INTRODUCTION
The Background: Jewish Family in Tarsus
Paul was a Jew, living mostly in Gentile or Greek environment, who become a Christian. The background of his Theology is therefore threefold: Jewish, Greek and Christian. His debt to the Old Testament and Judaism is so plain on every page of his epistles. He learned his Judaism in Hellenistic milieu and was brought up in Jerusalem. A Hebrew of the Hebrews (Phil. 3:5) is a Hebrew born and bred, he was reared theologically in the credo of the devout Jew of his time, vs 13 belief in one God righteous and holy, in the election of Israel to be his special people, in law (or Torah) as the unique revelation of God’s nature and will for man, and in the hope of the messiah,” (Arehibald 1966.9)
1. The Early Life of Paul (Saul)
All of a sudden in the book of Acts of the apostles chapter 7 from verse 58 that we first heard about a young man Saul during the persecution and the death of Stephen. When they rushed to kill Stephen the witness cast their clothes at the feet of Saul, and they were stoning him. At his death, Saul form a ring leader in setting a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the region of Judea and Samaria, except the main Apostles.
Saul, signed a treaty, and continues breathing threats and killing against the disciples of Jesus to the extent of asking for a permission from the high priest to go to the synagogue at Damascus as to arrest whoever belongs to the church both men and women bound to Jerusalem.
He assumed that he was doing the work of God, as a religious man under the Pharisees making all efforts to stop the people of the way.
HIS ENCOUNTER WITH JESUS
Having taken permission from the high priest to arrest and put in bound the believers, on his way to Damascus, He encountered Jesus who asked him a question. Why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against a thorn or prick. That simply was how this traitor came to answer the call of Jesus. Led by his chariot to a disciple set to pray for him to receive sight.
Saul, now called Paul became one of the disciples of Jesus. The Bible says that as Ananias led his hand upon his head something fell off his eye just like a scale and he regain strength and ate some food. For several day, he was with the disciples at Damascus. In the synagogue he proclaimed Jesus saying, he is the son of God. People were surprised and amazed as they heard him preaching that Jesus is Lord. They began to ask question. Is this not this man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called on this name? And he has come here with the purpose to bring them bound before the chief priest. He increased all the more in strength, confounding the Jews who dwell in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Christ.
This he did through the testimony of his encounter with Jesus. This testimony of Jesus by Paul stared up the mob who plotted to kill him but the brethren got him out with basket through the window.
2. His Mission Involvement
God is all wise God, who knows the heart of men. Saul has the ambition of doing the service of God under Judaism, being a Pharisee who were religious people that encountered Jesus and plotted against him, whole heartedly doing the work of God supposing that the people of the way were a sect that wants to destroy the religion of their fathers. I think Jesus translated him from his encounter on the road to Damascus. Here, the mission statement of Paul was made clear. To Ananias Jesus said unto him in Acts 9:15 “But the Lord said to him, Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel”. Despite whatever He said that Paul is going to suffer for his name sake that is the mission statement that Jesus has given to Paul and that is how his life goes according to Jesus’ prophecy. Throughout his stay in Damascus he was seriously disputing with the Hellenist, while other disciples somehow forsook him, Barnabas took him and later sent him to Tarsus his birth place for they plot heavily to kill him.
PAUL IN THE COMPANY OF BELIEVERS IN THE CHURCH AT ANTIOCH
Krister in his book Paul among Jews and the Gentiles had these to say on the account of his call to mission. It appears that he persecutes Christians, himself becomes a Christian through a sudden and overwhelming experience” Krister 7). Yet a closer reading of their accounts both in Acts and those by himself, reveal a great continuity between before and after it was not a change of religion which we were associated with the word conversion; serving the one same and one God.
Paul received a new ad special calling in God’s service. God the Messiah asked him to bring God’s message to the Gentiles. The emphasis is on the account of assignment, not on the conversion Paul was called to the specific task made clear to him by his experience of the risen Lord, of the apostleship to the Gentile, through Jesus Christ on behalf of the God of the Jews and Gentiles.
His call to apostleship was defended in that his own particular and necessarily apologetic slant. No one could reject his claim as he asserts the direct calling, “I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which Is preached by me is not man’s gospel. For I did not receive it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came from a revelation of Jesus Christ (Gal 1:11-12) joining team of Barnabas the son of consolation brings Paul to the limelight at the Antioch church that in the midst of the brethren the Holy Spirit spoke for their separation on the work which Jesus has called them to do. This incidence catapulted him to the missionary journey.
3. Paul’s Mission Statement
The strategy was adopted by Paul was on his mission statement given to him by Jesus, an apostle to the Gentiles and Jews. As a sent one, even the other culture, any where he goes with his team, i.e. before was Barnabas and Saul, later Paul and Barnabas went and preached to the Jews in other cities, in their synagogues and established a little community of believers as his manner were.
These were known in those days a church in the house. As life goes on, he formed a team out of the converts who also be a part of the missioners to other places. He usually appoints leaders, elders who will take care of the church while shifting to preach to other places. There was a circuit movement, in that he and his team people usually go back to the converts to see how they were faring in their growth.
In the Thessalonians’ church we have the major team of Paul, Silvanus and Timothy. This form of discipleship or apprentice pattern of team work makes way for the disciples of Jesus to increase, having been the first class citizen on the field, experience of what God is doing through the ministry that was laid before them. They preached the word of the gospel and signs and wonders were wrought that even draws men and women to even before them in their own cities waiting for their entrance to their cities and villages, no wonder Macedonian call.
1. Paul strategic method in mission is = miracles was one of the methods, five places in Acts are described where some of the miracles that Paul performed are recorded.
2. He risked his life couples of time to perform these miracles and show God’s glory. Not all the miracles were to proclaim the gospel but to comfort the people and to meet their physical needs.
3. He does the miracles to show how Christian love should be.
4. His message was a confirmed one, and divine from God, Paul use financial strategy contrary to a lot of missionaries of today, did not seek financial support for himself. He did receive gift sometimes but did not sort for it. He worked with his own hand to feed others and himself. He made it that all churches were in financial independent.
He choose large cities as strategic centres: East and Western Roman
1. He begins his labour in Synagogue
2. Prefer to preach to a responsible people (Devout Gentiles)
3. Maintained contact with the sending church
4. Planted churches
5. Made use of fellow workers
6. Became all things to all men
7. Adapted communicated an unchanging message.
He confirmed efforts to four provinces:
1. Non Jewish world
2. Limited area of Roman world
3. From Jerusalem round about as far as Illyricum.
4. He concentration on the four most prosperous provinces: Galatia, Asia, Macedonia and Achaia (Acts 9:31, 15:23, 16:69, 1 Cor. 9:2)
Lessons Learnt:
Paul’s life was a very big challenge to my faith in Jesus Christ. After going through this search, I discovered and learn some important lessons on his mission work.
This I may say were major characteristic particular to Paul in his missions.
1. He has great compassion toward the hearers, their difficulties, their needs, their beliefs and their doctrines.
2. He is courageous in acknowledging that there are difficulties that cannot be avoided.
3. He has respect for his audience, he treated them as human who were in spiritual need
4. Paul also has its power to perform miracles and wonders
His trait gave good colour in his ability to focus on the devout men and women of the Gentile word through which the gospel message preached has a foot hold in the urban and big cited cities that are commercial towns.
APPLICATION
If the apostle has used the lay down plan that works, it will also do the same for us here in our contemporary time. Using Paul as a sample, every of his strategy, I promise to put to work, his absolute respect to his master in carrying out the mandate and mission statement given to him.
God helping me, I will gradually adopt and adapt his act hence; he is a right model for missionaries who really want to do this work as he did.
Therefore as a missionary in the field, I have seen the essence of reaching to the important persons in every place I go for mission work, meeting the needs of people that were in need as a way of helping them in relation to the gospel. I will be sincere and have absolute trust in the truth of the word and the power that is with it.
Like Paul, I will do all things to all men, so as to save some who are willing and that are meant for salvation.
CONCLUSION:
Having gone through this case study of the mission work of Paul, I am moved by the strategies used to lay a good foundation for the church in the areas covered by him. I was of the opinion that he uses the best way in which the gospel of Jesus must be preached. Therefore, Paul is the model for all that will preach the word or as a missionary. His work is a determined one, mixed with super-enthusiasm to finish the task and the burden that was laid on his shoulder according to his encounter with his Saviour.
REFERENCE: The Holy Bible.
C.M.F School of Mission, Notes on History of Missions. Idere, Oyo State.
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