Augustine's Letter To The Ephesians

During that time, not only did he face numerous bouts of “soul searching,” he also engaged in intellectual examinations of events often viewed as acts of dissidence. Whether by acting out his erotic desires or by playful thievery, Augustine delved into examining the nature of sin as a means of understanding man’s true intentions with every action. As Augustine discussed and acted out his sexual desires, he stood firm to his idea that he did it out of an innocent need for love. In addition, Augustine’s pear theft acted as a means of showing that one who commits a criminal offense may not fully understand all of the implications it may hold for that person.

Paul wrote the letter to Ephesus in regards to Christians and how their lives should be directed and it explains how Christ has made the ultimate sacrifice and the results of that sacrifice. Some of the results and benefits include spiritual blessings, the gift of salvation through hearing the word of the truth, and the ability to grow closer to God. Also in Paul’s letter, it provides Christians, new and old, an instruction booklet of how we should live our lives according to how God would want us Christians to live our lives. Such information includes what roads are needed to take in order to get closer to God, how achieve spiritual gifts and powers from the Holy Spirit, and the way to protect against the attacks from the evil one. Ephesians 3:16-18 is spoken in the second part of Paul’s letter when he talks about the gift of salvation. Paul prays that his people may be fulfilled with the power through his Spirit in the inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your heart through faith.

Paul’s letters are more difficult to interpret than they seem because they are occasional documents. They were written for a specific reason to a specific group with specific instruction for their situation. These letters contain valuable instruction for us, but only when we have an understanding of what the occasion was that these letters were written.

In Ephesians 3, Paul announces himself as a prisoner of Christ Jesus, for the sake of the people. Paul is almost a messenger, he tells the people to live a worthy life, to love one another, and to form a united front in the name of Christ Jesus who gave his life for them. Paul urges the people to follow in God’s footsteps and to be virtuous people, he wants them to live faithful, loving, pure lives as Jesus did. He tells his followers not to let the immoral things suck you in, to ignore the hate, the greed, the deception, and to live as they are “children of the light” (Ephesians 5:8). Paul wants the people to believe in Christ because he has seen Jesus first hand after his blindness being cured and after the resurrection, Paul wants people to live lives that are worthy enough for God, and if you do decent things and are not selfish, Christ will shine on you, bring you light. The rules in the book of Ephesians are given to the people, which say that your actions should reflect what was given up for you, Jesus’ life for the forgiveness of sin. Ephesians is a book of unity of God’s people and tells us the do’s and don’ts of the gentiles. Paul is the leader and spreads the message of God, he explains what is right and what is wrong, while also aiding the people so that they may be in the good grace of God. Good

Paul's wrote four letters or PRISON epistles while in prison during his journeys, they were; Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians and Philemon. I doubt Paul expected to be thrown in prison but he knew he would be persecuted. He made a bad situation work for him and continued to preach and write gospels. Paul was a very good teacher and devout follower of Christ; he traveled thousands of miles, founded churches, preached wherever he could and endured horrific conditions. Paul was Forgiving-In the Book of Philemon when Onesimus, a slave, ran away from his master, Philemon, he ended up meeting Paul. Paul knew he was a thief and he was also friends with Philemon. After that meeting, Onesimus became converted and Paul wrote to Philemon, asking him

After a brief greeting Paul states his concern for the church in Galatia (1:1-6). The church is rejecting the message that Paul gave them in favor of different teaching. Paul condemns any gospel apart from the one he gave them and backs this up with a brief history of how he received and delivered the gospel to them (1:6-2:10). He reminds them of how he even rebuked Peter for not acting in accordance with the gospel (2:11-21). He then points to Scripture to back up his argument against the false gospel of legalism being preached in Galatia (3:1-4:31). After this he encourages the Galatians to live in the freedom of Christ, which he explains to them (5:1-6:10). He then ends his letter while reiterating the importance of not listening to the false gospel (6:11-18).

Chapter 7 of Engaging Christian Scriptures focuses on Paul’s ministries, letters and writings, and the Pauline tradition. The seventh chapter gives perspective over the books of Thessalonians, Galatians, Philippians, Ephesians, and The Pastoral Letters. In the books of Thessalonians the first principle is seen as Paul accentuates and commends them for their faithfulness to the Lord. Paul highlights Love and Hope and encourages the church to walk in love. Galatians has greatly influenced Christian understandings of the significance of Jesus’s death, a law-free gospel, and the equal status of Gentile and Jewish Christians.

Saint Augustine of Hippo, was an early Christian philosopher and theologian whose writings influenced the development of western Christianity and western philosophy. He explains his beliefs and The Confessions of Augustine is a well claimed autobiography of Augustine and an overview of his journey to conversion from sin to sainthood. In this novel, we see Augustine grow up as a child,to youth, and to adulthood. Throughout Augustine’s journey, we are introduced to the different people and the roles they played in his change to good. Although many played a negative role in his journey, there were a few that impacted his journey positively and refined him into a saint such as his father, his mother, and God.

Augustine of Hippo lived his teen years in false beliefs, searching, asking, debating, questioning, doubting, wondering, struggling toward unveiling the mysteries of life. Greek philosophy inspired Augustine, including the works of Plato and the atheistic view of Cirero. Augustine strived the achievement of earthly happiness in an atheist Roman life and found it empty within his inmost being. He began a new life in Jesus, pouring himself into significant, prayerful reflection of his life, original sin, evil, God’s grace, and eternal life. Augustine brought his philosophy skills to Christianity with inquiry, inviting all to give an account of their faith. (1 Peter 3:15)

The literary genre of the book of Ephesians takes on the form of a letter similar to others in the Bible. This letter took on a different form because it did not include a personal greeting like other letters, but something that does not away from the true meaning of the letter (Abbott, p. 1). The whole book of Ephesians is broken into parts with Paul going from spirituality to practical biblical moral standards. In the first part, (1:1–2:22) Paul describes the blessings of the new life of Christ and reminds the Gentile believers how much God has done for their salvation. In chapter 3, Paul extends his blessings with a prayer to God for strengthen love, and the submission to God the Father. In the chapter 4, Paul describes the Christian morals and how believers should live together in this new life. While in Chapters 5 & 6 Paul describes how Christians should treat each other and how to utilize the armor of God in this new society.

It is obvious from The Confession that Augustine was a man who struggled endlessly to extricate himself from the bondage of sin, but the more he tried, the more he failed and sinks deeper into its abyss. And with every failure, comes a sense of disappointment and despondency, until he had a strange experience. In AD 386, while sitting in his garden, Augustine heard a voice from some children playing not far away urging “him” to pick the book—the Bible, and read. What he read from Apostle Paul’s letter to the Roman Christian in Chapter 13 transformed, not only his understanding of the hopelessness and despair man encounters in trying to solve the problem of sin on his own, but he saw the provision that God has made to remedy the consequences of sin and the grace he has graciously provided to live a life that is acceptable to God. That moment was the turning point in Augustine’s life and how he developed his sotoriological

Saint Augustine, also known as Augustine of Hippo, was born on 354 AD in a North African county in present day Algeria. Throughout of his life, Augustine has endured a lot of hard ships and lessons that he wanted to share with others. He decided in 397 AD to compose an autobiographical book “confessing” and recounting moments in his life. Confessions by Saint Augustine are a 13 book series comprised of Augustine’s life and how he became to be one of the most important priests during his time.

Paul’s epistle to the believers in Ephesus and Asia Minor has a richness and depth that stirs one’s soul. Paul’s deep affection for the Ephesians is evident as he communicates a profoundly transcendent yet highly practical view of living. In this letter, Paul teaches unity in Christ (Eph. 1:10, 2:11-18). This unity, for the Christian, begins with each individual believer, who, through Christ’s indwelling, becomes connected to Christ. This connection, or uniting (as a vine and a branch c.f. John 15:1-17), of Christ and the believer transforms the believer’s inner being—one’s very identity changes (Eph. 4:24). This inner renovation would further change one outwardly—one’s behavior would conform to one’s identity (Eph. 4:25-6:9). Where does the

In the book of Philippians, Paul is writing a letter in jail to the Philippians. In the letter Paul wanted to thank the believers for helping him when he was in need. Paul also wanted to tell the Philippians why he could be filled with so much joy despite being imprisoned and facing so many trials in life. Paul encourages the believers to be unified, as they stand firm in Christ. In Philippians, Paul counseled the Philippians about humility, unity, self -sacrifice, joy, Christian living, and warned them about potential problem.

In the first nine books of his Confessions, Augustine of Hippo narrates the journey of his restless heart, seeking to find rest in God. He embarks on a journey for the wisdom that constitutes the happy life, navigated by a thirst for knowledge and truth. Augustine’s journey is sparked by his restless heart searching for the right answers to his questions about the universe. He feels the need to fully understand things before he can believe them, and a significant part of his journey towards wisdom consists of learning how to believe in things he doesn’t know the answer to, thus allowing his mind and heart to rest. Augustine is challenged by concepts such as sin, evil, and God’s nature, but is eventually able to find wisdom and rest for his heart through obtaining answers about the nature of the world.