Deck 21: The Gospel According to Paul: the Letter to the Romans

Question 1

What is a diatribe? How did Paul use this rhetorical style to explain, defend, and justify his views?

Answer 1

A diatribe is a rhetorical style involving advancing an argument by stating a thesis, having an imaginary opponent raise objections to it, and then providing answers to these objections. Paul was effective in using the diatribe method to counter arguments that others had made against his teaching. He not only showed awareness of the issues but also validated the positions on all sides. By being able to counter all the objections, he showed that he knew what he was talking about.

Question 2

What does Paul dread about his upcoming mission to deliver funds to poor Christians in Judea? Which groups of people make him feel uneasy? Why?

Answer 2

Paul was apprehensive about dealing with unbelieving Jews in Judea. The Jews did not believe that Jesus was the long-awaited messiah and considered the Christians' belief that Jesus was the messiah to be blasphemy. Paul was also apprehensive about the Jewish converts to Christianity. Although they did accept Jesus as the messiah, they were still too steeped in Hebrew Law to accept Paul's "Law-free gospel." As Jewish Christians, they thought that Gentiles ought to convert to Judaism to be true Christians. Paul thought otherwise. He taught that the Gentiles were under no obligation to be circumcised, eat according to kosher directives, or adhere to other restrictions of the Hebrew Law.

Question 3

How is the letter to the Romans unique among Paul's undisputed letters?

Answer 3

Romans is distinctive among Paul's letters in the following ways: it is written to a church that was not established by Paul; Paul had never met his recipients, the Roman Christians; Paul is not addressing problems in the recipients' community; and Paul focuses on expounding his own theology in a relatively thorough manner.

Question 4

Paul claims God has replaced Israel with the church as his people.

Question 5

Paul says Christ came so that no one would have to keep the Law anymore.

Question 6

Paul wrote Romans in the hopes that Christians in Rome would financially support his trip to Spain.

Question 7

Paul argues that Gentiles should be circumcised to follow Abraham's example.

Question 8

Paul argues that Gentiles have first access to salvation, followed by Jews.

Question 9

According to tradition, who founded the church at Rome?

A) Peter
B) Paul
C) Jesus
D) James

Question 10

According to Paul, faith is all of the following things except:

A) Trusting acceptance of God's act of salvation
B) The centerpiece of Jesus' teachings
C) Commitment to the belief in Jesus' death and resurrection
D) The only means of salvation

Question 11

Why did Paul write a letter to the Romans?

A) To solve the church's problems
B) To check in with them, as he did with all the churches he established
C) To alert them to the possibility of war with the Roman Gentiles
D) No one knows for sure; however, Paul did have some purpose in trying to convince them that his message was authentic.

Question 12

Which book of the New Testament was the most influential, was the most quoted, and stood at the center of debate between the Protestants and Catholics during the sixteenth-century Reformation?

A) Galatians
B) Mark
C) Romans
D) First Timothy

Question 13

Romans states that a person is not justified by:

A) Works of the Law
B) Obedience
C) Good works
D) Loving others

Question 14

By the end of the first century CE, most Christians were probably:

A) Former Jews
B) Former pagans
C) Fleeing persecution
D) Testifying of the sanctity of the New Testament

Question 15

What two words in the English language are translations of the same Greek root, pist-?

A) Faith and believe
B) Love and hope
C) Love and trust
D) Trust and obey

Question 16

The power of sin, according to Romans, is related to the power of:

A) Evil
B) God, in a yin/yang sort of way
C) Rome
D) Death

Question 17

Which of the following best describes the difference between the judicial model of salvation in Romans and the participationist model of salvation in Romans?

A) The judicial model of salvation is for the Jews (law), and the participationist model of salvation is for the Gentiles (faith).
B) In the judicial model, death is a consequence; in the participationist model, death is a cosmic force.
C) The judicial model is concerned with sin; the participationist model is concerned with death.
D) The judicial model refers to final judgment; the participationist model refers to one's participation in the Church.

Question 18

Paul believed all people were enslaved to sin because of:

A) Ignorance
B) Abraham's union with Hagar
C) Jesus' death at the hands of the Jewish leaders
D) Adam's disobedience