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Daily Feed Jesus in Paul's WritingsFor St. Paul, "Jesus is Lord"IntroductionThe letters of Paul to various Christian communities offer a very powerful and unique vision of the mystery and person of Jesus Christ. The majority of his words are full of passionate devotion to Christ. His writings can help illuminate anyone's reading of the Gospels and can lead many to a deeper faith in Christ Jesus. This article will seek to summarize all the teachings of Paul on Jesus in the letters by categorizing them in thirteen thematic points. The thirteen thematic points will be based on the very words of Paul himself as he used them in his letters. 1. Eternally, God had a 'family' in mind, with Jesus at the center Those whom God had already chosen he also set apart to become like his Son, so that the Son would be the first among many brothers - Romans 8:29 2. Jesus is God and Man He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creatures. In him everything in heaven and on earth was created - Colossians 1:15 3. The Son of God became Man so we might share the life of God ...When the designated time had come God sent forth his Son born of a woman...so that we might receive our status as adopted sons - Galatians 4:4, 5 4. Jesus' saving death and resurrection are at the heart of his gospel ...through one man sin entered the world and with sin death, death thus coming to all men inasmuch as all sinned... - Romans 5:12 ...if by the offense of the one man all died, much more did the grace of God and the gracious gift of the one man, Jesus Christ, abound for all - Romans 5:15 5. Jesus joins his brothers and sisters to himself in one body, the Church Each of you is a son of God because of your faith in Christ Jesus. All of you who have been baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with him. There does not exist among you Jew or Greek, slave or freeman, male or female - Galatians 3:26-29 It is he who is head of the body, the church: he who is the beginning, the firstborn of the dead - Colossians 1:18 6. As Jesus was raised up, so are we, and so shall we be You can depend on this: if we have died with him we shall also live with him; if we hold out to the end we shall also reign with him. But if we deny him he will deny us. If we are unfaithful he will still remain faithful; for he cannot deny himself - 2 Timothy 2:11-13 He will give a new form to this lowly body of ours and remake it according to the pattern of his glorified body - Philippians 3:21 7. The body of Christ is the Church The body is one and has many members, but all the members, many though they are, are one body; and so it is with Christ. It was in one Spirit that all of us, whether Jew or Greek, slave or free, were baptized into one body. All of us have been given to drink of the one Spirit - 1 Corinthians 12:12-13 There are, indeed, many different members, but one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, "I do not need you," any more than the head can say to the feet, "I do not need you." - 1 Corinthians 12:20-21 8. The Holy Spirit is the Life of the Church All who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. You did not receive a spirit of slavery leading you back into fear, but a spirit of adoption through which we cry out "Abba!" (that is, "Father"). The Spirit himself gives witness with our spirit that we are children of God. But if we are children, we are heirs as well: heirs of God, heirs with Christ, if only we suffer with him so as to be glorified with him - Romans 8:14-17 ...It is [Christ] who anointed us and has sealed us, thereby depositing the first payment, the Spirit, in our hearts - 2 Corinthians 1:21 9. No one can earn salvation It is not that we are entitled of ourselves to take credit for anything. Our sole credit is from God - 2 Corinthians 3:5 10. We are a new creation ...If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, the old order has passed away; now all is new! All this has been done by God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ... - 2 Corinthians 5:17-19 11. Since we share the dying of Christ, our life in Him involves suffering Continually we carry about in our bodies the dying of Jesus, so that in our bodies the life of Jesus may also be revealed. While we live we are constantly being delivered to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus may be revealed in our mortal flesh - 2 Corinthians 4:10-11 12. What then is the Christian life? It is love. Set your hearts on the greater gifts. Now I will show you the way which surpasses all others...if I have faith great enough to move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give everything I have to feed the poor and hand over my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing - 1 Corinthians 12:31-13:3 13. The final purpose of life is the glory of God How deep are the riches and the wisdom and the knowledge of God! How inscrutable his judgments, how unsearchable his ways! For "who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor? Who has given him anything so as to deserve return?" For from him and through him and for him all things are. To him be glory forever. Amen. - Romans 11:33-36 |