Epistles

{STUDIES FROM THE EPISTLES}

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{THESSALONIANS}

1. Afflicted Disciples - {PDF Copy} - (The disciple who faithfully bears witness to the Gospel and Jesus will endure tribulation and persecution for his sake)
2. Times, Signs and Seasons - {PDF Copy} - (Paul does not detail the times and seasons since the Thessalonians understand that the Lord will come like a thief in the night – 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11)
3. Comfort One Another - {PDF Copy} - (Foundational to the believer’s future hope is the bodily resurrection of the righteous dead when Jesus arrives in glory)
4. Vindication and Condemnation - {PDF Copy} - (The arrival of Jesus will mean vindication and rest for the righteous, but everlasting loss and condemnation for the wicked - 2 Thessalonians 1:5-10)
5. Rumors and Lies - {PDF Copy} - (Disinformation about the day of the Lord caused alarm in the congregation at Thessalonica – 2 Thessalonians 2:1-2)
6. The Apostasy - {PDF Copy} - (Paul warned the Thessalonians of the future apostasy which he linked to the unveiling of the Man of Lawlessness, the Son of Destruction)
7. Seated in the Sanctuary- {PDF Copy} - (The Man of Lawlessness will be unveiled when he seats himself in the House of God - 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4)
8. The Coming Tempest - {PDF Copy} - (The New Testament warns of a future apostasy caused by deceivers and the Lawless One who will appear before the Day of the Lord)

{GALATIANS}

1. Christ is Risen! - {PDF Copy} - (Paul anchored all that God has done in the resurrection of Jesus, which also inaugurated the Messianic Age - Galatians 1:1-5)
2. Controversy in Galatia - {PDF Copy} - (The dispute at Galatia was whether Gentile converts must be circumcised and keep the required deeds of the Torah)
3. Even an Angel - {PDF Copy} - (Paul warned the Galatian Assembly not to heed any Gospel that deviated from the one he preached even if delivered by an angel)
4. Justified From Faith - {PDF Copy} - (Paul presents the points of agreement and disagreement with his opponents in the assemblies of Galatia – Galatians 2:15-21)
5. The Limits of the Law - {PDF Copy} - (The jurisdiction of the Mosaic regulations over the covenant community reached its limit with the arrival of Jesus, the true seed of Abraham)
6. Rudimentary Things - {PDF Copy} - (The Messianic Age dawned in Jesus, therefore calendrical rituals and other Levitical regulations belong to a now obsolete order)
7. The Sign of the Covenant - {PDF Copy} - (The Gift of the Spirit demonstrates beyond question who belongs to the covenant community of Jesus, and who does not)
8. The Spirit of Life - {PDF Copy} - (The Spirit of God imparts life, especially the everlasting life of which the Gift of the Spirit is the foretaste and guarantee)
9. Made Complete by the Spirit - {PDF Copy} - (The receipt of the Spirit while in an uncircumcised state was irrefutable proof that Gentiles were accepted by God as Gentiles – Galatians 3:1-4)
10. The Spirit of Promise - {PDF Copy} - (The Promise of the Spirit is one of the blessings of Abraham promised by God for the nations and the children of the Patriarch)
11. The Fullness of Time - {PDF Copy} - (The Law was an interim stage with a termination point, the Fullness of Time when Jesus redeemed those who were under the Law)
12. You all are Sons - {PDF copy} - (Returning to the custodianship of the Law would mean rebuilding the wall of separation between Jews and Gentiles)
13. Circumcision - Cutting Issue - {PDF Copy} - (With the new era inaugurated by Jesus, circumcision is no longer the sign of membership in the covenant community)
14. Proclaiming Another Jesus - {PDF Copy} - (Is Jesus still the Messiah who died on Calvary to save the world, or has he become a roaring Lion hellbent on destroying his enemies?)
15. Seed of Abraham - {PDF Copy} - (Jesus is the promised Seed of Abraham, the heir of the covenant promises, and receipt of the inheritance is based on faith in Him)

{CORINTH}

1. Yea and Amen in Jesus -{PDF Copy} - (The promises of the Hebrew Bible are fulfilled in and by the Son of God and Messiah of Israel, Jesus of Nazareth)
2. The Revelation of Jesus - (At the revelation of Jesus from Heaven, the saints will experience glory, but the wicked receive everlasting destruction) - {PDF Copy}
3. Power and Wisdom - {PDF Copy} - (The power and wisdom of God are revealed in the proclamation of the Messiah who was crucified on a Roman cross)
4. The Last Enemy - {PDF Copy} - (The arrival of Jesus at the end of the age will mean the end of the Last Enemy, namely, Death - 1 Corinthians 15:24-28)
5. The Day of Christ - (Jesus will arrive on the Day of the Lord when the dead are raised, the wicked are judged, and death will cease forevermore) - {PDF Copy}
6. Ekklésia - The Assembly of God - (The Christian use of the term church or ekklésia is derived from the assembly of Yahweh gathered for worship in the Hebrew Bible) - {PDF Copy}
7. The Ends of the Ages - {PDF Copy} - (The Last Days, the time of fulfillment, began with the death, resurrection, and exaltation of Jesus of Nazareth)
8. Sanctuary of God - {PDF Copy} - (The New Testament applies Temple language and imagery from the Hebrew Bible to the Body of Christ, the true Sanctuary of God)

{ROMANS}

1. The Obedience of Faith - (Paul introduces his ministry to the church in Rome and begins his exposition of the Gospel by identifying Christ’s qualifications as Messiah) - {PDF Copy}
2. Salvation Revealed - (Paul presents his gospel to the assemblies of Rome, a message about God’s righteousness and wrath for all men) - {PDF Copy}
3. From Faith - For Faith - (Men are not set right before God from the works of the law but from the faith of Jesus Christ) - {PDF Copy}
4. The Message - {PDF Copy} - (Jesus summoned his disciples to proclaim the Good News of his Kingdom to every inhabited corner of the Earth)
5. Both Jews and Greeks - (The equality of Jew and Gentile before God is a pivotal theme in Romans. Members of either group stand or fall before Him on the same basis) - {PDF Copy}
6. His Covenant Faithfulness - (The righteousness of God refers to His faithfulness to His promises, and this is demonstrated in the salvation He has provided in Jesus) - {PDF Copy}
7. The Faith of Abraham - {PDF Copy} - (The faith of uncircumcised Abraham provides an example for Jewish and Gentile believers who live from the faith of Jesus – Romans 4:11-17)
8. Seed of Abraham - {PDF Copy} - (Jesus is the promised Seed of Abraham, the heir of the covenant promises, and receipt of the inheritance is based on faith in Him)
9. The Works of the Law - {PDF Copy} - (In Romans, references to justification from works have a specific category of works in view, the works required by the Mosaic Law)
10. Plight to Solution - {PDF Copy} - (In Romans, Paul argues from plight to solution as he presents his gospel to the churches of Rome, a message for both Jews and Greeks)
11. Coheirs with Jesus - {PDF Copy} - (The covenant with Abraham is fulfilled in Jesus, his seed and heir, including the promise of land – Romans 8:1-23)
12. Food and Calendars - {PDF Copy} - (Paul argues for tolerance in the church on food regulations and the observation of holy days – The shadows now find their fulfillment in Jesus)
13. Inheritance of Abraham - {PDF Copy} - (Believers are the heirs of Abraham, and the possession of their inheritance is secured by possession of the Gift of the Spirit)
14. The Spirit and Resurrection - {PDF Copy} - (The Gift of the Spirit is the foretaste and guarantee of the bodily resurrection and of the coming New Creation)
15. Life from the Dead - {PDF Copy} - (Paul’s Gospel from humanity's plight due to sin to the resurrection of the dead through Jesus of Nazareth)
16. The Redemption of the Body - {PDF Copy} - (Paul links the bodily resurrection of believers to the New Creation, and both events are part of the promised redemption – Romans 8:1-23)
17. New Covenant in Jesus - (The Gift of the Spirit is foundational to the New Covenant, and it is the first fruit of the Resurrection and the New Creation) - {PDF Copy}

{PRISON LETTERS}

1. One Spirit, One People - {PDF Copy} - (By his death and resurrection, Jesus formed one covenant community - One New Man - based on faith in him, not ethnicity or nationality – Ephesians 2:11-22)
2. Imitating Jesus - {PDF Copy} - (The submission of Jesus to an unjust death is the pattern for the love and service to others that disciples are called to imitate)
3. Going on to Perfection - {PDF Copy} - (Paul expresses his goal of going on to perfection, a process that will culminate in bodily resurrection when Jesus arrives)
4. The Servant of Yahweh - (Disciples are summoned to adopt the same mind that Jesus had when he poured out his life unto death for others – Philippians 2:5-11) - {PDF Copy}

{PASTORALS}

1. He Nullified Death - {PDF Copy} - (Paul reminded Timothy of Christ’s own resurrection since false teachers were denying the future resurrection of believers)

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{HEBREWS}

1. God Has Spoken! - {PDF Copy} - (God has spoken His definitive word in His Son. All previous words given by the prophets were preparatory, promissory, and partial)
2. These Last Days - {PDF Copy} - (The era of the Levitical priesthood terminated with the arrival of the word in God’s Son, Jesus Christ, our High Priest forever)
3. His Surpassing Greatness - {PDF Copy} - (Through a series of comparisons, Hebrews demonstrates the supremacy of the Son over his predecessors)
4. The Purification of Sins - {PDF Copy} - (Having achieved the purification of sins, Jesus sat down at the right hand of God where he now intercedes for his people as their High Priest)
5. His Most Excellent Name - {PDF Copy} - (Having achieved the purification of sins, Jesus inherited a more distinguished name than the angels; namely, that of Son)
6. Do Not Drift Away - {PDF Copy} - (The Letter gives a dire warning of the consequences for failing to heed the superior word spoken by God in His Son – Hebrews 1:4-2:7)
7. Merciful and Faithful Priest - {PDF Copy} - (Jesus is well-equipped to be our faithful and sympathetic high priest, having participated fully in humanity’s plight)
8. Superior to Moses - {PDF Copy} - (The word of the Son is superior even to the word of Moses, the servant and Great Lawgiver in the house of Yahweh)
9. 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)
10. From Shadow to Substance - {PDF Copy} - (The types and shadows of the old covenant find their substance in the Son of God, Jesus Christ - in his priesthood and New Covenant – Hebrews 8:1-5)
11. His Incomparable New Covenant - {PDF Copy} - (Jesus inaugurated the vastly superior New Covenant by his death and resurrection, rendering the old covenant obsolete – Hebrews 8:6-13)
12. Then He Sat Down - {PDF Copy} - (Jesus is the Son whom God appointed as our merciful and faithful High Priest after his suffering, death, and resurrection)
13. The Tent Pitched by God - {PDF Copy} - (Jesus intercedes without ceasing for his people in the true heavenly Tabernacle, one not made with human hands but pitched by God)
14. Change of Law - {PDF Copy} - (The new priesthood after the order of Melchizedek inaugurated in Jesus also means a change in the Law)
15. His Present Reign - (The PRESENT reign of Jesus began with his exaltation to the messianic Throne following his death and resurrection – Psalm 110:1) - {PDF Copy}

[Bible - Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash]