St Paul St Paul, originally named Saul, was born in Tarsus, Cilicia and grew up in Jerusalem, where he studied the Hebrew Scriptures under Gamaliel (a leading authority in the Jewish religious establishment). Being raised as a Pharisaic Jew, during his early life he was a Pharisee - a group of Jewish people who controlled the law. Saul did not believe in Jesus as the Messiah and thought all these messages about him was rubbish so in his early life, he was a persecutor of the church and also a persecutor of Christians. He was involved in the stoning of the first Christian martyr, St Stephen. According to Acts 8:3, he would ravage churches, intrude into the homes of believers and put both men and women Christians into prison.
It wasn’t …show more content…
In Acts 9, it tells us how Saul, while on his journey to Damascus, heard the voice of Jesus say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” and Saul asked the Lord who he was, and Jesus replied, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.” After this vision, he was blind for three days and then healed by a disciple named Ananias. This vision of Jesus completely changed Paul’s life and his perspective on the Messiah, he was then baptized after being able to see again. This conversion of a man who persecuted the church to a man who was dedicating his life to Jesus was so sudden that everyone thought it was the most extraordinary miracle of mankind, although some suspected if it was real or not. Through his life, Paul did so many things that made him known as one of the most influential figures in the early development of Christianity. He dedicated himself to Jesus after he was baptized and for the rest of his life, he travelled from country to country, town to town, declaring that Jesus was the saviour of the world, the Messiah. He made a prodigious influence on non-Christians, he encouraged them to open their hearts to Jesus and repent, then be baptized. Before St Paul made his …show more content…
Despite the fact that Paul was one of the greatest Christians to live and the author of half of the New Testament in the Bible, he was a very humble man. In 1 Corinthians 15:9 he said, “For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.” He also stated in 1 Timothy 1:15, “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst.” He didn’t glory himself for what he’s done because he knew he wasn’t worthy and without Christ he wouldn’t have been able to do anything, which gives Paul a humble quality. We – people living today – could also model these qualities that St Paul had. In society today, we often see people denying their faith for insignificant reasons like wanting to fit in with others. Being as courageous and faithful as Paul could be difficult to achieve in today’s life, but we could at least be brave and stand up for our own faith regardless of what others say. As for humility, it could be quite challenging for us, human beings to always be humble because occasionally we enjoy being complimented and glorified for the things “we’ve” done, as it makes us feel good and proud of
It wasn’t …show more content…
In Acts 9, it tells us how Saul, while on his journey to Damascus, heard the voice of Jesus say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” and Saul asked the Lord who he was, and Jesus replied, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.” After this vision, he was blind for three days and then healed by a disciple named Ananias. This vision of Jesus completely changed Paul’s life and his perspective on the Messiah, he was then baptized after being able to see again. This conversion of a man who persecuted the church to a man who was dedicating his life to Jesus was so sudden that everyone thought it was the most extraordinary miracle of mankind, although some suspected if it was real or not. Through his life, Paul did so many things that made him known as one of the most influential figures in the early development of Christianity. He dedicated himself to Jesus after he was baptized and for the rest of his life, he travelled from country to country, town to town, declaring that Jesus was the saviour of the world, the Messiah. He made a prodigious influence on non-Christians, he encouraged them to open their hearts to Jesus and repent, then be baptized. Before St Paul made his …show more content…
Despite the fact that Paul was one of the greatest Christians to live and the author of half of the New Testament in the Bible, he was a very humble man. In 1 Corinthians 15:9 he said, “For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.” He also stated in 1 Timothy 1:15, “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst.” He didn’t glory himself for what he’s done because he knew he wasn’t worthy and without Christ he wouldn’t have been able to do anything, which gives Paul a humble quality. We – people living today – could also model these qualities that St Paul had. In society today, we often see people denying their faith for insignificant reasons like wanting to fit in with others. Being as courageous and faithful as Paul could be difficult to achieve in today’s life, but we could at least be brave and stand up for our own faith regardless of what others say. As for humility, it could be quite challenging for us, human beings to always be humble because occasionally we enjoy being complimented and glorified for the things “we’ve” done, as it makes us feel good and proud of