Apostle Paul Essay Research Paper The Apostle

Apostle Paul Essay, Research Paper

The Apostle Paul was born around the year of 3 A.D. in the Jewish community of Tarsus. When he was born, his strict Pharisee parents dedicated him to the service of God and did all they could to bring him up as good Jew. From age five to ten he studied under his father, a Jewish Pharisee. His father taught him the scriptures and traditional writing. Paul was sent to Jerusalem at about ten years old to attend the rabbinical school of Gamaliel. Gamaliel was the most famous rabbi who is mentioned in the New Testament (Acts 5:34). Gamaliel soon discovered Saul was an enthusiastic student and expected great things from him. He felt that he would be a great leader. Saul was dedicated in all his learning that he captured the heart of his teacher. He was a devoted student that had a real love for learning the scriptures and worship. When Saul was in his mid-twenties he went home to Tarsus. Saul left Jerusalem with the knowledge and experiences he learned from Gamaliel’s school.

Saul did not believe Jesus was the Messiah because Jesus often denounced the Pharisees and seemed to oppose all their rules. He had once heard that Jesus taught the people to disobey the rabbis and had caused chaos in the synagogues. All true Jews accused Him as enemy of Israel. Saul believed that anyone who followed Jesus should be put to death. With this thought in mind he returned to Jerusalem and offered his service to the high priest to persecute anyone who is opposed to the way of the synagogue. Saul took his job so fiercely that every worshipping assembly feared his name. He had a temper and was merciless. He was quick to punish. Saul literally dragged believers, cast them into prison, and sentenced them to death. Angered by his futile efforts to stop the spread of Christianity, Saul prepared a trip to Damascus, where he had heard many Christians were hiding. Not only were they hiding, they were also preaching Christ in the synagogues there. So, accompanied by a troop of armed temple guards, Saul rode out of Jerusalem to the city of Damascus. As they neared the outer edge of the city, a shaft of light much brighter than the noonday sun suddenly fell upon the little company. The group fell to the ground trying to protect their eyes from the blinding light. A voice from heaven spoke to Saul.

“Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”(Acts 9:4). Then Saul asked, “Who are you Lord?”(Acts 9:5) The voice replied, “I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you persecute”(Acts 9:5). Then Saul asked what he should do. Jesus answered “But get up and go into the city, where you will be told what you must do (Acts 9:6). Saul was blinded for three days and neither ate nor drank during that time. In Damascus, there was a certain disciple named Ananias. The Lord came to him in a vision. In that dream the Lord commanded Ananias to look for Saul and put his hands on him that he may receive his sight. Ananias went out in the city of Damascus and found Saul. He did what the Lord told him to do, and Saul received his sight and was baptized. Saul was now a converted Christian. He would live a life for the cause of Christ.

In Paul’s Christology, resurrection and salvation is important. Paul has strong believes about it. Atonement is a death of Jesus. Jesus’ death had a lot of meanings and it was really important to human kind. Paul stated it clearly that Jesus died for our sins. ” People commit wrong actions, for which they require forgiveness or acquittal requires the sledding of blood”. When we were sinners, God got so angry to us. If the sin is worthy to death that means everybody has to die, but Jesus helped us by putting himself as a sacrifice. ” But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners, Christ died for us”. (Romans5: 8) We are protected by Jesus’ blood from the wrath of God. “For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his son, much more surely, having been reconciled, will we be saved by his life”. (Romans5: 10) From these statements, we can know that Jesus death was valuable for all of us and Paul believed that Jesus did not die in vain. Jesus gave us peace from the wrath of God. Resurrection is rebirth of Jesus. This is important in Paul’s belief. In the Romans, Paul said ” therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into the death, so that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life”. (Romans6: 4) People, who are already dead, they are free from their sins. Because of death, our sinful bodies were destroyed and we are no longer slaves of sins. ” The death he died, he died to sin once for all, but the live he lives, he lives for God”(Romans6: 10) Paul explained in the letter that people should entrust our body to sin, and let our spirits free from sin, and give it to God. “But now that you have been freed from sin and enslaved to God, the advantage you get is sanctification. The end is eternal Life”. (Romans6: 22) Paul thinks that everybody must participate in the death and resurrection of Christ. Try not to be sinners and after death, Jesus provides us to eternal life. “But if we also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him”. (Romans6: 8-9) Jesus death made us that we can be a part of Jesus, or to live with also die for him. Jesus death died not for only of our sins but also it is that we can feel close to him.