Where It Started God used a disciple of Christ to begin Saul’s ministry. His name was Ananias and he lived in Damascus. He was one of the people Saul would probably have arrested and convicted if he had arrived in Damascus untouched by God’s Hand. The Lord told Ananias to go to Saul and deliver a message to him. “But the Lord said to Ananias, ‘Go! This man [Saul] is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.” (Acts 9:15-16) Notice that God said Saul [Paul] would carry His Name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel. Notice anything different in God’s purpose for Saul? The difference is clearly that Paul would minister to a group of people to whom the disciples of Christ would not minister. They preached their Gospel only to Jews. The years of their ministry from Christ’s ascension to the time of Saul’s conversion is evidence of that. They were preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom of God. They preached that Christ was the Messiah of Israel Who would return to set up His Messianic Kingdom “if” the leaders and citizens of Israel would acknowledge Christ as their Messiah and King. Peter preached this Gospel message first on the Day of Pentecost: “Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, and that he may send the Christ [Messiah], who has been appointed for you–even Jesus. He must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets. For Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you must listen to everything he tells you…Indeed, all the prophets from Samuel on, as many as have spoken, have foretold these days. And you are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers. He said to Abraham, ‘Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed.’” (Acts 3:19-25) Years later, after Saul’s conversion, God told Peter to minister to a devout and God-fearing centurion of the Italian Regiment who lived in Israel. God knew Peter would have difficulty doing that since the disciples of Christ believed gentiles were unclean and not worthy of the Messianic Kingdom. God caused Peter to fall into a trance and gave him a vision three times. That prepared Peter to respond to the centurion’s interest. We gain insight into the Gospel Christ’s disciples believed and taught from something Peter said to Cornelius:
“You are well aware that it is against our law for a Jew to associate with a Gentile or visit him. But God has shown me that I should not call any man impure or unclean. So when I was sent for, I came without raising any objection.” (Acts 10:27-29) This proves Peter’s Gospel was specifically to Jews from the Day of Pentecost to the day he met with Cornelius. It also proves Christ’s disciples were still obedient to the Law of Moses; the same Law Paul would later say believers were not under. Peter was the spokesperson for all of Christ’s disciples. They all believed it was wrong to associate with Gentiles or visit them because it was against the Jewish Law. That means they did “not” preach the Gospel to anyone but Jews. That was consistent with the ministry Christ had given them. But what about “after” Peter’s meeting with Cornelius? Did Peter, James, John and the other disciples change their Gospel message? Did they join Paul in his ministry to the Gentiles? Many of Christ’s disciples from Jerusalem had a major problem with Paul’s ministry to Gentiles. They traveled from Judea to Antioch (where Paul was teaching) and told the Gentiles that unless they were circumcised they could not be saved. That led to a sharp dispute and debate between Paul and the Judean disciples. They decided to go to Jerusalem to solve the problem. After much discussion, James (the half-brother of Christ) made the final decision that the Jewish disciples should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who were turning to God. We learn even more about what happened in Paul’s letter to the Galatians. He told them why he went to the meeting in Jerusalem and what came out of the meeting. He went with Barnabas, a Jew, and Titus, a Gentile. He pointed out that it was 14 years after he visited with Peter and James in Jerusalem. That was more than three years after his conversion on the road to Damascus. “I went in response to a revelation and set before them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles. But I did this privately to those who seemed to be leaders, for fear that I was running or had run my race in vain. Yet not even Titus, who was with me, was compelled to be circumcised, even though he was a Greek….they [the Jewish apostles and elders] saw that I had been entrusted with the task of preaching the gospel to the Gentiles, just as Peter had been to the Jews. For God, who was at work in the ministry of Peter as an apostle to the Jews, was also at work in my ministry as an apostle to the Gentiles. James, Peter and John, those reputed to be pillars, gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to me. They agreed that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the Jews.” (Acts 2:2-9) God entrusted Paul with the task of preaching the gospel to the Gentiles. God entrusted Peter with the task of being an apostle to the Jews. Everyone agreed that Paul and Barnabas would go to the Gentiles. Peter, James, John and the other Jewish believers would go to the Jews.
Life is Beautiful as long as you Hold on to Christ
1 Peter 1:22-25
The Word of the Lord Stands Forever
(Isaiah 40:6-8)
22 Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently: 23Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.
24For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away:
25But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.