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| Why do Christians follow Paul instead of Christ? | |
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| Topic Started: Mar 30 2006, 06:33 PM (323 Views) | |
| madthumbs | Mar 30 2006, 06:33 PM Post #1 |
20$
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It's called Paulinian Christianity and it's bogus. What's wrong with Paul aka Saul of Tarsus? Click: The False Apostle |
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| AuhsojSivart | Mar 31 2006, 06:19 PM Post #2 |
Corporal Silver
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Interestingly enough, I did a research paper in my Philosophy class last semester on this. Here ya go! Many critics of Christianity study the teachings of Paul of Tarsus and Jesus of Nazareth to attempt to find discrepancies between the two, thus ruling out the factuality of the religion. These attempts are in vain. Paul and Jesus present the same message; the only difference was the audience. Jesus lived amongst Jews and his way of presenting the message was a way that a Jew could understand. Paul lived amongst Greeks and Romans, and presented the message in a way that they could understand. Anthony Wales created a list of 133 similarities in their teachings, some of which will be our focus. Firstly, some history needs to be dealt with. Paul was originally named Saul and worked for the Romans, persecuting Christians. He was a Jew with a very zealous religious history and believed that Christianity was an opponent of God’s. This all changed when the Lord revealed himself to Saul on the road to Damascus. He asked Saul why he was persecuting Him and blinded him. After this, Saul changed his named to Paul and began a Christian missionary career that set the stage for what Christianity has been ever since. Because of Paul’s life as Saul and his apparent need to feel important, some say that his message is different than Jesus’. However, these are mostly misinterpretations, mistranslations, and misquotations. Paul did not desire glory for himself; he desired glory for Jesus. He displayed this by showing examples of how a man could be changed from the horrible persecutor Saul to the missionary Paul. The two most important similarities in Paul and Jesus’ teachings are that Jesus is the Messiah (Christ) and He is the Son of God (Matt. 16; Acts 9, 18; Luke 22). If Jesus is not the Messiah or the Son of God, then Christianity is a farce. Paul made sure that he believed these two things before trying to present other parts of his message by putting them in his first written work, the Acts of the Apostles. His other teachings have this basis in mind at all times, because, without it, they would mean nothing. Jesus as the way to the Father and as the Savior are the reasons for Christianity to exist. Paul and Jesus agreed on this as well (John 3, 14; Eph. 2; 1Tim 1). Jesus and Paul also both agreed that Jesus died, buried, and rose from the dead (John 2; 1Cor. 15). Eternal life as the reward for believing in Jesus as Savior is probably the most profound idea that both Jesus and Paul held in common (John 11; 1Tim 1). These doctrinal issues were not issues between Paul and Jesus: Christianity is one of belief in Jesus as the Messiah. There is nothing more to it that affects whether or not you will have eternal life. The eating of meat was an important cultural factor in the teachings of Paul and Jesus. Some say that Paul instituted a Christianity that allowed all meat while Jesus adhered to the Jewish laws concerning meat. However, both Jesus and Paul say to “eat what is set before you”, especially of strangers or unbelievers (Luke 10; 1Cor 10). Another important cultural similarity is that Jews are first when it comes to preaching (Luke 24; Acts 13). Just because Jews are first does not mean that they are the only ones who can receive it. Jesus began His ministry by preaching to Jews, however, most Jews did not accept Him because they wanted a “Savior” from the Roman Empire, not from their sins, which were covered by the Law. Jesus was the completion of the Law: the Law was no longer necessary once He rose from the grave, because the only thing that was needed for salvation was belief in Him. His message seems to be in compliance with Jewish Law because it is what Jews understood, thus, the easiest way for Him to present it. Jesus began with the Jews, which left Paul to preach to the Gentiles. His message uses logic and reasoning because that is what was prevalent in the Greek and Roman society of the day. The national religion was waning and impersonal, so the Gentiles were more accepting of Christianity than the Jews, who still held Judaism in high regard. Many will still argue that Jesus and Paul were presenting different “Christianities”, but the Gospels and Paul’s writings are attempting to tell us the same thing: humanity needed a Savior, and Jesus came from God to be that Savior. If that alone is understood, the more complicated other parts of Christian doctrine will make more sense. -Joshua Travis Sources Consulted: Wales, Anthony. 100 Similarities between the Lord Jesus Christ and the Apostle Paul. 2005. 8 October 2005 <http://www.answering-islam.org/Wales/jesus_paul.htm Wales, Anthony. More Similarities between the Lord Jesus Christ and the Apostle Paul. 2005. 8 October 2005. <http://www.answering-islam.org/Wales/jesus_paul_more.htm> |
    
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| EVILyangkuang | Mar 31 2006, 07:10 PM Post #3 |
2nd Lieutenant Silver
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And what grade did you get on that paper? |
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| madthumbs | Apr 3 2006, 08:38 PM Post #4 |
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20$
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Joshua; you arrived at your conclusion by reading what someone else had to say? Check out the verses referenced on the page I linked to. Paul's cover is blown wide open in the context of the Bible itself. I can often tell when people try to argue something they did no objective research on. I understand that believer's in Jesus are afraid to let go of beliefs because they're taught dire consequences. Wouldn't it be more important to understand who He really is to believe in Him? Remember - It wasn't the religious, or the religion led Jews that accepted Jesus according the the gospels. They rejected him and so do people who follow Paulinian Christianity. |
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9:16 AM Nov 26
