Law and Gospel in Galatians Sabrina Williams REL 325 Prof Brandt February 13, 2012 Paul’s letters repeatedly address the issue of Law and Gospel. In his letters, he tries to answer the question of salvation. Are we saved by following the Torah or is it through faith in Jesus as the messiah? This is a question that our early church fathers wrestled with and Paul tries to express his view on it and we find proof of that in his letter to the Galatians. During the time of Paul, Jews were so preoccupied with upholding the Law that their lives where devoted to a strict regimented life.
It has been described as a ‘subtle and skilful proclamation of the gospel’. The speech was a defence of the charges brought against Stephen as he was accused of blaspheming against Moses and God, by saying that ‘Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs Moses handed down to us’. This was no surprise as the temple in Jerusalem and the customs of Moses were exceedingly precious to the Jews. Eventually, the Jews would come to form a minority within Christianity, Gentiles would predominate. Jewish rituals and customs would be abandoned and Christianity would become a ‘religion’ in its own right.
The passage proclaims YHWH’s disappointment in the people of Judah because they are greedy, drunken, vain, confused, and proud. Because the people of Judah had rejected the Lord, He in turn rejected them and will send his judgment. Chapter six then takes a sudden left turn with the calling of Isaiah to become one of the Lord’s prophets. Isaiah was lifted high up to the Lord’s throne and was told by God to go among the people of Jerusalem and warn them of the judgment that was coming. Following chapter six, God tells Isaiah to go to the son of Uzzaiah and warn him that Syria has taken Israel and Judah as enemies and they will go and trouble it.
Ulyana Chernyak Review of Irvine Anderson’s “Biblical Interpretation and Middle East Policy” POL 3990: Middle Eastern Politics In his book “Biblical Interpretation and Middle East Policy: The Promised Land, America and Israel, 1917-2002”, Anderson discusses 2 major topics that actually intertwine: the Bible and the influence of its interpretations on the emergence of the Christian Zionist movement along with the factors that influence British and American policy toward Middle east. Although “officially” Christian, I was not brought up in a religious setting; the only Bible I had was an abridged child version with a lot of pictures in it. Therefore, it is safe to say I am not closely familiar with the content of the Holy Book. This fact posed a great obstacle to me, when I was reading the book by Irvine Anderson, because the author certainly assumes that the reader has at least a minimal religious background. When talking about the roots of the Christian Zionist movement, Anderson places a great emphasis on the Bible.
They did that despite their explicit statement that Joseph's brothers prostrated before him in the two visits they made to Egypt to buy corn, i.e. before the arrival of Jacob to Egypt: "and Joseph's brethren came, and bowed down themselves before him with their faces to the earth" (Genesis, 42:6), "And when Joseph came home, they brought him the present which was in their hand into the house, and bowed themselves to him to the earth" (Genesis, 43:26). 3) The Old Testament states that Jacob reprimanded Joseph for his dream, as if he was responsible for seeing it:"And he told it to his father, and to his brethren: and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth?" (Genesis, 37:10)!
“Messiah” is a Hebrew term that means “anointed one,” that is, the anointed king. We believe that Jesus Christ is that Messiah. The New Testament word “Christ” is the Greek translation of the Hebrew word “Messiah.” This Messianic Prophecy, then, holds out hope for peace and righteousness through the reign of Jesus the Messiah. The text can be divided into two sections: the Dawn of the Messianic Age (verses 1-5) and the Righteous Reign of the Messiah (verses 6 and 7). While the entire passage is instructive for the message, the verses that focus on the nature of the Messiah are critical, for therein lies our hope for everlasting peace.
Peter claims that Judas’ actions were necessary for the scriptures to be fulfilled and it is also necessary for Judas to be replaced as he was one of the twelve that shared in Jesus’ ministry and now his shares must be delegated to someone else. This showed great leadership by Peter. They then casted lots and Matthias was selected to replace Judas. Peter’s reaction to persecution is also another way Peter carried out the role of leader in Acts. Sadducees had arrested the apostles and
Some scholars have even gone as far as claiming this Epistle was originally a pre- 1 Ralph P. Martin and Peter H. Davids. Dictionary of the Later New Testament and Its Developments. (Downers Grove, IL: Inter Varsity Press, 1997):an argument against a Christology in James based on the “kerygmatic omissions…unfairly pits James’s theocentrism against the Christocentric of other NT documents.”420 2 For more on this position see: J. Julius Scott, Jr. “Commas and the Christology of the Epistle of James” (paper presented at the National Meeting of
In his book Knowing Jesus Through the Old Testament Dr. Wright puts forth that one cannot truly know Jesus without first knowing His story. A story that is not found in the pages of the New Testament, but one that is rooted and found in the Old Testament. Knowing Jesus Through the Old Testament provides the reader with a potentially unique new understanding of Jesus through the lens of the Old Testament. Summary Dr. Wright makes two profound statements at the out set of the book that lay the foundations of his argument. For Dr. Wright the Old Testament is not about the foretelling of the coming of Christ, but where Jesus discovers His own identity and mission.
is like asking a Christian, "why don't you believe in Zeus?" (Rich, 2011) So the more I read to more I understood but why did I always think they thought he was a profit. I don’t know the answer to that question. Maybe I was told that growing up some time. I learned that Orthodox Jewish faith expects the messiah to “restoration of the Davidic monarchy and a just and peaceful society throughout the world, as foretold by the prophets during the age of the Babylonian Exile.” Christianity believes Jesus will come back and do those things upon his return.