A Man's
Heart Can Change In An Instant
When The Heart
Is Given A Second Chance To Live.
This Chance
Must Be Given To The Heart Of Every Man.
But Sometimes,
A Heart Is Way Long Dead Before The Man Dies.
edmund
desoto
Next
to Jesus, the apostle Paul may be the most influential person in the history
of the Christian faith. Beginning with his dramatic conversion from a zealous
enemy of early believers to a tireless advocate of the gospel ranks as
one of the most dramatic stories in Scripture.
All the years
that he spent in ministry took him to countless towns and cities throughout
Asia Minor and Europe. In all the apostle Paul wrote thirteen letters that
are all included in the New Testament or as I like to call it, the New
Covenant.
FAMILY AND
CULTURAL BACKGROUND
Let's examine
his life from the very beginning. The apostle Paul was born around AD 10,
a Jew in a family of Pharisees as he shared in Acts
23:6, "But when Paul perceived that the
one part were Sadducees, and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council,
Men and brethren, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee: of the hope and
resurrection of the dead I am called in question."
Later in a
letter to the Philippians, in chapter three verse five, he describes himself
as a descendant of the tribe of Benjamin "circumcised the eighth day,
of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews;
as touching the law, a Pharisee;". The apostle Paul was born in Tarsus
of Cilicia as described in Acts 9:11;
21:39;
22:3.
At that time,
Tarsus was a center of commerce and learning that embraced Greek culture
and Roman politics. The city was a source of pride for him as we can see
in Acts 21:39 KJV.
His parents
named him Saul, perhaps after the first king of Israel, who was also a
Benjaminite. In 1 Samuel 11:15; Acts 13:21,
but
Acts 13:9 notes that he “was also called
Paul.” He used his Roman name Paul throughout his letters.
With the encouragement
of devout parents, Paul studied the law and prophets and the Hebrew and
Aramaic languages as you can read this information in Acts
21:40; 22:2-3;
23:6; Galatians
1:14; Philippians
3:5-6.
Tarsus, however,
was not a Jewish city. It was a place where the Greek language was spoken
and Greek literature was cultivated. This accounts for Paul's familiarity
with Greek, the language of the streets and shops of Tarsus described in
Acts
21:37 KJV
Many Jews migrated
to Tarsus, the capital of the Roman province of Cilicia, in 171 BC to promote
business in the region. At that time Paul's ancestors were probably given
Roman citizenship. Paul inherited from his father Roman citizenship, which
would prove to be of great value to Paul as he traveled throughout the
Roman Empire.
Acts
16:37; 22:25-29; 23:27 KJV
Paul may have
had several brothers and sisters, but Acts
23:16 mentions only a nephew, who warned Paul
about a plot against his life.
Acts 18:3 describes
Paul a tentmaker. He may have learned this trade from his father, or he
may have learned it as a way of making a living, as many rabbis did in
his day. The artisans of Tarsus were well known for their goat’s-hair cloth
called cilicium. By knowing how to weave this cloth and fashion it into
tents, sails, awnings, and cloaks, Paul gained a measure of economic independence
during his ministry. Please read Acts 18:3;
20:34; 28:30;
2 Corinthians 11:9;
1 Thessalonians 2:9;
2 Thessalonians 3:8 KJV
THE APOSTLE
PAUL'S EDUCATION
Although born
in Tarsus, Paul testified in Acts 22:3 that he had grown up in Jerusalem
and had studied under Gamaliel. It is not clear when Paul arrived in Jerusalem,
but it is likely that he began his formal rabbinical studies sometime between
the ages of 13 and 20.
His teacher,
Gamaliel, was the grandson of Hillel, an influential Pharisee and teacher.
it is important to know that Hillel’s teachings appear in Talmudic writings
to this day. The same Gamaliel persuaded the Sanhedrin to spare the lives
of Peter and the apostles in the book of Acts 5:33-40.
With little
doubt we can conclude that while studying under Gamaliel, Paul's understanding
of his faith progressed far beyond that of his peers. Galatians 1:14 tells
us that the apostle Paul became extremely zealous for the traditions of
his fathers. Perhaps Paul also then began to experience the struggles
with the law he would later describe in Romans 7.
Let's Read....
No
Longer Bound To The Law
Now, dear
brothers and sisters—you who are familiar with the law—don’t you know that
the law applies only to a person who is still living?
Let me illustrate.
When a woman marries, the law binds her to her husband as long as he is
alive. But if he dies, the laws of marriage no longer apply to her.
So while her
husband is alive, she would be committing adultery if she married another
man. But if her husband dies, she is free from that law and does not commit
adultery when she remarries.
So this is
the point: The law no longer holds you in its power, because you died to
its power when you died with Christ on the cross. And now you are united
with the one who was raised from the dead. As a result, you can produce
good fruit, that is, good deeds for God.
When we were
controlled by our old nature, sinful desires were at work within us, and
the law aroused these evil desires that produced sinful deeds, resulting
in death.
But now we
have been released from the law, for we died with Christ, and we are no
longer captive to its power. Now we can really serve God, not in the old
way by obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way, by the Spirit.
God’s Law
Reveals Our Sin
Well then,
am I suggesting that the law of God is evil? Of course not! The law is
not sinful, but it was the law that showed me my sin. I would never have
known that coveting is wrong if the law had not said, “Do not covet.”
But sin took
advantage of this law and aroused all kinds of forbidden desires within
me! If there were no law, sin would not have that power.
I felt fine
when I did not understand what the law demanded. But when I learned the
truth, I realized I had broken the law and was a sinner, doomed to die.
So the good
law, which was supposed to show me the way of life, instead gave me the
death penalty.
Sin took advantage
of the law and fooled me; it took the good law and used it to make me guilty
of death.
But still,
the law itself is holy and right and good.
But how can
that be? Did the law, which is good, cause my doom? Of course not! Sin
used what was good to bring about my condemnation. So we can see how terrible
sin really is. It uses God’s good commandment for its own evil purposes.
Here Is
The Revelation ("Sin used what was good to bring about my condemnation.
So we can see how terrible sin really is. It uses God’s good commandment
for its own evil purposes.")
Struggling
With Sin
The law is
good, then. The trouble is not with the law but with me, because I am sold
into slavery, with sin as my master.
I don't understand
myself at all, for I really want to do what is right, but I don't do it.
Instead, I do the very thing I hate.
I know perfectly
well that what I am doing is wrong, and my bad conscience shows that I
agree that the law is good.
But I can't
help myself, because it is sin inside me that makes me do these evil things.
I know I am
rotten through and through so far as my old sinful nature is concerned.
No matter which way I turn, I can't make myself do right. I want to, but
I can't.
When I want
to do good, I don't. And when I try not to do wrong, I do it anyway.
But if I am
doing what I don't want to do, I am not really the one doing it; the sin
within me is doing it.
It seems to
be a fact of life that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do
what is wrong.
I love God’s
law with all my heart.
But there is
another law at work within me that is at war with my mind. This law wins
the fight and makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me.
Oh, what a
miserable person I am!
Who will free
me from this life that is dominated by sin?
Thank God!
The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So you see how it is: In my mind
I really want to obey God’s law, but because of my sinful nature I am a
slave to sin.
TO
YOUR HEALTH
NEW!
WATCH
NOW
