Paul's letters: structure, content, and departures from ancient letter conventions

New Testament

What city is central to the development of Acts? How so?

Besides Jerusalem, the city most central to the development of Acts is probably Antioch. Acts chapter 11 narrates the founding of the church at Antioch, and in 11:26 the word "Christians" is used for the first time in the New Testament -- this is where the disciples were first called "Christians."

5. What are the Thessalonian readers worried about?

In 2 Thessalonians, it is reported that apparently the Thessalonian readers of Paul's letter had encountered a false teaching, saying that Christ had already returned. In chapter 2, Paul sets them straight, informing them that Christ's return will be preceded by a great tribulation, which has not happened.

6. Who is Philemon?

Philemon is the addressee of the shortest book in the New Testament, the letter of Paul to Philemon. It is written by Paul while in prison, to Philemon (a leader in the Colossian church). The letter is very brief, and mainly concerns the return of the runaway slave Onesimus to Philemon (whom most commentators have assumed to be his owner) -- Paul is keen to emphasize they are both Christians.

7. Who is Phoebe?

Phoebe is the Corinthian woman mentioned by Paul in his letter to the Romans, at 16:1-2. She is a deacon of the church at Cenchreae (the sea-port of Corinth) and is entrusted to deliver Paul's letter to the church at Rome. Paul recommends her highly in the letter, and it is clear that she was a trusted and high-ranking member of the church in Corinth.

8. In Romans, where does Paul place the section on how people should live? Why is the placement significant?

Paul describes how people should live relatively late in Romans, in Chapters 12-15. The placement, however, is significant because it follows Paul's explication of the doctrine of universal salvation abounding to Jew and Gentile alike. This is significant because his description of how people should live depends on grace rather than Mosaic law -- thus it applies equally to Jewish or Gentile readers of the letter.

9. Describe one of the specific problems Paul addresses in 1 Corinthians and explain how he responds.

Marriage is one of the problems posed in I Corinthians. Given the Christian emphasis on sexual purity, the church at Corinth is confused about the permissibility of marriage. Paul responds with a praise of chastity but advises that it is better to marry than to burn (i.e., to suffer from the fires of lust, or possibly damnation.)

10. Explain the metaphor in Ephesians used to describe the relationship between Christ and his church.

Paul's metaphor in Ephesians 5:21-32 describes Christ's relation to the church in terms of a husband's relation to his wife. Christ is like the husband, and the church is like the wife. Christ loved the faithful as a husband loves his wife, and sacrificed Himself for the salvation and purity of the faithful -- like a husband and wife, they are "one flesh." The crucial element, though, is the doctrine of submission: the church must submit to Christ as a wife would be expected to submit to her husband. Of course Christ has already submitted on behalf of the church by sacrificing himself, so we may understand the process as mutual. In any case, Paul resorts to metaphor because the subject is (as he says) a great mystery.

11. Describe the Christian doctrine of incarnation and explain what the letter to the Philippians contributes to this doctrine.

The Christian doctrine of the incarnation describes how Christ, as God, became man -- he took on human form, and thus was subject to human frailty, as evidenced by his death on the cross. This is emphasized by Paul in Philippians 2:5-11, where Paul discusses "kenosis" or the "humbling" of Christ in taking on this human form. Philippians emphasizes the paradoxical nature of the incarnation -- only by taking on the lowly form of "a slave" (as Paul says) could Christ be exalted by God as the King of Kings, the one who is known as the Lord.

12. According to the pastoral epistles, what qualifies a person to be a church leader?

Paul's pastoral epistles (i.e., the two letters to Timothy and the one letter to Titus) give some basic outlines of the qualifications for being a church leader. Titus 1:5-9 emphasizes that the church leaders should be blameless, faithful to his wife, with children who are believers and not disobedient, not violent or drunken or pursuing dishonest gain. He must be able to refute false doctrine and promote the true. The same list is basically stated in I Timothy 3:1-13.

13. Why is Claudius' expulsion of the Jews from Rome in 49 CE significant to the book of Romans?

It is thought that the Roman emperor Claudius expelled the Jews from Rome due to arguments about Christianity. This is crucial to the occasion of Paul writing his Epistle to the Romans, as the letter deals explicitly with the availability of salvation to Gentile and Jew alike.

14. Be able to write a brief summary of the content of each of Paul's letters.

The letters fall into four basic categories. The chief doctrinal epistles are Romans, I and II Corinthians, and Galatians. The epistles written in prison are Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon. I and II Thessalonians deal with eschatology. And the pastoral epistles are I and II Timothy and Titus. Romans lays out the doctrine of salvation, and is arguably the most extended description of Christian doctine that exists. I and II Corinthians correct the errors of the church at Corinth, in many cases sexual and related to the worldly temptations of Corinth itself. Galatians corrects the perversion of the gospel that had occurred among its addressees. Colossians and Ephesians correct doctrinal errors in churches not founded by Paul, specifically the notion that salvation requires special knowledge. Philippians is among the least doctrinal letters, but contains important words on Christology. Philemon is a personal letter urging a master to accept his returned runaway slave. I and II Thessalonians describe the expectations of the second coming. I and II Timothy and Titus set out proper conduct and expectations for church leadership.