Life of apostle paul on earth

Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul. Ephesians Romans For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. Featured Verse Topics. On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison.

He directed that he be flogged and interrogated in order to find out why the people were shouting at him like this. The commander himself was alarmed when he realized that he had put Paul, a Roman citizen, in chains. Then Paul said:. I studied under Gamaliel and was thoroughly trained in the law of our ancestors. I was just as zealous for God as any of you are today.

I even obtained letters from them to their associates in Damascus, and went there to bring these people as prisoners to Jerusalem to be punished. Why do you persecute me? There you will be told all that you have been assigned to do. It is hazardous to guess just what Saul the Pharisee believed about the messiah. But first-century writings, especially the New Testament, confirm that Jesus was rejected by the Jewish hierarchy as a messianic candidate.

Clearly Saul shared this conviction. It is therefore all the more striking that Paul later produced writings in which messianic honor is so ubiquitously ascribed to Jesus. By rough count of the Greek text, Paul uses the word "Christ" an early Christian neologism, translating the Hebrew word masiah [ jyiv'm ] close to four hundred times.

He often uses the combination "Jesus Christ, " other times writes "Christ Jesus, " and most often uses the name "Christ" alone, as in the phrase "in Christ" see below. This frequency of use is probably best explained by analogy with Paul's even more frequent mention of "God. He is the basis and goal of all Paul does. But Paul was convinced that this same God had come to earth in human form, died for the forgiveness of human sin, and ascended to heaven to blaze a path for all that love him to follow.

A trio of texts encapsulates Paul's teaching on Christ's excellencies. First, Philippians underscores Christ's essential oneness with God, yet his willingness to humble himself by taking on human form and enduring the shameful cross. God shares his very "name" biblical shorthand for "personal identity" or "self" with him; he is the king-designate before whom every knee will bow, "in heaven and on earth and under the earth" vv.

Second, Colossians cf. Eph expands on this soteriological vision to emphasize the cosmic dimensions of Christ Jesus' work. He was integral in creation and even now somehow upholds the created order vv. The fullness of the unseen God dwelt in him as he undertook his redemptive work vv. Third, in compressed confessional form Paul summarizes his teaching about Jesus Christ in 1 Timothy His sixfold affirmation mentions incarnation, vindication by the Holy Spirit, angelic attestation, proclamation among the nations, appropriation by believers in the world, and ascension to heavenly glory.

In theory Paul's high view of Jesus Christ Paul knows no dichotomy between a "Christ of faith" and the "Jesus of history" in the modern sense, nor is "Christ" a spiritual being or symbol somehow discontinuous with Jesus of Nazareth could be justified simply by virtue of his divine identity. Who would be so rash as to quibble with God Rom ? Praise and honor befit whatever God deigns to do.

But Paul's praise of Jesus Christ is not born of sheer necessity. It springs from the joyful awareness that God in Christ has regard for sinners in their lowly estate. God has expressed fierce, transforming love for his people through Christ's gracious work of redemption. Arguing from everyday experience Paul points out that only in a rare case would someone lay down his own life for the sake of another Rom But God has shown the depth of his love for the lost in that Christ died on their behalf while they were yet in their woeful state Rom Through Christ there is "redemption" from sin.

It has a rich Old Testament background in the liberation of God's people from Egyptian bondage. Jesus spoke of redemption apolutrosis [ ajpoluvtrwsi" ] in connection with events surrounding the return of the Son of Man Luke Paul uses the same word to describe the process by which sinners are justified reckoned righteous in God's sight through Jesus' death Rom ; cf.

But redemption is not only a past event. It is a future hope, as believers eagerly await the redemption of their bodies Rom , their resurrection at the end of this age. Paul speaks of redemption most often in Ephesians, where he associates it with forgiveness of sins through Christ's death , the future heavenly inheritance of believers , and the coming day of vindication for Christ's followers.

The logic of redemption requires that a price, or "ransom" antilutron [ ajntivlutron ] , be paid for prisoners' release. That price was the life of Jesus, "who gave himself as a ransom for all men" 1 Tim In Paul's theology the cross is the means and central symbol of Christ's redeeming death. The Cross. Paul can summarize the message he preaches as "the message of the cross" 1 Cor ; ; In itself the cross, reserved by Roman overlords for the most despicable crimes and criminals, had no connotation but agony and shame.

Jews in Jesus' day interpreted Deuteronomy "anyone who is hung on a tree is under God's curse" to apply to crucified persons, and this helps explain why Jewish leaders pressed for a Roman death sentence for Jesus. This would mean crucifixion, and crucifixion would be proof that Jesus was not God's messianic deliverer. The strategy succeeded but then backfired.

Yes, Jesus was cursed by God. The Gospels imply this in recording Jesus' cry of dereliction, the prolonged midday darkness, and an earthquake at his death. But Paul points out that he became "a curse for us" so that "the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus" and so that "by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit" Gal Christianity's elevation of the cross is directly related to the fixation on it in Paul's writings.

Paul uses the noun "cross" ten times and the verb "crucify" eight times. In addition, his numerous references to Jesus' "death" and "blood" likewise cast a spotlight on the cross. Yet it is not only a symbol for the means by which God in Christ atoned for sins; it is also the means by which believers walk in the footsteps of the one who calls them.

As the cross is the source of strength in Christ's ministry, it is the source of strength for Paul 2 Cor ; cf. Gal For all believers the cross serves as inspiration and effective agent in mortifying "the sinful nature" with "its passions and desires" Gal A key link between Jesus and Paul is their shared emphasis on death to sin and self as requisite for life to righteousness and God.

For both, the cross functions as Moses' bronze serpent a most unlikely symbol mediating eternal life to all who gaze on it with trust. The cross, however, does not stand alone in Paul's theology. His gospel is not a call to cruciform masochism. The Paul ine cross stands firmly planted in the rich soil of the resurrection.

Life of apostle paul on earth

The Christian message stands or falls with the truth or falsity of the claim that following his death for sin Jesus Christ rose from the dead 1 Cor Paul's preaching on the first missionary journey keyed on the resurrection Acts Acts Several years later at Athens Paul's stress was the same Acts : God "has given proof to all men" of coming judgment through Jesus Christ "by raising him from the dead" cf.

Rom While it is generally true to say that Paul's witness in Acts is Christ-centered, it can also be said to be resurrection-centered. Scarcely a major message or testimony passes without mention of Christ's resurrection or the assurance of future resurrected blessedness that Christ's resurrection guarantees those who trust him Acts Acts ; ; Acts Acts ; Paul refers to the resurrection over five dozen times in his letters.

Only 2 Thessalonians, Titus, and Philemon lack such mention. Like "cross" and "crucify, " "resurrection" and "raised" refer to both an event in Christ's life and a reality for believers. Cross and resurrection serve together to make the benefits of Christ's righteousness available: "He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification" Rom The resurrection is a key truth for daily Christian living.

Jesus' resurrection from the dead means victory over sin the ultimate cause of death, Rom , and believers are urged to appropriate this victory in their own lives: "offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life" Rom The logic of growing in Christ-likeness, or sanctification, is based on Jesus' resurrection: "If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies" Rom Paul's final extant letter urges Timothy to "remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead" 2 Tim This core Christian claim, still disputed yet defended today, remains the fundamental hope of all true believers, for it defines the promise and power of the salvation that the gospel has granted them.

The Church. In Paul's theology it is not believers as autonomous, self-sufficient units to whom God directs his saving efforts. Yes, God views persons as individuals. But the horizon of his saving Acts extends to the entirety of the "all peoples on earth" cited in God's promise to Abraham Gen ; cf. Eph Christ died and rose to rescue a corporate body, the company of the redeemed, the elect, the people of God as a whole stretching from earliest Old Testament times to the present.

In Paul's writings the term that denotes this entity is "church, " a word that occurs some sixty times and is found in every Paul ine epistle except 2 Timothy and Titus. Previous Lesson - Next Lesson. Adam - Noah - Abraham - Moses. David - Daniel - Story Flow. The birth name of Paul is actually Saul. He was born into a Jewish family in the city of Tarsus.

His birth in a Roman "free city" grants him Roman citizenship, a privilege he will exercise later in life. The early religious training Paul receives comes from the best Rabbinical school in Jerusalem. It is led by the well-known and respected Pharisee Gamaliel. Apostle Paul. How Did the Apostle Defile the Temple? Gordon Fee. The Editors. Marvin R.

Mary Ann Jeffreys. Edward Gilbreath. Dan Cole. Jill Nelson. Christopher Kuo. Usually a minority among their pro-choice peers, thousands of Christian students find solidarity at the annual March for Life in Washington.