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From: dob@ihuxj.UUCP (Daniel M. O'Brien)
Newsgroups: net.religion
Subject: Paul's words only his alone?
Message-ID: <297@ihuxj.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 27-Nov-83 19:51:58 EST
Article-I.D.: ihuxj.297
Posted: Sun Nov 27 19:51:58 1983
Date-Received: Mon, 28-Nov-83 23:00:59 EST
Organization: AT&T Bell Labs, Naperville, Il
Lines: 56

As Byron Howes pointed out, the writer of ROMANS was
Paul, and so, ROMANS contains Paul's words, but his
words are not unneccessarily those of God's. Howes no doubt
has forgotten most of his New Testament that deals with
NT authorship. Consider the following verses from
Scripture (New American Standard Bible).

Paul, writing to Timothy in 2 Timothy 3:16: "All Scripture
is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof,
for correction, for training in righteousness;"  The words
translated "inspired by God" literally mean "God-breathed"
(as translated in the New International Version).

Peter, in 2 Peter 1:20-21, elaborates further, "But know this
first of all, that no prophesy of Scripture is a matter of
one's own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by
an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit 
spoke from God."  Note that mere men spoke God's words as
inspired by his Holy Spirit. Men wrote, God spoke.

Yes, Paul was infallibly human, except for when it came time
to pen Scripture, then he wrote what God wanted said.
Paul was an apostle, a chosen instrument of God. From
Acts 9:15 we read (Jesus himself speaking to Ananias) about
Paul, "for he is a chosen instrument of Mine, to bear My name
before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel;"

Peter, an eyewitness of Jesus, thought highly of Paul's writings
equating them with Scripture (remember at that time Scripture was the
Old Testament) in 2 Peter 3:15-16, "just as also our beloved
brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you,
as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things,
in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught
and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures,
to their own destruction."

------------------------

This ought to fan the net.flames a little.  Remember to look
it up yourself in your own Bibles. Never take someone's word
for what the Bible says. Compare translations for difficult
passages. Know that the LIVING BIBLE is not. It is an interpretation
not a translation. Always use a good translation, King James Bible,
New American Standard Bible, New Internation Version, Revised
Standard, etc.

Have fun.
-- 
		
			Daniel M. O'Brien
			AT&T Bell Laboratories
			IH 1C-202
			Naperville, IL 60566
		
			....!ihuxj!dob