BIG IDEA:
PAUL’S AUTHORITY ESTABLISHED BY DIVINE REVELATION —
PAUL’S PERSONAL TESTIMONY CONFIRMS THE DIVINE SOURCE OF HIS MESSAGE AND AUTHORITY
I. (:11-12) THESIS: THE DIVINE SOURCE OF HIS GOSPEL MESSAGE
A. Importance of the Subject
“For I would have you know, brethren”
B. Negatively: Not According to Man
1. Summary
“that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man”
2. Details
a. Not received directly from man
“For I neither received it from man”
b. Not received indirectly from man
“nor was I taught it”
C. Positively: Received By Divine Revelation
“but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ”
II. (:13-17) PERSONAL TESTIMONY OF HIS CONVERSION EXPERIENCE: SOVEREIGNLY APPOINTED TO HIS APOSTOLIC MISSION
A. (:13) Pre-Conversion Persecution of the Church
“For you have heard of my former manner of life in Judaism, how I used to persecute the church of God beyond measure, and tried to destroy it”
B. (:14) Pre-Conversion Loyalty to Jewish Traditions
“and I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries among my countrymen, being more extremely zealous for my ancestral traditions.”
C. (:15-16a) Sovereign Conversion
1. Sovereign Election to Salvation and Ministry — Emphasis on Sanctification / Holiness
“But when He who had set me apart, even from my mother’s womb”
2. Sovereign (Effectual) Calling to Salvation and Ministy — Emphasis on Grace
“and called me through His grace”
3. Sovereign Revelation of Salvation — Emphasis on a Personal Relationship with Christ
” was pleased to reveal His Son in me” Christ in him became the power for his ministry
D. (:16b) Sovereign Appointment to His Apostolic Ministry to the Gentiles
“that I might preach Him among the Gentiles”
very specific mission
E. (:16c-17) Initial Isolation from Church Tutelage
1. No Immediate Contact with Other Believers
“I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood”
the believers would have been hesitant to receive him anyway because of
his prominent opposition to the church
2. No Immediate Consultation with Church Leaders
“nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me”
Including himself in the same class with the other apostles
3. Private Isolation — for Personal Development and Ministry Foundation
“but I went away to Arabia, and returned once more to Damascus”
III. (:18-24) PERSONAL TESTIMONY OF HIS FORMATIVE YEARS: ALMOST NO CONTACT WITH BELIEVERS
A. (:18-19) First Contact with the Apostles
1. Met with Peter — Getting to know you
“Then three years later I went up to Jerusalem to become acquainted with Cephas, and stayed with him fifteen days.”
2. Only Other Brief Contact = James (not officially one of the twelve)
“But I did not see any other of the apostles except James, the Lord’s brother”
B. (:20) Aside: Veracity of His Testimony
“(Now in what I am writing to you, I assure you before God that I am not lying.)”
C. (:21-24) Interaction with the Church
1. (:21) Spent time Preaching in outlying regions
“Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia”
not exactly hotbeds of early church activity
Evans: “Why would Paul be sent to Cilicia? It is my opinion that is was for his protection and growth. Paul deserted Orthodox Judaism and needed someplace to study in relative safety. To this day hatred for Paul is pervasive among Orthodox Jews. One of the cities in Cilicia is Tarsus. That was Paul’s hometown. In Tarsus, Paul would be safe from those who were trying to take his life.”
2. (:22-24) Known Only by Reputation to the Churches of Judea
a. (:22) Not Known by Sight
“And I was still unknown by sight to the churches of Judea which were in Christ”
b. (:23) Known by Reputation
“but only, they kept hearing, ‘He who once persecuted us is now preaching the faith which he once tried to destroy”
c. (:24) Positive Reception
“And they were glorifying God because of me”