Welcome to Studies with Stearman.

Join us as we look deeper into the Bible.

Strengthen your faith with us, even as we see the day approaching.

And now, here's Gary.

As you know, if you've been with us in this study, in the ancient world, as in our present

world, there are a lot of people teaching that there are a lot of ways to get spiritually

enlightened.

Metaphysics.

Learning secret incantations, attending meetings where certain rights and rituals are employed.

It's a big deal.

Always has been.

And back in the Greco-Roman world, when Paul wrote this, it was a very big deal to belong to the mystery religions. And as we've been saying for some time now, the mystery religions thrived on

what they called knowledge, epicanosis, meaning a knowledge of metaphysics, which could only be attained

through the worship of the sun, the moon, the stars, astrology, mystery figures that perform

certain mysterious rites and rituals.

There was the Babylonian mystery religion, there was the mythraic mystery religion,

all of these mysteries have come down to the

present day in various forms as groups dedicated to public service, but at their core is kind of a

mystery ritual or ritualistic core. In other words, the secret handshake, the secret knowledge that's conveyed from one

individual to another during a secret right. There are all sorts of groups like that and have

been for centuries, but when Jesus came and taught his disciples and later they became the

apostles, they declared that the mysteries were no longer mysterious.

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