A letter from a prison for the Christian freedom Paul writes a letter from a prison in Rome to the Christians of Colossae admonishing and encouraging them that Christ and his gospel will free them from the heretical human regulations being imposed on them. (Colossians 2:6-23) He assures them that Christ has freed them from debts of sins by canceling the record of all sins through death on the cross. (Colossians 2:14) The background of the Letter to the Colossians Colossae was a part of the Roman province of Asia Minor, which is now Turkey. When Paul was in a Roman prison, Epaphras, leader of the church in Colossae, came to Paul in Rome with news about the church of Colossae. Epaphras informed Paul that the Colossians were troubled by a new …show more content…
Paul asserts that Christians have no need for human philosophy and wisdom to be complete since they are complete in Christ, in whom they have the divine wisdom of his gospel and the perfect, complete salvation. 3) Redemption through Christ Paul asserts that Christ who is the true God, the Creator and Sustainer of the universe is the Savior and God-Man who reconciled by his blood the sinners of the world to God, and he is the power of faith since were baptized into Christ’s death and resurrection. (Colossians 2:12) God keeps the faithful alive with Christ. By nailing the code of law to the cross, Christ obtained forgiveness for sins and canceled the legal code. (Colossians 2:13-14) 4) How to live a Christian life Paul directs the Colossians how they should live as true Christians. The third chapter of his letter reminds them to think about the things in heaven, because they belong with Christ. He advises them to put to death what is worldly in their lives, by destroying egoism, wickedness and envy. (Colossians 3:2-5). Instead, they are encouraged to love other people (Colossians 3:12-14), strengthen themselves with the Word of God and be grateful to God (Colossians 3:15-17). In this chapter, Paul details the duties of wives, husbands, children and servants to be fruitful in their Christian life. He reminds everyone the ethics of being loyal, respectful, and
...of defense into a triumphant presentation of gospel in the Letter to the Galatians. The requirement of Galatians to follow the Law of Moses in order to convert to Christianity is proven invalid by Paul, who teaches that faith in Christ and living by the Spirit is essential to the religion—not following gratuitous rules of the flesh. Paul offers guidance for the audience on how to follow the gospel he teaches in contrast to the strict and changeable rules his opposition forces upon the Galatians. By using an appeal to ethos to build his credibility with the audience, an appeal to logos to explain the triviality of the traditional laws of Judaism, and allegories to provide the innovative interpretation of God as a father to his followers, Paul is able to successfully spread his gospel of faith in Christ and living by the Spirit to the Galatians and other audiences.
justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus”. This is the message that Paul asserts from his introductory comments in chapter one to his closing comments in chapter six.
Jesus may have founded Christianity, but it is thanks to the revolutionary and enduring groundwork Paul laid that it exists in such a diverse, living and dynamic way. Following the death and resurrection of Jesus, Christianity was fledging. Persecuted at every turn, the early followers of Christ were plagued with uncertainty of what their religion should look like, rife with inconsistencies and false testimonies of Jesus and his messages. Thankfully, salvation was found for early Christians when Paul began his support and development of the Church, having a seismic role in solidifying much of the beliefs and practices that existed in the early Church, results of his work still forming the bedrock of modern Christianity and it...
With possibly fourteen of the twenty-seven books in the New Testament, and no less than seven attributed to him, the Apostle Paul of Tarsus undoubtedly altered and continues to alter the course of Christianity. Through his extensive mission work, preaching, and letter writing, Paul has left behind an immense legacy that few people in history can compare to. To this day, some two thousand years later, Paul and his writings are extensively researched, discussed, and debated across all of Christianity and much of the non-Christian world. For most practicing Christians, Paul’s teachings from his letters hold extreme weight and significance in their attempt to follow the teachings and life of Jesus in conjunction with the Bible. One such writing of Paul’s that was canonized into the Bible is his letter to the church at Philippi. This work will serve as an introduction to the Pauline epistle of Philippians.
“In flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power.” (Thessalonians 1:8, 9). The Middle Ages was a time of death, pain and superstition; no one could escape God’s judgment. When the Roman Empire fell, The Church had created an everlasting clutch of control over the people. If one did not obey The Church, they were excommunicated and labeled heretics, cast out into the world with no spiritual guidance, never to see the light of God again. However, The Church also offered hope and a chance of salvation in a time that was inevitably grim and solitary. This statement will be proven the through the analysis of The Church’s rise to power, the threat of heretics, the effects of excommunication and inderdictment. The role of monks and nuns in the medieval society, the use of sins and the idea of heaven and hell and how The Church used sacraments to gain control of people’s lives will also be discussed to prove this statement. Christianity is based upon the teachings of a Jewish man named Jesus. He encouraged people to act out of compassion instead of self interest, to tolerate difference and work towards reducing the suffering of less fortunate beings. However, Roman Emperors, Nero, Decius and Valerian, persecuted those who practiced Christianity; regarding the worshiping non-Roman gods as treason. It wasn’t until later in the Empire’s development that Christianity became more accepted.
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.
Walvoord, John F., Roy B. Zuck, and Harnold W. Hoehner. "Colossians." The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures. Wheaton, IL: Victor, 1983. 613-45. Print.
Throughout the first 400 years that Christianity was present in the world it changed dramatically. It started small in an area near the eastern Mediterranean area but within these 400 years, it grew to encompass the whole of the Mediterranean and its surrounding. Throughout this time of growth, there was also much change within the beliefs of Christianity with the main belief centering around Jesus Christ. While Christianity grew and made it to new areas it was introduced to new people that interpreted the different scriptures and preaching of what it meant to be a Christian. Some of the most influential writings in these years came from Irenaeus of Lyons, a second-century writer, Christian, theologian, and bishop. He expressed his beliefs of what made a Christian a Christian within his writing. One of his most famous writings, The Demonstration of the Apostolic Preaching, highlights the idea of the Holy Trinity and the Rule of Faith in the interpretation of the bible. Irenaeus believed that the Rule of Faith was ultimately necessary and required when reading and interpreting the word of Christianity saying, in the words of Isaiah, “If ye believe not, neither shall ye understand” (paragraph 3). In the eyes of Irenaeus, the Rule of Faith is one of the main things that makes a Christian a Christian.
Christianity, originally, was thought of as an outsider religion, and wasn’t accepted by most Romans. The Romans could learn to live with other religions, but not when they were harmful to public order. At one point, Romans viewed it to be just that. Christians tended ...
The God Paul spoke about did not seem at all necessary due to their great success. As a matter of fact, during the Age of Chaos (A.D. 235 – 284) Christians were persecuted. Many secular historians believe it is because Christianity is a cult. The reason it is explained as a cult is because for over four-hundred years, the accepted religions were religions formed by man and Christians would go to the death for their belief just like anyone else. Somehow this placed them into a cult by modern historians, and now Christianity is a result of a cult also believed by modern historians. However, also during this time leaders were dying, there were many revolts, there were plagues, and there were also fires. To top off this period, a new ruler came whose name was Diocletian and split the Roman Empire in two. He added junior emperors, which resulted in now four Caesars. When there is a change in leadership, a civil war erupts. The next leaders will change the Roman Empire for
Jesus and Paul are two crucial characters in the New Testament. They both depict the Gospel on which Christianity is based upon, but there is debate about rather these two versions of the Gospel are complementary. Scholars like George Shaw claim that Paul is “anti-Christian,” and he “produced a fantastic theology” (Shaw 415-416). On the other hand, I believe that even though Jesus and Paul may present the Gospel different at times, they are still advocating the same religion. Through the understanding of the Gospels and Paul’s letters it is clear that Jesus and Paul have the same underlining goals and values.
Upon reading his letters on the accounts of Jesus, I am deeply disturbed by Paul’s numerous contradictions, jarring hypocrisies, blatant anti-Semitism, and demeaning antifeminism. Even more troubling is Paul’s consistent failure to not ever quote Jesus, but to make the recipients of his letters rely solely on the fact that God and Jesus consecrated him, Paul—according to Paul, himself (of course). Paul believes that he has been chosen, much like Abraham, Noah, Moses and the Prophets to carry out Jesus’ demands of how people should live until Jesus returns. However, unlike Abraham, Noah, Moses, and the Prophets, Paul does not dictate t...
In these letters Paul provides the most complete statement of the doctrine in the New Testament. If want to know the ins and outs of Christianity, let people check out the writings of Paul to the Romans. So says a notable interpreter. Because of that this note on Romans should earnestly by every Christian, as very important and contains the full spiritual object.
The Apostle Paul is known as the greatest missionary of the early church. Paul, who once vowed to wipe out belief in Jesus Christ, was later converted to do the work of Christ. He would author almost half of the 27 books in the New Testament. He endured sickness, rejection, and repeated attacks on his life to bring the message of God's grace and forgiveness to Gentiles. Paul was the apostle largely responsible for the solid inception and growth of Christianity. He spoke before Jews, Greeks, and Romans. Paul is known as the apostle to the Gentiles. He defended God's Word before kings and emperors of this world. By the end of his life, much of the Mediterranean world had been reached with the gospel.
Christianity is a religion that is extremely prevalent in many people’s lives today and is extremely. It has roots that date back to around the first century CE. Christianity is based off the life and oral teachings from Jesus of Nazareth within the New Testament (Christianity Origin Online). Ever since the discovery of Christianity, the Christian faith has had a rather large impact on the rest of the world, with nearly 2.5 billion followers and counting (Christianity Online). With the widespread teachings of Christianity becoming much more common, Christianity has had a significant influence on not only specific people, but within cities and one in particular, is Rome. Within this paper, I will explain to you exactly how Christianity influenced the Roman society in a great deal of ways, politically, culturally, and religiously. I will also elaborate on how the Roman culture further shaped the ideas of Christianity and continued spreading the teachings of Christianity to Western Europe. Lastly, I will explain Augustine’s views on God and how he views the Christian faith.