The letter to Romans is one of the essential Pauline epistles initially written by Paul, the apostle. It distinguishes itself as the most precise and systematically organized overview of Christianity values and dogmas as compared to the rest of Paul’s letters. Generally, Paul introduces Roman’s epistles by offering insights into the observable or physical nature of the world, particularly emphasizing the sinfulness of humankind[1]. With this, Paul first highlights the origin of sin and how all humanity has been tainted by the iniquity that resulted due to man’s rebellion against the ultimate creator of the universe-God. However, he sheds light on the above condemnation by outlining God’s plan of salvation through the blood of Jesus Christ. Further, Paul indicates that receiving salvation is not the absolute objective of Christianity, it is a continuous process as everyone is sanctified as they fuel their pursuits of eternal life. Realistically, how Paul handled the issues in this apostolic letter provides a logical and comprehensive analysis of how an individual can be saved from the eternal penalty and consequences of their sins.
However, regardless of the positive implications of Paul’s letters to the Romans in the scope of inclusive Christian life and journey, it is apparent that Paul had numerous objectives and aims while writing the scripture. Unlike other gospels in the New Testament, such as the Gospel of John, which was solely focused on preaching the message of salvation, it is evident that Paul was in an urge to address several issues and matters pertaining to the subjects of the origin of sins and the probable escape route for humankind. In this concern, numerous theories have been devised by diverse scholars and theologians to explore and grasp the fundamental reasons that prompted Paul to write his epistle to the Romans. According to Porter, there are various and distinct philosophies that have been derived throughout human history concerning the actual purpose of Romans[2]. Although each of the theories discussed by Porter in his manuscript exhibits some weaknesses, I find the Compendium of the Christian Religion theory to be the most compelling as compared to other philosophical frameworks.
Generally, the Compendium of the Christian Religion theory is among the oldest conceptual in the world focused on deriving the root of the Romanian epistle and remains to be one of the relatively reliable and accurate sources of information concerning Paul’s intent to script this letter. According to this theory, Phillip Melanchthon argued that the letter was initially written to Paul to the unknown church in Rome, where he systematically outlines his anticipated visit to Rome, as well as his corresponding traveling plan. The antecedent verses of the epistle appropriately justify Paul’s initial prompt to authoring this letter. In my view, the fundamental reasons which necessitated or inspired Paul to write the epistle of Romans were to inform and prepare the Romanian Christians about his much-anticipated visit to Rome and establishing early friendship ties with them as a way of preventing any possible resistance/rebellion and conflict that may be perpetrated by the regional believers.
The Authorship of Ephesians
Generally, authorship of Ephesians has emerged to be a relatively controversial and widely debated topic among distinct scholars, historians, and theologians, among others, throughout history. Although substantial scholarly resources have consent and attributed this letter to Paul’s original work, many people are yet to justify the validity of this evidence. Notable numbers of evangelical writers doubt the legitimacy of this epistle. While some reputable theologians and Biblical scholars may inculpate evangelicals of a divulgence bias with regards to the above problem, such an accusation denotes a casual disregarding of the massive evidence that strongly inclines the vast majority of people in support of Pauline authorship.
Further, the subgroup of individuals who certainly believe that the views of the Ephesians correspond to Paul’s teachings and philosophy although he was not involved in the writing of the book could corroborate the inconsistency of this postulation. Nonetheless, the respective derivation is dependent on how they apprehend or interpret the existing autobiographical information and elucidates theology. However, regardless of the prevailing assumptions and theories aimed at offering divergent opinions about the authorship of Ephesians, vast evidence affirms that Paul is undeniably the writer of Ephesians. Typically, Ephesians constitute an extensive embodiment of materials reported in the context of the first person’s discourse of the apostle to the Christians of Ephesus.
For instance, according to Ephesians (3:2-6), Paul generally provides the accounts of his mystery stewardship and which appropriately reflects the elements of his apostolic endeavors. Additionally, Paul wrote a prayer for his audience, in which he even introduced himself in the context of the first persona as “I Paul” and continues by saying “the prisoner of Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 3:1). In this case, Paul was trying to recount the unfolding episodes that transpired during his initial call to become a gospel minister. Ultimately, Paul concludes the letter to Ephesians by remarking about his assistance, known as Tychicus, who will be tasked with the delivery of the epistle to Ephesians (Ephesians 6:21). With this in mind, it is logical to conclude that the respective explanations overrule the argument presented by those in support of the pseudepigraphy authorship. Moreover, Paul’s indications of the specific associate whom he will send to convey the letter to the Ephesus in the final section of Ephesians is a precise justification that the epistle is a legitimate product of Paul, and therefore, was not composed by any of Paul`s partners.
Bibliography
Guerra, Anthony J. Romans and the Apologetic Tradition: The Purpose, Genre and Audience of Paul’s Letter. Vol. 81. Cambridge University Press, 1995.
Porter, Stanley E. The Apostle Paul: His Life, Thought, and Letters. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2016.
[1]Anthony J. Guerra, Romans and the Apologetic Tradition: The Purpose, Genre and Audience of Paul’s Letter (Cambridge University Press, 1995), 126.
[2] Stanley Porter, The Apostle Paul: His Life, Thought, and Letters (Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2016), 302.
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