Willmington, Willmington's Bible Handbook Hebrews: Fixing

1
James

• A faith that works

2
James a faith the works

• Author
• James, the oldest half-brother of Christ and
  brother of Jude, who also wrote the epistle that
  bears his name (Jude). James had at first
  rejected Jesus as Messiah (John 75), but later
  believed (1 Cor. 157). He became the key leader
  in the Jerusalem church, being called one of the
  pillars of that church, along with Peter and
  John. Also known as James the Just because of his
  devotion to righteousness, he was martyred ca.
  a.d. 62. Comparing Jamess vocabulary in the
  letter he wrote, which is recorded in Acts 15,
  with that in the epistle of James further
  corroborates his authorship.
• John MacArthur, The MacArthur Bible Handbook

3
James a faith the works

• Recipients and Date
• James most likely wrote this epistle to believers
  scattered (11) as a result of the unrest
  recorded in Acts 12 (ca. a.d. 44). There is no
  mention of the Council of Jerusalem described in
  Acts 15 (ca. a.d. 49), which would be expected if
  that Council had already taken place. Therefore,
  James can be reliably dated ca. a.d. 4449,
  making it the earliest written book of the NT
  canon.
• John MacArthur, The MacArthur Bible Handbook

4
James a faith the works

• Structure of James
• 1118 Salutation and Introduction to the Themes
• 119226 Putting the Faith into Practice
• 31412 Dissension in the Community
• 413511 To the Rich and the Poor
• 51220 Concluding Exhortations
• Fee and Stuart, How to Read the Bible Book by
  Book.

5
James a faith the works

• Message of James
• Believers must evidence a faith which is
  productive in the midst of trials.
• Jonathan Moore, New Testament Survey.

6
James a faith that works

• James Contribution to the Biblical Story
• James is the New Testament counterpart of the
  Jewish Wisdom tradition, now in light of the
  teachings of Jesus. Although James is sometimes
  read in contrast to Paul, both James and Paul
  are, in fact, absolutely together at the crucial
  point made by James throughout his letter,
  namely, that the first thing one does with ones
  faith is to live by it (cf. Gal 56).
• Fee and Stuart, How to Read the Bible Book by
  Book.

7
Hebrews

• Fixing our eyes on Jesus

8
Hebrews Fixing our eyes on Jesus

• Author
• The author of Hebrews is unknown. It is
  significant that the writer includes himself
  among those people who had received confirmation
  of Christs message from others (23). That would
  seem to rule out someone like Paul who claimed
  that he had received such confirmation directly
  from God and not from men (Gal. 112). Even the
  early church expressed various opinions on
  authorship, and current scholarship admits the
  puzzle still has no solution. Ultimately, of
  course, the author was the Holy Spirit (2 Pet.
  121).
• John MacArthur, The MacArthur Study Bible.

9
Hebrews Fixing our eyes on Jesus

• Date
• Probably ca. a.d. 68
• It was probably before the Temples destruction
  in 70
• The Temple was apparently still in use (845
  1011).
• If the destruction had occurred, it would surely
  have been mentioned because of its interest to
  the readers and relevance to the books theme.
• However, it was probably not much earlier than
  70
• The recipients were apparently second-generation
  Christians who themselves had been believers for
  a fairly long time.
• Timothy had just been released from prison
  (1323). His imprisonment is not mentioned
  elsewhere in Scripture but could have followed
  Pauls plea to visit him in prison, c. 67.
• H. L. Willmington, Willmington's Bible Handbook

10
Hebrews Fixing our eyes on Jesus

• Recipients
• An unknown but specific group of (predominantly)
  Jewish Christians perhaps a house church in Rome
  (1324) that is opting out of relationships with
  the larger Christian community (1025 137, 17)
• Occasion
• The community is discouraged because of suffering
  (103539) and perhaps from doubts about whether
  Jesus really took care of sin the author writes
  to convince them to not throw away your
  confidence (1035 cf. 21 414)
• Fee and Stuart, How to Read the Bible Book by
  Book.

11
Hebrews Fixing our eyes on Jesus

• Structure
• 113 Introduction
• 14413 The Supremacy of Gods Son
• 4141018 The Supremacy of the Sons High
  Priesthood
• 10191229 Final Exhortation to Perseverance
• 13125 Concluding Practical Exhortations and
  Greetings
• Fee and Stuart, How to Read the Bible Book by
  Book.
• Key Passage
• Hebrews 1019-39

12
Hebrews Fixing our eyes on Jesus

• Message of Hebrews
• Because Christ is superior in every way, we must
  persevere in our faith in Him and obedience to
  His word.