Study Questions for the New Testament

• Compare the suggestions for human conduct offered in the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-11) to those that are implied in the Greek literature we have read.
• What message are the three parables in Luke 15 trying to teach?
• How is the conception of God in the New Testament different from that in the Old Testament or in Greek literature and culture?
• The crucifixion of Jesus is one of the most dramatic episodes in the Gospels, and it has been interpreted on the stage for nearly two thousand years.  What elements of this episode lend themselves to drama, and how might the dramatic elements of the Passion have contributed to how Christianity and its message were perceived by non-Christian audiences?