I. THE GOSPEL
1. The literal translation of gospel means “bring good tidings.” Mark 1:3 [1]. Rom 10:15 [2].
2. The gospel embraced not only events and sayings, but was a portrait of Jesus’ bestowal. Heb 1:2,3 [3].
3. When the believer was baptized he confessed that “Jesus is Lord.” Born 10:9 [? - ed.].
4. Love your enemies, and become “sons of the Most High.” Luke 6:35 [4]. Love and forgive one another. Eph 4:32 [5].
5. The gospel story is formulated in acts. By Peter— Acts 4:8-12 [6]. By Paul— Acts 13:16-41 [7].
6. In the religion of Jesus, and according to the Urantia Book, the gospel is: “The fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man.”
7. In the religion about Jesus, the gospel message evolved somewhat as follows:
8. The result of such preaching on the day of Pentecost confirmed their faith in such a message.
9. The glossolalia of Pentecost is of doubtful authenticity.
10. “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you.” Acts 1:8 [8]. Pentecost is really the birthday of the Christian Church.
11. The Spirit was recognized in Old Testament times—see Judg 14:6 [9]. Now, at Pentecost, the Spirit is “democratized.”
12. The church is here. “And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.” Acts 2:42 [10].
13. These early believers attempted to carry out a communistic plan of living. Later on, Paul was taking up collections to feed the starving brethren at Jerusalem.
II. THE GOSPEL IN THE GOSPELS
1. The gospel writers were not presenting history or biography. They were telling a story to confirm faith—”That believing you may have life in his name.”
2. The gospel was the whole of the apostolic message. “All that Jesus began to do and teach.”
3. Said Jesus: “For the Son of man came to seek and to save the lost.” Luke 19:10 [11].
4. Matthew came along with the idea that the ‘Sermon on the Mount” might be the gospel.
5. “Whosoever will may come” was the keynote of Jesus’ teaching. Salvation was a matter of faith.
6. The fatherhood of God was not a new idea in Israel, but to make use of the fact as the basis of the “brotherhood of man” was a new idea.
7. There was a new note of comfort in Jesus’ teaching. “Come to me all you who are weary and find rest for your souls.”
8. Jesus advised against all fear, anxiety, and worry. His message was one of faith, confidence, and trust.
9. Jesus knew and freely quoted the Scriptures.
10. He exhorted to doing the will of God—to be perfect even as God is perfect.
11. He healed sickness and restored the disordered mind.
12. He came to “reveal the Father” and “do his will.”
13. In the four gospels it is difficult to understand just how Jesus regarded himself as concerned the Messiah. He seldom referred to himself as “the Son of God.”
14. The gospel writers seemed to regard Jesus as the Messiah.
15. Jesus’ favorite title was “the Son of Man.”
16. He asserted his divinity often. “The Son of Man has power to forgive sins.” “The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”
17. The gospel writers carry along the notion that the cross was inevitable— that it was God’s will.
18. There is much in the gospels to lend support to Paul’s later doctrine of the atonement.
19. The New Testament teaches the literal resurrection of Jesus’ physical body.
20. The New Testament gives first importance to the cross—the death of Jesus.
21. More and more the resurrection becomes the living core of the gospel.
III. THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PAUL
1. Paul claims to have had a special and personal revelation of “Christ of the Damascus Road.”
2. Paul also claims to have received a mandate to preach the gospel to the gentiles.
3. Paul’s epistles were largely devoted to:
4. Paul was inclined to ignore the human Christ. II Cor 5:16 [12].
5. Paul was determined to know only “Christ and him crucified”—the atonement.
6. He was concerned with the “risen and glorified Christ”—the divine Christ.
7. Paul’s controversy with the apostles was resolved during his second visit to Jerusalem—when they extended to him “the right hand of fellowship.”
8. Paul believed in the “verbal inspiration” of the Scriptures.
9. Paul’s conversion is a mystery—also his long isolation afterward. “I went into Arabia.” Gal 1:17 [13].
10. Paul becomes the philosopher and theologian of the religion about Jesus.
11. Paul usually speaks of Christ as “Lord” or “Son of God”—sometimes “Jesus Christ.”
12. The keynote of Paul’s preaching was “justification by faith.”
13. Paul calls his gospel the “righteousness of God.” Rom 1:17 [14].
14. Paul teaches sonship with God by “adoption.” Rom 8:15 [15]. (King James Version)
15. Paul pays little or no attention to Christ’s life—he concentrates on his death and resurrection. I Cor 15:3 [16].
16. Paul had specific ideas about the atonement—being “redeemed from the curse of the law.” Gal 3:13 [17].
17. Reconciliation through the “blood of Christ” means a “new creation.” II Cor 5:17 [18].
18. In place of “the kingdom of God,” Paul uses “in Christ”—a citizen of heaven. Phil 3:20 [19]. (King James Version)
19. Christ is not only Lord of the individual, but also “Lord of the universe.”
20. Paul does not promise a life free from hardship, but does assert “that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ.”
IV. THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO JOHN
1. As time passes, there is a reaction to Paul’s overstressing the divinity of Christ. Hebrews, I Peter, Revelation, and the pastoral epistles all call special attention to the humanity of Jesus.
2. John presents a more balanced picture of both the humanity and the divinity of Jesus.
3. John combines the teachings of the apostles, Paul, and much from the Greeks.
4. Use of “the kingdom of heaven” is not found in John. Already it had resulted in persecutions.
5. The incarnation is a central concept in John. John 14:9 [20].
6. The summation of the religion about Jesus is found in John 3:l6 [21].
7. The incarnation is summed up in John 14:10 [22]. “The Father who dwells in me does his works.”
8. Of all the New Testament the gospel of John is the best presentation of both the humanity and the divinity of Jesus.
9. It is interesting to note that the doctrine of the virgin birth [23] is absent in John and in all of Paul’s writings.
10. It is in John that Jesus “thirsts” and “weeps.”
11. It is in John that we find the “I am” sayings—”I am the bread of life,” and so on.
12. John is the most logical, dignified, consistent, and philosophical of all the New Testament writers.
I. MOTIVES FOR WRITING
1. There are three groups of Christian writings:
2. The New Testament was written in everyday style of Greek. Jesus’ oral teaching was in Aramaic.
3. In New Testament times the “letter” was a popular form of communication.
4. One great motive for New Testament writing was to preserve the record for teaching—not to write a history.
5. Luke is the only New Testament writer who evinced anything like an interest in history.
6. Another motive for writing was to make converts—evangelization.
7. Still a third motive was “edification” of believers.
8. In the case of Paul, much of his writing was to combat “errors” and settle disputes.
9. Early New Testament writings were on papyrus. Later on parchment.
10. The arrangement of the New Testament is not chronological. Gospels come first, followed by Acts and Paul’s letters to the churches. Then the remainder, followed by Revelation.
II. NEW TESTAMENT AND APOCRYPHA
1. New Testament students think that the gospel writers had a common source— called Q. This was the notes of the Apostle Andrew. See (1341.2) 121:8.1 [24]
2. Long after Luke wrote “Acts of the Apostles,” other writers wrote the acts of Peter, Paul, John, and others.
3. Paul’s epistles are the oldest of the New Testament writings—Thessalonians being the oldest.
4. The Urantia Book suggests that Paul was “one of the authors of Hebrews.”
5. II and III John, James, Jude, and II Peter are late writings and by other authors than those assigned.
6. There was little to choose between II Peter and other writings ascribed to Peter which were rejected.
7. Ephesians, after Paul’s writing, was revised and edited by a later Christian author.
8. The apocryphal writings most seriously considered by early Christians were:
9. Among the early apologists were:
I. NEW TESTAMENT GREEK
1. In the times of Christ, three languages were spoken in Palestine—Aramaic, Greek, and Latin. The official language was Latin.
2. General interests were:
3. In early times, there were many dialects of classic Greek.
4. KOINE Greek [36] was the common language developed by Alexander’s army. By the first century of our era it had become the language of the Roman Empire.
5. Paul’s letter to the Romans was written in Koine Greek. Koine was a simplification of classic Greek.
6. Koine Greek [36] was the language of Philo and Josephus.
7. Modern Greek is Byzantine Greek. Came in from seventh to eleventh century.
II. THE NEW TESTAMENT AUTHORS
1. HEBREWS. Of all books in the New Testament Hebrews attains the highest standard of literary quality of Koine Greek. The style is systematic and very different from Paul. The Urantia Book suggests that Hebrews had several authors. See (1024.2) 93:9.11 [37]. Paul was probably one of them. See (539.5) 47:10.3 [38], next to last paragraph. The quotation credited to Paul is Hebrews 12:22 [39]. This is the only New Testament book which refers to Melchizedek.
2. JAMES. Along with Hebrews, James is at the top of literary excellence. It is distinctly Jewish, but in excellent language. There are no Hebraisms. The book exhibits great literary skill in alliteration and syllable formation.
3. LUKE AND ACTS. Luke, the physician (Col 4:14 [40]), was the most versatile of all New Testament writers. The preface to the gospel of Luke ( 1:1-4 [41]) is the most perfect of Greek composition, comparing with the preface of Herodotus [42]. Luke uses 750 words not found elsewhere in the New Testament. Many times his words indicate the medical viewpoint—Peter’s mother-in-law had a high fever. A man was full of leprosy. Professional pride caused him to leave out—”and she was no better,” in the case of the woman who had “suffered many things from many physicians.” Luke avoids foreign words.
He never uses “rabbi,” always “master.” But as a true reporter he often retains Jewish idiom—like “and it came to pass.” In Acts he employs the more elegant Greek.
4. I PETER. I Peter shows more classical Greek than any other New Testament writing. There is little or no vernacular Koine. There is here such an “elegant touch” as to suggest that such refined nicety is beyond the literary ability of the Galilean fisherman whose Aramaic brogue betrayed him. The dignity and elevation of this epistle suggests that it might have been dictated to, and revised by, Peter’s secretary, Silvanus. I Peter 5:12 [43].
5. MARK. Mark is an example of the nonliterary Koine. There is a lack of polish in Mark’s colloquial style which is somewhat covered up when put in English. He is very repetitious. Of 45 verses in the first chapter, 35 begin with “and.” Twelve of 16 chapters begin in the same way. Mark had a small vocabulary. Of 1290 words he uses, only 80 are peculiar to him, as compared with the other gospels. But there is a freshness and vigor along with great brevity that marks him as an “artistic genius.”
6. REVELATION. Of all New Testament books, Revelation is on the lowest literary level of Koine Greek. Dionysius of Alexandria called the Greek of Revelation barbaric. The writer seems to think in Aramaic while writing in Greek. Nevertheless, the book is filled with powerful sayings. One explanation of these peculiarities of Revelation may be its frequent revisions and distortions. See Urantia Book, (1555.7) 139:4.14 [44]
7. MATTHEW. Matthew’s Greek is better than Mark’s, but not so good as Luke’s. It is smoother than Mark’s, but more monotonous than Luke’s. Matthew has 95 personal expressions, as compared with Mark’s 41 and Luke’s 151. Matthew has a penchant for grouping things by threes or sevens:
8. JOHN. John’s gospel has a simplicity and grandeur which is unrivaled by any other book of the New Testament. John’s vocabulary is less than that of the other gospels, but far more impressive and majestic. He makes effective use of fundamental words, such as: truth, light, world, sin, judgment, and life. His construction is sometimes almost “child-like.” A stylistic peculiarity of John is combining negative and positive expressions: “He confessed and denied not.” “Should not perish, but have everlasting life.” He writes pure Greek, but the Semitic viewpoint is always appearing. There are two other peculiarities. He writes in short weighty sentences. “I am the light of the world.” “Jesus wept,” the shortest verse in the Bible. The other, a peculiar circular or spiral-motion type of reasoning. See John 8:38-44 [45].
9. EPISTLES OF PAUL. Paul had a characteristic style, though his letters vary greatly. Now and then he almost reaches the high level of Plato. He likes to ask and answer supposed questions or objections. Most of his epistles were dictated. The Timothy and Titus letters are a bit different from the other epistles. If Paul had known his letters were to become part of “the word of God”—inspired Scripture—he would have edited them more carefully, as someone later on did edit and polish up Ephesians.
10. II PETER. The style of II Peter is very different from that of I Peter. The Greek is awkward, but is greatly improved by translation into English. Important words are frequently repeated. If these differences are due to different secretaries, then Peter gave his secretaries much freedom of expression. Most scholars think II Peter was written early in the second century.
11. JUDE. The style of Jude is better than II Peter, but is very much like that of the second chapter of II Peter. Jude likes to express himself in triads. It is good idiomatic Koine Greek.
12. LANGUAGE OF JESUS. Jesus taught in good everyday Aramaic. Many Aramaic words and phrases are carried over into New Testament records. The Jews were fond of puns and many of Jesus’ sayings were on this order. The saying about “straining out gnats and swallowing the camel” was a pun—the Aramaic words for gnat and camel made a jingle.
III. INTERPRETATION OF NEW TESTAMENT LANGUAGE
1. Three influences determine the interpretation of New Testament Greek:
2. Discovery of Egyptian papyri in the nineteenth century taught translators how to understand Koine Greek.
3. Illustration: Jesus’ statement about being unable by anxious thought to add one cubit to his stature. What Jesus really said: “Add to your span of life.”
4. The Old Testament is the lexicon of the New Testament. Many New Testament words can be understood only by Old Testament usage. Law in Greek means statute—in Old Testament usage it means revelation—God’s will.
5. In Hebrew the word “parable” covers “sayings” as well as “stories.”
6. Christianity created new words and phrases, such as “in Christ.”
7. The word “grace” takes on new meaning in New Testament theology.
8. The word “peace” comes to mean vastly more in Christian religion than formerly.
9. “The world and the flesh” comes to have new meanings in Christianity. Other words having new meanings were: life, faith, save, meek, election, and kingdom of God.
I. THE SYNOPTIC PROBLEM
1. There is a considerable gap between Jesus’ Galilean Aramaic and the Greek of the gospels.
2. Also, the Jesus teaching has passed from Jewish hands to the gentiles.
3. Paul cites two definite traditions which had been passed on to him:
4. Luke refers to “already written records.” The Q manuscript [48] (Andrew’s notes).
5. Because of “resemblances” Matthew, Mark, and Luke have been called the “Synoptics.”
6. Use of written sources produces agreement; of oral tradition, disagreement.
7. Augustine first pointed out this problem of resemblances and differences in the gospels.
8. The generally accepted solution:
II. THE MARCAN SOURCE
1. Of 661 verses in Mark, 610 are in either Matthew or Luke—majority in both. Of 88 paragraphs in Mark only three are missing in both Matthew and Luke.
2. The order of sections in Mark is repeated in Matthew or Luke. Even the order of sentences in telling a story compares.
3. Fifty-five per cent of Luke’s language is from Mark. Matthew repeats 59 per cent.
4. There is an agreement as concerns the use of “unusual language.” Even peculiar sentence construction reappears.
5. All the evidence indicates that the Q document [48] was in many ways like Mark.
6. It is fair to conclude that Matthew and Luke depended upon three sources:
III. THE ADDITIONAL SOURCES
1. The Q manuscript furnishes for Matthew and Luke a considerable body (over 200 verses) of Jesus’ sayings.
2. Matthew and Luke tell identical stories about:
3. The use of identical words in Matthew and Luke indicate the existence of Q.
4. Luke differs more from Mark than Matthew. Luke either had other writings or else he made his own record of oral traditions.
5. Matthew contains a striking series of Old Testament quotations not found in Mark or Luke.
6. There are several stories peculiar to Matthew:
7. It is generally believed (including the Urantia Book) that Mark is the gospel according to Peter. But the language is not that of Peter.
8. In Paul’s preaching he appeals to:
9. Paul’s traditions differ in some respects from the narratives of the Synoptic gospels.
10. Form criticism is more recent in origin. It concerns the “form” ‘of the narrative as indicating date of origin. But the various scholars are not very well agreed on the basis of interpretation.
IV. BESIDES THE SYNOPTICS
1. Aside from the passion narrative and four or five stories, the fourth gospel is wholly different from the Synoptics.
2. John even differs regarding the day of the crucifixion. The Urantia Book confirms John’s record.
3. It is likely that each of the larger churches had a body of tradition of its own. Maybe also some written notes.
4. John’s gospel is such a body of tradition associated with Alexandrian Greek philosophy.
5. There was the tradition of Rome, Antioch, Ephesus, and Jerusalem.
6. Much of the mythical tradition is contained in the final records of the Apocrypha.
THE GRECO-ROMAN WORLD
I. THE HELLENISTIC AGE
1. The Hellenistic age [49] extends from the death of Alexander to the founding of the Roman Empire.
2. Armies, salesmen, colonists, artists, and philosophers spread the “spell of the Greek spirit” throughout the world.
3. Hellenistic culture and language spread all over the Roman Empire. It was: “the importance of the individual.”
4. Mesopotamia and Egypt were in decline. Egypt became a Roman province at the battle of Actium, 30 B.C.
5. Athens became the cultural center of the Empire.
6. Alexander left the Jews unmolested—they were practically independent.
7. When Alexander died, the Greek Empire fell apart.
II. MORALITY AND PHILOSOPHY
1. The Jews compared the morals of the gentiles with Sodom and Gomorrah. Early Christians held about the same opinion.
2. Paul took a dim view of “heathen” morals. He harped on sexual depravity.
3. Homosexuality was not looked down on by the Greeks. Plato almost idealized the practice.
4. Paul, like the Jews, looked upon homosexuality with horror. I Thess 4:3-8 [50]. Col 3:5 [51]. Eph 5:3 [52]. Gal 5:19 [53].
5. Prostitution was tolerated all over the gentile world—even became a part of their religious ceremonials.
6. Slavery was general—human life was cheap. Crucifixion and burning at the stake were common among the Romans.
7. Christianity took a strong stand against all this—even tried to improve the status of the slave.
8. Rome granted religious freedom-except for persecutions now and then of Jews and Christians.
9. Philosophy was an important aspect of Hellenic culture. The Greeks were seeking for ultimate truth.
10. In the Orient the cultural leaders were prophets—Moses and Zoroaster.
11. Plato’s theory of ideas—the true reality—intrigued Christians. It was like the idea of the material being the shadow of the heavenly reality.
12. Christians shared in Plato’s search for “absolute truth” as the pattern for living.
13. Plato’s belief in immortality of the soul charmed Christians—although Plato did not believe in survival of the physical body.
14. Aristotle, Plato’s pupil and tutor of Alexander, taught that every object was composed of substance and attributes.
15. Motion, he taught, proves the existence of a “prime mover.” This prime mover is infinite and is what religionists call God.
16. Thomas Aquinas taught that the doctrine of transubstantiation in the Lord’s Supper was based on Aristotle.
17. Epicureanism was an attempt to ignore both science and religion—the simple fulfillment of natural desire. But it was not a sensual philosophy.
18. Stoicism was widespread during this period. Paul was something of a Stoic —”I have learned in whatsoever state I am therewith to be content.”
19. Marcus Aurelius was a Stoic, also Seneca. They dwelt on unity and reason.
20. Reason was the world-soul. Man’s intelligence is a fragment of universal and living reason.
21. All men are sons of God—the universal brotherhood. They sought to ignore emotion.
22. Evil is but the belief of ignorance. Conscience is the voice of “Divine Reason”—somewhat like Jeremiah’s doctrine of God’s law written on the heart. Jer 31:33 [54].
23. Stoicism was a religious naturalism—rationalistic pantheism. But it did produce a valiant sort of ethics.
III. RELIGION
1. Paul talks to the Stoic and Epicurean philosophers at Athens on the “unknown God.” They were never hostile toward religion.
2. The Greeks had an elaborate polytheism. Zeus was chief deity, with headquarters on Mt. Olympus.
3. On the Acropolis, Athena, goddess of wisdom, had her temple—the Parthenon. Many of the columns are still standing.
4. Hades was god of the underworld. He was a brother of Zeus. At death, the soul or shade went to Hades.
5. Eleusinian mysteries had to do with the cult of eternal life—immortality. It was a Greek sacrament about the God who died and rose again.
6. The cult of Dionysus (Bacchus) honored the god of wine. The theater presented comedy and tragedy.
7. Apollo, god of medicine, brought punishment and even death. He was the inspiration of poets and prophets.
8. From all over the Greek world they came to Delphi to consult Apollo—the oracles.
9. Aesculapius—the divine physician—son of Apollo—was the great healer. This healer god had a daughter—Hygeia—goddess of health.
10. Today the symbol of medicine is the staff of Aesculapius with a serpent entwined about it.
11. Mithra—god of soldiers—a long-time contemporary of Christianity, along with Isis, Egyptian god of Immortality.
IV. HELLENISTIC JUDAISM
1. The Second Isaiah had been leading the Jews away from nationalism toward universalism.
2. In Egypt there was a revolt against Jerusalem. The Jews built a temple on the island of Elephantine, whose ceremonials were like those of the Jerusalem temple.
3. A third temple was built by the Samaritans at Shechem. This temple was destroyed by John Hyrcanus in 129 B.C.
4. At the time Antiochus tried to destroy the temple services at Jerusalem (167 B.C.), the Samaritans named their temple on Mt. Gerizim for Zeus.
5. Even Paul attended the temple ceremonials when he was in Jerusalem.
6. But after A.D. 70 Jewish religious life was centered in the synagogue. This is the era of Jewish eschatology—belief in the coming of the Messiah and the “new age.”
7. The Egyptian Greeks wanted the Scriptures in their own tongue. This led to the translation, at Alexandria, of the Hebrew Bible into Greek.
8. Both Jews and Christians all over the Greek-speaking Roman world could now read the Scriptures in Greek.
9. These were the Old Testament scriptures that were read by Jesus and his apostles.
10. Greek thought was making inroads into Jewish thought. See the wisdom literature—Job, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes—as well as the wisdom of Solomon.
11. Philo, at Alexandria, began to make allegories out of the Old Testament. Example: When the heaven and earth were created, it means “mind and sense-perception.”
12. Early Christians, at the Alexandria school, were influenced by Philo—including Clement and Origen.
13. Greek, art gained ground among Jews. Synagogues are elaborately decorated with Bible scenes.
14. Anti-Semitism is aroused by the refusal of Jews to be assimilated—their racial isolation.
15. Jews suffered persecution in both Egypt and Rome.
16. The early Christians were persecuted in Rome because the Emperor regarded Christianity as a Jewish sect. Later they suffered because they clung to the idea of “the kingdom of heaven.”
6. PALESTINE DURING NEW TESTAMENT TIMES
I. FROM ALEXANDER TO POMPEY
1. Samaria and Idumea were attached to Judea; Perea was attached to Galilee.
2. Under Alexander, Palestine was relatively free—independent, except when Antiochus attempted to destroy “Jewish superstitions.”
3. The Hasmonaean revolt [55] was successful beyond anticipation. Israel was expanded in territory.
4. The people did not like military priests—a five-year civil war broke out.
5. Alexandra, Jannaeus’s widow, brought peace.
II. UNDER ROME
1. Hyrcanus joined with the Arabs to besiege his brother at Jerusalem, and Rome took over. Independence was gone forever.
2. Samaria and Galilee were attached to Syria. Israel’s neighbors hailed the Romans as a deliverer.
3. The Romans were very tolerant of local customs and granted full religious liberty.
4. The walls of Jerusalem were rebuilt and it was granted Joppa as a seaport.
5. Herod became king of Judea. This Idumean received the title “King of the Jews.”
6. Caesarea became the capital and both Judea and Samaria were rebuilt.
7. Palestine was divided into three administrative parts:
8. The Zealots were an old party and never ceased to make trouble.
9. There were three religious parties:
10. The Zealots were the “home rule” political party.
11. The worst trouble with Rome came when Gaius (37-41) wanted to put his statue in the “holy of holies” in the temple at Jerusalem.
12. The Jews kept looking for the Messiah, while they rejected Jesus. In A.D. 132 they accepted Bar Cocheba and started a new revolt against Rome.
13. After this the Sanhedrin was restored to power. Taxes were collected by salaried agents. Only customs were “farmed out” to publicans.
14. After Archelaus, Judea was ruled by procurators, Pilate being the fifth of that order to govern Judea.
15. Agrippa, grandson of Herod, was the last of the procurators. He was the most popular of all Roman governors.
16. At last another semi-Jewish king sat on David’s throne—at least for three years.
17. At last (A.D. 66) the full-stage revolt against Rome broke out. It ended in A.D. 70 when Titus took Jerusalem and “not one stone of the temple was left upon another.”
18. Christians, having been forewarned by Jesus, fled to Pella. But the Jews never forgave them for thus forsaking Jerusalem.
III. THE LAW AND ITS INTERPRETATION
1. The Jews took their religion very seriously. Through Moses, God—Yahweh— had given them his law.
2. This law—the Torah—was a revelation of God’s will. Their whole religious duty was—”Cease to do evil; learn to do good.” Isa. 1:16,17.
3. The temple (synagogue) was a symbol of the LAW.
4. The Jews had priests at Jerusalem, but no fixed ministers at the synagogues.
5. The oral law soon became as binding as the written law:
6. The final compilation of the oral law was the Talmud.
7. Of 4,500,000 Jews, only 700,000 dwelt in Palestine. There were more Jews in Alexandria than in Jerusalem.
8. Jewish “hope” crystallized in two directions:
7. HISTORY OF THE EARLY CHURCH
THE PRIMITIVE CHURCH
1. The crucifixion scattered the followers of Jesus to the four winds. It was their belief in the fact of the resurrection that finally brought them together at Jerusalem.
2. How, when, and why they gathered in Jerusalem—we do not know. We just find them there.
3. On the day of Pentecost we find 120 believers assembled in an upper room at Jerusalem. Acts 1:15 [56].
4. The promised Spirit comes, and they go out to preach—Peter taking the lead.
5. The “speaking with tongues”—glossolalia—was utterance of certain arbitrary sounds—not a definite language. Paul is supposed to have had this “gift.”
6. Joel had foretold of this “pouring out of the Spirit.”
7. This day marks the birth of the Christian church, with its thousands of baptisms.
8. Organization was simple. The resurrected Jesus was Lord—and would soon return. This belief in the second advent was the main reason for their giving up all private property.
9. They had no creed—each believer was free to make his own interpretation of the gospel.
10. The creed was simple—”Jesus is Lord”—Paul recognized this. See Rom 10:9 [57]. I Cor 12:3 [58]. Phil 2:11 [59].
11. They had just two sacraments—baptism and the Lord’s Supper.
12. Jesus had not insisted on baptism—but since he was baptized by John—it became a rite of the church.
13. Remember: They expected Jesus’ return—any day, week, or month.
14. But trouble developed. Jesus’ coming was delayed. The “common property” was exhausted, Poverty stared them in the face.
15. Presently, the new church had to separate from Judaism. The Jews began persecutions.
16. The Jerusalem church was largely composed of Hellenized Jews—many from all about the Roman Empire.
17. There was serious trouble between the native Jewish Christians and the Hellenist converts. Stephen was leader of the Greeks.
18. Stephen was dragged out during his trial and stoned to death. Paul saw all of this. Acts 8:1 [60].
19. While the Jews allowed the native Christians to remain, they drove the Hellenists out of Jerusalem. Thus they carried the gospel all over the gentile world.
20. There were large churches at Antioch, Damascus, and Rome. Paul was on his way to Damascus when he saw his vision.
21. The Jews confined their labors to Palestine. They could not get away from the notion that Jesus would return soon. They, in error, kept repeating a supposed saying; “You will not have gone through all the towns of Israel, before the Son of man comes.” Matt 10:23 [61].
22. Agrippa (A.D. 42) began the persecution of Christians. James was put to death.
23. Peter was yielding leadership to James, the Lord’s brother. Paul and James held opposite positions regarding the gentiles. Peter tried to stand between them.
24. But friction persisted. Finally Paul and Barnabas went up to Jerusalem for a finish fight. They finally reached a compromise. Paul was allowed to “go his way”, and preach his gospel. The two accounts of this meeting don’t fully agree. Acts 15 [62]. Gal 2 [63].
25. For many years the church went forward in two camps. The Jerusalem church became poverty stricken and Paul took up collections in his gentile churches to help them.
26. As the revolt against Rome agitated Jerusalem, the Christians were very unpopular as they resisted the war-fever. Before the end they all fled to Pella.
27. The Jerusalem church was short lived, but it assembled and preserved the writings which later on became the New Testament.
28. It is unfortunate that we have so little of record concerning the latter days of the Jerusalem church. But they did render a valuable service during the formative period of Christianity.
1. Saul was born in Tarsus. Paul was his Latin or Roman name—his father was a Roman citizen. He did not change his name from Saul to Paul because of his conversion.
2. Paul was a “Pharisee of the Pharisees”—he was familiar with the philosophy of the Stoics and the Cynics. He also understood the pagan religions. Acts 23:6 [64].
3. Like most Jewish boys, he was taught a trade—tent-making, and he worked at it, on and off, much of his life. Acts 18:3 [65]. (He was an expert weaver of goat’s hair.)
4. His conversion took place around A.D. 32, when he was about 30 years old. His death—A.D. 64 or 65. He was an active missionary about 33 years.
5. Paul was present at Stephen’s death—the first martyr of the new religion.
6. Paul early became associated with Barnabas, from Cyprus.
7. There were many gentile believers even before Paul began his work—but no strong churches.
8. Paul means “small”—no doubt he was a small person.
9. Paul had been a pupil of the renowned Gamaliel at Jerusalem.
10. Paul leaned much toward Philo’s allegorical type of Scripture interpretation. I Cor 10:1-11 [66]. Gal 4:22-31 [67].
11. On the road to Damascus, to arrest Christians, Paul says he met Jesus, and he became a believer on the spot.
12. At Damascus, Ananias, a believer, instructed Paul and helped him escape the Jews.
13. Perhaps the best account of Paul’s conversion is found in Acts 9:1-19 [68].
14. His first public effort was to preach about Jesus in the Damascus synagogue.
15. After a sojourn in Arabia, Paul returns and preaches in Damascus.
16. Creating hostility in Damascus, he escaped, going to Jerusalem. He had a sister in that city.
17. About this time he seems to have done some preaching in his home town— Tarsus.
18. About eight years have elapsed when he establishes himself in Antioch. Barnabas is already located there.
19. Barnabas takes a “collection” for the Jerusalem believers from Antioch.
20. Paul and Barnabas, with John Mark, start their first missionary journey, going to Paphos, capital of Cyprus, where the Roman proconsul, Sergius Paulus, was converted.
21. John Mark was a cousin of Barnabas.
22. They go from Paphos to Perga, where for some unknown reason, John Mark leaves them, returning to Jerusalem.
23. Paul looked upon John’s conduct as desertion. Acts 15:38 [69].
24. They taught in the synagogue at Pisidian Antioch, but the Jews rejected them.
25. They went to Iconium, where they had great success. But a great dissension arose in the city.
26. They went to Lystra, where the man born lame was healed, and the citizens thought two Greek gods had come among them.
27. But the Jews produced an attack on the missionaries, and they fled to Derbe. They made many converts.
28. They decided to stop here—to retrace their steps and build up the churches they had established.
29. New troubles developed. Jews came down to Antioch from Jerusalem, insisting that the only way to enter the Christian church was through Judaism.
30. Paul and Barnabas went to Jerusalem to settle this dispute. This was their second, trip—14 years after the first.
31. Peter came to their defense. The Jerusalem council decided that the only requirement of gentiles would be to abstain from:
32. Peter visited Antioch and ate with gentiles, but, when confronted by the Jerusalem Jews, backed down.
33. Paul and Barnabas decided to undertake the second missionary tour. Barnabas wanted to take John Mark—Paul said no. So Barnabas and Mark left Paul to make the journey alone.
34. Paul then decided to take Silas from Jerusalem. They visited the churches established on their first trip. At Lystra they met Timothy, who joined them for the rest of the tour.
35. We know little about this trip until they reach Troas. Here Paul had a dream, hearing, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.”
36. They went at once to Philippi, where the gospel was first preached in Europe. Here they were beaten and thrown in prison. (The jailer and his family were converted.)
37. But they had been in Philippi long enough to found a strong church. Paul later wrote one of his epistles to them. Here, Lydia, a business woman, became the first European convert to Christianity.
38. Paul took ship to Athens; Silas and Timothy remained in Berea. Paul did not have much success at Athens, and soon went on to Corinth.
39. At Corinth they met with great success. Silas and Timothy joined Paul here. Timothy told Paul of trouble at Thessalonica and Paul sent his letter, I Thessalonians, to the church. This was the spring of A.D. 50. In a few weeks he sent his second letter.
40. They spent 18 months in Corinth and then went to Syria, stopping off at Ephesus. Paul then went to Antioch, stopping at Caesarea on the way.
41. This second journey covered over two years, A.D. 49-51. Paul had a good rest and sent his epistle to the Galatians.
42. Before long, Paul was ready to start his third journey. The first stop of any length was at Ephesus. He taught in the synagogue and at the school of Tyrannus for two years. (Apollos, a Hellenist of Alexandria, had already started the work here. This is where Aquila and Prisca were converted.)
43. Paul talked about “fighting with wild beasts.” Was it figurative, or was he arrested and put in the arena with wild animals?
44. There was trouble at Corinth. Paul sent Timothy, then went himself. Soon he went by ship to Tyre. He went down the coast and over to Jerusalem.
45. Some Jews stirred up trouble for Paul and in the uproar, the Romans arrested Paul. Being a Roman citizen, they sent him to Caesarea, where Felix kept him in custody for two years.
NOTE: Somewhere along here Luke joined Paul’s party, for he writes in Acts in the first person.
46. Festus was now the ruler. When Paul was brought before him for a second trial—he appealed to Caesar.
47. Paul spoke before Agrippa, and his sister from Jerusalem visited him.
48. Paul sailed for Rome. The ship, it being autumn, got into serious trouble off the coast of Crete. In Acts 27:1-28:13 [70] Luke records one of the most famous shipwreck stories in all history.
49. The ship was storm-tossed for two weeks; finally the passengers were landed at Malta.
50. Paul, not being a criminal prisoner, was given much liberty and did much missionary work.
51. There is a legend that while here Paul contracted malaria—that this was his “thorn in the flesh.” Other traditions attributed his trouble to epilepsy or chronic eye trouble.
52. While in Rome awaiting his trial, Paul wrote Colossians, Philemon, and Philippeans.
53. The book of Acts ends abruptly. Paul had been a prisoner in Rome for two years. We really don’t know what happened to Paul. Following are the possibilities:
54. The early church fathers all agree that Paul was tried and convicted.
55. Paul may have been acquitted and arrested the second time during the Nero persecutions of 64 and 65.
56. Paul had been a valiant warrior—everywhere he went he left loyal friends and fierce enemies. He was a man of conflict, but he was a stalwart Christian.
57. He was the master theologian of Christianity—its chief philosopher. He was something of a self-supporting missionary. He never “ate any man’s bread.” He was truly the “apostle to the gentiles.”
I. PALESTINE
1. In A.D. 62 James, head of the Jerusalem church, was stoned. Soon afterward the church moved to a gentile city—Pella.
2. In July 64 Nero blamed Christians for the burning of Rome, and bloody persecutions began.
3. The church was plagued by internal problems as well as by external troubles. Gentile Christianity was more vulnerable to heresy.
4. Peter’s preaching and Paul’s letters were the traditional backbone of the early Christian church.
5. After the passing of the apostles and the members of Jesus’ family, sects and heresies began to appear.
6. “False prophets” sprang up everywhere. There were two wings of Jewish Christians:
7. The Ebionites rejected the gospel of Matthew.
II. SYRIA
1. After A.D. 70, Antioch became the headquarters of the Christian church. Here, also, the Gnostics had their stronghold.
2. And it was at Antioch that Jesus’ followers were first called “Christians.”
3. Antioch produced Ignatius, the first known martyr, after the apostles.
4. The gospel of Mark was widely circulated—and accepted—at Antioch. Later, both Matthew and Luke were accepted.
5. Peter was the traditional authority of the church at Antioch. Even the apocalyptic “Gospel of Peter,” was widely read in the Syrian churches.
6. Bishop Sarapion of Antioch at first accepted the “Gospel of Peter,” but later on fully rejected it.
7. But the Syrian churches were beset by a combination of idolatrous polytheism and Jewish ceremonialism.
8. Next comes Docetism—denying the material existence of Jesus. He was “not born of woman”—could not suffer pain or death.
9. Then comes Gnosticism, a combination of Jewish, pagan, and Christian terminology. Gnostic teachers from Antioch spread over Asia Minor, Egypt, and Rome.
10. Ignatius, bishop of Antioch, wrote letters to all the churches and to Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna. He sought to augment the authority of the bishops—to fight heretics.
11. He circulated a manual on church government known as the “Teaching of the Twelve Apostles.”
III. ASIA MINOR
1. Ephesus was the center from which the gospel spread throughout Asia Minor.
2. Everything could be found at Ephesus—superstition, frauds, quackery, tension, conflict, and heresy. Disciples of Peter or Paul.
3. Paul’s letters were first brought together at Ephesus.
4. Among the Jerusalem leaders coming to Hierapolis was Philip—one of the seven (Acts 6:5) and his four daughters—prophetesses.
5. Marcion—a Docetist—spread his “error” from Asia Minor to Rome. Finally expelled from the Rome church.
6. Marcion accepted only Paul’s letters and the gospel of Luke. He drove the churches to adopt a creed.
7. Then came the Montanist schism—the. “Phrygian frenzy.”
8. Feb. 22, A.D. 156, marks the date of the martyrdom of Polycarp—the companion of those who “had seen the Lord.”
IV. GREECE
1. There was always some sort of trouble with the church at Corinth. 1 Cor. 1:10. Even the church at Rome sent them a rebuking letter. I Clement. (Apocrypha)
2. The Athens church might waver, but the church at Rome was always steady.
3. In general, the Grecian churches made progress and, in spite of their ups and downs, prospered.
V. EGYPT
1. The “Epistle to the Hebrews” and the so-called “Epistle of Barnabas” were addressed to Egyptian Christians.
2. Gnosticism spread throughout Egypt. God became the “Philosophical Absolute.”
3. They also circulated a “Gospel According to the Egyptians”—being the gospel of a sect, the Encratites.
VI. ROME AND WEST
1. Rome spread the gospel to the west, using the gospel of Mark—presenting Jesus in “action”—rather than as a preacher.
2. Rome was getting interested in church discipline—how to do penance, how to deal with apostates, etc.
3. A minor prophet, Hermas, brother of Bishop Pius, exerted considerable influence. His work “The Shepherd of Hermas” came close to getting into the New Testament canon.
4. Justin became a lay professor of philosophy—and an able defender of the “faith” before his martyrdom.
5. Justin did much writing against Marcion and other heretics—including reincarnation.
Links:
[1] https://biblehub.com/mark/1-3.htm
[2] https://biblehub.com/romans/10-15.htm
[3] https://biblehub.com/niv/hebrews/1-2.htm
[4] https://biblehub.com/luke/6-35.htm
[5] https://biblehub.com/ephesians/4-32.htm
[6] https://biblehub.com/niv/acts/4-8.htm
[7] https://biblehub.com/niv/acts/13-16.htm
[8] https://biblehub.com/acts/1-8.htm
[9] https://biblehub.com/judges/14-6.htm
[10] https://biblehub.com/acts/2-42.htm
[11] https://biblehub.com/luke/19-10.htm
[12] https://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/5-16.htm
[13] https://biblehub.com/galatians/1-17.htm
[14] https://biblehub.com/romans/1-17.htm
[15] http://kjv.us/romans/8.htm
[16] https://biblehub.com/1_corinthians/15-3.htm
[17] https://biblehub.com/galatians/3-13.htm
[18] https://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/5-17.htm
[19] https://biblehub.com/philippians/3-20.htm
[20] https://biblehub.com/john/14-9.htm
[21] https://biblehub.com/john/3-16.htm
[22] https://biblehub.com/john/14-10.htm
[23] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virgin_birth_of_Jesus
[24] https://www.urantia.org/urantia-book-standardized/paper-121-times-michaels-bestowal#U121_8_1
[25] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epistles_of_Clement
[26] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epistle_of_Barnabas
[27] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polycarp%27s_letter_to_the_Philippians
[28] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ignatius_of_Antioch
[29] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shepherd_of_Hermas
[30] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Didache
[31] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Martyr
[32] http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/aristides.html
[33] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tatian
[34] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athenagoras_of_Athens
[35] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theophilus_of_Antioch
[36] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koine_Greek
[37] https://www.urantia.org/urantia-book-standardized/paper-93-machiventa-melchizedek#U93_9_11
[38] https://www.urantia.org/urantia-book-standardized/paper-47-seven-mansion-worlds#U47_10_3
[39] https://biblehub.com/hebrews/12-22.htm
[40] https://biblehub.com/colossians/4-14.htm
[41] https://biblehub.com/niv/luke/1-1.htm
[42] http://www.fullbooks.com/THE-HISTORY-OF-HERODOTUS-Volume-11.html
[43] https://biblehub.com/1_peter/5-12.htm
[44] https://www.urantia.org/urantia-book-standardized/paper-139-twelve-apostles#U139_4_14
[45] https://biblehub.com/niv/john/8-38.htm
[46] https://biblehub.com/niv/1_corinthians/11-23.htm
[47] https://biblehub.com/niv/1_corinthians/15-3.htm
[48] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Q_source
[49] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hellenistic_civilization
[50] https://biblehub.com/1_thessalonians/4-3.htm
[51] https://biblehub.com/colossians/3-5.htm
[52] https://biblehub.com/ephesians/5-3.htm
[53] https://biblehub.com/galatians/5-19.htm
[54] https://biblehub.com/jeremiah/31-33.htm
[55] http://www.history.umd.edu/Faculty/HLapin/HIST282/282HerodRoman.pdf
[56] https://biblehub.com/acts/1-15.htm
[57] https://biblehub.com/romans/10-9.htm
[58] https://biblehub.com/1_corinthians/12-3.htm
[59] https://biblehub.com/philippians/2-11.htm
[60] https://biblehub.com/acts/8-1.htm
[61] https://biblehub.com/matthew/10-23.htm
[62] https://biblehub.com/niv/acts/15.htm
[63] https://biblehub.com/niv/galatians/2.htm
[64] https://biblehub.com/acts/23-6.htm
[65] https://biblehub.com/acts/18-3.htm
[66] https://biblehub.com/niv/1_corinthians/10-1.htm
[67] https://biblehub.com/niv/galatians/4-22.htm
[68] https://biblehub.com/niv/acts/9-1.htm
[69] https://biblehub.com/acts/15-38.htm
[70] https://biblehub.com/niv/acts/27-1.htm