That the apostle is the author of Ephesians is strongly supported by both internal and external evidence. The New Position in the Heavenlies (2:1-10), 2. [11] Furthermore, Paul wrote this letter with over a decade of preaching and writing behind him, including the letters to the Thessalonians, Galatians, Corinthians, and perhaps to the Philippians and to Philemon. They are in Christ (1:1), blessed with every blessing in Christ (1:3), chosen in Him (1:4), adopted through Christ (1:5), in the Beloved (1:6), redeemed in Him (1:7), given an inheritance in Him (1:11), have a hope that is to the praise of His glory in Christ (1:12), sealed with the Spirit through Him as an earnest installment of their inheritance (1:13-14), made alive, raised, and seated with Him in the heavenlies (2:5-6), created in Christ for good works (2:10), partakers of the promise in Christ (3:6), and given access to God through faith in Christ (3:12). Polemical: The Heretical Problems in Light of Union With Christ (2:4-3:4a), A. The Conduct of the Apostle and His Fellow Workers (2:1-12), C. The Conduct of the Thessalonians (2:13-16), 1. In the other prison epistles, Paul spoke of this new relationship (Eph. The theme of the epistle is the righteousness of God (1:16-17). The Prayer That Their Hearts Might Be Established in Holiness (3:13), II. The letter contains a number of historical references that agree with known facts of Pauls life and the doctrinal content of the book is consistent with the other writings of the apostle, a fact quickly evident by a comparison with his other letters. However, as noted above, Pauls letters were unusually long, and he adapted the standard letter format to meet each occasion. Finally, (5) he wrote to warn against the evils of materialism (chap. The early church was unanimous in its testimony that Philippians was written by the apostle Paul (see 1:1). Ordination of Elders in the Church (1:5-9), B. For more discussion see Wallace, Exegetical Syntax, 270-78, esp. 5; 6:9-20), and a number of questions regarding marriage and divorce, food, worship, spiritual gifts, and the resurrection. The former referred to north-central Asia Minor, north of the cities of Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe; the latter referred to the Roman province (organized in 25 B.C.) 3:1; 4:1; 6:20). In a later epistle, Paul will stress how we are complete in Christ (Col. 2:10). While 1 Timothy is in many ways a manual on leadership and the conduct of the church, a key term is sound doctrine which is emphasized in a number of places (see 1:10; 4:6; 6:1-3). The scribe then composed, or in the case of a dictated letter, revised the letter and set it down in a neat, professional hand on a good paper, usually papyrus (for a detailed discussion of the involvement of scribes in the writing of an ancient letter, see Lincoln Blumells chapter in this volume). 202-03. The Problem of Litigation in Heathen Courts (6:1-8), C. The Warning Against Moral Laxity (6:9-20), IV. The second letter was dispatched just a few weeks (or at the most a few months) later. 10-13). Because believers are complete in Christ (2:10) and are thereby risen with Him, they now have all they need for Christ-like transformation in all the relationships of life (3:1f.). The term, pastoral, is an 18th century designation that has stuck down through the years,63 and though not entirely accurate, it is a somewhat appropriate description of these three letters. [35] Murphy-OConnor, Paul the Letter-Writer, 4553; Richards, Paul and First-Century Letter Writing, 12829. Though scholars differ on whether Paul wrote Ephesians while he was imprisoned at Caesarea (Acts 24:27) in A.D. 57-59, or in Rome (28:30) in A.D. 60-62, the evidence favors the Roman imprisonment. Then, either from Macedonia or Nicopolis, Paul wrote the epistle to Titus to encourage and instruct him. Web4 Major Parts of Pauline Letter. These, then, are the first Roman imprisonment letters, whereas 2 Timothy is the second Roman imprisonment letter.52. But the point is simply this: regardless of the type of church government, within certain limits, of course, if Gods Word is being consistently and accurately proclaimed with prayerful dependence on the Lord, and if the people take it to heart, a church will be alive, in vital touch with Christ, and effective for the Lord. According to some calculations, Romans (979 manuscript lines) would have cost $2,275 in 2004 U.S. dollars, and even short Philemon (44 lines) would have cost $101! In these verses, the great themes of the epistle are gathered togetherthe gospel, the power of God, salvation, everyone, who believes, righteousness from God, Jew and Gentile. In Relation to the New Creation (1:18), 3. Greeting, Prayer, Body, Closing Describe the general greeting in each of Paul's letters. A collage of Brooke Lim and a screenshot from the TikTok account that exposed her for plagiarism. The traditional title is Pros Ephesious, To the Ephesians. Many ancient manuscripts, however omit en Epheso and for this and other reasons, many scholars believe this was an encyclical letter (intended for circulation among several churches). Third, focus on Instructions Concerning Men and Women (2:8-15), IV. 39 Frank E. Gaebelein, General Editor, The Expositor's Bible Commentary, New Testament, Zondervan, Grand Rapids, 1976-1992, electronic media. [26] Richards, Paul and First-Century Letter Writing, 92. The frequent personal greetings often appended to the end of Pauls letterssuch as the list of twenty-six individuals and five groups in Romans Paul, Silvanus (Silas), and Timothy had come to Thessalonica early in the Second Missionary Journey, about AD 50, and had spent only a few weeks in the city where they had established a largely Gentile congregation. The Minister, Appointed to Proclamation (3:7-13), III. The Rapture of Living Saints (4:17-18), B. Ancient letters began with an opening formula, identifying the sender (which we saw above could include coauthors) and the recipient (which could be a local congregation, specific members of a branch, or an individual). As to external evidence, several church fathers (Clement of Rome, Ignatius, Polycarp, Clement of Alexander, and others) either quote from or use language closely resembling that found in Ephesians.53, In recent years, however, critics have turned to internal grounds to challenge this unanimous ancient tradition. Onesimus, guilty of a great offense (vv. Thus, Paul writes about the believers wealth, walk, and warfare. Shaped in letter format in its opening and focusing on practical religion, it is somewhat in the tradition of Old Testament wisdom literature. Corinth was a large metropolis (approximately 700,000; about two-thirds of whom were slaves) located on a narrow isthmus between the Aegean Sea and the Adriatic Sea that connected the Peloponnesus with Northern Greece. In it he bared his heart and declared his steadfast love for the Corinthians even though some had been extremely critical and very fickle in their affection for him. Approximately one third of the New Testament consists of letters, or epistles, written by the apostle Paul and addressed to the Christian churches of his day. Since it was written during Pauls first imprisonment in Rome, it was written around A.D. 61. Second, Timothy and Titus undoubtedly possessed the gifts needed for pastoral ministry and while there was an element of pastoral care in what they did, they were not elders or pastors who are given by the Lord to various churches for more long-term ministries (1 Pet. 1-7); (2) he sought to remind the believers of their commitment to the offering for the Christians in Judea (chaps. A more utilitarian approach to remembering the most vivid parts of your life. This conflict between duty and desire became an intolerable situation for Paul; because of it, he gave up his plans for becoming a rabbi. It was on one of these missions that Saul was converted while on the road to Damascus. From there the apostle sent him to Corinth where he helped that church with its work (see 2 Cor. Letter from the Producer LIVE Part LXXVII Date & Time. Instead, it is to be dated during Pauls first imprisonment in Rome, where he spent at least two years under house arrest (see Ac 28:16-31).58. 10-13 are part of that lost sorrowful letter. Although some features of those chapters correspond to what must have been the contents of the lost letter, the principal subject of that letter (the offender of 2 Cor. He wrote: (1) to give an incentive for the Thessalonians to persevere by describing the reward and retribution that will occur in the future judgment of God (1:3-10), (2) to clarify the prominent events belonging to the day of the Lord in order to prove the falsity of the claims that the day had already arrived (2:1-2), and (3) to give detailed instructions covering the disciplinary steps the church should take in correcting those who refuse to work (3:6-15). In Romans he was addressing a church founded by others and one in which Jewish Christians had been significant but were no longer dominant. Question: May a Christian Eat Food Consecrated to a Pagan God? 569-70) and immorality. At the time of writing, Paul had not visited there, the letter says (Col 1:4; 2:1).The community had apparently been established by Epaphras of Colossae (Col 1:7; 4:12; Phlm 23).Problems, however, had