Is Paul Appealing Or Appalling Book Summary

In Paul, the Spirit, and the People of God, Gordon Fee outlines a theology of the Spirit in the Divine Trinity, the basis within Scripture for the experience of the Spirit, and the interaction of the two. Fee, a Pentecostal scholar, “redefines the terms of discussion about the Holy Spirit in a way that transcends today’s

According to a study by Brown, the apostle Paul was likely born in approximately 5 to 10 AD which was during the reign of the emperor Augustus . Paul was a melting pot of several different cultures. At the time, the Hellenistic movement was sweeping the Roman empire; thus the Greek and Roman cultures both had their influences on citizens. So, too, Paul’s parents were of Jewish descent; while he was young, they sent him to Jerusalem to study under a Pharisaic instructor . The intermingling of a multiplicity of cultures renders Paul a very diverse teacher.

Paul’s distinctive contribution to Christianity is his heresy- the doctrine of salvation by faith. A salvation available not just to the descendants of Abraham, but to the pagan, non-Jewish world as well. When he was writing to those in the Roman capital, Paul makes the declaration that proved to be the cornerstone of all his writings Romans 1:16-17, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, ‘The one who is righteous will live

Paul more than anyone was responsible for the spread of the Jesus movement into the Gentile world. By the end of the first century Christianity had become an important religious force. Paul while respectful of its Jewish origins moved the Christian faith into a position where it was no longer bound by Jewish law and was able to embrace people of any cultural background. After his own conversion, Paul passionately espoused his message from the Palestinian world through Asia Minor and southern Europe to Rome, the heart of the empire. Some of his letters by Paul to fledgling churches throughout the Roman Empire are contained in the New Testament and outline Paul 's theology. He insisted that Gentiles had as much access to the faith as Jews and that freedom from the Law set everyone free. It was this teaching which was essential for the development and success of the early church which would otherwise have remained another Jewish sect.

It was very likely that Paul wrote his letter to the Romans around 55-56 C.E. while he was on his third missionary journey. It is also believed that he was in the city of Corinth when he wrote it. Paul was writing to the church in Rome, which at the time the members were predominately Jewish. At the time there were approximately 50,000 Jews living in Rome. They either worked as slaves or had once worked as slaves, but gained their freedom. During this time, the Jews were given special protection from the Roman government, because they did not have to partake in pagan religious festivals or worship the Roman emperors. Unfortunately, in the late 40’s the emperor, Claudius, expelled a large number of the Jewish people because of a disturbance over a man named “Chrestus.” Therefore, the church in Rome likely became highly Gentile (Winn). In the event of these actions by the emperor the leadership of the Roman church became mostly Gentile.

Because Paul was the first to describe and teach about the role of Jesus in the salvation of humanity from sin, he’s known to be the second founder of Christianity. It was due in part to his influence that

Jesus is the center of Christianity, but without Paul, Christianity would never exist. Paul organized Jesus’s disciples after Jesus’s death. Paul introduced Christianity to Non-Jewish people. He was extremely talented at converting others. The New Testament is largely based off Paul’s teachings. Paul also shaped the way Christianity thinks, he was the man who took a small cult and shaped it so that it would become a world religion; Paul was the most important figure to the growth of Christianity, even more than Jesus of Nazareth.

Saint Paul, originally named Saul, was a crucial part in the development of Christianity. Paul, who was born in Tarsus, Cilicia, grew up Jewish and was trained as a rabbi (Adcock). Paul eventually converted to Christianity, but before he did, the future of the religion was looking very slim. Rome had made it illegal to practice Christianity. Paul was a pious Jew, so his conversion to Christianity surprised many of his followers. They viewed him with much suspicion and treated him with hostility. Paul was dedicated to his new life and made it his mission to spread Christianity throughout the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire and eventually to Rome itself. Paul made two separate journeys throughout the Mediterranean. He preached about the message of Jesus to many and sent his letters to the people he had not visited. Paul saw that his new faith had a message for everything and everyone. By converting to Christianity, St. Paul has saved Christianity from extinction, has written crucial letters about his faith, has preached to hundreds of people, has spread Christianity throughout the Roman Empire, has caused

Christianity over the course of history has a vast influence on individuals, society and the way believers conduct themselves. It provides morals, practices and ethics that every Christian attempts to live by. Throughout the many denominations in the Christian church, Paul of Tarsus had a significant influence on the faith. His contribution to the development and expression of Christianity is immense and can be seen to stem from his writing and missionary journeys which have implemented his ideas and interpretations onto the development of Christianity. After Jesus, Paul was arguably the most significant figure in Christianity as his teachings form a significant part of the New Testament. Like may other Pharisees of that time in history, Paul sought to suppress the early Christian movement. He accused early Christians of blaspheming against God and breaking Mosaic Law. However, Paul had a life-changing experience when he had a vision of Jesus, and he spent the remainder of his life as a missionary for the early church. Centuries after his ministry, his teachings still influence Christian theology.

From what we know about Paul, he was not one of the biggest fans of Christianity before his conversion. Though, as our text recognizes, there isn’t much knowledge of Paul’s life before becoming a follower of Jesus, and much of it is sourced from the Acts. We do know that while Paul was a Jew his name was Saul. Scholars theorize that he was a Jewish missionary. We know that he was raised to be Jewish, and he was a Pharisee. Our textbook elaborates that Saul was, in fact, a very dedicated Jew. He wrote in one of his letters “I advanced in Judaism beyond many among my people of the same age, for I was far more zealous for the traditions of my ancestors” (Gal 1:14). Scholar Johnny Awwad goes as far as to suggest that Paul was an apocalyptic

Paul, formerly known as Saul of Tarsus, was raised in a Jewish household, but he also had exposure to Roman culture because his father was also a Roman citizen. After his family relocated to Jerusalem, he became the apprentice of Gamaliel, who was a Hillelites Pharisee member. Paul on the other hand, had become a member of the Shammaites Pharisee, who strictly followed the Jewish law, and believed that those who did not follow the Jewish law were preventing the coming of God’s kingdom. As a member of this Pharisee, Paul too part in the persecution of Christians who were accused of heresy, because he along with the other members believed that they were spreading and supporting a belief in a failed messiah, who we have come to know as Jesus Christ.

Therefore, Paul explains that circumcision is a blessing that should rightly come after faith. Although Jewish people believe that circumcision should precede religious actions, Paul directly counters the idea to direct them towards an authentic relationship with God. This is also represented in Galatians 5:6 when Paul writes, “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.” Throughout the Bible, the greatest command is to love one another.

Hello Alan, Paul was responsible for many of the Gentiles converting, and they began the ritual of circumcision. The leaders of the church then got together to come to some common ground, because you can’t turn away people who want to be saved because they are not circumcised. The Jerusalem Council did condemn Paul and his teachings because of the incident in Antioch. I believe in today’s world the other churches are not willing to spread the wealth and ideas between each other.

Paul makes it clear in Romans and then again in Acts, that just because you are a Christian, and have accepted Christ and come to salvation, does not mean you can break the law. Paul is clear in Romans to the Jews that they are not to break the old ways or Mosaic Laws. In our text you will read that a person born to a Jewish woman is considered a Jew. So Timothy who had a Jewish mother, but a Greek father, would have been considered a Jew. Paul was not being hypocritical because the Jerusalem Council had come to these rules and written the letter to the Gentiles. Timothy was not by any standards a Gentile. He was considered a Jew because of his mother’s heritage. Paul would have wanted Timothy circumcised as a Jew should have been. Not to be circumcised in this matter would have been

Paul whose name was Saul was an early Christian missionary and theologian, known as the Apostle to the Gentiles was born a Jew in Tarsus, Rome. As a minor, he was trained as a rabbi but earned his living as a tentmaker. A zealous Pharisee, he persecuted the first Christians until a vision of Jesus, experienced while on the road to Damascus, converted him to Christianity. Three years later he met St. Peter and Jesus ' brother James and was henceforth recognized as the 13th Apostle. From his base in Antioch, he traveled widely, preaching to the Gentiles. By asserting that non-Jewish disciples of Christ did not have to observe Jewish law, he helped to establish