Paul of Tarsus

I was mentioning Mr. Knutson in the hall that his message very much related to what I'm going to talk to you about today. We look in the Bible and one man's conversion stands out in the New Testament times. His transformation probably affected more than anyone besides Jesus Christ. That's how important this man was in the Bible and continues to be. And he is described as weak in the Bible. In fact, he describes himself that way as being weak, as being unimpressive in appearance, because he was a small, statured man who was bald-headed.

So he wasn't that impressive. He was not a dynamic speaker. And besides that, he had a stubborn sickness that haunted him all of his life, that he fought against. But even so, it would take a very big canvas to paint a picture of this man. Who am I talking about? I'm talking about Paul of Tarsus. Paul of Tarsus. No, Paul, of course, he was called Saul as well. There's no scripture that indicates that his name was changed. In the Bible, we find that his name was Saul, actually. He was, of course, of a lineage where Saul was a very popular name.

And I'll explain a little bit about that later. But he was known as Saul and Paul in the Bible. He wrote a majority of what we call the New Testament today. In fact, 14 out of the 27 books in the New Testament were written by him. And if we were to measure one other book, a major book that we rely on in the church a good deal, and we're going to turn to some of the scriptures here today, that book was written about him.

So essentially, you have 15 books in the Bible that are about the Apostle Paul, or Saul, as he was referred to as well in the scriptures. And those books impacted the church for the last 2,000 years, or almost 2,000 years. The Apostle Paul was a rare person who seldom comes along in history. We look for people in history that have a major impact, a tremendous impact.

Of course, Jesus Christ was one of those who stands head and shoulders above even Paul. But most of us, I think, realize, as it talks about in 1 Corinthians 1, we're the weak of the world. I don't think anybody would think of themselves as being of the high and mighty, what has been referred to as the movers and the shakers of society in this room right now, today.

But Paul was different. He was a different individual. He was a seldom chosen person that comes along in history that is given a major job. God, on rare occasions, rather, picks a truly brilliant individual, and Paul was one of those. He was of genius caliber, and God used that genius in him to take the gospel to the world. Some might even argue that Paul had more influence in terms of what he did in taking the gospel to the world than the other apostles.

He had a great impact over doing it. I think all of them worked together for the same goals. They were not in competition with each other. But God used the genius of the Apostle Paul. I think Mr. Armstrong was one of those individuals that had that talent, that ability that God tapped into, that took the gospel in our modern era to the world.

And it went everywhere. As you all know, I'm not going to give you the history of what we did in the Church of God in the past. But God, from time to time, chooses individuals that have the ability to do that, to capture the attention of a generation. In Philippians chapter 3, let's go over to Philippians chapter 3. Paul had to deal with those that were always fighting among those who were the Judaizers that are known as that in the Bible.

And of course, circumcision was a big thing. Paul called them mutilators because they were pushing people to do it, where it was not really necessary to do that, even though these were people who claimed to be Christian as well. He said, beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the mutilators, or beware of the mutilation.

But going on in verse 3, for we are the circumcision. Paul is saying we are the circumcision. Those in the church, even though they were not physically circumcised, we're the circumcision. Because the important circumcision is about the heart, who worship God in spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh. Though I also might have confidence in the flesh, you'll hear Paul is saying, if somebody could have confidence in the flesh, I might have some.

He goes on to say, if anyone else thinks he may have confidence in the flesh, I more so. You know, I could claim in boast that I have more than I've accomplished in the flesh. And it says, though I also might have confidence in the flesh, if anyone thinks he may have confidence in the flesh, I more so. He says, verse 5, circumcised the eighth day of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin. That's why his name was Saul. Remember King Saul?

Saul was a very popular name. So his lineage went back, you know, to, again, that time and previous to that, all the way to Abraham. A Hebrew of Hebrews. He had a proud heritage. He's a well-accomplished man, but he had a proud heritage of going back again to Abraham.

Concerning the law of Pharisee. You know, he was very strict in terms of how he observed and viewed the laws of God, and he lived it. He was a different kind of man. Concerning zeal, persecuting the church, concerning the righteousness, which is in the law, blameless. Whatever Paul did, he put his heart into. He was committed to it. And he put his heart and his life into it. Sounds like what Jesus Christ did.

He put his entire life into what he was called to do. Now, the bingia might stock. Today, we might look at the Norwegians today, sort of like that kind of the Norseman, tough as nails kind of mentality. He was a Pharisee also of the Sanhedrin, which was the top governing body. You had to be exceptional to actually be in that governing body in order to be able to part of the 70 that took care of the needs of Israel at that time. He had to memorize, in fact, the Torah, the Pentateuch.

Like the kings were required to do that. They had to memorize the first five books of the Bible to be able to recite those. He was disciplined when it came to the law. He was above reproach and blameless. He was a man of a great accomplishment, brethren. If we were to compare what Paul did in his day and being in the Sanhedrin with what people do today, say in the United States, he would be a senator in the United States.

He grew up Jewish in a strict Pharisaic persuasion. He called himself again a Hebrew of Hebrews, reaffirming his belief and faith and his lineage. Even though he achieved greatness in terms of what he was able to accomplish, he never rejected his roots. Even though he had high opportunities that came his way. Paul lived in Tarsus, the city of Tarsus. Tarsus was a different kind of city.

It was called a free city. It was granted that status in 42 BC by the Roman general Mark Antony. Tarsus is a South Asia minor. It was a place of philosophers, poets, and a major university. When Paul talked about it not being an average city, he meant what he was saying. It was a very important city in terms of the Roman Empire.

His heavy involvement in Judaism required him to be closely linked with Jerusalem. Paul was not an ordinary Jew. He simply was not, by any stretch of the imagination. Paul, in fact, was committed. He had to go to Jerusalem. I'll break into the story and the account. If we were to give a message that covered the life of the Apostle Paul, we'd probably spend about four weeks here. I'm going to try to do it in an hour to be able to share this with you. Paul came to Jerusalem, and there, you remember the story in the account, he was arrested? And his life was indeed in danger.

Remember the account of when he was arrested? What happened? He was accused of actually polluting the temple by bringing into the temple a Gentile. Who was that Gentile he brought in, supposedly? Timothy. It was Timothy who was, of course, a Greek lineage. And the interesting thing is that somebody had seen Paul with Timothy before, but Timothy was not with Paul on this particular visit. And he did not bring him into the temple. It was something they only surmised that had occurred.

Because he had been with Timothy so much, they assumed he was just brought on into the temple. But those that were there at the temple began to throng Paul, began to surround him, began to beat him. They fell upon him, and they were going to kill him.

They were actually going to kill him. And it was a giant uproar there on the temple down. And in the course of it, the Roman soldiers were informed about it, and so they rushed over there and rescued Paul, really, in the nick of time. Because they were really about ready to do him in. And they arrested Paul and put him in chains that says that he had a couple of chains that were put on him. And they demanded to know, who are you, anyway? That there's this just big uproar about you.

Let's go over to Acts 21. I bet you we're going to go to the book of Acts. Much of it is about Paul. But in Acts 21, notice here, down in verse 37, we'll sort of break into the count after he's been arrested. And they've asked him who he is, but in chapter 21 and down in verse 37, notice this, Then as Paul was about to be led into the barracks, so they were bringing him into the barracks, he said to the commander, May I speak to you?

And he replied, Can you speak Greek? Are you not the Egyptian who came some time ago, who stirred up a rebellion and led the 4,000 assassins out into the wilderness? But Paul said, I am a Jew from Tarsus in Silesia, a citizen of no mean city. And I implore you, permit me to speak to the people. And so this caught the attention of this Roman soldier in the Aquarius and gave him permission. And Paul stood, it said, on the stairs, so he had elevated himself a bit, an emotion with his hand of the people. And when there was a great silence, he spoke to them in Hebrew, in the Hebrew language. And in chapter 22, he begins to relate something of how he was called.

But when they heard him speak in Hebrew, they listened very, very intently to what Paul said. And he relayed to them his road to Damascus, how he was going to go and retrieve church members and bring them to trial and send them to the prison and so forth and so on. And they listened very intently. And how he was converted on the road to Damascus, a member of the bright light, the brilliant light that shone, and the voice that he heard, that others did not hear the voice, and it blinded him.

And he talked about how he was called in that road to Damascus. And they listened intently to him, as he spoke in Hebrew to them, until he came to one significant statement, that he was sent to the Gentiles. And boy, the uproar began again, because that was, of course, something that was not done among the Jews. And let's notice on down here in verse 21 of chapter 22, in verse 21, it says, And it says, And as they bound him with thongs, Paul said to the centurion who stood by, he said, Look, is it lawful for you to scourge a man who's a Roman?

And, uncondemned at that. No trial, nothing, you just beat him. And when the centurion heard that, he went and told the commander and said, Take care of what you do, for this man is a Roman. Then the commander came and said to him, tell me, are you a Roman? And Paul said, Yeah. I wonder how Paul actually said that, you know, to the man.

And the commander answered, With a large sum of I have obtained this citizenship. And Paul said, But I was born a citizen. Quite a difference. And it says, Then immediately those who were about to examine him were through from him. They just stood back all of a sudden because of this Roman citizenship. And the commander was also afraid after he found out that he was Roman, and because he had bound him, he could be in big trouble here for what he had done to the apostle Paul.

Because Roman citizenship in that time gave you privileges. It's like having a million dollars. That was in here. Paul was born with this. You are made noble by being a Roman citizen. His father probably bought it for him again at the very beginning of his life. So that indicates another thing about Paul's life. His family was very wealthy. Very, very wealthy. People of great means. He had a lot of education as well. He spoke Hebrew, he spoke Greek, he spoke Aramaic, and probably Latin on top of that.

And though he was a Roman citizen, he was always loyal to his people. Never forgot his people. And Paul even had a profession. He was a tentmaker. I'm not going to go to him in Acts 18. In Ephesians 1-3, you'll find he trained as a tentmaker. And he used that skill of tentmaking with goat's hair, cloth, along, remember, with Priscilla and Aquila, to support himself in Corinth when there were no tithes for the people. Because the people had a problem of being a little stingy in Corinth, until they, of course, got their act together. In 2 Corinthians, we, of course, see that they began to think a little bit differently.

But also, his education, I mentioned, was very good. He studied under the most famous rabbinic teacher of his day, Gamaliel. And students of Gamaliel, according to history that talks about this particular time, students of Gamaliel were required to develop a trade. And this is why Paul developed this tentmaking trade. So along with their teaching, they had to develop some way of a means of supporting themselves. Gamaliel was particularly important because he was an advisor to the Sanhedrin.

He was considered someone who was very high up and had great influence. And Paul happened to be one of Gamaliel's top students, very top students, because he was connected with the Sanhedrin. And the Bible indicates that very, very clearly. Remember, he was one also that voted to stone and imprison Christians. So he had to have a vote. So he is a part, again, of the Sanhedrin himself. Now, let's notice up in verse 4 of chapter 22 here.

Chapter 22 and verse 4, notice it says, he says, I persecuted this way when he was talking about some of the background of his past. He says, to the death, binding and delivering in the prisons both men and women of the church. So he was responsible for imprisoning people of the church.

I imagine if we had somebody that was similar today, we would understand this a little bit more than we may in the future. We may have some individual in the phoenix or elsewhere that is going to really come after God's people in the future. But Paul would be one of those that was an enemy of the church. And he worked very, very hard at trying to step out the church.

That was his goal. That was his purpose. And Paul again points that out. Let's go to verse 19. And when God was calling him, he says, so I said, Lord, they know that in every synagogue, I imprison and beat those who believe on you. And when the blood of your martyr Stephen was shed, I also was standing by consenting to his death and guarding the clothes of those who were killing him.

So God called this man who did this. I wonder why it is that God chose a man like this. But here he was. He was trying to stamp out God's people. And God decided he was going to call him. And he was struck down with blindness. In the course of his calling, as chapter 22 points out there about his calling and what happened to him on the road to Damascus. Let's get more into the flow of what happened to Paul. Well, Paul, again, under arrest, was taken to Ananias the high priest, who was, in fact, one who remembered, ordered that Paul be slapped.

And Paul really let out a condemnation of that. And he was corrected on it, and he repented right away. That shows the attitude of Paul, because the law forbade somebody to speak evil of the high priest. And Paul, like that, apologized. He said, I am sorry. I did not know he was the high priest. Then after that, he was sent to Agrippa. And Agrippa, by the way, King Agrippa, was considered to be the president of the temple. And he was responsible for selecting the high priest. He was one who was responsible for making that selection.

And so when Paul went before Agrippa, who was quite an expert on Jewish customs, Paul gave him some background. Yeah, those that were there to, again, speak against him. But in Acts 26, let's notice over here in Acts chapter 26, we'll begin in verse 1.

Then Agrippa said to Paul, you are permitted to speak for yourself. So Paul stretched out his hand and answered for himself. He said, I think myself happy, King Agrippa, because today I shall answer for myself before you concerning all the things of which I am accused by the Jews, especially because you are an expert in all customs and questions which have to do with the Jews. Therefore, I beg you to hear me patiently. And of course, he began to explain about himself. He talked about, in fact, about how he had dealt with the church himself.

But down in verse 9 here, verse 9, let's notice here. It says, indeed, I myself thought I must do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth. This I also did in Jerusalem and many of the saints. I shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests, and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them. And it says, and I punish them often in every synagogue and compel them to blaspheme. And being exceedingly enraged against them, I persecuted them even to the foreign cities. Now, this man was vicious, wasn't he?

He was a vicious attacker of the church. But one thing we see with Paul, this thing that he did to the church was embedded in his mind. He could never forget that he killed Christians, that he condemned them to prison. And those that were his brethren. Why did God call Paul brethren?

Why did they give him this responsibility? Well, I think Paul, brethren, is an example of how God forgives anything. If one repents, if one change, God will forgive anything. Brethren, if we repent, God will forgive it. We need to forgive ourselves. I often wonder here also why Paul never forgave himself for what he did. Maybe in this case, God did not want him to forget what he did, because it's what drove him on. To go and do the work of God with all of his heart and all of his soul in all of his mind. But God perhaps allowed him to keep that in his mind, and it caused him to work harder. In fact, it might be said he worked harder than any of the other apostles.

They all, of course, were martyred, with the exception of John, but maybe Paul did work harder than the other ones did. But realize this, brethren, that when you repent of a sin, God puts it as far as east as from west from you. If you go get on your knees and you say, Father, forgive me for this sin, and when you've been forgiven that sin, you bring it up again, God says, what are you talking about? He's forgotten, brethren. And it's important for us to move on in our lives.

But Paul's life, brethren, was changed on the road to Damascus when he was struck down with blindness. He was converted. He was changed. And God sent him to Ananias, the prophet. Remember the story in the account there? God says he's going to pray for you, and you're going to get your sight back. And Ananias prayed for him, laid his hands on him, and Paul was able to see after a period of time.

But another thing that happened to Paul is not only did he receive his physical sight, but he began to see things differently, spiritually speaking. He began to see things God's way. He began to look again to God's way of life, and he began to change his life. What a change, brethren, this man made in his life. I think it's a message to us of how much change God expects in us. Now, we've got to make some changes, brethren. Paul can change, brethren. We can change. If he can make a transformation of his life and what he was doing against the church, and he put his entire heart into it, why can't we do the same thing?

If we're working to overcome some sin, brethren, why can't we barrel through it and overcome it and change to make a commitment? Nothing like what Paul did, though, do we see that happened in the past. I think we'd all agree that Paul's conversion was unique. You look in the Bible at how people were converted. Paul's story is unique, but boy, what a transformation he made in his life. As soon as he made those changes in his life, he was quickly ostracized from his so-called colleagues.

That, of course, was suffering on his part, but during his life, he was going to endure much more than that. All of us, of course, have read all the things that Paul went through, being shipwrecked, being stoned, running for his life on a continual basis. And finally, being beheaded at the end of it all, in a martyrdom in his life. Brother, how much do we endure in our lives, have we endured in our lives, in swimming against the current of this world?

I would say, by comparison, not very much. Paul's name became mud overnight. Can you imagine a U.S. Senator who's highly regarded, and overnight, because of his choice he would have to begin to live God's way, his name was mud. Just like that. Everything it worked for, everything it had aspired to do in his life was gone. It was behind. How about us, brethren? How about us?

What kind of work and effort do we put on our calling? What have we had to endure in our lives?

What have we lost? I think we, all of us, brethren, could say we've gained more than we've lost. And I know Paul would say that too. Let's go to Philippians chapter 3, over here. In Philippians chapter 3, now down to verse 7. But here's what Paul says. Even though he lost all the things he had gained in his life. But in verse 7 of chapter 3 of Philippians, he says, But what things were gained to me? These I have counted lost for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things lost for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus, my Lord. For whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish that I may gain Christ.

All the good things, brethren. Just think about your life, your own personal life. If you lost everything you had, you're health even. Would you realize or would you think that way with regard to the way Paul did? All that was nothing more than rubbish. I think in the King James it says done. Some of you have King James there. The things of this life, brethren, well, even Jesus said that if you gained the whole world, you know, you'd lose your own soul. What would you have? You'd have nothing. You would have nothing. Have we given up job, brethren? Have we given up mates? Have we given up money? Have we lost homes?

Well, Paul gave up everything, brethren. And Paul realized all of that was secondary to his calling and to the salvation that was possible through Jesus Christ.

One thing about Paul, too, you think of this man that was so errantite, so educated in his background and training, they wouldn't have to have a lot to learn. But you know what? Paul had a lot to unlearn in his life.

You know, Paul had a special calling, and it required special training for him.

He was converted around 34 or 35 AD. The church had been in operation for three or four years when Paul was called.

And let's notice in Galatians chapter 1 over here, after again he really came to his senses and he really began to make a turnaround, a real big turnaround in his life. Let's notice in Galatians chapter 1 and down in verse 15. And when it pleased God who separated me from my mother's womb and called me through his grace. Now think about that, what Paul had just said here in this one verse, that he was separated, sanctified, from his mother's womb. Even all those years he was fighting against the church, he was still separated for a holy purpose.

And you see that happening sometimes where God may be called, tried to call you and me at one time in our lives, earlier in our lives, but we're so bullheaded. We didn't respond.

Well, hopefully, brethren, we don't have to be struck down with blindness. You know, we don't have to have a voice that speaks to us that reverberates and, you know, scares us half to death. You know, into the reality that we need to respond. But here Paul, again, was separated from his mother's womb and he called me through his grace, through God's unmarried pardon God called him. Maybe he's saying in that, brethren, that if God had so decided by what I was doing, he would have said, no way, I'm not going to call Paul. Even though I intended him to do this job, I'm not going to call him. But, oh, God's grace allowed God to call him in a very dramatic way. Be thankful, brethren, you're here. And I'm here by the grace of God. No matter when you've been called, you better make hay while the sun shines right now. But going on here, to reveal his son to me, that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood. So even though he knew of the church, he didn't confer with flesh and blood. Nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me. But I went to Arabia and returned again to Damascus. So, you know, God's spirit drove him into Arabia.

And apparently he was there for a few years. It says, then after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and I remained with him for 15 days. For a little over a couple of weeks, he spent time with Peter.

We know he was an apostle of high repute in the church, and that's who he could burn with at that time.

But Paul was one who was born to take the Gospels, to preach the Gospel to the Gentiles, which was a formidable task. It's like having the job of preaching the Gospel of the United States, and then, you know, somebody else is given the job to preach the Gospel to the world. It's that big of a responsibility that Paul had. He was one of the few in the history of the Bible that was separated from birth for a calling, for responsibility. And despite that, even though he was called for the job, he had a lot to unlearn, a lot to learn before it's all said and done. And very probably, Jesus Christ himself personally taught the apostle Paul in Arabia when he was there. Just like he had taught the other apostles, he taught Paul. Paul calls himself an apostle born out of season. So he would have had the same training as the other ones were given, who had a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. I want you to think about, here, if you combine Paul's brilliance, Paul's determination with the character of Jesus Christ and the influence of Jesus Christ, what do you have? You have a dynamite. You have somebody that is going to tear through this world and preach the Gospel with such power and impact that, of course, the world has been astounded by it ever since, by what Paul did.

Imagine if God converted a Lincoln in our time, or a Churchill, or some other great person. But you know what? God has not decided to do that. But God called Paul, who had a lot of ability, and God used it. You know what? God has called us as well out of this world. And the reason why God has called us, or the weak of the world, is to confound the mighty. So the mighty will wonder, where did these people come from? You know, I never heard of John Smith. Who is he? You know, he's from Jackats Flats, Kentucky. Don't think I've ever heard him before. Or who's Jim Tuck? Don't know who he is. He's from—he's an Oakey, for crying out loud. Why would anybody call anyone from Oklahoma? Or why would anybody call anyone anywhere? In fact, for that matter, including all of us here. For any reason, God hasn't chosen, though, to call the great of the world. It says in the Bible, not many noble, not many mighty. It doesn't say that there weren't any. Well, Paul was one of those. You know, Paul was ordained in 46 or 47 AD, about 14 years after his conversion. You know, two seven-year periods that he had to unlearn and relearn. So he had to reload with knowledge and write understanding to go out to preach the gospel. It's a biblical principle, brethren, that a man who's going to be ordained or sanctified in a job or responsibility must be tested before he's ordained. And so Paul had to be tested, had to be trained, and he had to go through different things. Again, Paul was expected to develop more in his life to be more than, in fact, that he was. Just like us, brethren, when God calls us, we're the weak of the world, but he doesn't want us to remain the weak of the world. God called us for a very great purpose. He doesn't want us to stay back where we were 10 years ago or 15 years ago or 20 years ago or 40 years ago, depending on when you were called. He wants us to learn year by year, day by day, continue to grow, develop that character, that lasting character that's going to be put into the spirit body that God gives us so that we can rule for eternity with Jesus Christ. But Paul had to go through that process himself. He just had a little more ability. The Holy Spirit, in fact, decided to inspire the apostles to ordain Paul and Barnabas, the Sindom, to preach the gospel to the Gentiles. You can read about that in Acts 13 there. But Paul didn't volunteer for the job. I think that's quite obvious. He was struck down, wasn't he? I didn't volunteer for the job that I have in the church today. I think I've told you about it. When I came into the church, the very first thing I thought, and God is my witness to this, the first thing I thought when I looked at the minister, I said, I don't want to ever be one of those. And, you know, I always put it this way, and God wrote it down. So if you ever say you don't want to do something, brethren, God's got a little book. He writes it down. So if you don't want to do something, you better say, I don't want to ever go to Hawaii. God writes it down. We'll see whether you do that or not. This may be one of your tests to go to Hawaii. But, you know, if you want to do something, you better be careful what you say. You may end up there before it's all said and done, or if you say you don't want to do something. You know, God tests us in many, many different ways.

In Acts 21, Agabus comes to tell Paul, look, if you go back down to Jerusalem, you're going to suffer. You're going to be bound. And, you know, you're going to really go through some difficulties, Paul, if you do this. And they begged him not to go to Jerusalem. But Paul would not change his mind about going to Jerusalem. He was committed to go to Jerusalem. You know, Paul talked about how he persecuted Christians, and I put them to death, and I, you know, I was there to cast my vote for all of that. You know, God was going to let him feel a little bit of the load that goes with being a Christian. He was going to begin to feel that load in a very real manner. And when he went to Jerusalem, that's when he began to feel it. He began to understand it. But let's notice in Acts 21 now, and down in verse 10. Acts 21 and verse 10 over here.

We'll go down to verse 14 here, just a few verses.

It says, Then Paul answered, What do you mean by weeping and breaking my heart? Then Paul answered, And so when he would not be persuaded, we cease saying the will of the Lord be done.

You know, Paul would not get his witch. He would not be able to die in Jerusalem. Jesus Christ died in Jerusalem. So Paul would not have that honor of dying in Jerusalem. He would die in Rome, as a matter of fact. That is where he would meet his end of days there in this physical life.

But because he was converted, Paul was going to suffer greatly, brethren, in his life. He would have to practice Christianity. And that's what we have to do sometimes. When you're practicing Christianity, sometimes you have to go through some trials. You have to go through some suffering. Jesus Christ set the example for us as the forerunner. When Christ suffered for us, he suffered unto the death.

Paul was willing to suffer. That was his attitude. We read that here. He was willing to do that. He had that kind of commitment. And Paul had the ability himself to encourage people, even though they were going through trials, to push on. That's the way Paul thought. He didn't want people to discourage him from doing what was the right thing to do.

He was the kind of person that would encourage people to move on, even in suffering. And he set that example. We see in the Bible here, even when he was suffering in prison, you know, he encouraged the church about what he was going through. What did he say? He said, this is going to go forward for the furtherance of the gospel. What's going through and happening in my life is going to further the gospel. And, brother, we don't know sometimes the impact of what we go through in our lives. Sometimes I wonder why some of our brethren suffer problems in their lives, whether it's health issues. We have to keep in mind, brethren, that sometimes we must suffer to help somebody else. Not that it doesn't help us, but, I mean, to help some other people see things. You ever wonder why sometimes God allows some of the saints to die? It seems like early in their lives. It's like a shock to people, and it catches people's attention, and it impacts people. I know that, you know, in the case of some of the brethren who have died in church areas where they've been, it impacted the children that they were holding back, not making a commitment in their lives. Maybe God's way of saying, hey, you better pay attention, because your life is going to come to an end, too. And what is more important in this physical life than anything else, brethren, is the salvation. A being in that better resurrection. Being there in the kingdom, when that kingdom is set up. But Paul encouraged people, brethren, even when they were going through terrible trials, and he set an example of that. You know what he told people in Corinth? He says, follow me as I follow Christ. Christ did the same thing. Christ had the attitude, Father, forgive them. They don't know what they're doing.

Christ was an encourager, and Paul was, too. We have to realize, brethren, our lives are not perfect, and they never will be. In this physical life, God didn't expect you to ever think that when you were called that things were going to be straightening up, and it would be like a bed of roses from the time of your conversion.

How many of you had had a perfect life after you were converted? Would you raise your hand? I'm not going to raise mine, because it seems like when I was baptized and converted, that's when my problems began. That's when they started. I wish somebody had told me that when I was in that position, but I was in a little different position, that some, I've always told people that, though when I baptized them, you're going to have trouble. Satan's going to try to dissuade you. You keep pushing on. No, God did not promise any of us that it would be easy in the pursuit of the kingdom of God. Philippians chapter 1, but Paul was an encourager, brethren.

He had that knack. He had that ability.

He was a people-people. A people-person, I guess is how you say it.

He was someone who liked people. Philippians chapter 1, verse 1, and Paul and Timothy bond servants of Jesus Christ. That really says a lot, that one verse right there, bond servants of Jesus Christ. Are you a slave, brethren, of Jesus Christ? Paul was, Timothy was, and it made them good servants, great servants. To all the saints in Christ Jesus, who are in Philippi, with the bishops and deacons, grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank my God upon every remembrance of you. How encouraging that is, brethren. Always in every prayer of mine making requests for you all with joy, for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident in this very thing that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. Just as it's right for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart, in as much as both in my chains and in the defense and the confirmation of the gospel, you all are partakers with me of grace. For God is my witness how greatly I long for you all with the affection of Jesus Christ. And this I pray that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God. Again, what an encourager! What would a letter like that in the mail do for you, brother?

Well, brethren, let's strive to be like Paul. Let's strive to be an encourager of others. Let's encourage people to overcome, to change. And let's set the pace, each of us individually. And inspire others to push onward. That's what Paul's life was about. That's what the ministry is about. I've always said to people that every sermon you hear from the pulpit is the same sermon. There's no real difference. They just all have different titles.

Would you agree with me? Is it the goal to push people toward the kingdom? To encourage? To admonish toward the kingdom?

And again, there are different stories to tell, but it's really the same story of how we need to move on toward the kingdom of God. Paul gave of himself, but it seems he did not receive the encouragement even from the brethren who should have been there for him. It's like here you're fighting the battle of preaching the gospel of the world. And in the case of Paul, he didn't have people that had his back. They were, in fact, attacking Paul from the rear. And so Paul had to turn around sometimes, and he had to, rather than lead, the charge of preaching the gospel to the world, he had to deal with some of the problems of the church.

The more Paul gave brethren of love, it seems the less that he was loved.

You know, Paul always, even when he had to correct people that admonished people, he mingled encouragement with it. He was that kind of a teacher. And he was an example of someone who had true love, agape love, for the brethren. Well, brethren, do we encourage each other again like Paul did? Remember, Jesus himself said, by this, everybody's going to know that you're my disciples if you love each other. This is how you tell. What kind of love is there? We tried to camp to sort of cultivate those friendships among young people. It is interesting to see, you know, the girls and the fellows, you know, as they began to develop those friendships. You know how it is sometimes when kids are buddies with each other? And you see a young, maybe eight or nine-year-old kid going around, and they got their arm around their neck, and he's, you know, he's my buddy. But you don't think about the fact, brethren, that at camp they start developing these friendships that last an entire life. When they're 40 years old, they still feel that affinity for each other, that love for each other. We should be that way in the church with all of God's people. You're my brother, my sister, and I love you.

And we should be afraid to, you know, show our emotions of love for another person. A lot of times people are kind of, they stymie those emotions. Paul wasn't one who would do that. He showed his emotion. Not afraid to tell the brethren he loved them. He had compassion. He was a man of powerful emotions.

Like he said, some are sterile in their emotions. But, brethren, we need to learn to express true joy and appreciation for what God has done for us. Let it come out, brethren. If nothing else, if you find it hard to express those emotions, brethren, you can always sing the songs in the hymns with a lot of gumption, with a lot of emotion. I know there are a few of the hymns I sing, and I won't tell you which ones they are, because you'll probably sing them every Sabbath. But it's hard for me to even sing them. So if you want to shut me up, if you ever leave that song, I probably won't sing very loud, because I'm usually whimpering and shedding tears over it. Especially at the Feast of Tabernacles, when I hear certain songs, I just can't handle it. I turn into a teddy bear.

So, brethren, we as God's people, again, want to mimic the example of the Apostle Paul. He had the right priorities in his life. He talked about how, in whatever state he was in, he was content. And, brethren, a sign of whether or not God's Spirit is working in your life is how content are you? How happy are you in your life? Paul, if he was being chased about by people who wanted to kill him, I guess he was content. Oh, okay. Maybe he reasoned in his own mind. You know, I remember doing this exact same thing to Christians. Maybe I deserve this. Maybe I need to go through this. Let's go over to Philippians chapter 1, Philippians chapter 1, final scripture here.

In Philippians chapter 1 and verse 19, you know, again, here Paul, in the midst of imprisonment, not knowing, again, what the future is going to be for him, he says, For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer. He said, It's because you're praying, you're connected in prayer for these things, and to supply the Spirit of Jesus Christ. According to my earnest expectation, I hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed.

But with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.

To me, to live as Christ and to die is gain. He knew if he died, it would be over, and the next split second he would be in the kingdom.

He would be like in a time machine. Two thousand years when a whip-by had been asleep during that time, and wake up in the kingdom when Christ returns.

Look at the end result of Paul's life, brethren. His goal in life was not to be ashamed of the fact that God had called him, given an opportunity to be a part of the great work that God is doing upon the faith of the earth today.

I want to make sure, brethren, his life in the end, and all that he did, even the giving of his life and death, that he was not ashamed of what he did. So whether he lived or died, it didn't really matter to him, ultimately. What was important is, had he fulfilled the calling that God had given to him. Paul's life, brethren, Paul of Tarsus, his life helped change the world. The greatest results of his work haven't even been realized. Think about that. What about the 50 billion people that are going to come up in the Second Resurrection? How many people is what his efforts in his life are going to help and affect? Many in every way. And, brethren, think about the work that you're doing.

You and I are not going to realize the effort and the work that we're doing until much later. Yet, whatever is being done in our lives, whatever was done in the life of Paul, even, God deserves the glory, and God gets all the credit. Jesus, Christ, and God the Father are the ones that get all of the credit, brethren. So Paul, brethren, was truly an incredible man of God.

He was a man worth following.