In today's devotional, I introduce our next study; the epistles. The epistles are letters sent by the apostles to individuals, churches or regions. Some epistles were intended to be taken from church to church, some were copied, by hand, and taken around in a period mostly of deep persecution for Christians.
Paul wrote 14 of the epistles, 4 by John the beloved, 2 by the apostle Peter and Jude. The writers of James and Hebrews are not clear. The epistles were written as a source of encouragement during a time when it was so easy to give up or convert to Judaism, a religion that was not being persecuted then. 1 and 2 Peter and Jude were written to warn about false prophets that were attacking the Christian faith. John's writing were intended to reveal the true essence of who Jesus Christ was. Finally, Paul wrote to different churches and individuals addressing specific needs.
