Is it the case that the ideas of the Christ and salvation were not taught exclusively by Paul since he himself said that he only wanted to preach in places that had not yet heard the Gospel?  Plus, there were others such as Aquila and Priscilla, Apollos, etc.  He also said that there were those who taught another Jesus or gospel, others who relied on other people such as Cephas, and even those who believed only in Christ without any preachers.  Or was it the case that he was the leader of the entire movement because he was the one who claimed a revelation… whereas others had received traditions?

And is this the reason he never mentions Gospel stories or even mentions Mary, Pilate, Calvary, Golgotha, or Herod?  And when he mentions the apostles who knew Jesus in person, why does he not express any special reverence or awe for them at all?

Sincerely,
Passionate About Paul

Dear Passionate About Paul,

Paul was only one of thirteen different apostles teaching Christianity and only one of countless preachers and teachers.  You are right that Paul taught in new territories that others hadn’t reached (Rom 15:20), and the Lord chose to use Paul’s letters for a large portion of the New Testament canon, but that doesn’t make Paul the primary preacher of Christianity.  In fact, the first sermon was preached by Peter (Acts 2:14), and Paul didn’t even begin to preach until several years later.  Paul was originally opposed to Christianity (Acts 26:10) and wasn’t converted until the Lord spoke to him on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:1-5).  Paul’s letters don’t contain every detail of Christ’s law because Paul didn’t write all of Christ’s law!  Paul’s letters were written to already established congregations that were aware of the story of Christ’s life and didn’t need him to reiterate every detail.  As far as Paul’s lack of reverence for the other apostles – the other apostles didn’t want reverence; as Peter said, “I, myself, am also a man.” (Acts 10:26).

According to the Gospels, the believers of Jesus would attain salvation through the words of Jesus.  Does this mean that salvation was not dependent on the shedding of His blood since it was stated before the crucifixion?

Sincerely,
Why Did He Die?

Dear Why Did He Die,

What Christ preached was that He would die for our sins (Matt 12:40, Matt 26:28).  Jesus said that it was His blood that would give people eternal life (Jhn 6:53-54).  Jesus said that all men would be saved through Him in anticipation of the sacrifice He was about to make.  Without the cross, Jesus’ words would have been empty promises.  Jesus even recognized the necessity of His death when He proclaimed “It is finished” with His last breath (Jhn 19:30).  Jesus did die on the cross, and His blood did pay for the sins of mankind (Heb 9:28)… thus finishing the saving work that He had been preaching about.

God says in Acts 2:17-19, “in the last days He will pour out the spirit upon all flesh and that sons and daughters will prophesy and young men will see visions and old men will dream dreams.”  My question is: why do you say that dreams and visions are not of today when the Bible clearly says so… God Himself says they will.

Sincerely,
Visions For The Future

Dear Visions For The Future,

Acts 2:17-19 is an excerpt from Peter’s sermon on the day of Pentecost, the very first sermon preached after Christ ascended into heaven. Peter is quoting the book of Joel (Joel 2:28-32) and stating that what Joel wrote about was happening now. The verses have nothing to do with our behavior today or the end of time. It has nothing to do with modern visions and dream.  Peter specifically says that he is talking about what was happening right then (Acts 2:15-16) Those verses refer to that particular day and the time period surrounding Christ’s life and death. Let me explain the context.

For 400 years, the Jews had received no word from God – no prophets, no visions, no dreams, nothing. Then, after all that silence came:

• Zacharias and the angel (Lk 1:13)
• Elizabeth’s prophecy (Lk 1:41)
• Simeon’s prophecy (Lk 2:26)
• Anna’s prophecy (Lk 2:36)
• The vision of the shepherds (Lk 2:8-9)
• John the Baptist’s preaching (Matt 3:1)
• Jesus’ miracles (Jhn 2:11)
• The miracles of Jesus’ seventy disciples (Lk 10:17)

There was a veritable explosion of supernatural events. Peter is explaining how this influx of miracles, visions, and prophecy were a fulfillment of what Joel had said would happen in the last days of Israel. ‘In the last days’ doesn’t mean the end of the world in this circumstance; it means the end (or last days) of the Old Covenant. Peter is using these verses from the book of Joel to illustrate that Jesus really is the Messiah that the Jews had been waiting for. Jesus fulfilled Joel’s prophecy, and today we reap the benefits of it.

Please clarify the interpretation of 1 Corinthians 11:1-16.  In church, we are required to pray individually and corporately.  I see women in church and on T.V. ministries lead prayers and prophesy without head covering.  In 1 Cor 11:1, Paul says, " Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ".  Verse two says, "... Keep the traditions just as I delivered them to you."  Verse sixteen says, "But if anyone seems to be contentious, we have no such custom, nor do the churches of God."

Sincerely,
Keep Your Hat On

Dear Keep Your Hat On,

Women must always have their heads covered while praying (1 Cor 11:5), but God has built into every woman a permanent head-covering – her hair (1 Cor 11:15).  God designed men and women differently… this should be no surprise to anyone that has ever dealt with the opposite gender!  Men are to be the leaders in the home (Eph 5:23) and the church (Tit 1:5-6).  Women are the heart of the family (Tit 2:4-5), and men are not complete without them (1 Cor 11:12).  Both genders are equal heirs of salvation, but they are designed with different strengths and roles (1 Pet 3:7).  One way that God signifies this is by having men look different from women.  When women have long hair and men have short hair – it pleases God (1 Cor 11:14-15).  There are varying degrees of long and short hair, but ultimately – men are to look like men, and women are to look like women.  This principle is even borne out in the Old Testament (Deu 22:5).  The teachings of 1 Cor 11:1-16 are simply teaching that a woman’s long hair is a God-given covering for her head, and men are not to have that same covering due to their varying roles in leadership.

What does the word ‘for’ mean?  Example: for forgiveness, for remission of sin, etc.

Sincerely,
Looking ‘For’ Answers

Dear Looking ‘For’ Answers,

In English, the word ‘for’ can mean ‘because of’ or ‘in order to receive, acquire, or achieve’… but in the Greek language, it can only mean one of these things (more on this a little later).  For example, if someone said, “I went to the store for my wife”, they probably mean that they went to the store because their wife asked them to.  On the other hand, if I said, “I went to the store for milk”, I probably mean that I went to go and get milk… not that the milk asked me to go to the store!  In the English language, the word ‘for’ can be used with either definition, and context has to decide which is the more appropriate use of the word.

However, the Greek language (the original language of the New Testament) is much more precise.  The word used in the phrase “for forgiveness of sins” in places like Acts 2:38 is a word that specifically means “that you might receive, acquire, go towards, unto”.  The Greek word translated most often as ‘for’ in most modern translations is ‘eis’ (pronounced the same as ‘ace’), and it always means the same as “I went to the store for milk”… never “I went to the store for my wife”.