1. NWT113: A Survey of the New Testament
“We should not forget that the true purpose of education is to make minds not careers.”
NWT113: A Survey of the New Testament
Chapter 17
All Things to All People:
Life and Teachings of the Apostle Paul

2. 17 – All Things to All People…Apostle Paul
Apostle Paul – energetic and brilliant Christian Jew who champions Jesus Christ in the Acts 13-28
Exact date of birth is unknown.
Contemporary of Jesus of Nazareth.
Born in the Hellenistic Tarsus of Cilicia.
Hebrew Bible dominated Paul’s thinking.
Jewish man through and through.
Known as a Hebrew man Saul.
Educated in Jerusalem as a boy.
Studied under a rabbi named Gamaliel I.
Became a rabbi himself.
Trilingual with a good command of Greek.
Probably witnessed Jesus when still young.
Persecuted the Christians previously.
Underwent radical change when he met Jesus on the road to Damascus.
His conversion became the focal point of his preaching.
Became the apostle to the Gentiles.
17 – All Things to All People…Apostle Paul

3. 17 – All Things to All People…Apostle Paul
Pauline Writings
Authentic Pauline Epistles (no scholarly problem)
Romans, 1 & 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Philippians, 1 Thessalonians, and Philemon
Pseudo-Pauline Epistles (questioned by scholars)
Ephesians, Colossians, 2 Thessalonians
Deutero-Pauline Epistles (suspected by scholars)
1 & 2 Timothy and Titus (Pastoral Epistles)
17 – All Things to All People…Apostle Paul
Scholarly Reasons for the Illegitimacy of the doubted Pauline Writings
Literary Form – style is very diverse in character when compared to the authentic writings of Paul.
Use of Greek – words and concepts are not typically the normal Pauline usage of the Greek language
Theological Content and Central Topics – different from the known issues of first-century Christianity

4. 17 – All Things to All People…Apostle Paul
Explanations for the Pauline Epistolary Issues
Different church problems called for different rhetorical style.
The use of Greek language is tailored to the issues addressed.
Conventional use of amanuensis who may have different styles.
Patristitic citations and support for the questioned epistles.
None evidence that early Christians used pseudepigraphy and made the genre acceptable. (allepigraphy – I. H. Marshall)
Paul’s letter collection according to topic order and content length. (Paul’s publication – David Trobisch)
Pauline Theology
Based on the entire 13 Pauline Epistles
Compared with the data in Acts of the Apostles
Paul and Jesus
Teaching about God
Evil and Human Dilemma
Paul and the Law
Children of Abraham and the People of God
Revelation and Scripture
The Messiah and Human Redemption
The Cross and Resurrection
Church and Ethics
Return of Christ and the End Times
17 – All Things to All People…Apostle Paul

5. 17 – All Things to All People…Apostle Paul
New Perspective on Paul
Reformation’s misunderstanding of the Jewish Paul
E. P. Sanders, K. Stendahl, N. T. Wright, J. D. G. Dunn
New Perspective on Paul Catch Phrases
Covenantal Nomism – understanding of the Law within the covenant of God’s grace
Boundary Markers – from the perspective that the Sabbath, dietary laws and circumcision are separating the Jewish Christians from the Gentile Christians
Solution to Plight – solution as preceding the awareness of the problem of humanity and Paul did not have any problem with the Law but God gave him a solution first when he met Christ on his way to Damascus
Reformation Spectacles – Luther misunderstood Judaism
Reformation’s emphasis on Paul’s justification by faith
Center of Pauline Theology (juridical or participatory)
Coherence and Contingency Model (J. C. Beker)
Romans as Template for Paul (J. D. G. Dunn)
Pauline Christianity=Paul’s interpretation of the gospel
17 – All Things to All People…Apostle Paul

6. 17 – All Things to All People…Apostle Paul
Reading and Interpreting Paul
Paul’s writings are descriptive and adhoc in nature
Jewish Pharisaic Rabbi and transformed Christian theologian (Phil 3:5-11 )
Persecutor turned into Christian apologist (1 Cor 15:9-11)
Simultaneously sinner and a saint (Rom 7:13-25; 2 Tim 1:12-16)
Citizen of two kingdoms--Christ’s (Col 1:13; 2 Tim 4:18) and Caesar’s (Acts 22:28; Rom 13:1-7)
Paul said he could live with or without the necessities of the world (Phil 4:11-12); he claimed that he is exclusively focused on Christ (3:13-14); while he was a keen observer of his day (2 Tim 4:3-4)
Paul as an Interpreter of the Gospel--testimony of his experiences with the Lord (Acts 9:7; 22:9; 26:14)
Paul’s claim of revelation is the interpretation of the gospel to the Gentiles in their own symbols and concerns for the pagan appreciation of the universal gospel (e.g. in Gal)
17 – All Things to All People…Apostle Paul