To enhance understanding biblical
context we had been meditating
scripture by time sequence:
OT1: Five Books of Laws & Job
OT2: Conquest to United Kingdom,
including Psalms & Wisdom Poetry.
OT3: Divided Kingdom, Exile, plus
Post-Exilic period & the Prophets.
Then gospels ending John where
we learnt Jesus Christ as Son of God
& believing we have life in His name.
Acts records fulfilment of Jesus’
Commission as Spirit-transformed
disciples spread the gospel. In
Romans, Paul gives a sample of his
message before he arrives in Rome.
And First and Second Corinthians,
Living for Christ in corrupt society.
Next, Paul’s letter to the Galatians
doesn’t open with his usual greeting
of praise and prayer for the saints.
There is an emergency at hand!
The Galatians have listened to
false teachers who have come into
the church teaching that salvation
in a mixture of works and grace.
Paul warns the believers about
the bondage this type of deception
brings and exhorts them to return
to the freedom that is theirs in Christ.
He goes on to show that it is in
the Spirit, not the flesh, that the
Christian life is successfully lived.
The Ephesians had unlimited
spiritual wealth at their disposal,
yet they lived as spiritual paupers.
So Paul wrote to encourage them
to understand and claim their
heavenly resources. Only then
could they draw on them for their
early walk. In the first half of
his letter, the apostle outlines
the heavenly wealth – adoption,
redemption, inheritance & power.
In the second half he shows the
practical application of those
doctrines. Paul made it clear –
believers are not to have merely
an earthly viewpoint. For God
has given to us His riches.
In Philippians, Paul is a prisoner
in Rome. In spite of his difficult
circumstances, he remains joyful
and writes to commend the
Philippians for their faithfulness
and to challenge them to make
Christ the center of their experience.
Jesus’ life and ministry, described
in 2:6-11, is the life pattern all
believers must follow so that
their faith might become evident
to others. Paul acknowledges
that divisions sometimes exist
among believers but is confident
that unity will be restored as they
imitate the servanthood of Christ.
Paul is imprisoned in Rome when
he receives word that heretical
doctrines are threatening the
church at Colosse. To refute
the spiritually lethal combination
of eastern mysticism and Jewish legalism, Paul reestablishes
the truth of the gospel and demonstrates the supremacy
of Christ. As Lord of all, Jesus
Christ is the giver of salvation and
sufficient for every need. No rituals
or legalistic practices are needed.
Since Christ is all in all, Paul
encourages the Colossians
to pursue a godly lifestyle befitting
those who are risen with Christ.