The Writings of Paul
New Testament Books: Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus & Philemon
When we are first introduced to a man later known as the Apostle Paul, he seems to be an unlikely candidate for an apostle who would write half of the New Testament content of the Christian Bible. In the book of Acts, Luke tells us about Saul of Tarsus, a religious zealot who was approving the execution of the first Christian martyr, Stephen (Acts 7.58), & then becomes a notorious ring leader for persecuting Christians.
And Saul approved of his execution. And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. Devout men buried Stephen and made great lamentation over him. But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison. – Acts 8.1-3
I myself (Saul) was convinced that I ought to do many things in opposing the name of Jesus of Nazareth. And I did so in Jerusalem. I not only locked up many of the saints in prison after receiving authority from the chief priests, but when they were put to death I cast my vote against them. And I punished them often in all the synagogues and tried to make them blaspheme, and in raging fury against them I persecuted them even to foreign cities. – Acts 26.9-11
On his way to Damascus to imprison Christians, Saul is overwhelmed by a brilliant light, falls to the ground & is confronted by none other than Jesus Christ himself. Saul was blinded, but had been told by Jesus to go into the city & await instruction. Jesus sends a man named Ananias to restore his sight & inform him that he is now Jesus’s instrument to proclaim His message. And to the amazement of all, Saul began powerfully preaching the very message he once set out to destroy – that Jesus Christ was the divine Messiah whose death, burial & resurrection graciously provides forgiveness & eternal life to those trust in Him.
His name is changed from Saul to Paul, which corresponds with his changed life. Paul never got over the fact that though he had hated Jesus Christ & His followers, Jesus still forgave him & not only that, but chose him to serve as an apostle. Paul had a profound appreciation for God’s grace (undeserved & unmerited favor) & this infuses his writings - no other Bible author writes more about grace than the Apostle Paul. And he wants everyone to know that no one has sinned so badly that they are unreachable by God’s grace & that no one can reach God’s grace by trying to earn it. He is adamant that one has total forgiveness of sins, a righteous & holy moral standing in God’s sight & eternal life purely based on their personal trust that Jesus Christ lived, died & was resurrected for them - a free gift of God to be accepted rather than earned or maintained by effort or religious activity.
His name is changed from Saul to Paul, which corresponds with his changed life. Paul never got over the fact that though he had hated Jesus Christ & His followers, Jesus still forgave him & not only that, but chose him to serve as an apostle. Paul had a profound appreciation for God’s grace (undeserved & unmerited favor) & this infuses his writings - no other Bible author writes more about grace than the Apostle Paul. And he wants everyone to know that no one has sinned so badly that they are unreachable by God’s grace & that no one can reach God’s grace by trying to earn it. He is adamant that one has total forgiveness of sins, a righteous & holy moral standing in God’s sight & eternal life purely based on their personal trust that Jesus Christ lived, died & was resurrected for them - a free gift of God to be accepted rather than earned or maintained by effort or religious activity.
Though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. – 1 Tim 1.13-15
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. – Ephesians 2.8-10
After Paul’s conversion, the Apostle Barnabas took him to some of the other apostles whom he stayed with for 15 days (Acts 9.26-30, Gal 1.18-19). And on repeated occasions, the apostles affirmed Paul’s teaching & his apostolic mission to spread the message of Christ (Acts 15.2-4, 22, 21.17-20, 2 Pet 3.15-16).
…when they (apostles) saw that I (Paul) had been entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised (non-Jews), just as Peter had been entrusted with the gospel to the circumcised (Jews) –for he who worked through Peter for his apostolic ministry to the circumcised worked also through me for mine to the Gentiles (non-Jews), and when James and Cephas (Peter) and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given to me, they gave the right hand of fellowship to Barnabas and me, that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised. – Galatians 2.7-9
…He (the Resurrected Jesus) appeared to Cephas (Peter), then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. – 1 Corinthians 15.5-9
The last half of the book of Acts covers Paul’s three missionary journeys including the numerous miracles that God performed through Paul along the way – even bringing a dead boy back to life (Acts 20.7-12, 19.11-12). At the end of Acts, Paul is gathering brush for a fire & amazes the locals because he is bitten by a venomous snake & doesn’t die. This is a fulfillment of Jesus’s commissioning statement in Mk 16.15-18 (but not a call for snake-handling as some have wrongly believed).
On his missionary travels, Paul proclaimed the message of Christ in regions such as Galatia (Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, Derbe), Philippi, Thessalonica, Corinth, Ephesus & Rome. So wherever there was a group of new believers in a given area, a local church was born. And it was to these communities of believers (i.e. Romans, Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Thessalonians) or specific people associated with them (i.e. Timothy, Titus, Philemon) that Paul would later visit to teach in person &/or write letters (epistles) to instruct them in the teachings of the Lord Jesus. In these letters, you can see Paul’s great love for them & his desire for them to live lives that please God.
On his missionary travels, Paul proclaimed the message of Christ in regions such as Galatia (Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, Derbe), Philippi, Thessalonica, Corinth, Ephesus & Rome. So wherever there was a group of new believers in a given area, a local church was born. And it was to these communities of believers (i.e. Romans, Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Thessalonians) or specific people associated with them (i.e. Timothy, Titus, Philemon) that Paul would later visit to teach in person &/or write letters (epistles) to instruct them in the teachings of the Lord Jesus. In these letters, you can see Paul’s great love for them & his desire for them to live lives that please God.
I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. And I am sure of this, that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. – Philippians 1.3-7
While most New Testament epistles open with an introduction including the author’s name, the book of Hebrews does not & other historical Christian writings fail to tell us the author. However, some believe that the Apostle Paul wrote it. This letter was obviously aimed towards the Jewish people (Hebrews) & is laden with Old Testament teachings relating that Jesus is the Jewish Messiah. We do know that Paul (a devout Jew) had a heart for his fellow Hebrews (Rom 9.2-5), regularly tried to convert them & had extensive training in the Old Testament Scriptures (Acts 22.3, Php 3.5-6). Lastly, the author does mention “our brother Timothy” (Heb 13.23) who worked very closely with Paul (named in 10 of Paul’s letters) including his time in Rome (Rom 16.21) where the author seems to be writing from (Heb 13.24).
However, Paul was quick to point out that despite all his religious heritage, training & fervor, they were incomparable to knowing Christ Jesus; gaining Christ is of primary importance. He explains about himself below.
However, Paul was quick to point out that despite all his religious heritage, training & fervor, they were incomparable to knowing Christ Jesus; gaining Christ is of primary importance. He explains about himself below.
…circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless. But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ – Philippians 3.5-8
- Inter-Author Reference: At the end of 3 of his letters, the Apostle Paul makes note of Gospel authors Mark & Luke who were frequently his traveling companions (Col 4.10, 14, 2 Tim 4.11, Phm 1.23-24). Paul also recounts that Apostles James, Peter (Cephas) & John affirmed his apostleship (Gal 2.7-9) & notes that God’s Word has been “revealed to His holy apostles” (Eph 3.5). He further mentions the “brothers of the Lord” (1 Cor 9.5), indicating Jude & specifically naming James (1 Cor 15.5-7, Gal 1.18-20).