Saturday, November 27, 2010

Unit 8 - The Gospel, the Spirit, and Christian Identity

I. Introduction - very difficult scripture lesson today. It is Paul at his very best (or should I say his very worst).

A. The Experience of the Spirit
B. The Promise to Abraham
C. The Purpose of the Law

II. The Experience of the Spirit

A. Beginning in Chapter 3, Paul turns his attention from himself and his experiences to the Galations and their experiences
B. Doesn't mince words, is very direct and forceful..."You foolish Galations!"
C. What have they done? They have let themselves be led astray by zealous Jews who are saying they must become Jews first and adhere to The Law, before they can become part of God's family.
D. What is Paul's response? Having seen, felt, and experienced the power of the Holy Spirit how can you now believe you must go back to observing and keeping laws fo the flesh to be right with God.
E. Paul asks them if they received the Spirit as a result of doing the works of the law or rather because they heard the good news and believed.

III. The Promise to Abraham

A. Paul now uses experiences of Abraham and God's covenant with him to further show the folly in the Galations needing to revert back to following the law.
B. Paul points out Abraham received God's favor because of his faith, not because he followed a set of laws.
C. Paul also points out that Abraham predates The Law by 430 years.
D. Abraham had no need for The Law because he had faith in God
E. Paul then further bolsters his argument by showing the impossibility of following The Law as a way to becoming justified before God.
1. No one can keep all of The Law
2. To break The Law is to be cursed, "Cursed is everyone who does not observe and obey all the things written in the book of The Law."
3. Jesus removed the curse from us by dieing on the cross
F. Paul also speaks like a lawyer by saying God's 'covenant with Abraham' can not be superceded by The Law.
G. Paul also says that God's promise extended from Abraham to his 'offspring' (singular) not 'offsprings' (plural). He goes on to make the case that this 'offspring' is singularly Jesus, the Messiah. Paul is saying that the covenant with Abraham finds its fulfillment in Jesus.

IV. The Purpose of the Law

A. Paul sums up the purpose of the law in v.23, "Now before faith came, we were imprisoned and guarded under the law until faith would be revealed."
B. It seems to me God created the law to keep us safe until we were ready to accept his unconditional love through faith.
C. But what about Abraham's faith? Why was there no need for the law prior to the Hebrews leaving Egypt and becoming lost in the wilderness. After giving it some thought I think it was all part of God's master plan.
1. Abraham and his immediate descendants had faith, did not need the law to know right from wrong.
2. Joseph is sold into bondage and goes to Egypt.
3. Joseph's offspring become slaves of the Egyptians, lose their faith
4. God reaffirms His covenant with them and using Moses leads them out of Egypt.
5. Hebrews have lost their faith (recall the many times they complain to Moses and fear for their lives)
6. Lawlessness prevails, God sees they are too immature for faith, must have laws to guide them
7. Jews eventually pervert the purpose of The Law, God sends Jesus, the Messiah, to show them a better way. The way of faith.


BIBLIOGRAPHY:
(1) Interpretation Bible Studies: Philippians and Galations, Stanley P. Saunders, Westminster John Knox Press, 2001
(2) The Letters to the Galations and Ephesians, William Barclay, Westminster John Knox Press, 2002
(3) Interpretation Bible Commentary: Galations, Charles B. Cousar, John Knox Press, 1982

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Unit 7 - Table Fellowship at Antioch (Gal. 2:11-21)

I. Introduction

A. Overarching theme - According to Paul the unity of the church is based on nothing other than the good news of God's grace.
B. Coursar - Fourfold Purpose of this Section

II. Coursar - Fourfold Purpose of this Section

A. One - Must understand dynamics at work in Antioch
B. Two - Why did Paul include the incident in this letter and at this point in his argument?
C. Three - What can be learned from the structure and logical flow of Paul's complicated response to Peter?
D. Four - Essential, must examine the phrases "works of the law" and "faith in Christ"

III. Dynamics at work in Antioch

A. Why did Peter, Barnabas and the other Jewish Christians stop eating with the Gentiles at Antioch?
1. Scripture tells us they stopped after "people came from James...for fear of the circumcision faction."
2. Coursar believes James sent word that strong Jewish nationalists (not even members of Jewish Christian church in Jerusalem) were demanding no contact with Gentiles.
3. Peter's eating with Gentiles at Antioch was causing difficulty for Jewish Christians in Jerusalem with these Jewish nationalist zeolets.

B. Why did Paul so vigorously appose that choice?
1. Paul does not believe Peter is changing his core beliefs. Rather, Peter is compromising in order to "keep the peace".
2. However, Paul believes Peter has failed to see the larger implications of his choice to compromise
a. Peter's separation from the table fellowship implies Gentile Christians can only be considered second-class citizens
b. Unity of the church would then be based on circumcision and adherence to the law rather than the gospel of grace.

IV. Why did Paul write about this incident to the Galations and why at this particular point in the letter?

A. Why tell the Galations about this incident in Antioch?
1. It further clarifies Paul's stance in relation to the Jerusalem apostles.
a. He serves only one master, Christ
b. He will not compromise his belief in the one gospel.
2. Reporting the incident serves to reiterate point made earlier in the letter - the gospel alone provides the bond for Christian unity.
B. The account provides a transition to the themes of justification by faith and dying with Christ (dominant in Ch. 3).

V. What can be learned from the structure and logical flow of Paul's complicated response to Peter?

A. Your guess is as good as mine. It's Paul, he talks in circles

VI. Examining the phrases "works of the law" and "faith in Christ"

A. Works of the law
1. 'Law' means Torah
2. Paul isn't condemming law for law's sake, rather is condemming belief that following law results in salvation.
3. Salvation comes exclusively by God's grace in Jesus Christ.

B. Faith in Christ OR Faith of Christ
1. RSV and most other new translations say "faith in Christ"
2. KJV says "faith of Christ"
3. Coursar outlines impact of each translation. Complex and difficult to understand.
4. Bottom line to me is this: It is because of my faith in God's grace (through Jessus Christ) that I choose to follow the law to the best of my ability.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:
(1) Interpretation Bible Studies: Philippians and Galations, Stanley P. Saunders, Westminster John Knox Press, 2001
(2) The Letters to the Galations and Ephesians, William Barclay, Westminster John Knox Press, 2002
(3) Interpretation Bible Commentary: Galations, Charles B. Cousar, John Knox Press, 1982

Saturday, November 13, 2010

Unit 6


Timeline of Paul:

A Timeline:
Paul’s Conversion : Acts 9 -God chose Saul on the road to Damascus.
5 recorded visits by Paul/Saul:
(1) the visit after he left Damascus (Acts 9:26-30; Gal. 1:18-20);
(2) the famine visit (Acts 11:27-30); (Gal 2:1)
Acts 12:20-23 Herod’s death 44AD.
(3) the visit to attend the Jerusalem Council (Acts 15:1-30);
(4) the visit at the end of the second missionary journey (Acts 18:22);
(5) the final visit which resulted in Paul’s Caesarean imprisonment (Acts 21:15-23:35).

Unit 6 - The Power of the Gospel in Paul's Life (Galations 1:11-2:10)

I. Introduction

A. The Divine Origin of Paul's Gospel (Gal. 1:11-24)
B. Paul's Meeting with the Jerusalem Leaders (Gal. 2:1-10)

II. The Divine Origin of Paul's Gospel

A. Paul's intent here is to establish authority
1. Gospel did not come from other humans
2. Gospel was not taught to him
3. Gospel came to him as a revelation from God

B. Paul outlines who he was before, is now, and describes chronologically how he came to this point in his life.
1. A Pharisee - and a leading persecutor of the new church in Christ
2. Not just any Jew, but one held in high esteem; a zealot
3. Set aside before birth, called by God at the proper time
4. After his Damascus road experience, he did not consult with anyone
5. Rather, went to Arabia, then back to Damascus to stand before the very people he had been going to condemm.
6. Then after 3 years returned to Jerusalem to 'visit' Cephas (Peter)
7. Then went into Syria and Cilicia for 14 years

C. Three Questions Arise from this Section
1. Why does the issue of apostleship figure so prominently in Paul's letter to the Galations? According to Cousar, commentators generally hold three views:
a. He is responding to critics who contend he has not been commissioned by the Jerusalem authorities
b. Others say he is responding to critics who contend he is totally dependent on leaders in Jerusalem
c. Lastly others say Paul is not being attacked but is bringing it up himself to establish authority
d. Paul wants to establish authority to preach the one, true gospel as revealed to him by Christ on the road to Damascus
2. Why this extensive biographical material?
a. it shows he has in no way been dependent on other ecclesiastical authority
b. it shows how Paul's own life manifests the power of the gospel. God's grace is sufficient to change even the most committed zealot.
3. What is to be made of the statement that Paul received the Gospel "through a revelation of Jesus Christ?"
a. What he is not saying is that he received new information that no one else had (unlike Joseph Smith who created Mormonism)
b. Rather, according to Cousar, he is simply saying the veil which had hidden God's Son from him is removed and Paul sees him.

III. Paul's Meeting with the Jerusalem Leaders

A. Paul Goes Back to Jerusalem after 14 Years
1. Purpose of meeting was to establish Christian unity
2. Took with him Barnabus, and Titus, a greek
3. In attendance in addition to the Jerusalem leadership were a bunch of trouble-makers
a. Insisted Titus needed to be circumcized
b. Paul held his ground and won Jerusalem leaders over
c. Had Paul given in one of the key tenants of the gospel would have been lost - freedom from and being subject to the law
d. Paul and Jerusalem leaders agreed on the unity of the Gospel for both Jewish and Gentile converts alike.
e. Jerusalem leaders agreed their focus would be on Jewish converts while Paul would focus his ministry on the Gentiles.
f. Jerusalem leaders asked Paul to support the poor in Jerusalem

BIBLIOGRAPHY:
(1) Interpretation Bible Studies: Philippians and Galations, Stanley P. Saunders, Westminster John Knox Press, 2001
(2) The Letters to the Galations and Ephesians, William Barclay, Westminster John Knox Press, 2002
(3) Interpretation Bible Commentary: Galations, Charles B. Cousar, John Knox Press, 1982