New Testament Timeline

Date: Covering approximately 30 years
Author: Luke
Acts 1:8
"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
OAuthor: Luke
OActs changes from a third person narrative, to a first person (16:10)
ODate: Early 60s AD
OTime Covered: Approx 30 AD – 60 AD
OAudience: Theophilus
OPossibly the second part of a two-part work (Luke-Acts)
OGenre – Historical Narrative
OIs it descriptive or prescriptive
ODescriptive – Describing what happened
OAnanias and Sapphira (Acts 5)
OPrescriptive – Applicable to the lives of believers throughout history
OPeter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” Acts 2:38
ODisplayed throughout the rest of Scripture
Outline:
OJerusalem – Chapters 1-7
OJudea and Samaria – 8-12
OThe Ends of the Earth – 13-28
The Gospel in Acts
OCentred Around Jesus
OLife, Death, and Bodily Resurrection
OMessianic Identity
OFulfillment of Old Testament Prophecy
OTeachings

Important People and Groups in Acts
OJews
OSanhedrin
OThe High Priest
OCivic Authorities
ORoman officials
OThe Herods (Agrippa I & II)
OThe Apostles & The Early Church Leaders
OPeter
OJohn
OJames
OThe Apostles & The Early Church
OStephen
OPhilip
OBarnabas
OPaul
OJohn Mark
OTimothy
OLuke

Acts 2- Peter spoke to the crowds after the Holy Spirit had breathed a fire on the desciples.
New intensity- of the prophetic truths- now here in action. Speaking to the Jewish community to believe what they knew already- and time is now. Peter was calling for repentance. Peter wanted them to confess they put Jesus on the cross- now with the resurrection- they were witness of truth revleaed in Glory - they can be given forgiveness if they repent what they know is true- not just in word, but with their own eyes. They would receive the Holy Spirit with repentance and live - fulfilling the promise of Abraham as told in the torah-. With them accepting. **Over 3000 men (not including numbers of children or women) were baptised that day. - True testimony of Jesus life/death/ and resurrection.

Fulfillment of Promises
OOT Prophecy (Jeremiah 31:31-34; Ezekiel 37; Joel 2:28-32)
OJesus Promise of the Comforter (John 16:5-16)
OPeter’s Message
OMessage of Repentance
OPresents a high Christology
OPresents a high view of OT Scripture

Cornelius (Acts 10)
Dream he had and then Peter and him discussed their dreams together. This explanation of the true Gospel is for everyone in the world. Jew and Gentille. All of human kind. As noted in Ephesians 1. We are all created in the Image of God. We have the choice to follow Jesus or follow man. But Jesus came for all mankind (men/women are equal, jew gentile equal/slave master equal)
John 3:16 is for Everyone in the World. Not just the Jews.

OCan Gentiles be part of God’s people
OGod-fearers: non-Jewish believers
OJewish bias
OGentiles were “unclean”
OThe Spirit proves God’s approval
OConnection as God’s people based on the Spirit, not ethnicity

Acts 15
After Paul's first missionary journey, they met back in Antioch to discuss "how a person was saved" (new test survey book)
People had been coming to Antioch trying to twist the Gopel and add to the Salvation message with law of moses.
Possibly Paul wrote his letter to the Galatians to highlight this message of twisted truths being taught.
So they came together in a Council to discuss.
Peter and others weighed in, and their verdict was "Through Grace we are saved, just as they are" (acts 15.11)
Paul and Barnabas agreed and James (head of Jerusalem church)
This is important as this moment intime confirmed the belief, that we are saved by grace through Faith.
KEY TRUTH established.
With Holy SPirit lead, the authenticity of the Gospel was established at an early date. Today we as churches need to remember this as our Key Doctrine and theology.

Possibly written:50-70
Focus: "Jesus as the Son of God
○God the Father (1:11; 9:7)
○Demons (3:11; 5:7)
○Roman centurion (15:39)
○Jesus Himself (13:32; 14:36, 61-62)
"Jesus as the Suffering Servant
○8:27–31; 9:30–32; 10:32–34"
"The Messianic Secret
○4:10–11; 5:43; 7:24; 8:30; 9:9, 30"

Audience:
Church in Rom/Gospel for Roman World, encourage Persectued Roman believers

Date: Written Possibly 60AD to 80AD
Conneted to Paul / Doctor / Had Maricion knowledge
Important: Book timing:with acts/ Neros' persecution / Pauls death/ destruction temple
"The Universal Gospel
○Inclusion of the poor, the outcasts, sinners as well as the Jews"
"The Holy Spirit
○Linked with power – 1:35; 24:49"
"Prayer
○Jesus praying – 3:21; 5:16; 6:12; 9:18, 29; 22:32, 40-41"

Audience: Theopolis and the Gentile World

Written Possibly between 60AD- 80AD
Matthew was with Jesus
Focus: Jesus as the Teacher and Preacher
"Jesus as fulfillment of the OT
○Fulfillment of the Torah (5:17-20)
○Fulfillment of the Davidic covenant (1:1)"
Audience: Jews, believers and non

Date: Possibly: 85AD-95AD
John 20-31 Written so you may believe Jesus is Christ, Son of God, believe to have life by his name

"Christology
○I Am Statements
6:35; 8;12; 10:7, 11, 14; 11:25; 14:6; 15:1"
"Sonship
1:18; 3:16; 19:7"
"Miracles of Signs ○Water to Wine (Ch. 2:1-11)
○Healing official’s son (4:46-54)
○Healing at the pool of Bethesda (5:1-18)
○Feeding the 5000 (6:5-14)
○Walking on the water (6:16-21)
○Healing a blind man (9:1-7)
○Raising Lazarus (11:1-45)"

Uniqueness
Contains 93% unique material than synoptics
Focuses on Jerusalem ministry
Different chronology of temple cleansing and passion narrative
Fewer events with more reflection and discourse about events

Most evangelical scholars affirm that Revelation was written in a.d. 95 or 96.
–This is based on accounts of the early church fathers that the Apostle John had been exiled on Patmos Island during the reign of Domitian who died in a.d. 96. John was then allowed to return to Ephesus.

Author: The Apostle John
•Date: 95-96 AD
•Place: The Island of Patmos
•Audience: The Seven Churches of Asia Minor
–Ephesus; Smyrna; Pergamum; Thyatira; Sardis; Philadelphia; Laodicea

Key Themes
•THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD
–Just as Jesus made known the advent of the kingdom of God in his ministry, death, resurrection and coming again (Mk. 1:14–15; 8:31; 10:45; 14:62), so that theme is central to Revelation from beginning to end (1:8; 5:5–14; 12:10–12; 19:11–21:5).
•THE SATANIC NATURE OF ROMAN EMPEROR WORSHIP
–For Caesar to demand what belonged to God alone indicated that ‘the secret power of lawlessness’ was ‘already at work’ (2 Thes. 2:7), and it was to reach its climax in the manifestation of the final antichrist.
THE INESCAPABLE JUDGMENTS OF THE LORD
–It is significant that the second and third series of the Messianic judgments of this book are reminiscent of the plagues on Pharaoh and the Egyptians, who resisted the word of God through Moses.
•THE MANIFESTATION OF CHRIST AND THE GLORY OF HIS KINGDOM.
–The victory is ‘sure’, for the devil is a defeated foe already in the death and resurrection of Jesus (cf. Jn. 12:31–32 with Rev. 12:9–12), which anticipates the ultimate completion of God’s purpose of good for the world he has made and redeemed (21:9–22:5)

Author: Paul
•Date: Between 48-55AD(South for early 1st mission trip, and Paul notes no dicussion from the Jerusalem council that occurs after 1st mission trip in his writings points more to South than North making more probable for 48-49 AD. But still is debated.
•Place: Syrian Antioch or Ephesus
•Audience: The Churches in the Province of Galatia
oNorth or South?
oIn the face of opposition and rejection he pushes the limits of the scandalous implications of the gospel. Leaving Christianity its charter of freedom.
oInterpretation of the letter is difficult not only because of the density of the arguments, but that the circumstances to which he was responding are not exactly clear.
oMost controversial and heated of all the letters.
Purposes
•Defend apostolic ministry and authority
•Dispute Judaizers and legalism
•Affirm justification by faith
oNot as a “new” thing, but as an OT principle

Author: Paul
–no one questions Pauline authorship
•Date: 50-54 AD
•Place: Corinth
•Audience: The Church of Thessalonica
Purpose
•encourage his children in the faith to persevere despite their persecution.
•refute false charges made by the local enemies of the gospel
–that the missionaries had preached in order to fatten their wallets and gain other personal benefits;
–that Paul had left Thessalonica hurriedly and had not returned because he was a coward and a hypocrite.
•correct some errors that had cropped up in the church:
–an inclination to moral laxity and laziness
–a tendency not to respect the church’s spiritual leaders

Author: Paul
•Date: 50-54 AD
–probably about a year after 1 Thessalonians
•Place: Corinth
•Audience: The Church in Thessalonica

Purpose
•Good news: the Thessalonians were continuing to grow and to remain faithful to Christ in spite of persecution.
•Bad News: false teaching concerning the day of the Lord had entered the church
•He commended his children in the faith for their growth, corrected their doctrinal error about the day of the Lord, and warned of its consequences.

Key Themes
•THE RIGHTEOUS SUFFERER
–One problem addressed in 2 Thessalonians was the question of God’s justice in the suffering of the righteous believer (1:5–8)
•CONFLICT BETWEEN GOD AND SATAN
–the reason for discussing the day of the Lord was to show that the Lord of that day is present now, whether that day is near or far
•WORKING WHILE YOU WAIT
–Because the Thessalonians had become lax, they needed to be reminded that while the day of the Lord is immanent, there are also events that must take place before the end.

Author: Paul
•Date: Approx 55-57 AD
•Place: Ephesus
•Audience: The Church in Corinth
---the Church established during the second missionary journey
• contained the temple of Aphrodite/Became known for loose sexual
Responding to Issues in the Corinthian church
oDivisions
oSexual Morality
oSpiritual Gifts
oThe Resurrection

Author: Paul
•Date: About year after I Corinthians (54-57AD)
•Place: Macedonia
•Audience: The Church in Corinth
Purposes
•Follow up on previous letters
•Encourage the believers in Corinth
•Reconcile with church
•Defend apostolic ministry and authority
•Challenge “super” apostles
•Appeal for the Jerusalem Church

Author: Paul
Place: Corinth
Audience: Jewish and Gentile believers in Rome
49 AD – Claudius expels the Jews from Rome because fights between Christians and Jews
(According to the NT Survey text, it says that Paul would have possibly wrote Romans during his 3 months stay in Greece which was noted in Acts 20-2-3 about 57 AD
Noel's notes indicate his time line for 54-57AD so I'll use Noel's notes since he's the Teacher. )
in 54 AD, Claudius rescinds his orders, the Jews return, and then Jewish and Gentile Christians become divided groups
Focus: God’s Faithfulness to His Covenant
One People through Faith
Paul’s Missionary Task – World Missions
I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” – Rom 1:16-17

Author: Paul
Date: 60-61
Place: Rome
Audience: The Church in Colossae

Several references in Colossians indicate that Paul had not visited the city (Col. 1:7; 2:1; 4:12)

To show the deity and supremacy of Christ in the face of the Colossian heresy
To lead believers into spiritual maturity

To inform them about his state of affairs and elicited their prayers on his behalf (4:2-8)

Themes
JESUS CHRIST IS PREEMINENT
Paul identified the exalted Christ as the Creator of the universe (1:16–17)
CREATION AND KINGDOM
The wisdom and knowledge found in Christ were not simply one mortal’s ideas but expressions of the very imagination and knowledge that conceived and created the universe.
THE NEW COVENANT AND THE HIDDEN KINGDOM
One problem with living in Christ’s present kingdom was the fact that it is hidden
To be sure, the kingdom of God would someday be visible for all to see (Col. 3:4). But Jesus inaugurated a time period where the kingdom would be present but hidden.
Paul reminded his readers that though God’s kingdom was hidden, it was still present, providing a basis for stability and hope.
In Phrygia, where religion was practiced with intensity and sometimes frenzy (e.g., the famous mother-goddess cult of Cybele).
Its population was a mixture of Greek, Jewish, and native Phrygians, along with Roman army veterans. The heresy Paul deals with in his letter seems to be a mixture of Jewish, pagan, and pseudo–Christian concepts.
Its name is possibly derived from Colossus, a large statue, which in turn may have been named for the unusual shape of stony deposits there.
OUTLINE:
Doctrinal: Deeper Life in Christ (1:1-2:7)
Greetings and Thanksgiving (1:1-8)
Petition (1:9-14)
Exaltation of Christ (1:15-20)
Reconciliation by Christ (1:21-23)
Revelation of the mystery of Christ (1:24-27)
Perfection in Christ (1:28-29)
Education (wisdom) in Christ (2:1-5)
Exhortation to live in Christ (2:6-7
Polemical: Higher Life in Christ (2:8-23)
“Gnosticism” is wrong: deity is in Christ (2:8-10)
Legalism is wrong: reality is in Christ (2:11-17)
Mysticism is wrong: headship is in Christ (2:18-19)
Asceticism is wrong: immunity is in Christ (2:20-23)
Spiritual: Inner Life in Christ (3:1-17)
Seeking spiritual values (3:1-4)
Putting off the sins of the old life (3:5-11)
Putting on the virtues of the new life (3:12-17)
Practical: Outer Life in Christ (3:18-4:18)
Improving one’s private life (3:18-4:1)
Improving one’s prayer life (4:2-4)
Improving one’s public life (4:5-6)
Improving one’s personal life (4:7-17)
Salutation (4:18)

Author: Paul
Pauline authorship has been disputed by some
Basis: vocabulary, style, and doctrine differ from Paul’s writings
no particular greetings are given in this letter
Date: 60-62AD (probably earlier in imprisonment)
Place: Rome
Audience: The Church in Ephesus, and probably other churches
The capital of proconsular Asia
Was colonized principally from Athens
Had the Temple of Diana (Artemis)
Was the Asian center of the cult of Artemis.
Represented the materially “successful” religion of that era.
Was a center of occult practice, magic, witchcraft, and sorcery
Many Jews took up their residence in this city
The apostle John, according to tradition, spent many years in Ephesus, where he died and was buried.
Spent a short time in Ephesus on his second missionary journey (Acts 18:19-22).
On his third missionary journey he stayed in Ephesus three years (Acts 20:31).
Major events:
baptized a dozen of John the Baptist’s followers (Acts 19:1-7)
discussions in the hall of Tyrannus (19:8-10)
sorcerers were converted (19:17-20)
the city rioted (19:23-41).

Author: Paul
Date: 60-61 (in conjunction with Colossians)
Place: Rome
Audience: Philemon & Onesimus

Philemon was a wealthy resident of Colosse.
Was a convert of the apostle (v. 19b).
It is commonly believed that Apphia was Philemon’s wife, and Archippus his son, though this cannot be asserted dogmatically.
Included among the first readers were the members of “the church that meets in [Philemon’s] home” (Phile. 2).
Some suggest that Archippus may have been the pastor. It is possible that Archippus had some official capacity at Colosse (Col. 4:17).
The runaway slave met Paul while the apostle was in prison.
Paul led the runaway slave to Christ, and Onesimus had shown evidence that his conversion was real.
With this in mind we can understand why Paul was eager for Onesimus to be reconciled with his master, also a Christian, and to demonstrate his new faith in Christ by rendering Philemon honest service.
There is even speculation that this Onesimus later became the Ephesian bishop of that name the early church leader Ignatius mentions in letters to that city.
The substitution of forgiveness and acceptance for the legal rights of ownership. The letter encouraged seeing relationships in light of the deep bonds created in Christ, rather than the earthly social structures of status and self-achievement.

RECONCILIATION
While Philemon had been wronged, he is to reconcile with his “brother” Onemius
BROTHERHOOD IN CHRIST
Christians are brothers before anything else

Author: Paul
Date: 61-62 AD
Place: Rome
Audience: The Church in Philippi
established the church during his second missionary journey in a.d. 50 (Acts 16:11–40).
Paul and Silas were imprisoned there and miraculously released.
Some believe that Luke remained at Philippi to work among the churches of Macedonia while Paul went on to Thessalonica
The Philippian church became a significant source of financial support for Paul
To thank the Philippians for their love gift
Designed to encourage joy and unity among the Christians there.
When the Philippian believers heard about Paul’s imprisonment at Rome, they sent Epaphroditus, who may have been their pastor, to minister to him.
Might be called a thank-you note to saints in Philippi for their generous gifts.
While Epaphroditus was in Rome, he became so ill he almost died. After he recovered, he took Paul’s letter to the Philippian Christians

Encouragement for Living the Christian Life (1:1-30)
Introduction (1:1-2)
Paul’s praise of the saints at Philippi (1:3-8)
Paul’s prayer for the saints at Philippi (1:9-11)
Paul’s presentation of himself to the saints (1:12-30)
Examples for Living the Christian Life (2:1-30)
The Son of God whose attitude the believer is to share (2:1-18)
The servants of God whose manner of life the believer is to follow (2:19-30)
Exhortations for Living the Christian Life (3:1-21)
Believers are to have no confidence in the flesh (3:1-14)
Believers are to have a walk that pleases God (3:15-21)
Enablement for Living the Christian Life (4:1-23)
Christ at the center (4:1-7)
God’s presence with believers (4:8-9)
God’s supply of human needs (4:10-20)
Conclusion (4:21-23)

Author: Paul
•Date: 63-66AD
•Place: Unknown; possibly Macedonia
•Audience: Timothy in Ephesus
Purpose
•To give some guidance on such matters as the choosing of church officers and the resisting of false teaching.
•Paul states his purpose in 1 Tim. 3:14–15. He clearly intended to provide Timothy with necessary guidance should he not meet him again soon.
•Designed to give the church clear directions for establishing the kind of leadership and decorum that would most effectively establish and support the truth of God in the gospel.
Key Themes
•CHURCH LEADERHSIP
–How does someone qualify to lead God's people
•CHURCH WORSHIP
–How do God's people worship corporately
•RICHES
–How does money affect faith and life
•WIDOWS
–What does social justice look like
•TRUTH
–The false teachers misunderstood the nature of truth.

Author: Paul
•Date: 63-66 AD
•Place: Unknown; possibly Macedonia
•Audience: Titus in Crete
was with Paul and Barnabas at Antioch, and accompanied them to the council at Jerusalem (Gal. 2:1–3; Acts 15:2),
•his name nowhere occurs in the Acts of the Apostles.
•He appears to have been a Gentile
•Paul sternly refused to have him circumcised, inasmuch as in his case the cause of gospel liberty was at stake.
•With Paul and Timothy at Ephesus
Engaged in the organization of the church in Crete, where the apostle had left him
•The last notice of him is in 2 Tim. 4:10,
•We have no record of his death

Key Themes
•SOUND DOCTRINE
–Throughout the letter Paul stressed the importance of sound doctrine (1:1, 3, 9, 13; 2:1, 7).
•THE APPEARANCE OF GOD’S GRACE
–The letter is structured around three different appearances of God’s grace: (1) God’s grace manifested in his word (1:3); (2) God’s grace manifested in Christ who will appear yet again at the end of the age (2:11–13); (3) God’s grace shown in his kindness and love (3:4).
GOOD DEEDS
–There is a close link between sound doctrine and good deeds (2:7)
Purpose
•To instruct him about what he should do and teach in the Cretan churches.
•A special theme of the letter is the role of grace in promoting good works among God’s people

Author: Paul
•Date: 67-68 AD
•Place: Rome
•Audience: Timothy in Ephesus
Purpose
•To encourage Timothy by showing how he (Paul) was able to cope with his impending death by his security in God’s commitment to the spread of the gospel.
•To provide final words of encouragement to his “son in the faith” Key Themes
•GOOD WORKS
–Good works are designed for the profit of the individual, but their end is the furtherance of redemption.
•OPPOSITION
–Opposition is to be met with solid preaching of God’s word (4:2) and consistent purity of character (2:21–22).
•USEFULNESS
–Usefulness is grounded in following the will of God through his word (2:14–15, 21, 26; 4:11).

Author: James
Date: 45-46AD
He writes to the 12 tribes scattered among the nations
Several Jewish characteristics place it EARLY.
Place: Probably Jerusalem
Audience: Jewish Believers
Key Themes
FAITH & WORKS
Challenges intellectual assent as faith; argues for a life changing faith
God’s people are to trust him and him alone for salvation and always affirm their trust by works of obedience
THE TONGUE
James points how powerful the words we speak
WEALTH & FAITH
James challenges believers to treat all equally, regardless of social status
How well do we in the church reflect God’s care for “widows and orphans”?
James the Brother of Jesus
Did not need to further specify which James he is in 1:1 suggests that he is the most prominent and well-known James of the early church
Recognized leader in the Jerusalem church.
This conclusion is supported by the authoritative tone of the letter and by the marked similarities in Greek between this epistle and the speech by James recorded in Acts 15.
Did not become a believer until after Christ’s resurrection. (John 7:5)

James’ encounter with the risen Lord may have brought him to saving faith. Christ “appeared to James, then to all the apostles” (1 Cor. 15:7).
Paul later listed James, Peter, and John as “those reputed to be pillars” of the church (Gal. 2:9).
Early Church Fathers: Origen, Eusebius, Cyril of Jerusalem, Athanasius, and Augustine

Author: Apostle John
Date: 60-90 AD
Place: Unknown
Possibilities include Jerusalem and Ephesus
Audience: Unknown
Could include believers in Asia Minor
John the Apostle –
James and John – sons of Zebedee a wealthy fisherman
Boanerges – “Sons of Thunder”
An early disciple of John the Baptist
Key leader, along with Peter in Acts (1-8)
Eventually becomes one of the key leaders in the church in Asia Minor (Ephesus specifically)
These three letters were likely written together and not in the sequence that we have them.
3 John – Letter of Recommendation
2 John – Cover Letter
1 John – Not really a letter, but an exhortation or sermon
3 John – political issue between the leaders
2 John – Issues of Proper Teaching
1 John – Issues of Doctrine and Moral conflicts

1 John
Themes:
Fellowship in the Family of God
Truth and Error
Key Verse: 5:13
I have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.
2 John
Themes:
False Teachers
Truth and Love
Key Verse: 6
This is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning; thus you should walk in it.
3 John
Themes:
Hospitality
Faithfulness
Key Verse:
5. Dear friend, you are being faithful to God when you care for the traveling teachers who pass through, even though they are strangers to you.
11. Dear friends, do not imitate what is bad but what is good. The one who does good is of God; the one who does what is bad has not seen God.

Author: Apostle Peter
Date: 64-65 AD
Place: Rome
Audience: Believers in Asia Minor
Both Jewish and Gentile believers
Possible Genres:
Epistle – has the appearance of a letter
Paschal liturgy or Baptismal ritual
A homily preached at a baptism
Themes
Suffering – Chapters 1,3 & 4
Salvation
God’s family – being separate from society around us
First time we see in the NT a conscious understanding of being a “New Israel” 2:9-10

Author: Apostle Peter
Petrine Authorship faces considerable challenge
Date: 64-68 AD
Place: Rome
Audience: Believers in Asia Minor
Both Jewish and Gentile believers
Authorship
Pseudonymity generally asserted for both 2 Peter and Jude
A few scholars do hold Petrine authorship
Number of elements imply “Peter” 1:1,13-18; 3:1
So explicit leads one to think it is authentic or a brazen forgery OR an amanuensis
○Very different from 1 Peter
○1 Peter is clear and direct
○2 Peter is convoluted and deliberately arcane
Letter closest to this is Jude which has led to the hypothesis of some scholars that the “first letter” referred to in 3:1 was really Jude
To call Christians to spiritual growth so that they can combat apostasy as they look forward to the Lord’s return.

Themes
Diligence
Those who follow Christ are to do their best to obey Him
False Teachers
The Church is to be aware of those who would preach a false Gospel
Christ’s Return
Christ’s return is imminent, and we are to live as though His return is soon

Author: Unknown
Date: Before 64-68 AD
Quoted extensively by Clement of Rome in AD 95.
Seems to be written before the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD.
Refers to Timothy’s recent release – late 60’s
Place: Unknown
Audience: Jewish Believers
Several lines of evidence point to a Jewish Christian audience.
The readers had a definite history and the writer referred to their “earlier days” in Heb 10:32-34.

It could be a theological treatsie
It resembles a homily
The author calls it an exhortation in 13:22
Hence it can best be understood as a sermonic epistle.

FAITHFUL ENDURANCE
Readers are challenged not to give up their Christian belief and progress in their faith.
They are to look to OT saints (Chapter 11) and to Christ as examples of endurance
THE SUPREMCY OF CHRIST
The main theme is the surpassing greatness of Christ or His superiority.
And therefore, superiority of Christianity over the OT system.
MATURE FAITH
Followers of Christ are not to become reliant on “milk”, but grow into meat (5:12-14)

Author: Jude
Date: 67-80 AD
Place: Jerusalem
Audience: Jewish Believers
- Written in Palestine between 60-80 AD
Vaguely lists himself as Jude the brother of James, and therefore Jesus.
Themes: False Teachers and Apostasy
Key Verse: 3. Dear friends, although I have been eager to write to you about our common salvation, I now feel compelled instead to write to encourage you to contend earnestly for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints.

Message: centered on God's preparation for Christ' Saving ministry through Old Testament Times and Jesus life, Death and Resurrection
Started in Antoch
Ministry with Paul, Barnabas & John Mark (who left at Perga)
Locations: Cyprus, Perga, and the Province of Galatia (Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Derbe, Lystra)
Lasted about 3 years
Distance traveled: over 1900 km
One of the reasons for the Jerusalem council
http://4usbuildingbridges.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/1.png?w=1089

Acts 15-18
Ministry with Silas & Timothy (Luke joins in Troas)
Locations: Galatia, Troas, Derbe, Philippi, Berea, Thessalonica, Athens, Corinth, and Ephesus
Lasted about 3 years (approx 2 in Corinth)
Distance traveled: over 4000 km
Writes 1 & 2 Thessalonians

http://4usbuildingbridges.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/2nd.png

Ministry with Timothy & Luke
Locations: Galatia, Ephesus, Troas, Macedonia, Miletus, Tyre, Caesarea, Jerusalem
Lasted about 4 years (between 2-3 in Ephesus)
(new test survey book notes in Ephesus for 54AD-57AD approx)
Ends with his imprisonment in Caesarea
Writes 1 & 2 Corinthians, Galatians, & Romans
http://4usbuildingbridges.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/3.png?w=1089

John the Baptist
Born same time as Jesus
Preached in Perea
Herod Antipas was the one who executed him
Died shortly after Jesus started his ministry 26-29 AD??
Met Jesus and Baptised Him
"Lead the Jews to be baptised by Water"
He was preparing the Way for the Messiah as declared in Malachai 400 years before.

John, son of Zebedee
“The disciple Jesus loved”
○John was closely related to Peter and thus appears to be one of the inner three - John 20:2-10
He wrote in his eye witness account in the Book of John, “We have seen His glory” (1:14), This is a claim of someone who was an eyewitness

Part of the Church of Ephesus after his Exile
Responsible for 1,2,3, Revelations and Gospel of John
Themes he writes about in his book, is Jesus Lordship and Son of God
Belief
○pisteuō – verb – which occurs 98 times
Christology
○I Am Statements
6:35; 8;12; 10:7, 11, 14; 11:25; 14:6; 15:1
○Sonship
1:18; 3:16; 19:7

Birth Unknown within 10 years of Jesus Birth
Martyred under Nero approx 67 AD
As a Roman citizen, he was beheaded, as opposed to crucifixion
Was probably aware of Jesus ministry
Some people feel Paul had “twisted” Jesus original message
Paul’s teaching was approved by Peter, John and James (eyewitnesses of Jesus)
Foundations in Judaism
Much of Paul’s teachings are rooted in the OT and 1st Century Judaism
Asserted God’s Sovereignty
Acts 14:15; 1 Tim 1:17; 6:15-16
We don’t know
A Bishop in the province of Asia during the second century described him as 'a man small of stature, with a bald head and crooked legs, in a good state of body, with eyebrows meeting and nose somewhat hooked, full of friendliness: for now he appears like man and now he had the face of an angel ‘ (Acts of Paul and Thecla)
Trained as a Pharisee
Sat under the mentorship of Gamaliel (Acts 5:34)
Present at Stephen’s stoning (Acts 8:1)
Had Roman Citizenship
Acts 16:37; 21:39; 22:25
Provided protection and privilege
Well-educated
Acts 17:28; Titus 1:12
Probably tri-lingual (Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic)
Missionary Trips.
Planted Churches/Preached the Gospel till ends of the "Earth"
Probably in prison for a couple of years
Most likely wrote the prison Epistles at this point
Theorized that he may have been released; then went on a missionary journey to Spain
Arrested again in Rome
The Pastoral Epistles could have been written during this arrest

Pauline Epistles
Early
1 & 2 Thessalonians
Galatians
1 & 2 Corinthians
Romans
Prison
Ephesians
Philippians
Colossians
Philemon
Pastorals
1 & 2 Timothy
Titus

Peter a desciple of Christ (approx age ??)
Writes 1,2,3 Peter
Confirms Paul and helps speak clarity and confirmation about Paul to the churches
Was considered, "The Pillar of which the Church would stand" by Jesus
Made the way for Paul and his ministries
Hung upside down in crucifixion as did not want to die as Jesus
Lead the desciples and apostles into the Christian era with the acension of Christ.
Spoke at Petecost
Met Cornelius and confirmed Gentiles are welcome to the Kingdom of God

Acts 8 (time approx 35-44 ad)
Philip - Took Gospel out to Samaria
He was responsible for speaking to the Eunuch and getting the Gospel out through him to Cush/ Ethiopia) and part of the African Kingdom of Ethiopia- (present day southern Egypt)
Phillip planted in Caesarea
Known as Philip the Evangelist (diff than Philip the apostle)
Conerted Simon the sorcerer.
Was the first to leave and get the Gospel out, under dipute in apostles. But this was God taking the bad and making something good by His power.

Jesus foretold James that his death would end by exectution. Acts 12:2 records that fulfillment of prophecy.
James was first of the 12 to die for his allegiance to Jesus.
probably around 37 AD -44AD under Herod Agrippa's reign

Acts 9 talks about Saul meeting Jesus on his way to Demascus.
In Acts 8, Saul was present for Stephen's stoning.
Acts 13 is noted as approx 47 AD when Paul and Barnabus went out on the first mission trip according to New Test Survey text book.
So timeline to meet Jesus may have been 40-47 AD ?
"Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. – 1 Co 15:8-10."

James (Jesus half brother)was noted as a Leader in Jerusalem Church when the council met in Jerusalem in Acts 15:31-21. The meeting was around 49AD. James would have been leading prior to 49AD and on until his Death. 65AD?

Peter dies about 65-68- (peter dies crucified upside down)

A quick brief on moments leading up to Jesus death.
(http://www.awesomestories.com/movies/passion_christ/passion_christ_ch2.htm)

In the century before Jesus was born, the Roman Republic was in the midst of a power struggle. The two most powerful foes (Pompey and Julius Caesar) were initially allies, linked by family ties since Pompey was married to Julia, Caesar’s only child.

When Julia died, in 54 BC, there was no mitigating force between the two men and Civil War eventually ended the Roman Republic. Julius Caesar (famous for his words “I came, I saw, I conquered”) was the undisputed ruler.

While he was still controlling a powerful military force, General Pompey and his Roman legions conquered Jerusalem in 63 BC. (Pompey, a non-Jew, had initially been asked to help resolve an internal Jewish dispute about high-priest appointments, but he greatly overstayed and expanded his welcome.)

With Pompey’s victory, Rome began its domination of the Jews and their country (then called Judea) which lasted nearly 400 years (63 BC - 313 AD).

At first, the Jewish people still had their own rulers (referred to as the Hasmoneans) and their country was a Roman protectorate. But in 37 BC, Jewish leaders were replaced with friends of Rome. The first - and still notorious - was Herod (later called “Herod the Great”), an Arab from Edom (the area known today as the Negev and referred to as Idumea in Greek).

Rome appointed Herod King of Judea in 40 BC. It was his only path to power because as a converted Jew - he and his family were Edomites - Herold could never be a Jewish priest. His loyalty was to Rome, even though he built many projects in Judea and reconstructed the Jewish temple (sometimes referred to as the Second Temple) in Jerusalem in 19 BC.

He built a famous city on the Mediterranean - with an impressive artificial harbor - and named it Caesarea in honor of his ally Caesar Augustus, the Roman ruler. Despite all the buildings he initiated, Herod was deeply unpopular with the Jewish people.

When Herod died, in 4 BC - his long-sought tomb was finally located in May of 2007 - Roman oppression of the Jews worsened dramatically. By 6 AD, Judea was a Roman province where the tax burden imposed on the Jews became nearly unbearable.

Although Roman rulers (called Procurators) ran the country, Judea was one province Rome could not totally tame absent a very heavy hand.

With rebellion seething under the surface of first-century Jewish life, Jesus of Nazareth spread a message of love and forgiveness. In the third year of his public ministry, a Roman procurator named Pontius Pilate - appointed in 26 AD and whose power was second only to the emperor - imposed a death sentence on Jesus.

The method of death - which is the root of the English word “excruciating” - would be the cruelest of all forms of Roman torture: Crucifixion.

Brother of Herodias who was responsible for John the Baptist' beheading during Jesus Ministry. His reign was 37AD -44 AD

After Herod’s death Augustus divided the kingdom 3 ways between Herod’s three sons: Archaelus, Philip, and Antipas.
Nero took over around 64 AD

Reigned 6AD- 44 AD
Responsible for John the Baptist death.
He was the one whom Jesus was sent by Pilate just before his crucifixion
Immoral Son of Herod the Great
Ruled as tetrach of Galilee and Perea
Condemned by John the Baptist for marrying his niece Herodias the wife of his brother Philip.
Banished to Spain by Caligula, emporeror of Rome when Herodias convinced him that he be made king.

14 AD: five million people live in the Roman empire (no actual end date, just put 15 as needed for timeline script)
as per source:
http://www.scaruffi.com/politics/romans.html

25 AD: Agrippa builds the Pantheon
(again using end date as required for timeline script.)
source: http://www.scaruffi.com/politics/romans.html

Capital of the Roman province of Syria
Jews escaping Jerusalem found themselves here.
Some of them, along with Gentiles becamse the nucleus of the Christian church(es) . (acts 11 fleeing from Jerus)
This occured shortly after Stephen's stoning
Diverse and Ethnic in believers
Primary mission church
all of pauls' journeys began in Antoch
Acts 13 says that the Holy Spirit impressed upon them to send Paul and Barnabas out preaching and church planting.

Extrabiblical References (not sure when he wrote this so I just put 40ad-100 ad)
Pliny the Younger, Epistles X.96
They affirmed, however, that the whole of their guilt, or their error, was, that they were in the habit of meeting on a certain fixed day before it was light, when they sang in alternate verse a hymn to Christ as to a god, and bound themselves to a solemn oath, not to any wicked deeds, but never to commit any fraud, theft, adultery, never to falsify their word, not to deny a trust when they should be called upon to deliver it up.

Extrabiblical References (not sure of actual date of Josephus so just put 50-100 for this timeline purpose)

Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, 18.3.3
3 Now there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man; for he was a doer of wonderful works, a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him both many of the Jews and many of the Gentiles. He was [the] Christ. And when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him; for he appeared to them alive again the third day; as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him. And the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day.

54 AD: Claudius is assassinated by Agrippina and is succeeded by Agrippina's son Nero
(http://www.scaruffi.com/politics/romans.html)

59 AD: Nero orders the assassination of his mother Agrippina
62 AD: The childless Nero divorces his loyal wife Octavia, who is beheaded, and marries the pregnant Poppaea while establishing a reign of terror
64 AD: Nero sets fire to Roma and blames the Christians for it
68 AD: Gaul and Spain rebel against Nero and Nero commits suicide rather than falling into their hands, while Spanish governor Galba is pronounced the new emperor
(http://www.scaruffi.com/politics/romans.html)

79 AD: the Colosseum is completed
http://www.scaruffi.com/politics/romans.html

97 AD: Rome forbids human sacrifice throughout the Roman empire
http://www.scaruffi.com/politics/romans.html

132: Jews, led by Bar-Kochba, whom some identify as the Messiah, revolt against Roma.
http://www.scaruffi.com/politics/romans.html

136: Hadrian definitely crushes the Jewish resistance, forbids Jews from ever entering Jerusalem, and changes the name of the city to Aelia Capitolina
http://www.scaruffi.com/politics/romans.html