Paul was a disciple of Jesus Christ who, after persecuting the very adherents of the group he entered, notably converted to Christianity on the way to Damascus. However, Paul is generally modeled as one of the religion's pioneers rather than as a convert, as we shall learn. Paul is credited with writing seven New Testament publications; he was a well-known educator and apostle to much of Asia Minor and modern-day Greece.

An Early Christian Pioneer

Recently, academics have begun to recognize Paul as the true originator of the religious movement, eventually leading to Christianity. Paul, a Jew from the Diaspora who belonged to the Pharisees' camp, had a vision of the risen Jesus. As a result of this encounter, he made extensive trips across the eastern Roman Empire, disseminating the "good news" that Jesus would soon be back from heaven and establish God's kingdom. 

Paul did not start a new religion because he thought he was in the last age before the end when the world would change this era. But as days progressed and Jesus didn't appear again, the Church Fathers of the second century looked to Paul's teachings to support what might eventually become Christian orthodoxy. 

Paul may therefore be regarded as the founder of Christianity as a distinct religion from Judaism. He is referred to as Paul of Tarsus in the Christian tradition since Luke claims he was raised there (Acts 9:11). During the period, Tarsus was situated in the modern-day Turkish region of Cilicia. Paul, nevertheless, claims he was a native of the Syrian area of Damascus.

Luke has given several specific aspects of Paul's life, yet most of these aspects directly conflict with what Paul says in his writings. For example, Luke states that Paul was raised in Jerusalem, studied under numerous individuals who would be regarded as the first rabbis of conventional Judaism, and finally joined the council, or the Sanhedrin. 

Paul claims that he only paid a two-time visit to Jerusalem, even though his stay was only a few days. On the one side, Luke presents Paul as somebody who willfully abides by any orders from Jerusalem and regularly consults them on how he should conduct his "mission," which is done to further his own goal. 

On the other end, Paul has his purpose and contends that the risen Christ, not any person, provided him with the directive. As a result, he consistently denies that Jerusalem had any effect on his general course of action.

Works of Paul

There are 14 letters in the New Testament which have historically been attributed to Paul. However, scholars today agree that only seven of those were genuinely authored by him:

• Corinthians 1 and 2
• Galatians
• Philemon
• Philippians
• Romans
• Thessalonians 1:1

The authors of the others probably took inspiration from Paul and wrote under his identity. According to our understanding, such writings are incidental, not treatises on Christianity or systematic religion. In other words, the messages are reactions to specific issues and situations in diverse societies. They weren't created as absolute rules to serve as Christian theology; their prominence and importance developed over time.

Paul, a Pharisee, claimed to have been more ardent and knowledgeable than anybody else whenever it comes to "the Law." The Rule at stake in most of his writings was the Law of Moses. He belonged to the Benjaminite clan, which allowed Luke to employ the earlier name Saul, a well-known Benjaminite name. 

New names frequently signal a shift in perspective about a new guy. He also rose to fame as a commonly used convert in the past. Getting rendered blind on the way to Damascus has become synonymous with epiphanic insight and conversion.

Nevertheless, calling him a "convert" may not be the most appropriate description. Change from one type of thinking to another is the premise of conversion. The theory has two issues when it comes to Paul:

• At the moment, he could not convert to Christianity.
• He is evasive whenever it relates to knowing what Paul might have thought of himself.

Paul, Being The Prosecutor

Paul most likely administered the 39 lashes, a type of synagogue punishment he had to endure. However, this begs further concerns. Councils of synagogues were only able to act with authority with the consent of the local populace. In other terms, Paul had the choice to walk away from this, but he chose not to. 

Does this once again suggest that he nonetheless identified as a Jew? And once more, why was he lashed? What had Christians said or done that warranted punishment? Over the decades, a variety of theories have been put forth.

The Law and Paul

Paul believed it was his duty to spread "the good news" to the non-Christians. It is relevant to nearly all he teaches on the Law. Gentiles should not be bound to circumcise, dietary requirements, or Sabbath prohibitions because the Law of Moses has never been thought to apply to them in Israelite history. 

Those three are the main points since they are concrete practices that divide societies, and Paul aimed to remove them. Paul was enthusiastic about it. Among the grounds is that he most certainly saw a revelation of the spirit when gentiles were baptized, which was one of the causes he was persuaded. How else could gentiles not be part of the kingdom if God decided to recognize them in this manner?

Death

How and where Paul passed away are unknown to us. Paul informed his readers in his epistle to the Romans, most probably one of his final writings still in existence, that he was heading to Jerusalem for a trip and would appear in Rome to meet them.

Luke described how Paul was detained in Jerusalem, wherein, as a Roman citizen, he was permitted to petition the Roman emperor. At the book's conclusion, Paul is still teaching while in Rome's household detention. Only later, 2nd-century CE, accounts contain mythical information about Paul's Rome prosecution.

Takeaway

We understand that many questions are still going on in your mind that still need to be answered. That is why we recommend that you follow Dr. Mike Evans, a well-known activist who has a Facebook page with over 30 million followers. You can search his page, Pray for Jerusalem, to learn more about Jerusalem. You may also avail of Genesi Box for your young ones to learn about Jerusalem in a fun way.