Theology Of Paul

More documents

Recommendations

Info

THEOLOGY OF PAUL M.M.NINAN ___________________________________________________________ Remember the foundational principle of the Universal Church was the freedom in Christ where there is no difference between male and female, slave and free, Jew and gentile. But this newfound freedom was soon to cause rupture within the church and in its order. Paul was soon troubled by what he saw as a radical interpretation of this "newness in Christ," While Paul himself was the proponent of this freedom in Christ, he soon realized that a new dialectical situation between bondage to the law and freedom in Christ evolved. Law and Grace For freedom Christ has set us free 142
THEOLOGY OF PAUL M.M.NINAN ___________________________________________________________ What happened in the real life situation in the Churches of the early period was that this freedom was misinterpreted to mean that a believer can do anything and there will be no consequence for it. It was this mini interpretation of the meaning of the extent of “Freedom in Christ” that caused the major crisis in the early church. Evidently a sinful man when released from captivity is not fully ready to exercise his freedom in the right way. Rom 6:15 What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! But this should not be interpreted that those who are in Christ are incapable of sin nor that the sin they do will have no consequence. The cause effect relationship established by God does not change just because you have confessed Jesus. Every Christian will still have the freedom to choose and they will have to pay the consequence of the sin they commit. They are still under Grace and can return to the Father and he or she will be accepted if they are penitent and will return. (Gal 5:18) But if you are led by the Spirit you are not under the law. What is important here is that you are not under the law not just because you have confessed Jesus as Lord but because you walk in the Spirit which is what faith in Christ gives. “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set me free from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do: sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the just requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. “ (Rom 8:1-4) So the freedom from the law rests not just on the being in Christ Jesus, but also who walk according to the Spirit. It is this basic fact that produced lot of problems which Paul was trying to solve. When people took freedom from the law and did not walk according to the Spirit, Paul stuck down the law on their throat. So we see Paul enunciating new laws to the churches and women and men. Gal 3:19 “Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions,…..” “…the law is not laid down for the just but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, immoral persons, sodomites, kidnapers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine.” (1Ti 1:9-10) This is true even if the person is under the new covenant. In his anthropology Paul uses three groups of people 143
Page 2 and 3:
THEOLOGY OF PAUL M. M. NINAN CHAPTE
Page 4 and 5:
THEOLOGY OF PAUL M.M.NINAN ________
Page 6 and 7:
Page 8 and 9:
Page 10 and 11:
Page 12 and 13:
Page 14 and 15:
Page 16 and 17:
Page 18 and 19:
Page 20 and 21:
Page 22 and 23:
Page 24 and 25:
Page 26 and 27:
Page 28 and 29:
Page 30 and 31:
Page 32 and 33:
Page 34 and 35:
Page 36 and 37:
Page 38 and 39:
Page 40 and 41:
Page 42 and 43:
Page 44 and 45:
Page 46 and 47:
Page 48 and 49:
Page 50 and 51:
Page 52 and 53:
Page 54 and 55:
Page 56 and 57:
Page 58 and 59:
Page 60 and 61:
Page 62 and 63:
Page 64 and 65:
Page 66 and 67:
Page 68 and 69:
Page 70 and 71:
Page 72 and 73:
Page 74 and 75:
Page 76 and 77:
Page 78 and 79:
Page 80 and 81:
Page 82 and 83:
Page 84 and 85:
Page 86 and 87:
Page 88 and 89:
Page 90 and 91:
Page 92 and 93:
Page 94 and 95: THEOLOGY OF PAUL M.M.NINAN ________
Page 194 and 195:
Page 196 and 197:
Page 198 and 199:
Page 200 and 201:
Page 202 and 203:
Page 204 and 205:
Page 206 and 207:
Page 208 and 209:
Page 210 and 211:
Page 212 and 213:
Page 214 and 215:
Page 216 and 217:
Page 218 and 219:
Page 220 and 221:
Page 222 and 223:
Page 224 and 225:
Page 226 and 227:
Page 228 and 229:
Page 230 and 231:
Page 232 and 233:
Page 234 and 235:
Page 236 and 237:
Page 238 and 239:
Page 240 and 241:
Page 242 and 243:
Page 244 and 245:
Page 246 and 247:
Page 248 and 249:
Page 250 and 251:
Page 252 and 253:
Page 254 and 255:
show all

Theology Of Paul

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?