EPISTLES

By David Maas
{STUDIES FROM THE EPISTLES}

[Click on the title below to open an article]


{THESSALONIANS}
  1. This Evil Age - {PDF Copy} - (The death of Jesus signaled the commencement of the messianic age with consequent changes in the status of the Law and God’s people – Galatians 1:1-5)
  2. Times and Seasons - {PDF Copy} - (1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 - Paul has no need to write the Thessalonians about the “times and seasons”)
  3. Paul, Signs and Seasons - {PDF Copy} - (Rather than provide a detailed outline of the “times and seasons,” Paul exhorted believers to live righteously and remain prepared for his sudden arrival)
  4. Sorrow Not -Resurrection Hope - {PDF Copy} - (Foundational to the hope of the church is the bodily resurrection of believers that will take place when Jesus arrives from heaven)
  5. Revelation of Jesus from Heaven - {PDF Copy} - (2 Thessalonians 1:5-10 - The coming of Jesus will mean vindication for some, but loss for others)

{GALATIANS}
  1. Controversy at Galatia - {PDF Copy} - (The dispute at Galatia was whether Gentile converts must be circumcised and keep the required deeds of the Torah)
  2. Proclaiming Another Gospel - {PDF Copy} - (The Judaizing opponents of Paul at Galatia preached a different message and a different – Galatians 1:6-12)
  3. Paul's Proposition - {PDF Copy} - (Paul presents the points of agreement and disagreement with his opponents at Galatia – Galatians 2:15-21)
  4. The Jurisdiction of the Law - {PDF Copy} - (Paul argues that with the arrival of the promised seed, Jesus, believers are under a new covenant)
  5. Rudimentary Things - {PDF Copy} - (The new Messianic Age has dawned in Jesus, therefore calendrical rituals and other Levitical regulations belong to the old and now obsolete order)
  6. Having begun in the Spirit - {PDF Copy} - (Galatians 3:1-4 - The gift of the Spirit demonstrated that God had accepted Gentiles without the rite of circumcision)
  7. The Promised Spirit - {PDF Copy} - (The promise of the Spirit is part of the blessing of Abraham for the nations)
  8. Redeemed from the Law - {PDF Copy} - (The Law was an interim stage with a termination point. Therefore, Christians are no longer under it, and instead, are “in Christ”)
  9. Social Implications of the Law - {PDF Copy} - (Galatians 3:26-4:6 - With the coming of the promised "seed," the old social divisions of the Torah no longer apply)
  10. Neither Jew Nor Greek - {PDF Copy} - (Galatians 3:20.29 - To return to the custodianship of the Law would mean to erect again the divisions between Jewish and Gentile believers)
  11. Circumcision - A Cutting Issue - {PDF Copy} - (With the new era inaugurated by Jesus, circumcision is no longer the sign of membership in the covenant community)
  12. Preaching Another Jesus - {PDF Copy} - (Is Jesus still the “slain Lamb,” or has he become the “roaring” Lion of Judah out to exact payback from his enemies?)
  13. The True Seed of Abraham - {PDF Copy} - (Jesus is the promised "seed of Abraham" destined to inherit all things, and all those who are "in him")

{CORINTH}
  1. Yea and Amen -{PDF Copy} - (The types and “shadows” of the Hebrew Bible find their substance in the Son of God, Christ Jesus)
  2. Power and Wisdom - {PDF Copy} - (God's power and wisdom are revealed in Christ Crucified, not in great miraculous displays)
  3. The Death of Death - {PDF Copy} - (The Apostle Paul presents the key events that will precede the return of Jesus culminating in the resurrection of the dead)

{ROMANS}
  1. Heir of the World - {PDF Copy} - (According to Romans, the land promised to Abraham encompassed the entire world, not just Canaan – Romans 4:13)
  2. The True Seed of Abraham - {PDF Copy} - (Jesus is the promised "seed of Abraham" destined to inherit all things, and all those who are "in him")
  3. Works of the Law - {PDF Copy} - (In Romans, discussions about justification by “works” has a specific category of works in view – the “works of the law”)
  4. Righteousness, Wrath, Salvation - {PDF Copy} - (Paul argues from plight to solution as he presents his gospel to the churches in Rome)
  5. Coheirs with Jesus - {PDF Copy} - (Paul links the bodily Resurrection of the saints with the New Creation. The promised redemption includes both)
  6. Food and Calendars - {PDF Copy} - (Romans 14:1-5 - The dietary and calendrical regulations of the Levitical system are not mandatory for Christians)
  7. Inheritance of Abraham - {PDF Copy} - (The original promise of territory to Abraham encompasses the entire Cosmos in his true “seed,” Jesus Christ)

{HEBREWS}
  1. The Supreme Word - {PDF Copy} - (God’s final “word” has been “spoken” in His Son. All previous “words” were partial, preparatory, and incomplete)
  2. "Upon These Last Days" - {PDF Copy} - (The era of the Levitical priesthood terminated with the superior “word” revealed by God in His Son)
  3. Purification of Sins Achieved - {PDF Copy} - (Having achieved the purification of sins, Jesus “sat down” at the right hand of God where he intercedes for his people)
  4. His More Distinguished Name - {PDF Copy} - (Having achieved the purification of sins, the Son inherited a vastly more distinguished name than the angels)
  5. First Exhortation - {PDF Copy} - (A dire warning of the consequences for failing to hear and obey the superior word of the Son – Hebrews 1:4-2:7)
  6. Merciful High Priest - {PDF Copy} - (Hebrews 2:8-18 - The priesthood of Jesus is trustworthy because he partook of the same death as all men and women)
  7. Supremacy over Moses - {PDF Copy} - (The word of the Son is superior even to the word of Moses, the Great Lawgiver)
  8. Priest Forever - {PDF Copy} - (The priesthood of Jesus is superior because it rests on his endless resurrection life, the priest after the order of Melchizedek – Psalm 110:4)
  9. Shadow to Substance - {PDF Copy} - (The types and “shadows” of the old covenant find their substance and fulfillment in the Son, Jesus Christ)
  10. Incomparable New Covenant - {PDF Copy} - (In his death, Jesus inaugurated the promised and vastly superior new covenant, rendering the old one obsolete)
  11. The Exaltation of the Son - {PDF Copy} - (Hebrews presents the exaltation of Jesus - His transition from suffering and death to sovereignty over the Cosmos)
  12. The Tent Pitched by God - {PDF Copy} - (Jesus now intercedes without ceasing on behalf of his people in the True Tabernacle in the heavens, one not made with human hands)


Lighthouse Dusk - Photo by Jackson Eaves on Unsplash
[Photo by Jackson Eaves on Unsplash]

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