul’s exhortation to Christians to live in unity

18. Deuteropauline Letters 1 and 2 Timothy and Titus - “Pastoral Letters” • Written by one pastor (shepherd) to two other pastors • Addressed to individuals • Give advice on Church leadership

19. Deuteropauline Letters Key Teachings of Titus and 1 Timothy: - Severe warning against false teachings and teachers - Many practical instructions for Church organization - Instructions for Christian worship - Instructions for Christian living - 2 Timothy is more of a personal letter, a last testament from the older apostle to Timothy

20. Vocabulary • Asceticism • Deuteropauline • Gnosticism • Pseudonymous