Paul is ecstatic about what the Gospel accomplishes. We all should be. So what is it that Paul is so excited about? They have everything to do with the word ‘mystery’ in verse 3 and ‘mystery of Christ’ in verse 4 that Paul used (chapter 3?). Whatever the mystery refers to, its revelation has had a tremendous influence on Paul’s life and ministry. Mystery, in the Greek language, refers to a truth unveiled rather than as in English a truth still hidden. Paul essentially says that in verse five, “Which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed to His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit” (Ephesians 3:5). Notice
‘which in other generations was not made known’ with ‘it has now been revealed.’
The
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They are no longer two bodies but one. We should remember, that though this does not seem to be a big problem today, but it was a great problem in the early church. At the sound of the word ‘Gentiles’ the Jews surged toward Paul to kill him. This was the beginning of a long trip to Rome in which he faced trumped up charges much like Christ for which he now was in prison.
And He said to me, ‘Go! For I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’ And they listened to him up to this statement, and then they raised their voices and said, “Away with such a fellow from the earth, for he should not be allowed to live!” (Acts 22:21, 22).
Paul says this very thing in Ephesians 3:6, “To be specific, that the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel,” (Ephesians
3:6). Until Christ’s resurrection, if one wanted to belong to God’s people, they would have to first become a Jew. There was no other way. If you wanted to worship the holy God, then you had to become one of
God’s people. People claim that this was unfair, but we should recognize that God revealed Himself
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Man’s separation from God and man’s division among mankind. The first chapters clearly depict this and the rest of Bible and history prove it. The Gospel restores communion between God and man as well as reconciles man with man. It is here we see the power of the Gospel. This multifaceted reconciliation takes place on different levels and because of it [future emphasizes the deep connection of what is said in the first part of the book with the later.]-Not sure what this is stating. First, Paul speaks about how God initiated and brought about full restoration of man with God. The love of God is so wonderfully manifest here. Later on, though, man is instructed how he is to maintain the fullness of the relationship with God. For example, as children of God, we are to conduct ourselves in a manner after the Heavenly Father (Ephesians 5:1-8). If holiness befits God, then it is mandatory for us. Second, we see this development between man and man. God creates one body to serve Him. He calls all sorts of people from varying backgrounds to comprise His church. This church manifests the Gospel by in harmony (Ephesians 4:1-5) but also by overcoming the old man so that he can rightly live with. True unity can then only come about when man really experiences change in how he handles his bitterness and lives from a heart of love. The accompanying diagram depicts how Jesus Christ through the work on the cross has secured for us the unity of the Spirit. There
In this passage of the second letter to the Corinthians, Paul addresses several concerns. He is addressing the situation of a man who has sinned not only against himself, but against the Corinthian Church as well. He explains why he wrote a letter rather than bringing sorrow upon them. Paul is sensitive to the Lord’s leading, and in love, writes to the church encouraging them to discipline this man in love for the purpose of restoring him. He urges the Corinthians to be obedient and love the man through forgiving and encouraging him. Paul shares with them his trust in the Lord for the outcome of this matter and how burdened he was for restoration to take place. He warns them of the need to not allow Satan a foothold through this matter. Finally, Paul puts the focus on Christ; for it is in Him that we are adequate thereby becoming His fragrance to others.
After his conversion to Christianity, Paul traveled throughout the Roman Empire and preached the Gospel, similar to Jesus’ own ministry across Galilee. Paul’s teachings were more focused on the community and the relationships of its members with each other and with non-Christians, whereas Jesus’ teachings were geared towards the individual and his/her personal relationship to God. Despite this discrepancy in their doctrines, Paul’s teachings remain consistent with those of Jesus. In his First Letter to the Corinthians, Paul’s teachings, such as unity in the community and love for others, echo the teachings of Jesus as depicted in the Gospel of Mark and Matthew. Paul essentially reiterates the teachings of Jesus, and applies them to the lives of the people he preaches to, so that they may understand Jesus’ teachings and embrace Christianity.
His aim is to teach his audience how they can be saved from the price and power of their own sin. Paul says that the root of man’s spiritual distance from God is found in his sin. He tells us that Jews and Gentiles are all alike through sin and that no man is righteous. There is no difference between the two because all have sinned, however, all are redeemed by the acts of Jesus Christ and have been justified in their sins if they have faithfulness. He uses Abraham as an example to this. Though Abraham may not have been an heir to the world under the law, he received righteousness through his faith. He says that those who have been justified by faith will have peace through God. Not only so, but we also have glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope(5:3-4). Paul illustrates a connection between the gospel and everyday life. He tells us not to conform to the
Ephesians is comprised of six chapters and is considered a Deutero-Pauline epistle meaning that it is considered dispute. In other words, Ephesians is thought to perhaps not been written by the apostle Paul. The audience that this book is directed towards are the people of Ephesus who are already considered to be following Christ (Ephesians 1:1). Later, in Ephesians 2:11, the author states that the audience was previously considered to be Gentiles but had since been converted into followers of Christ.
The rest of this letter to the Philippians is much more praise and thanks from Paul. The interesting part about this and something to remember is that Paul is in fact imprisoned and rather than complaining about his situation, he takes the opportunity to give God the glory. Paul in fact uses the word “joy” sixteen times throughout this letter and overall that is a summary of what he is expressing to the Philippians. Rather than Paul merely rebuking the Philippians and making a laundry list of all the things they were doing incorrectly, Paul was taking delight in knowing that the Philippians were doing God’s will. Along with this, ...
The letter of Ephesians is the tenth book in the New Testament, its authorship is attributed to Paul after his conversion from a persecutor of Christians to apostle. The legitimacy of his authorship is still debated by scholars. Harold Hoehner in his book “Ephesians: An Exegetical Commentary,” lists a number of reasons why many scholars reject Paul as the author. But, for the purposes of this exegetical Paul is considered the author of the letter.
‘So Peter opened his mouth and said “Truly I understand God shows no partiality”’ (Acts 10:34)
Paul the Apostle is the central figure in many New Testament writings. Many historians have attributed fourteen New Testament letters to Paul’s writing; seven of these letters are uncontested meaning historians are sure that Paul wrote them, the remaining seven are contested. Paul was not always a Christian; in fact, he persecuted Christians before Christ came and temporarily blinded him. Upon seeing Christ, Paul devoted his life to Christianity and set out to spread the teachings of Christ. Scholars often credit Paul’s leadership to the ability of the Church to become Hellenistic in one generation. Paul also answered specific worries and questions that his converters may have had in many of his writings; one of these writings is 1 Corinthians. In 1 Corinthians, Paul set out to deal with the many believers in Corinth who are divided into the followings of Paul or Apollos rather than Christianity as a whole. The converts of Paul in 1 Corinthians 12-14 were divided during times of worship because of jealousy invoked by the spiritual gifts received from the “Spirit”; the worships and the church became a place to boast who is closest to God, instead of a place of worship, interpretation, and love. In 1 Corinthians 14:26-33, Paul set guidelines in times of worship to heal the divide among his converts present in 1 Corinthians 12-14.
Analysis of biblical writings has helped us to better understand the challenges and mysteries of scripture. In studying Ephesians 1: 15-23, research will help us draw out the bigger picture of what the writer intends to convey in his message. This passage is a prayer of thanksgiving and intercession in which Paul expresses gratitude to God upon hearing of the Ephesians “faith in the Lord Jesus and love toward all the saints” (1: 15 NRSV). This leads Paul to pray intensively that the Ephesians will gain an expanded awareness of the extraordinary and unsurpassed power of God manifested on their behalf. Paul writes this as encouragement and support to the readers.
Paul also seemed to believe that since everything was according to God’s will that God created a state around and for the Israelites. A big portion of this gospel is also dedicated to the spreading of the gospel to everyone, even the gentiles. While there were some people that Paul considered ‘weak’ Christians, Paul still believe that the gospel was for them as well.
“Paul wrote his letter to the church in Corinth during the winter A.D. 56-57” (“An Introduction To The Book Of Romans | Bible.org”) to the faithful Jews who had established this church. Paul wanted to meet them face-to-face and provided this letter as his introduction until he could travel there. Paul’s message begins by addressing human identity in which everyone is ungodly and unrighteous. He tells us that we all have sinned, rebelled and not followed God’s will. The sinful way of humanity keeps us a part for God, although He has clearly shown His marvelous wonder since creating the world and through his Son Jesus Christ.
The books of I and II Thessalonians, which are in the New Testament, are both letters to a church that Paul the apostle helped establish in the city of Thessalonica. First Thessalonians is agreed by biblical scholars to be written by Paul. The author of II Thessalonians, however, is still being debated about.
Paul summarizes all this preaching in seventeen stanzas by referring to the "Spirit" and the "Flesh." We are first introduced by Paul of these topics/words in his letter to the Galatians. Paul contrasts the two ways of living in a community in chapter five of Galatians. "Spirit" is the caring of others and builds interpersonal relationships within a community. The "Flesh" is a self centeredness and a natural way to live of only caring for oneself. The "works of the flesh" will break apart a community.
About 25 percent of the occurrences of σάρξ are directly concerned with kinship relations to Abraham or David (see 1:3; 4:1; 9:3; 9:5; 9:8; 11:14). About 75 percent relates the human inability to fulfill the law (see 3:20; 6:19; 7:5; 7:18; 7:25; 8:3a; 8:4; 8:5; 8:6; 8:7; 8:8; 8:12; 8:13; 13:14). This is not how certain passages traditionally have been understood, but it is possible that Paul simply refutes kinship identity as a means for salvation also in this letter. As Jewett, Stendahl and others have emphasized, Paul’s view of the lesser significance of the collective identity is a major theme of this letter.7 In Romans, Paul describes God’s action in sending Jesus in the “likeness of sinful σάρξ,” on account of sin, to condemn sin in the σάρξ (Rom 8:3b). Paul also exhorts the addressees that they must not care too much about that which belongs to the σάρξ (13:14).
The church is not a dormant, stationary entity but it is a living organism that serves humanity by providing them with an opportunity to experience and encounter God. It is true that mankind is in desperate need of God, this condition is reflected in the depreciation of the morals and values of society. Man has forgotten to honor their creator, but God in His mercy has provided the church as an anchor for communities and families to find their way back to Him. The truest definition of what a church is, is revealed in Ephesians 2, this chapter uncovers some fundamental truths about the purpose of the church: it’s a place where people with new found identities in Christ can gather and become part of the household of God, where Christ