Welcome back to the Men’s Huddle Bible study as we continue to look at the second missionary journey of the apostle Paul and his companions. Last week, we looked at the first half of Paul’s second trip. Paul and his companions faced opposition and were even thrown in jail, but that did not stop them from spreading the Word of the Lord. We left off where Paul and his companions went to Lydia’s house before they left. This morning open your Bibles to Acts, chapter 17. Follow along as I read the first 10 verses:
Now when they had traveled through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. And according to Paul’s custom, he went to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and giving evidence that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus whom I am proclaiming to you is the Christ.” And some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, along with a large number of the God-fearing Greeks and a number of the leading women. But the Jews, becoming jealous and taking along some wicked men from the market place, formed a mob and set the city in an uproar; and attacking the house of Jason, they were seeking to bring them out to the people. When they did not find them, they began dragging Jason and some brethren before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have upset the world have come here also; 7 and Jason has welcomed them, and they all act contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus.” They stirred up the crowd and the city authorities who heard these things. And when they had received a pledge from Jason and the others, they released them. The brethren immediately sen...
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...l notice that Paul “cut his hair” as part of keeping a vow. In the Old Testament the Israelites had Nazarites, who were holy men. They vowed not to cut their hair or drink wine. One would cut their hair when the vow started – Paul may have cut his hair, indicating the vow was over. It could be that Paul was faithful to Judaism and went through a purification process before making his way to Jerusalem. After arriving in Ephesus the three parted ways. Aquila and Priscilla remained in Ephesus, while Paul made his way to Jerusalem. Luke ends the second missionary journey abruptly. After arriving in Jerusalem, Paul “greeted the church” and made his way to Antioch. This completes Paul’s second missionary trip. Next week, we will take a look at Paul’s final missionary trip to end our study. I hope this has been a blessing to you as it has been for me. God bless you all.
Paul the Apostle, was a famous preacher of first century Christianity and was God’s tool used to spread the light of the gospel to the Gentiles. Paul is credited fir having written many books in the New Testament of the Bible. He was born an Israelite to a clan of the tribe of Benjamin, speaking the Aramaic and Hebrew tongues from infancy. He was an enthusiastic student and a stringent devotee of the Torah. He was the man that later had a peculiar meeting with the Lord Jesus Christ while on the road to Damascus. His life and duty were considerably altered and in turn eventually changed the course of the development of Western Civilization and culture.
Paul reasserts the authenticity and authority of his apostleship in this section. He does so by describing the unique manner by which he was called to into the Lord’s service (cf. Acts 9:1- 18). Years subsequent to the apostle’s special call (i.e., 3 and 14 years, respectively), he met some of the other apostles (i.e., Peter, James). It was crucial that Paul reassert and defend his divine appointment so that his message to the deceived Galatian believers would be regarded as legitimately apostolic and thus authorative. ...
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.
Saul agreed that Jesus was the true Son of God and said that he would go to the Gentiles (Non-Jews) and preach the word of the Gospel of Christ.
Like most New Testament literature, Romans is an epistle. Typically epistles are comprised by five key points:
Pope John Paul II was not just a revolutionary Pope, but was also a revolutionary influence from the 20th century. His actions changed the course of history, ranging from the end of communism in Poland to improving the Catholic Church's relations with other religions. John Paul II witnessed humanity at its worst. He lived through the Nazi occupation of Poland. He also experienced the Soviet occupation of Poland. Even through these dark times, John had managed to keep on his faith and humanity.
People have been struggling with the writings of the Apostle Paul from the time he first walked on this earth and began proclaiming the gospel all over the eastern part of the world. However, over the past 50 years the debate has intensified as leading scholars have come to different interpretations of Paul’s literature. This has led to a reexamination of Paul’s writings and the articulation of a strong defense of one’s beliefs about the historical Paul. This paper is being written in order to articulate some of the newer positions pertaining to Pauline Research and to provide some possible implications from their outcomes. The new perspectives on Paul can be rather confusing for the general layperson, so it is the goal of this paper to clarify and explain these new positions in contrast to the prevalent and classically held orthodox view that contains many doctrines that the church has stood upon for years.
On the road to Damascus, Paul received a calling to become “an instrument whom [YHWH] chose to bring my name before Gentiles [ethne or “nations”] and kings and before the people of Israel” (Acts 9:15). The Ioudaioi or Judeans would be considered as part of the people of Israel. Therefore, Paul had the responsibility to persuade the Ioudaioi that justice and salvation come about through Jesus Christ alone (Romans 5:12-21). A lot of the Ioudaioi believed that justice is obtained through following nomos or “law or custom”. Paul debated with the Ioudaioi in order to successfully persuade them to believe his viewpoint. This was done by means of his three missionary trips (H G-33) and by him writing letters to the ekklesia in various cities.
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.
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.
The Book of Acts was written to provide a history of the early church. Acts emphasis the importance of the day of Pentecost and being empowered to be effective witnesses for Jesus Christ. Acts sheds light on the ministry gift of the Holy Spirit, which empowers, guides, teaches, and serves as our Counselor. When reading the Book of Acts many of the readers will be enlightened and encouraged by the many miracles that were being performed during this time by the disciples Peter, John, and Paul. The Book of Acts emphasizes the importance of obedience to God’s Word and the transformation that occurs as a result of knowing Christ. There are also many references to those that rejected the truth that the disciples preached about in Jesus Christ. Power, greed, and many other vices of the devil or evidenced in the book of Acts. Acts 1:8 serves as a good summary of the Book of Acts. Acts records the apostles being Christ's witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the rest of the surrounding world.
Paul's first missionary journey was to the island of Cyprus. Salamis was there first destination on the island. During his stay in Salamis Paul and Barnabas preached in the Jewish synagogues, while John also ministered with them. The next stop Paul and Barnabas made was Paphos at the almost opposite end of Cyprus. While in Paphos they found a Governor called Sergius Paulus who wanted to hear their teachings. However, the Governor had sorcerer, Elymas, in his company, who did not want him to hear the word of God. Paul being filled with the Holy Ghost admonished Elymas and said, "O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season" (Acts 13:10-11). Elymas being struck blind astonished the Governor and he believed the word of the Lord that apostles had spoken to him. After leaving Paphos John returned to Jerusalem.
Angered by his futile efforts to stop the spread of Christianity, Paul prepared a trip to Damascus, where he had heard many Christians were hiding. Not only were they hiding, they were also preaching Christ in the synagogues there. So, accompanied by a troop of armed temple guards, Paul rode out of Jerusalem to the city of Damascus, which was about one hundred and fifty miles away. As they neared the outer edge of the city, a shaft of light much brighter than the noonday sun suddenly fell upon the little company. The group fell to the ground trying to protect their eyes from the blinding light. A voice from heaven spoke to Paul. "Paul, Paul, why persecutest thou me?" Then Paul asked, "Who art thou, Lord?" The voice replied, "I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou persecutest." Then Paul asked what he should do. Jesus answered "Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do.
First major theme of the book of Acts is the work of the Holy Spirit in the apostles and the early church. Jesus appeared to his disciples and commanded them not to leave Jerusalem but wait for the gift, the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:3b-5) As they gathered together and prayed in one place, the Holy Spirit came to rest on each of them (2:1-3). The disciples who were filled with the Holy Spirit boldly proclaimed God’s word and performed miracles (2:14-42, 3:1-10). Throughout the book, the author focuses on how the Holy Spirt ministers the apostles and the believers in their lives and the community.
The beginnings of my life are an interesting jumble, and they highlight the cosmopolitan world that was the Roman Empire. I was born in an Asian city now located on the southern coast of Turkey called Tarsus in about the year 10. My parents were Jewish, presumably strict Pharisees. They were also Roman citizens.