Resources

• Romans overview (video): Part 1, Part 2
• What is Romans?
  • Romans contains letters from Paul to the churches of Rome.
  • The church of Rome had existed for a long time and was made up of Jews and Gentiles.  Emperor Claudius had banished the Jews from the church for 5 years.  When the Jews returned there was a split between Gentiles and Jews in how they should follow Jesus and practice their faiths. Paul’s letters were an attempt to explain his faith and unite the Jews and the Gentiles into one faith worshiping Jesus. Paul hoped the Roman churches could become a staging ground to enable Paul to expand the church into Spain and beyond.
  • Romans is structured as follows:
    • Books 1-4: Revealing God’s Righteousness
    • Books 5-8: Creating a New Humanity
    • Books 9-11: Fulfilling God’s Promise to Israel
    • Books 12-16: Unifying the Church

ROMANS 2

• Chapter 2 Summary:
  • Do not judge others since you do the same things. God’s kindness intends to turn you from your sins.
  • Everyone will be judged according to what they have done – those that live for themselves will be punished (Jews first, then Gentiles).
  • Those Gentiles who sin but do not have God’s written law will still be punished. (2:12)
    • Gentiles instinctive obey God’s law even though they have never heard it (2:14)
  • Merely listening to the law is not enough – you must obey it as well. (2:13)
  •  Jesus will judge everyone’s secret life (2:16)
  • Jews boast about a special relationship with God (2:17) yet continue to sin (2:21-2:27)
  • Jews who don’t obey God’s law are not God’s chosen people. Gentiles who obey God’s law can be God’s chosen people. (2:25-2:26, 2:28-2:30).  Note: This contradicts the belief of most Jews – this might be why Jews don’t read or study the New Testament.

Resources

• Romans overview (video): Part 1, Part 2
• Reading Guide
• Teaching Notes (PDF)
• Video

Notes

• What is it?
  • Romans contains letters from Paul to the churches of Rome.
  • The church of Rome had existed for a long time and was made up of Jews and Gentiles.  Emporor Claudius had banished the Jews from the church for 5 years.  When the Jews returned there was a split between Gentiles and Jews in how they should follow Jesus and practice their faiths. Paul’s letters were an attempt to explain his faith and unite the Jews and the Gentiles into one faith worshippng Jesus. Paul hoped the Roman churches could become a staging ground to enable Paul to expand the church into Spain and beyond.
  • Romans is structured as follows:
    • Books 1-4: Revealing God’s Righteousness
    • Books 5-8: Creating a New Humanity
    • Books 9-11: Fulfilling God’s Promise to Israel
    • Books 12-16: Unifying the Church
• Chapter 1 Summary:
  • Paul explains the Good News about Jesus and how he prays to visit others and share his faith.
  • Paul explains in a letter his obligation to educate and be educated and that he is not ashamed of the Good News of Christ.
  • Paul explains how people can see evidence of God through everything God has made. Because of this people have no excuse to not worship God.
  • Unfortunately people traded the truth about God for following their own personal desires (1:25).
  • People abandoned God so God abandoned them, enabling them to indulge in whatever they like. The people quickly fell into sin (including homosexuality). Their lives were filled with sin because of this.
  • The people know that God’s justice requires those that do follow His laws are condemned. Despite this knowledge the people continued sinning and and encouraged others to sin also. They loved their sins more than they loved God. 

• Shared Judeo-Christian Tradition: Paul, like other early Christians, drew upon the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) and the developing oral traditions of early Christianity. Concepts like God’s wrath, human sinfulness, and the importance of righteousness were already present in this shared tradition.
• Focus and Emphasis: While core concepts might be present in earlier writings, Paul’s unique contribution might lie in his emphasis, application, and development of those ideas. In Romans 1, Paul seems to be:
  • Systematically laying out his understanding of sin and salvation: Romans is considered Paul’s most systematic theological work.
    • In Romans 1, Pauk establishes the universality of sin and the need for God’s intervention.
  • Addressing a Gentile audience: Romans is likely directed at a church in Rome with both Jewish and Gentile members. Paul might be explaining concepts familiar to Jews in a way that resonates with Gentiles.
• Scholarly Opinions on Romans 1’s Novelty:
  • Some scholars argue that Paul presents a more developed concept of God’s wrath in Romans 1 compared to earlier writings. Here, Paul emphasizes God’s righteous judgment against those who suppress the truth.
  • Others argue that the core ideas in Romans 1 are found elsewhere, but Paul’s way of weaving them together and building his theological case is what makes it unique.

Julius – centurian whp accompnied Paul to Italy via ship. Luke was also with them (author).
Paul hears from God and realizes that the voyage would end in disaster.
Paul warns the crew that they would lose the cargo and the ship. The crew refuses to listen to him and want to go on.
A terrible typhoon began and the ship was caught up in it, pulling the ship off course.
They lost control of the ship and were at the mercy of the sea.
The crew struggled to secure their skiffs to potentially serve as a means of escape.
The waves were so bad they lashed cables around the ship to keep it from being torn apart by the waves.
When things are out of control like this the tendancy is to go into survival mode.
The crew began throwing cargo and tackle overboard to lighten the ship. They continued like this for many days.
The storm was so bad they couldn’t see te sun for several days.
Instead of being angry Paul reassured them an angel told him that the crew would survive but the ship wouldn’t.
The storm lasted for 14 nights. On the 14th night they realized they were near land and shallow ground.
The crew cuts the rope for the skiff and lets it fall, making the ship lighter. This initially seemed like a bod idea but was an illustration of following God’s will.
The crew had trained themselves not to eat because their food was limiited. Paul encouraged them to eat so they could survive.
Paul reminded the crew that they were going to survive, not because of their efforts but because God has willed it. The crew then throws the last of their food into the sea to lighten the ship even further.
The crew decide to run the shop aground – the stern (back end) was being destroyed by waves. The soldiers debate on killing all the prisoners to prevent them from escaping but the centurian wanted to save Paul ab told everyone to jump overboard and swim for shore. THe men that were unable to swim still somehow survived and managed to live. The entire crew (276 men) managed to make it to shore as Paul had predicted.

When things don’t go your way and all seems lost you must be like Paul – don’t lose faith and encourage everyone to do the same.
Like the sailors, sometimes we’re still “holding onto the skiff” when God asks us to do something. We need to trust God and cut the rope.
You may one day be on a shop in a storm. When or if this happens, stay the course and trust God. If God can get 276 men through such a storm He can also get you through your challenges.

Here are some key points of Acts 25:

1. Change in Governance: The chapter opens with a change in Roman leadership: Porcius Festus replaces Felix as governor of Judea.

2. Renewed Accusations: The Jewish leaders, unsatisfied with Paul’s imprisonment under Felix, attempt to restart the legal process. They request Festus transfer Paul to Jerusalem, likely with the intent to ambush him on the way (Acts 25:3).

3. Festus’s Dilemma: Festus refuses to send Paul to Jerusalem, fearing an ambush, but also wants to appease the Jewish leaders. He proposes a new trial in Caesarea, where Paul is already being held (Acts 25:4-6).

4. Paul’s Appeal: During the trial, faced with false accusations, Paul asserts his innocence and exercises his Roman right to appeal directly to Caesar (the emperor) for a fair trial instead of the local authorities (Acts 25:8-12).

5. Encounter with Agrippa: King Agrippa visits Caesarea and hears Paul’s defense. Paul recounts his conversion experience and emphasizes his adherence to Jewish law and traditions (Acts 25:13-27).

6. Outcome: The chapter ends without a resolution, leaving Paul’s ultimate fate undecided. However, it highlights his determination to defend his faith and his journey towards a trial in Rome, fulfilling the prophecy of him bearing witness before rulers (Acts 25:28-29).

Notes for my weekly Bible Study group.
Resources

• Acts overview (video): Part 1, Part 2
• Reading Guide
• Teaching Notes (PDF)
• Video

Overview

• Acts 24 recounts Paul’s trial before Governor Felix in Caesarea Maritima.
• Accusations against Paul: Jewish leaders accuse Paul of stirring up trouble, promoting a dangerous sect, and desecrating the temple.
  • The charges against Paul were:
    (1) He was, in the eyes of the Jews, a ‘real pest’ (verse 5).
    (2) He stirred up unrest among the Jews world-wide (verse 5).
    (3) He was the ringleader of a non-Jewish sect (verse 5).
    (4) He tried to desecrate the temple (verse 6).
• Paul’s defense: Paul refutes the accusations, clarifies his activities, and emphasizes his faithfulness to Jewish law.
• Felix’s response: Unwilling to make a decision, Felix imprisons Paul but allows him visitors.
• Themes: Religious conflict, Roman justice, Paul’s unwavering faith.

Notes for my weekly Bible Study group.
Resources

• Acts overview (video): Part 1, Part 2
• Reading Guide
• Teaching Notes (PDF)
• Video

Overview

• Paul is before the council giving testimony.  The high priest tells his people to smack Paul in the mouth for what he was saying. Paul calls him a hypocrite but later apologizes since Christians aren’t supposed to speak badly about their leaders.
• The Pharisees and the Sadducees in the council argue with each other since some of them agreed with Paul and others didn’t. Paul admits he was a Pharisee and the Pharisees believed in resurrection of the dead but the Sadducees did not.
• The Pharisees and the Sadducees in the council argue with each other since some of them agreed with Paul and others didn’t.
• The Roman commander removed Paul to the barracks to keep him from being torn apart by the crowd.
• Later that evening God tells Paul that his next assignment would be to testify about God in Rome. Paul wasn’t sure how he would get there since he was in jail. Despite this, Paul was fully invested in the Holy Spirit and trusted in God’s plans. Paul had no doubt that he would somehow get to Rome to finish his teachings.  If God promises something He will always be faithful to His promise. Always trust in God.
• The next day the Roman commander sets up a small army to escort Paul all the way to his next destination safely. This fulfilled God’s promise to travel to his next city.
• There are four principles to learn from Acts:
  • PRINCIPLE #1: We must be fully surrendered to the Holy Spirit. (Acts 19:21; 20:22–24; 21:10–14; 22:30—23:1)
  • PRINCIPLE #2: Once we’ve fully surrendered, we must learn how to handle friendly fire. (Acts 23:2–5; John 15:26—16:4)
    • Paul responded to Ananias’s attack on him with logic and information because he didn’t realize Ananias was the high priest. When he did, Paul responded humbly, acknowledging his response was not in accordance with God’s Law.
  • PRINCIPLE #3: You must know your divine purpose amongst great opposition. (Acts 23:6–10; John 18:37)
  • PRINCIPLE #4: We must fully trust in God’s promise and provision. (Acts 23:16, 23; Joshua 21:45; 1 Samuel 3:19)

Notes for my weekly Bible Study group.
Resources

• Acts overview (video): Part 1, Part 2
• Reading Guide
• Teaching Notes (PDF)
• Video

Overview

• At the end of Acts 21, Paul was back in Jerusalem. The Jews seized Paul and dragged him out of the temple complex, planning to beat him to death.
• A Roman commander arrested Paul. Paul asked that he be allowed to address the crowd that had attacked him. Acts 22 records the text of Paul’s speech and the crowd’s’ reaction.
• Instead of preaching the gospel, Paul expains why he traveled with a Gentile from Ephesus. Paul reminds them of his strict education by the Pharisee rabbi Gamaliel and how violently he had, at first, persecuted Christians. Paul then explains his conversion and talks about his return to Jerusalem and how the Jews sought to kill him, so God told him to leave Jerusalem and concentrate on reaching the Gentiles. The mention of Gentiles angered the crowd listening to him.
• In the last part of the chapter, the Roman tribune realizes neither Paul’s speech nor the crowd’s anger will resolve anything. So the Roman commander decides to torture Paul until he speaks the full truth.
• The soldiers tie Paul up but before the centurion can start whipping him Paul points out that he is a Roman citizen and cannot be flogged until he has faced a trial. The centurion rushes to the tribune who, in turn, rushes to Paul to validate the information. The Romans are horrified since it would have been a crime to flog Paul (it was also a crime that they shackled him in the temple courtyard).
• Chapter 22 concludes with the tribune’s search for the truth as he schedules a meeting with the Sanhedrin (Jewish court), hoping they can shed light on the situation.

Notes for my weekly Bible Study group.
Resources

• Acts overview (video): Part 1, Part 2
• Reading Guide
• Teaching Notes (PDF)
• Video

Overview

• Jews were plotting to kill Paul. Many people hated Paul because of what had happened before the Jewish Council.
• Paul sent for the disciples in Ephesus and said goodbye before heading north to Macedonia. Paul went through the places he visited on his second missionary journey before moving into Greece, where he stayed three months. He planned to sail from Greece to Syria, but when he found out about a plot the Jews had planned against him, he went back through Macedonia. There was also opposition from Paul’s fellow countrymen and sidestepping this plot did not mean Paul would not face difficulties.
• Co-laborers accompanied Paul from the towns of Macedonia and Asia. These co-laborers went ahead of Paul and Luke and waited for them in Troas. Paul and Luke left Philippi after the Passover and reached Troas in five days (instead of the two days it
  took to sail to Philippi the last time). They spent seven days in Troas before moving on.
• On the first day of the week (Sunday), Paul and his companions assembled to break bread together and hear Paul speak. Paul continued to speak until midnight since he was leaving the next day. The Jews had kept the Sabbath (from dusk on Friday night to dusk on Saturday) as part of the Mosaic Law. The agreement made in the Jerusalem Council did not require Christians to observe the Saturday Sabbath since they were under the New Covenant. Paul never taught those he led to Christ to keep the Sabbath. There is no command in the New Testament about when the church should worship.
• A young man was sitting in a window listening and fell asleep, possibly because of the fumes from the oil-burning lamps. Eutychus, the young man, fell out of the third-story window and was found dead on the ground. Paul went down and embraced Eutychus’s body and said the boy was still alive. Paul went back upstairs, ate, continued teaching until dawn, and then left. The boy was taken home alive. Paul was able to heal Eutychus because Jesus gave His disciples the command to heal the sick and raise the dead.
• Some of Paul’s group sailed ahead to Assos to meet Paul, while Paul traveled by land. Paul then sailed with them from Assos to Mitylene, then to Chios, then to Samos, and the next day to Miletus. It feels as though the journey had begun to pick up speed. Paul even decided to bypass Ephesus and Asia because he was in a hurry to get to Jerusalem before Pentecost.
• While in Miletus, Paul asked the elders in Ephesus to come to him. When they arrived, Paul reminded them of the time he had spent with them and the ministry of evangelism he had shared with them. Paul then told them about what he anticipated would happen in Jerusalem—that the Holy Spirit had told him chains and afflictions waited for him. Paul took this as confirmation of what he had been called to do in testifying to the gospel of Christ.
• Like Paul, we need to realize that our job is to share the gospel, not to lead people to accept Jesus. Accepting Jesus is up to the individual after they have heard the message of the gospel.
• Paul told the leaders he would never see them again but that he would remain obedient to God’s call on his life. Paul described his obedience to “the whole plan of God”.
• Since Paul knew he was moving toward his own death, he warned the elders to be on guard for themselves. He warned the church to guard against false teachers within the church and against opposition from without.
• Paul committed them to God and reminded them he had asked nothing for support from them. Paul then prayed for them, and they embraced Paul, all weeping at this final departure

Notes for my weekly Bible Study group.
Resources

• Acts overview (video): Part 1, Part 2
• Reading Guide
• Teaching Notes (PDF)
• Video

Overview

• Paul and Silas traveled through two cities: Amphipolis and Apollonia. Paul was dependent on the Holy Spirit’s prompting to minister and didn’t sense the Spirit moving in Amphipolis and Apollonia so they didn’t stop to minister.
• When they reached Thessalonica Paul and his partners found women praying to God by the river and shared the gospel with them.
• Paul met with Jewish leaders for three weeks to discuss scripture.  Paul explained how Jesus (the Messiah) had to suffer and rise from the dead.
• Paul and his colleagues were staying at Jason’s house. The Jews becames jealous and started looking for Paul, Silas, and Timothy. When they couldn’t find thm they dragged Jason out in front of the mob and yelled at him about what Paul and his friends were doing. The crowd accused Paul and his friends of undermining Caesar’s authority by claiming Jesus was the rightful king. Jason and others are imprisoned until the city officials took “a security bond” (bribe) from Jason and the others, enabling them to be released. This bribe/agreement ensured that Paul would never be allowed back in Thessalonica.
• Paul and his colleagues moved on from Thessalonica to Berea.  The people of Berea were more open-minded than those in Thessalonica, and listened eagerly to Paul’s message.  Many Jews in Thessalonica realized Paul and his colleagues had gone to Berea so they planned to go there and cause trouble for Paul.  The people in Berea that had become believers decide to help Paul and send him to the coast before the troublemakers from Thessalonica could arrive. They later send Silas and Timothy to join Paul on the coast.
• Paul was waiting for Silas and Timothy in Athens. While Paul was waiting for them he was bothered by all the idols he saw in the city. Paul went daily went to the synagogue to reason with the Jews and the God-fearing Gentiles, and he spoke daily in the public square to all who happened to be there. He also had a debate with some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers om Berea. The philosophers were curious about Paul’s preaching and took him to the high council of Berea. Paul told the high council that he noticed an altar with an inscription “To an Unknown God”.  Paul explains that this “unknown” God is the same God he had been talking about. A few members of the high council were interested in Paul’s discussion and became believers in Christ.

Summary

• In just three short weeks, Paul persuaded people in Thessalonica to follow Jesus. The new believers encountered persecution but they did not allow their persecution to convince them to abandon Jesus. Their perseverance and their modeling after Paul became an example to others in the region, leading even more people to Jesus.
• Paul reasoned, explained, and showed that Jesus was the Messiah, enablng them to be persuaded to follow Jesus.