Recently I have been considering this man Paul, formerly called Saul ….

… a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, taught according to the strictness of our fathers’ law, and was zealous toward God ... Acts 22;3

... a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee Acts 23:6

... Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering every house, and dragging off men and women, committing them to prison. Acts 8:3

what an unlikely background for anyone to be called of God for a special purpose

Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus … Acts 9:1 – 9

a personal experience with the risen Christ … and his world changed forever !

and with it … even his name !

physical blindness, then his eyes opened, and he started preaching the same Messiah whose followers he had formerly persecuted

So ... what then ? did he take himself to a theological seminary, or enroll into a scripture course, or visit a spirtual guru, or meet up with the other 11 apostles ?

NO, NO, No … instead ... he went to ARABIA and perhaps even the ARABIAN DESERT !!

the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ. … formerly ... how I persecuted the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it. And I advanced in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries in my own nation, being more exceedingly zealous for the traditions of my fathers. But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went to Arabia, and returned again to Damascus.Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem Galatians 1 : 12-19

3 years to erase Pharisaicalism, to replace it with the gospel of GRACE and have revealed the hidden mystery of the Church

Schofield notes that . It was inevitable that a trained intellect like that of Paul, a convinced believer in Mosaism and, until his conversion on the Damascus road, an eager opposer of Christianity, must seek the underlying principles of the Gospel. Immediately after his conversion he preached Jesus as the Messiah; but the relation of the Gospel to the Law, and, in a lesser degree, to the great Jewish promises, needed clear adjustment if Christianity was to be a reasonable faith, and not a mere dogma. … In Arabia Paul sought and found that adjustment through revelation by the Spirit..
Out of it came the doctrinal explanation of salvation by grace through faith, wholly apart from the law, embodied in Galatians and Romans. Furthermore, the new thing, the church in its various aspects and functions, demanded clear revelation.... It is contrary to the method of inspiration, as explained by Paul himself, to suppose that these crowning revelations were made apart from deep meditation, demanding quietness, and earnest seeking.

… this constitutes precisely the scope of the Epistles of Paul. They develop the doctrine of the church. In his letters to seven Gentile churches, the church, the "mystery which from the beginning of the world has been hid in God" (Ephesians 3:9 ), is fully revealed, and fully instructed as to her unique place in the counsels and purposes of God.

Through him alone we know the nature, purpose, and form of organization of local churches, and the right conduct of such gatherings. But to Paul was also committed the unfolding of the doctrines of grace which were latent in the teachings of Jesus Christ.

Paul originates nothing, but unfolds everything, concerning the nature and purpose of the law; the ground and means of the believer's justification, sanctification, and glory; the meanings of the death of Christ, and the position, walk, expectation, and service of the Christian.

And then there is the second period of silence, some 28 years later - the two silent years in prison in Cesarea … between his arrest in the temple at Jerusalem and his deportation to Rome. Acts 24:27 … the new thing, the church in its various aspects and functions, demanded clear revelation. And these are the chief themes of the Epistles written by Paul from Rome, and commonly called the Prison Epistles - Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians.

So, this man ... by occupation a tent maker Acts 18:3

who paid his own way, earned his own keep and that of his companions 1 Thessalonians 2;9

no stipend or salary for him    no ecclesiastical robes or degrees    no business class seats !

who suffered unimaginable hardships ...

in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often.

From the Jews five times I received forty stripes minus one.

Three times I was beaten with rods;    once I was stoned;

three times I was shipwrecked;    a night and a day I have been in the deep;

in journeys often, In perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness — besides the other things, what comes upon me daily: my deep concern for all the churches 2 Corinthians 11:23-29

legalism does not yield to grace quietly, then as still now !

his 3 missionary journeys around the Mediterranean

what a man ... this giant ... this incomparable model of a believer

how I appreciate him, his life and calling, and his writings

and how did he end up ?          our last glimpse of him ?

listen … the salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will hear it ! … the Jews departed and had a great dispute among themselves Then Paul dwelt two whole years in his own rented house, and received all who came to him, preaching the kingdom of God and teaching the things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ with all confidence, no one forbidding him. Acts 28:28-31

in an OPEN HOME in rental accommodation

sharing with all those who visited him … simple and powerful stuff !

while the Jews disputed and argued amongst themselves … and which they are still doing to this very day !!

while we enjoy OPEN HOMES and the simple sharing therein

wow

thanks so much dear PAUL

we are in deep gratitude for such a life and a role model in responding to Gods call