Sunday: Paul, a God-called Apostle of Jesus
Daily Lesson for Sunday 28th of June 2026
Paul begins his letter to the Corinthians by identifying himself as an apostle of Jesus, called “through the will of God” (1 Corinthians 1:1; compare with 2 Corinthians 1:1). His conviction regarding who he is in relation to Jesus is so firm that, with a few exceptions, this is the way he opens all his letters.
Read 1 Corinthians 1:1 and Romans 1:1. What two elements of Paul’s ministry are emphasized in these passages? (See also Galatians 1:1.)
Image © Jim Howard at Goodsalt.com
Paul speaks of his calling and apostleship as fulfilling God’s will. He is convinced that his calling is not from men but from God (Galatians 1:1). Paul was called by God from his mother’s womb like Jeremiah (Jeremiah 1:5) as an act of God’s grace (Galatians 1:15), and it happened so that he would proclaim the gospel of Christ among the Gentiles.
In 1 Corinthians 15:8, Paul includes himself among those to whom Christ appeared after the Resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:5-7). A few verses later, he implies that his calling to be an apostle resulted from that encounter with Jesus (1 Corinthians 15:9-11).
The title “apostle of Jesus” encompasses a series of concepts. Primarily, it conveys the idea of one whom Jesus sends. Nevertheless, Paul also uses this phrase to identify himself as a servant of Christ (Romans 1:1, Titus 1:1, Galatians 1:10), as well as a preacher and a teacher (1 Timothy 2:7, 2 Timothy 1:11). Whether Paul preaches or teaches, Christ is always in evidence. In short, Paul is an apostle of Jesus.
Jesus is not only the center of Paul’s apostleship; He is the center of Paul’s life. Paul’s thoughts and feelings were filled with the presence of Jesus. Evidence of this fact is that he refers to Jesus repeatedly in the opening and in the thanksgiving section of 1 Corinthians (nine times in nine verses). Paul loved Jesus so much that he couldn’t stop thinking and talking about Him. He wanted to share Jesus with those under his care so that their lives would be Christ-centered, too. While he was called to be an apostle, they were called to be faithful followers of Jesus in whatever capacity to which the Lord called them.
|
Paul was called to be an apostle. What is your calling, and how do you know that it is your calling? If you don’t think you have one, why not go right now and ask Him to show you the work He chose you to do? |
I have mentioned several times that I have been reading Seventh-day Adventist history this year. It useful to look back on our history and see the cut and thrust between the various players who have shaped our beliefs. We sometimes think we have reached our present understanding by some sort of purified revelation. However, the personalities involved were often strong-willed and somewhat abrasive. I have mentioned the contributions and conflicts involving Prescott, Daniels, Haskell, Willian White, Kellogg among others. When you understand some of this history, it better informs how we got to where we are today. It is useful to consider Paul’s theology not in an intellectual vacuum but considering his background, his personality and his interaction with others.
Paul was born a Jew and a Roman citizen in the cosmopolitan city of Tarsus. His early upbringing would have exposed him not only to Jewish theology and traditions but to the Greco-Roman world view as well. In many respects his background made him the ideal person to build beyond Judaism and Greek philosophy and to establish Christianity. He was well educated and could debate forcibly with Jewish rabbis and Greek philosophers.
Paul was headstrong. He called the Galatians foolish for losing their way; he publicly called Peter out for his hypocrisy; and he split with Barnabas over employing John Mark. He was passionate. As a Pharisee, he persecuted Christians. As a Christian, he did an about face and just asa passionately preached Jesus to both Jews and Gentiles.
When we understand Paul, we gain a better understanding of both his message, and the way the Holy Spirit works. It is not just about the message, but the relationship.
Paul did not live and walk with Jesus during His earthly ministry as Peter, John, and the other apostles did. He never touched Him or heard Jesus personally while on earth say, “Follow Me.” Paul was aware of this limitation, describing himself as “one abnormally born” (1 Corinthians 15:8). Yet this was never the source of his deepest pain. Instead, he endured imprisonment, beatings, abandonment by friends, misunderstandings, and countless hardships. He once escaped a city by being lowered in a basket through an opening in the wall, later spent three days and three nights adrift at sea, and at one point confessed that he “despaired even of life” (2 Corinthians 1:8). Through every trial, however, Paul remained steadfast because his life was anchored in Christ.
Paul wanted the Corinthian believers to understand that Jesus was not only the center of his apostleship but the very center of his life. His thoughts, affections, and mission were filled with Christ, as seen in the opening verses of 1 Corinthians, where he repeatedly refers to Jesus. Paul loved Christ so deeply that he could not stop speaking about Him, and his singular desire was to see others become Christ-centered as well. Having been called as an apostle, Paul understood that his greatest calling was first to be a faithful follower of Jesus. As he wrote, “For to me, to live is Christ” (Philippians 1:21), and, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me” (Galatians 2:20). These words reveal a life wholly devoted to Christ.
“And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time.”(1 Corinthians 15:8,KJV)
Paul uses a very strange metaphor (expression) to illustrate his calling as an apostle. The expression “born out of due time” could mean “a miscarriage”, or “an aborted fetus”, or “a premature birth”. To say the least, this is a very striking, even shocking metaphor. Paul is saying that he became an apostle of Jesus in a very unusual, unexpected, and abrupt way. He was an unlikely person to become an ardent apostle of Jesus Christ. His spiritual birth was extremely sudden and dramatic. The radical transformation from Saul, a murderer, to Paul, a saint, is the dynamic nature of grace.
“For I am the least of the apostles and am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.” (1 Corinthians 15:9)
Paul’s calling into apostleship has valuable lessons for us to learn.
1. The saving power of God’s grace has the power to save to the uttermost (Hebrews 7:25-27). We should never rule anyone out of God’s reach. We should never be in doubt when God calls someone into His kingdom.
2. God calls people into His kingdom in different ways, including what we can consider “strange” ways. God is sovereign; His ways are always the best. It does not matter how we came to Christ; all that matters is that we have come (1 Cor. 15:11).
3. Once God has graciously called us, let us remember to exercise humility, particularly to those whom we consider to be “sinners”. For ourselves, once we were lost too (Titus 3:3–7).
4. We must always remember that God’s grace is greater than our past. Quite often, the devil holds us captive to our past. Once the Son of God has sent us free, we are free indeed (John 8:36).
5. Our calling is pure grace. We must be eternally grateful to God’s mercies that have rescued us while we were dead in sin. We should emulate Paul’s magnitude of thankfulness (1 Timothy 1:12–16)