John wrote his first epistle to set forth objective standards by which those under his care could evaluate their spiritual experience. In a day when many were claiming to have…
Category: <span>New Testament</span>
The opponents in view in 2 Peter taught that believers like Peter were wrong in their interpretation of the times. In 2 Peter, Peter was strongly polemical against a specific…
In the final three chapters of 1 Peter, Peter continued to urge his audience to fully embrace the alien status that had been forced on them. As those scattered from…
The Epistle of First Peter was written to a group of believers who had been removed from their homeland because of persecution. They were thus aliens, temporary residents in a…
James’s readers were enduring financial difficulty. They had been dispersed from their homeland and were socially and economically disadvantaged (Jas 1:1). In the midst of this difficulty, interpersonal relationships were…
James was concerned for his audience to grasp their lofty spiritual status. Though at present they suffered all sorts of trials and felt lowly, they were God’s chosen ones, heirs…
The references to the Old Testament in Hebrews 12-13 show that the author did not arbitrarily employ Scripture. His use of passages from Exodus, Leviticus, Deuteronomy, Psalms, Proverbs, and Haggai…
The author of Hebrews argued that his audience should look to Jesus—their High Priest—for help to make it through their time of testing. Just when they were tempted to let…
In Hebrews 5-7 the author set forth several ideas confirming the superiority of Christ’s high priesthood—and the implications this had for his readers. They could be assured that the perfection…
1 John 3-5
Of the New Testament writers, it may be that the apostle John would have the greatest claim to intimacy with Jesus (John 13:23; 21:20). Pastoral remorse may have filled John’s…
1 John Commentary New Testament