Paul. He was one of THEM.
Ever heard the phrase, "God doesn't call the qualified, he qualifies the called,"? I love that, because I don't think anyone is ever really ready for the work God calls them to do, and most people really do get on-the-job training. Take this blog, for example. I felt convicted to write it, even though I'm no more a Bible scholar than the next person who reads or studies the Bible. But as I study, and write, the words come together and they make sense. And I hope that whoever reads this benefits from getting a little closer to God, Jesus, and the truth of everything.
That's why I love Paul and the way he approached his ministry. He was completely blindsided. He was a Pharisee and he HATED Christians. He actually agreed with their persecution and maybe even enjoyed it a little. He wasn't one of the original 12, he hadn't buried Jesus and he hadn't seen Him after the Resurrection. He believed, like the Pharisees, that on judgement day, God would raise everyone from the dead and judge each person based on their adherence to Jewish law. He WAS awaiting a Messiah, but he had incorrectly misinterpreted scripture (again, like his peers) to think that the savior would be a political savior, come to save them from Roman rule and free them, just like God had freed Israel from Egyptian tyranny long ago. He didn't understand, because he was so self-righteous, that the freedom he needed was from his own sin, not from any earthly ruler.
So he thought...this joker carpenter Jesus comes from Nazareth and thinks he can overthrow Jewish leaders. It's a good thing we killed him. And these idiots are all going around convincing everyone to continue to defy us. Something has to be done about them. So off he went, to Damascus, to find more Christians to persecute.
You know the story. On the way there, he was met with a blinding light and Jesus Christ himself spoke to him and asked him, "Saul, why are you persecuting me?" And this was when Paul realized his logical, and theological, fallacy, and decided, on the Lord's command, to join the apostles and spread the Gospel.
Paul had very specific gifts from God that helped him. He was both a Jew and a Roman citizen. (Saul was the Hebrew version of his name and Paul was the Greek version.) He was well-educated, well-respected among his Jewish peers, spoke several languages, and was well-versed in both Jewish tradition and scripture AND Roman culture. So he was able to speak to people on their own terms and in their own language. He made his arguments well thought out and very logical.
When he spoke on several occasions to the Pharisees and Jewish leaders who were trying to get him killed for supposed blasphemy, he appealed to their shared belief in a final resurrection and to the predictions and prophecies made by the Jewish prophets, which the Pharisees knew well, and which Jesus had fulfilled. He pointed to how the Messiah HAD to suffer and die in order for Israel to be saved.
But the Pharisees, just wanting to put down what they saw as a rebellion, accused him first of being crazy and second of trying to start an insurrection against Jewish leadership AND against Roman rule.
He denied both. He was in his right mind, from start to finish, and used his skills of logic and reason to the very end.
So how does a person as educated and logical as Paul become convinced that he was wrong about something he adamantly believed? He must have had undeniable proof that what he thought was true...was not. That proof came in the appearance of Jesus at Damascus and then the various miracles that helped him repeatedly spread the Word, despite plots and schemes to stop him.
So why did the Pharisees and other leaders, who were also presumably educated and logical, not believe him and make the same connections to their OWN scripture that he did? After all, he WAS one of THEM. Shouldn't that count for something?
The answer is that their issue was not a matter of the head, but of the HEART. This is something we will explore further very soon.
Until next time...
That's why I love Paul and the way he approached his ministry. He was completely blindsided. He was a Pharisee and he HATED Christians. He actually agreed with their persecution and maybe even enjoyed it a little. He wasn't one of the original 12, he hadn't buried Jesus and he hadn't seen Him after the Resurrection. He believed, like the Pharisees, that on judgement day, God would raise everyone from the dead and judge each person based on their adherence to Jewish law. He WAS awaiting a Messiah, but he had incorrectly misinterpreted scripture (again, like his peers) to think that the savior would be a political savior, come to save them from Roman rule and free them, just like God had freed Israel from Egyptian tyranny long ago. He didn't understand, because he was so self-righteous, that the freedom he needed was from his own sin, not from any earthly ruler.
So he thought...this joker carpenter Jesus comes from Nazareth and thinks he can overthrow Jewish leaders. It's a good thing we killed him. And these idiots are all going around convincing everyone to continue to defy us. Something has to be done about them. So off he went, to Damascus, to find more Christians to persecute.
You know the story. On the way there, he was met with a blinding light and Jesus Christ himself spoke to him and asked him, "Saul, why are you persecuting me?" And this was when Paul realized his logical, and theological, fallacy, and decided, on the Lord's command, to join the apostles and spread the Gospel.
Paul had very specific gifts from God that helped him. He was both a Jew and a Roman citizen. (Saul was the Hebrew version of his name and Paul was the Greek version.) He was well-educated, well-respected among his Jewish peers, spoke several languages, and was well-versed in both Jewish tradition and scripture AND Roman culture. So he was able to speak to people on their own terms and in their own language. He made his arguments well thought out and very logical.
When he spoke on several occasions to the Pharisees and Jewish leaders who were trying to get him killed for supposed blasphemy, he appealed to their shared belief in a final resurrection and to the predictions and prophecies made by the Jewish prophets, which the Pharisees knew well, and which Jesus had fulfilled. He pointed to how the Messiah HAD to suffer and die in order for Israel to be saved.
But the Pharisees, just wanting to put down what they saw as a rebellion, accused him first of being crazy and second of trying to start an insurrection against Jewish leadership AND against Roman rule.
He denied both. He was in his right mind, from start to finish, and used his skills of logic and reason to the very end.
So how does a person as educated and logical as Paul become convinced that he was wrong about something he adamantly believed? He must have had undeniable proof that what he thought was true...was not. That proof came in the appearance of Jesus at Damascus and then the various miracles that helped him repeatedly spread the Word, despite plots and schemes to stop him.
So why did the Pharisees and other leaders, who were also presumably educated and logical, not believe him and make the same connections to their OWN scripture that he did? After all, he WAS one of THEM. Shouldn't that count for something?
The answer is that their issue was not a matter of the head, but of the HEART. This is something we will explore further very soon.
Until next time...
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