Episode 2805 - Lesson 1 - Sunday June 28 - Paul, a God-called Apostle of Jesus

Paul, a God-called Apostle of JesusPaul begins his letter to the Corinthians by identifying himself as an apostle of Jesus, called "through the will of God" (1 Cor. 1:1; compare with 2 Cor. 1:1). His conviction regarding who he is in relation to Jesus is so firm that, with a few exceptions, this is the way he opens all his letters.Read 1 Corinthians 1:1 and Romans 1:1. What two elements of Paul's ministry are emphasized in these passages? (See also Gal. 1:1.)Paul speaks of his calling and apostleship as fulfilling God's will. He is convinced that his calling is not from men, but from God (Gal. 1:1). Like Jeremiah, Paul was called by God from his mother's womb like Jeremiah (Jer. 1:5) as an act of God's grace (Gal. 1:15), and it happened so that He would proclaim the gospel of Christ among the Gentiles.In 1 Corinthians 15:8, Paul includes himself among those to whom Christ appeared after the resurrection 1 Cor. 15:5-7). A few verses later, he implies that his calling to be an apostle resulted from that encounter with Jesus (1 Cor. 15:9-11).The title "apostle of Jesus" encompasses a series of concepts. Primarily, it conveys the idea of one whom Jesus sends. Nevertheless, Paul also uses this phrase to identify himself as a servant of Christ (Rom. 1:1, Titus 1:1, Gal. 1:10), as well as a preacher and a teacher (1 Tim. 2:7, 2 Tim. 1:11). Whether he preaches or teaches, Christ is always in evidence. In short, Paul is an apostle of Jesus.Jesus is not only the center of Paul's apostleship. He is the center of Paul's life. Paul's thoughts and feelings were filled with the presence of Jesus. Evidence of this fact is that he refers to Jesus repeatedly in the opening and the thanksgiving section of 1 Corinthians (nine times in nine verses). Paul loved Jesus so much that he couldn't stop thinking and talking about Him. He wanted to share Jesus with those under his care so that their lives would be Christ-centered, too. While he was called to be an apostle, they were called to be faithful followers of Jesus in whatever capacity to which the Lord called them.Paul was called to be an apostle. What is your calling, and how do you know that it is your calling? If you don't think you have one, why not go right now to God and ask Him to show you the work He chose you to do?