Letters of Paul

As we learned last time, Paul wrote much of the New Testament in the form of letters to the new Christian communities, and when you consider Paul’s extensive travels and his years of imprisonment, it is a miracle that these letters survive at all.

But survive they did, and they bear interesting insight into the early Christian communities. The Corinthians were having unity problems (see 1 Corinthians chapter 1); the Thessalonians were being persecuted (see 1 Thessalonians chapter 1); and the Galatians were not following his instructions, which annoyed Paul to no end (see Galatians, chapter 1). 

Some notable excerpts from Paul’s letters:

“Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.” (1 Corinthians 13:7-8)  

“Admonish the idle, cheer the fainthearted, support the weak, be patient with all. See that no one returns evil for evil; rather, always seek was is good for each other and for all. Rejoice always; pray without ceasing, in all things give thanks.” (1 Thess. 5:14-22)

“Do not be misled; bad company corrupts good character.” (1 Corinthians 15:33)

“And now, these three remain; faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” (1 Corinthians 13:13)

“Tell the rich in the present age not to be proud and not to rely on as uncertain a thing as wealth but rather on God, who richly rewards us with all things for our enjoyment. Tell them to do good, to be rich in good works.” (1 Tim. 6:17)

“I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example to those who would believe in him and receive eternal life.” (1 Tim. 1:15-17

“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart as working for the Lord, not for human masters.” (Colossians 3:23)

And finally, on the eve of his execution, Paul wrote these words to his successor, Timothy: “I have fought the good fight; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith.” (2 Tim. 4:6)

The Council of Jerusalem:  One of the early problems for Paul and the Apostles was exactly what it meant to be a “Christian,” as that term was first coined by the church at Antioch. Jesus himself was a Jew, but he gave no specific direction to the Apostles about how they were to go about complying with The Great Commission, other than naming Simon Peter as the leader the new church. Therefore, many argued that the Jewish Mosaic laws should be honored by any new non-Jewish Christians—circumcision, strict sabbath requirements, and dietary restrictions among them.

Paul, along with Simon Peter and the other church leaders came together to discuss the matter at the Council of Jerusalem in 49 AD. (Acts 15; Galatians 2).  Simon Peter agreed with Paul’s take on the matter, and decreed that Mosaic law needn’t be honored by followers of Christ. (Which is notable, because both Simon Peter and Paul were observant Jews).  This decision was obviously instrumental in the rapid spread of the faith.

Fun fact: Paul barely escaped from a riot in Ephesus because the silversmiths in that city were furious that no one was buying their idols anymore. (Acts 19:23)