Paul of Tarsus in the context of "First-century"

Lycaonia (/ˌlɪkiˈoʊniə/; Greek: Λυκαονία, Lykaonia; Turkish: Likaonya) was a large region in the interior of Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey), north of the Taurus Mountains. It was bounded on the east by Cappadocia, on the north by Galatia, on the west by Phrygia and Pisidia, while to the south it extended to the chain of Mount Taurus, where it bordered on the country popularly called in earlier times Cilicia and in the Byzantine period Isauria; but its boundaries varied greatly at different times. The name is not found in Herodotus, but Lycaonia is mentioned by Xenophon as traversed by Cyrus the Younger on his march through Asia. That author describes Iconium as the last city of Phrygia; and in Acts 14:6 Paul, after leaving Iconium, crossed the frontier and came to Lystra in Lycaonia. Ptolemy, on the other hand, includes Lycaonia as a part of the province of Cappadocia, with which it was associated by the Romans for administrative purposes; but the two countries are clearly distinguished both by Strabo and Xenophon and by authorities generally.

In Christian theology, the term Body of Christ (Latin: Corpus Christi) has two main but separate meanings: it may refer to Jesus Christ's words over the bread at the celebration of the Jewish feast of Passover that "This is my body" in Luke 22:19–20 (see Last Supper), or it may refer to all individuals who are "in Christ" (1 Corinthians 12:12–14; see Christian Church).

As used by Paul in the Pauline epistles "Body of Christ" refers to all individuals who "heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit" (Ephesians 1:13), "are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit" (Ephesians 2:22), are "joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love" (Ephesians 4:16).

The Last Adam, also given as the Final Adam or the Ultimate Adam, is a title given to Jesus in the New Testament. Similar titles that also refer to Jesus include Second Adam and New Adam.

Twice in the New Testament an explicit comparison is made between Jesus and Adam. In Romans 5:12–21, Paul observes that "just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous" (Romans 5:19, NIV). In 1 Corinthians 15:22, Paul writes that "as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive," while in verse 45 he calls Jesus the "last/ultimate/final Adam".

An epistle (/ɪˈpɪsəl/; from Ancient Greek ἐπιστολή (epistolḗ) 'letter') is a writing directed or sent to a person or group of people, usually an elegant and formal didactic letter. The epistle genre of letter-writing was common in ancient Egypt as part of the scribal-school writing curriculum. The letters in the New Testament from Apostles to Christians are usually referred to as epistles. Those traditionally attributed to Paul are known as Pauline epistles and the others as catholic (i.e., "general") epistles.

Various early Christian writers wrote gospels and other books, some of which were canonized as the New Testament canon developed. The Apostolic Fathers were prominent writers who are traditionally understood to have met and learned from Jesus's personal disciples. The Church Fathers are later writers with no direct connection to the disciples (other than the claim to apostolic succession). Early Christian apologists tried to defend Christianity against its critics, especially the Ancient Greek and Roman philosophers. Dates given, if not otherwise specified, are of their writings or bishopric, not of their lives.

• Paul of Tarsus, "Apostle to the Gentiles", earliest New Testament author 45~65
• Four Evangelists, traditionally identified as the authors of the canonical gospels 60~125
• Ignatius, bishop of Antioch, apostolic father 68~107
• Marcion of Sinope, evangelist and theologian, founder of Marcionism, published the first known canon of the New Testament, 85~160
• Clement of Rome, bishop of Rome, apostolic father 88~101
• Papias, bishop of Hierapolis, apostolic father 110~130
• Polycarp of Smyrna, bishop of Smyrna, apostolic father 110~160
• Aristides of Athens, apologist ~120
• Justin Martyr, church father ~165
• Melito of Sardis, bishop of Sardis, ~180
• Irenaeus, bishop of Lyon, disciple of Polycarp, apologist 180~202
• Origen of Alexandria, 185~254, Neoplatonist, controversial during his lifetime, posthumously condemned at the Second Council of Constantinople in 553
• Tatian, pupil of Justin Martyr, ascetic theologian ~185
• Athenagoras of Athens, philosopher, apologist ~190
• Polycrates, bishop of Ephesus, excommunicated by Victor I of Rome over the Easter controversy ~196
• Montanus, self-proclaimed prophet and founder of Montanism, last quarter of 2nd century CE
• Tertullian, church father, apologist, first Christian writer in Latin, later a Montanist 197~230
• Hippolytus, church father, sometimes termed the first Antipope, reconciled with the church and died a martyr 217~236
• Cyprian, bishop of Carthage, martyr 218~258
• Clement of Alexandria, church father, Bishop of Alexandria ~220
• Novatian, a rigorist and Antipope in 251
• Dionysius, patriarch of Alexandria, pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church 248~264
• Paul of Samosata, bishop of Antioch, adoptionist, condemned at 269 Council of Antioch
• Athanasius of Alexandria, c. 297~373, patriarch of Alexandria, defender of the Trinitarian doctrine
• Donatus Magnus, bishop of Carthage, (+355), leader of the Donatists from 313
• Lactantius, apologist ~317
• Arnobius, apologist ~330
• Eusebius, wrote History of the Church ~325
• Augustine of Hippo, 354-430, Latin church father, wrote Confessions and City of God

Phronema is a transliteration of the Greek word φρόνημα, which has the meanings of "mind", "spirit", "thought", "purpose", "will", and can have either a positive meaning ("high spirit", "resolution", "pride") or a bad sense ("presumption", "arrogance").

In the New Testament, the word is used four times in Saint Paul's Letter to the Romans: twice with "τῆς σαρκός" (of the flesh) and twice with "τοῦ πνεύματος" (of the spirit): "for the mind of the flesh [is] death, and the mind of the Spirit – life and peace; because the mind of the flesh [is] enmity to God [...] and He who is searching the hearts hath known what [is] the mind of the Spirit" (Romans 8:6-27).

Acts 12 is the twelfth chapter of the Acts of the Apostles in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. It records the death of the first apostle, James, son of Zebedee, followed by the miraculous escape of Peter from prison, the death of Herod Agrippa I, and the early ministry of Barnabas and Paul of Tarsus. The book containing this chapter is anonymous, but early Christian tradition uniformly affirmed that Luke composed this book as well as the Gospel of Luke.

The New Testament uses a number of military metaphors in discussing Christianity, especially in the Pauline epistles.

In Philippians 2:25 and Philemon 1:2, Paul describes fellow Christians as "fellow soldiers" (in Greek, συστρατιώτῃ, sustratiōtē). The image of a soldier is also used in 2 Timothy 2:3–4 as a metaphor for courage, loyalty and dedication; this is followed by the metaphor of an athlete, emphasising hard work. In 1 Corinthians 9:7, this image is used in a discussion of church workers receiving payment, with a metaphorical reference to a soldier's rations and expenses.