The Life and Heart of Paul the Apostle.
We enter into a wonderful account of God's grace. We
will be tracing both the birth of the Church and the life and letters of Paul
the apostle. I will add to this introduction as I spend more time on it.
The lessons will be in descending order with the most recent lesson at the
bottom of this page.
Saul of Tarsus was a dedicated Jew. He was quite
alarmed about the growth of a new religious sect that seemed to oppose
everything he understood to be God's law. So much so that he decided to
persecute this new sect -- the sect of the Christians -- to death.
An amazing thing happened in Saul's life. The very
Christ he thought was dead appeared to him on his way to kill more of these
Christians. Follow us as we begin this exciting series on the life and
letters of Paul the Apostle.
This lesson is updated with maps and more detail.
Stephen and Philip and their influence in the early church
examined. These men are examples of Romans 1:16.
A wonderful lesson to be learned today -- especially in
the context of the perils of today. We need to not only win the sinner to
Christ but to accept him.
Just before we launch into the epistles of Paul, I would
like to focus a little more on the man. There is much to learn today from
a study of Paul, the man and his mission.
The Epistle to Romans
Paul longed to visit the churches at Rome but had not been
able to. Rome was a strategic city when it came to the preaching of he
Gospel. But more than this. The heart of Paul was speaking here in
his introduction in that he longed (the original = was homesick for) to see the
believers at Rome.
Paul could have used his Roman citizenship in his
introduction but draws on an all too familiar part of the Greco-Roman culture -
slavery. I hope you will join us as we enter this study of Romans.
An odd title. I'm borrowing it from an excellent
book written by J. W, Shepard The Life and Letters of St. Paul.
This is a rare book -- out of print, I'm afraid, but worth looking for. I
found a second copy on eBay. You can see the cover on the previous lesson
above, Part
Two With Maps. I
recommend it highly. In this grand theme, Paul launches into what some
consider to be the Constitution of the Christian. More on that later.
This lesson is a work in progress so be sure to come back. Read on.
Well, we've seen the "good news" part now we see the "bad
news", if I can take this license. After showing the Plan of God that men
are to be saved through the preaching (in the power of God) of the Gospel, Paul
continues to show the ugly side of things -- men are willingly ignorant of God
and His attributes -- the fact that He created the Universe and all Men.
This brings us to the Wrath of God (God's Wrath) which Lenski points out
that this has a compound sense much as "God's Gospel (vs. 1) and God's
Righteousness (vs. 17).
Paul goes on to show that even the moral person -- the
person who tries to be righteous on his own without Christ. -- even this person
stands condemned without Christ.
Paul continues to reveal his heart by showing that his
hero, Abraham was not justified in God's eyes because of his works. No.
The thrilling idea of the God-kind of righteousness comes not from works but by
faith. Read on.
OH! This is so thrilling to me! I was, as a
child, a casualty of divorce. I suddenly found my self in a strangers home
at the age of 5. Because of the hurt of this experience, I was at war with
God -- literally. How could God have loved me and allowed this to happen?
Then, as a teenager, He got a hold me me and one night while listening to Jack Wyrtzen preach
the Gospel over the radio, I just knew he was talking directly to me. God
won the battle that night with His love and I received Jesus Christ as my OWN
PERSONAL SAVIOR. The peace that I realized that night was indescribable.
The battle is over -- He had won me and the peace was wonderful. Read on
as Paul reveals his heart -- a man at war with God became a man Reconciled with
God -- the battle for Paul was over.
There is yet another point to be made in this chapter.
Even thought Death and an unrelenting Grip on sinful man -- the reach of Life in
Christ Jesus is all the more. Let's wrap this final section on Romans
chapter 5 and see how masterfully Paul shows the comparison between the effect
of Adam's sin and the effect of Christ's death on the cross and resurrection
from the grave has on believing man.
Emancipation, Freedom from Sin.
To be done at a later time.
The next two lessons cover what I wish to call Spiritual
Reality. Here's where all transparent Christians travel. The road to
spiritual maturity is a struggle but a victory. It is not the flip of a
coin that determines whether or not a Christian matures. No.
It is first the realization that he has a struggle within that the unsaved do
not -- a struggle between Sin's law and God's Law. We are the victors in
Christ.
Paul opens his heart even more here when he shares his
spiritual life. He rests on the fact that he is justified by faith and
that the Holy Spirit dwells within. Read on.
Romans 12 has always been a bit of a puzzle for me.
I have heard many devotionals and sermons on this subject. All of them
point to how we should dedicate our lives to Christ and serve Him. I have
no argument with this challenge -- it is a proper one and actually we can
apply Romans 12:1 to our lives as a challenge. but I do think some Bible
students miss the mark a bit by making this a metaphor to complete dedication.
I think there is an instance in the Old Testament that fits this challenge that
Paul makes Perfectly. Read on.
This lesson was taken from a previous series:
Paul, an Imperfect Man used
by God. I thought it would be good to stop and take a breather and
look at Paul's life as viewed by God's calling and to look at our own.
This whole letter written to the Roman church was not a
series of ramblings by Paul -- a sort of patchwork of commands from as an
apostle. No. In fact, when he introduced himself to the Roman church
he was very careful not to pull rank.
Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated
unto the gospel of God,
Romans 1:1 (King James Version)
This was not a man who was trying to be a spiritual bully
-- rather, he used this occasion as a testimony on how Christ had affected his
life. I have tried to present this as the seven graces of a justified man.
This was Paul's testimony. It should be ours also.
The last three chapters of Romans show the practical side
of Paul when it comes to his dealings with believers. This has a resonance
with Paul when it comes to Acceptance. Paul had been a murderer of
Christians. When he received Jesus Christ as LORD. His acceptance
into the church was in question. However, here is an excellent example of
the power of the love of Christ when it comes to fellowship with believers.
Read on.
Shepard sets the chronology in this order: 1 Timothy
(While Paul is at Macedonia), Titus, and 2 Timothy (during Paul's final
imprisonment). The heart of Paul is revealed to Timothy in two ways - first he
is really concerned that the church not fall short of the Great Commission -- to
make disciples throughout the world and that that be done throughout the entire
church age. In order to do this each disciple needs to follow-through with
the Great Commission. Well, let me stop here and let you read the lesson.
Paul's Swan Song. 2 Timothy.
I will be working on this lesson as soon as I can.
Anyone who has been reading these lessons and getting a blessing please send me
an email. I could use some encouragement. Send your emails to;
alanhbrowne@aol.com | 
