Bible Discussion Thread

 
  • Ida B Carmon on 1 Timothy 1 - 2 years ago
    What was Paul before Christ Jesus counted him faithful and put him in the ministry?
  • Chris - In Reply on 1 Timothy 1 - 2 years ago
    Hello Ida. The Apostle Paul, known as Saul earlier, was a member of a Jewish religious sect called the Pharisees. Paul himself referred to this position that he previously held (in Acts 23:6; Acts 26:5; Philippians 3:5,6). There were three main Jewish sects at that time of Jesus' Life on Earth: the Pharisees, the Sadducees, & the Essenes. The Pharisees (which meant, 'separated one'), had very strong beliefs, so strong that they compelled people to fully obey God's Laws. And to do this, they created many other laws (practises of behaviour) that weighed heavily upon the common people. And Jesus greatly condemned them for this & their many hypocrisies ( Matthew 23:1-36).

    But when Saul met the risen Jesus on the road to Damascus, he instantly learned that the Christians he was hunting down & killing were serving this Jesus Whom he was encountering at that very moment. Saul was a changed man & as he learned more from Jesus, with the Spirit filling him to believe & serve, he could say in Philippians 3:7-10, that all that he had learned & believed were now useless & filthy. The new knowledge gained directly from Jesus revealed his errors as a Pharisee - his trusting in the Law to make him righteous could never work, but now having only faith in Christ to save him, did.

    I trust you can see how wonderfully the revelation of Christ to Saul changed him from a strict Pharisee (Saul) to one of a humble obedient servant of Jesus (Paul) trusting in Christ now & moved in his spirit to reach out to his countrymen & also to the Gentiles.



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