THE HOPE OF PAUL'S PRISON EPISTLES



One of the great blunders of the church today is assuming that a doctrine or teaching is true just because

it has been preached for so long and loud by so many preachers. This is especially true about the hope

of resurrection that Paul wrote about in his epistles. Most believers assume that Paul wrote about the same

hope of resurrection in all of his epistles, because that's all they have heard all of their lives
 

Preachers and teachers have pounded it into their heads for years that Paul ended up with the same hope

of resurrection that he started out with .

But this is just another doctrine and tradition of men because Paul did not end up with the same hope he

started out with . As a matter of fact Paul did not end up with many of things that he started out with such as;

Water baptism, the Lord's supper, going to the Jew first, circumcision (Acts 16) , keeping the law, speaking

in tongues, healing the sick, working miracles, sending offerings to Jerusalem, keeping ordinances, offering

sacrifices, observing feast days, abstaining from meats and drinks ,calling Abraham the father of the church

and New Jerusalem the mother of the church etc. etc.

You will not find these things and many more at the end of Paul's ministry when he wrote his Prison epistles

 as you will at the beginning when he wrote his Acts epistles.
 

Paul's Prison Epistles written at the end of his ministry are strikingly different from his Acts Epistles because

they were written under a different administration or dispensation . His Acts Epistles were written during the

dispensation or administration of the New Covenant which began at the cross (Heb.9:14-17). And being a

minister of the New Covenant (11Cor.3:6) what Paul preached and wrote pertained to the New Covenant

and to New Covenant saints which the Acts believers were (Ga1.4:22-31).
 

But at the close of the Acts period a new and different administration or dispensation began called the Dispensation

of the Mystery ( Eph.3:1-6). This administration or dispensation was a secret hid in God, which no one including

Paul was aware of prior to Acts 28. The doctrine and truth concerning this secret administration was given to Paul

in Rome by revelation (Co1.1:23-27).. It is revealed to us in his Prison epistles written from Rome after the close

of the Acts administration or dispensation of Promise.

In his Prison Epistles many of the doctrines and practices of the Acts administration, such as those mentioned are gone

and vanished away.

And one of the major doctrines absent in his Prison Epistles is the hope of resurrection that Paul preached and wrote

about in his Acts Epistles; for God gave Paul a new and different hope after the close of the Acts period, when he

wrote his Prison Epistles .
 

One of the fundamental facts about dispensations in the Bible is that when they change so does the doctrine, inheritance

blessings, promises, practices and hope. For example, the doctrine, inheritance, blessings, promises and hope of the

New Covenant administration are different from the Old Covenant administration. This is what the book of Hebrews is

all about . It shows how different and better the New Covenant is from the Old Covenant. In the same way, the doctrine,

inheritance, blessings, promises, practices, and hope found in the epistles Paul wrote under the administration of the Mystery

are different and better from those he wrote under the New Covenant administration during the Acts period.

In the Epistles that Paul wrote during the dispensation of the Mystery God reveals a new, different and better Hope than

 what he offered anyone in any book written in any prior dispensation.
 

The purpose of this article is to show you, the reader, how different and has much better that hope is by comparing it with

the Hope he had during the Acts period or dispensation of Promise.

All we ask you to do is to approach this article with the prayer of Eph.1:17-18 that God would give unto you the spirit of

wisdom and revelation and that he would enlighten the eyes of your understanding that you might come to know what is

"THE HOPE OF HIS CALLING" .

Please consider the following facts concerning this hope with your Bible.

(I.) OUR HOPE IS THE APPEARING OF CHRIST, NOT THE COMING OF CHRIST.

In Titus 2:13 he wrote; "Looking for that blessed hope, and the GLORIOUS APPEARING of the Great God and our

Saviour Jesus Christ.
 

II Tim.4:1 says; "I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead

at HIS APPEARING and his kingdom".
 

II Tim. 4:8 says: "Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall

give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love HIS APPEARING"

I Tim. 6:14 says: "That thou keep this commandment without spot, unrebukeable, until THE APPEARING OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST."

Col. 3:4 says: "When Christ who is our life, SHALL APPEAR, then shall you also APPEAR with Him in Glory.

Please note that the Hope of the Prison Epistles is the "APPEARING OF CHRIST",  NOT "THE COMING OF CHRIST".

When Paul wrote his Acts Epistles, under the New Covenant administration, his Hope was the Second Coming of Christ, a

hope that could be FOUND in the O.T. scriptures. He mentions the coming of Christ 10 times in his Acts epistles 

Check them out and see for yourself. - I Cor. 1:7, 4:5, 11:26, 15:23, I Thess. 2:19, 3:13, 4:15, 5:23, II Thess. 1:10, 2:1.

But when the dispensation changed at the close of the Acts period; the Hope also changed from the Coming, to the Appearing

of Christ. As a matter of fact, the word "Coming" referring to the Second Coming of Christ DOES NOT APPEAR ONE TIME

IN THE 7 PRISON EPISTLES OF PAUL whereas, it appears 10 times in the 6 Acts Epistles of Paul. Also, the word

"APPEARING" referring to Christ's appearing to the Church IS NOT MENTIONED ONCE IN THE ACTS EPISTLES,

but is mentioned 6 times in the Prison Epistles.
 

Throughout the Acts period, Paul looked for the Second Coning of Christ and encouraged all believers to be ready for it, but

then suddenly after Acts 28, HE NEVER MENTIONS IT AGAIN IN HIS 7 PRISON EPISTLES . This alone ought to convince

any fair minded believer that a CHANGE TOOK PLACE in Paul's Hope.
 

Consider this also, if the Coming of Christ is our Hope today, why doesn't Paul mention it at least once in his post-Acts-epistles??

And if the hope of the Acts believers was the Appearing of Christ, why doesn't he mention it once in the Acts epistles ??
 

I believe the answer is simple, the Appearing and the Coming are not the same event, or hope; and Paul did indeed write about

and preach two different hopes. One simple way to know that these hopes are not the same is that they are spelled different. But

let us look more closely at some of these differences. 
 

There is a world of difference between Christ's Appearing and His Coming; and if our Hope is His Appearing, we ought to know

what those differences are.


(II.) OUR HOPE IS THE APPEARING OF CHRIST ABOVE THE HEAVENS, NOT HIS COMING IN THE CLOUDS

 OF THE AIR.

When describing the Coming of Christ in His Acts Epistles, Paul said that Christ would descend from Heaven and come down into

 the clouds of the air.
 

In I Thess. 4:15-17 he wrote: "We which are alive and remain unto the Coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.

For the Lord himself shall DESCEND FROM HEAVEN with a shout... and we which are alive and remain shall be caught up

together with them IN THE CLOUDS to meet the Lord IN THE AIR."...
 

But in Paul's Prison epistles when Christ appears to the Church, He does not descend from Heaven and come down into the air. Instead,

He appears to the Church , and then the Church appears with Him  IN GLORY  where he is now seated at the right hand of God FAR

ABOVE ALL HEAVENS.

In Col. 3:1--4 Paul said: "Seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God... When Christ who is our life

shall appear, then shall ye also appear WITH HIM IN GLORY."

After His resurrection Eph.4:10 says that Christ ascended up "FAR ABOVE ALL HEAVENS". The place He ascended up into is where

 the throne of God is located according to Col. 3:1. That place is called "Heavenly Places" in Eph. 1:20 and Eph. 2:6. It is also called "Glory"

 in Psa. 8:1 which says: "O Lord, our Lord, How excellent is thy name in all the Earth! WHO HAST SET THY GLORY ABOVE THE

 HEAVENS".
 

God set His Glory and throne above the Heavens and when Christ ascended  up "Far above all Heavens" He ascended up into Glory the

dwelling place of God. And when Christ Appears to the Church He will appear to us IN GLORY ABOVE THE HEAVENS and in

the same instant WE WILL BE RECEIVED UP INTO GLORY WITH HIM according to I Tim. 3:16.
 

When the appearing of Christ to the Church takes place, he will not descend from Heaven down into the air . He will appear to us in Glory

above the Heavens where the Church will be "received up into Glory" (ITim. 3:16) and changed (Phil. 3:21). Praise God for such a Hope

as this! We have a Hope of being received up into a place where only one other person has ever gone, GLORY the dwelling place of God

far above all Heavens.

To sum up this point: Our Hope is not for Christ to descend frown Heaven down into the air, our Hope is for Christ to appear in Glory far

above the Heavens.

(III.) CHRIST'S APPEARING IN GLORY IS THE "BLESSED HOPE" NOT "ISRAEL'S HOPE"

That which we want to stress here is that the hope of Christ's Appearing to the Church is not based upon Israel's Hope, promises or covenants.

The hope that Paul preached and wrote about in his Acts epistles was based upon Israel's promises and covenants . It was the hope that

God promised to Israel in the New Covenant. Paul was a minister of the New Covenant (II Cor. 3:6) and the New Covenant was made

with Israel (Heb. 8:8). Therefore, the Hope of the New Covenant was the Hope of Israel. And this hope can be found in the O.T. scriptures
 

There are people who have a problem believing that Paul would preach or have the hope of Israel, but Luke makes it clear that he did at 

 least 4 times in the Book of Acts which he wrote.

In Acts 28:20 Paul said to the Jews in Rome; "For this cause therefore have I called for you to see you, and to speak with you: because that FOR
THE HOPE OF ISRAEL I AM HOUND WITH THIS CHAIN." Much has been said, denied and ignored about this verse, but one thing no

one can deny and it's the fact that Paul preached the Hope of Israel and suffered for doing so . And when he does Luke makes it clear that the

Hope was the resurrection God promised Israel in the Law and the prophets.

In Acts 23 Paul stood before the council in Jerusalem and in verse 6 declared "I am a pharisee: of the HOPE AND RESURRECTION OF

 THE DEAD I am called in question."

In Acts 24 Paul again stood before Felix in Caesarea and said to him in verses 14-15 

"But this I confess unto thee, that after the way which they call heresy, so worship I the God of my fathers, believing all things which are written

 in the LAW AND THE PROPHETS: and have HOPE TOWARD GOD, which they themselves also allow, that there shall be a

 RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD, both of the just and unjust."

In Acts 26 Paul again stood before Agrippa and declared to him in verses 6-8 

"And now I stand and am judged for THE HOPE OF THE PROMISE MADE OF GOD TO OUR FATHERS: unto which PROMISE

our twelve tribes,, instantly serving God day and night, HOPE TO COME. For which HOPE'S SAKE, King Agrippa I am accused of the

JEWS. Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you, that God should RAISE THE DEAD? "

When writing the Book of Acts, Luke did not go into all the details of what Paul said when he preached the Hope of Israel. However, he

does say that the Hope he preached was the one God promised the fathers of Israel and that it is found in the Law and the prophets.

But when Paul wrote his Acts Epistles HE GIVES YOU THE SPECIFICS OF THAT RESURRECTION in I Corinthians 15:50-55 and

I Thess. 4:14-18. As you read these two chapters, you can see all the details of what Paul said when he preached the Hope of Israel in the

Acts period. Paul also wrote that he suffered for the hope he preached in I Cor.15:29-32 as Luke said he did in Acts 28:20 and Luke calls

the hope he suffered for the hope of Israel . Keep in mind also that you cannot separate what he preached from what he wrote, or

what he wrote from what he preached . PAUL WROTE TO THE SAME PEOPLE HE PREACHED TO AND VICE-VERSA .

The resurrection that Paul wrote about in I Cor. 15 and I Thess. 4 is the Hope of Israel that Luke said Paul preached in Acts 23, 24, 26, 28.

It was the Hope God promised Israel in the New Covenant and Jesus Christ a minister of the New Covenant like Paul (Heb. 8:6), also

preached that Hope in Matt. 24:29-31. By comparing Matt. 24 with I Cor. 15 and I Thess. 4 you will see they are one and the same Hope.

* (Note: for a detailed comparison of Matt. 24 with Mess. 4 see article "The Hope of the Acts Epistles".)
 

God promised this Hope to all the seed of Abraham that He made the New Covenant with. Because all believers in the Acts body were

accounted as Abraham's seed (Gal. 3:29) and New Covenant saints (Gal. 4:22-31) they partook of this Hope as well as "the promises"

God made to Abraham (Gal.3:16) and "the promise" made to him (Gal. 3:29). They also partook of "the fatness" of the good olive tree

(Rom. 11:17) and Israel's "Spiritual things" (Rom. 15:27). 

But when Paul wrote his Prison Epistles under the dispensation of the Mystery, that began after the Acts period, all this changed.

What is said about the Acts believers is not true of us.

We are not grafted into Israel the Good Olive Tree and partake of her fatness, for the tree has been cut down!

We do not partake of Israel's spiritual blessings, instead we have something better, which is all spiritual blessings in Heavenly Places In Christ (Eph.1:3).

We do not partake of "The Promise of Abraham", but of "The Promise" of Eternal Life that God made to us before the foundation of the world. (Eph. 3:6 - Tit. 1:1-2).

We do not partake of "the Promises of Abraham", but of the "Unsearchable Riches of Christ" Eph. 3:8).

We do not call Abraham Our Father, neither are we his seed, for we have One Father who is God (Eph. 4:6).

We are not New Covenant saints, but saints of another administration, and that of the Grace an Mystery, not promise (Eph. 3:1-2).

Our Hope is not the Hope of Israel, but it is the Blessed Hope (Tit. 2:13) .

The Hope of Israel preached by Paul in the Acts period was the Hope of the New Covenant administration made to the seed of

Abraham. It is not the Hope of this administration of Grace.
 

Like we have said before , WHEN DISPENSATIONS CHANGE SO DOES THE HOPE. When God committed the Dispensation

of  the Mystery to Paul and to us Gentiles, he revealed a new and different Hope than what he had previously , under the New Covenant administration.

It is called : "The Blessed Hope - Tit. 2:13
"The Hope of Glory" - Col. 1:27
"The Hope of His Calling" - Eph. 1:18
"His Appearing" - II Tim. 4:1, 8

But under no circumstances is it ever called "The Hope of Israel"!