More than a few Christians take offense when Paul’s cowardice is mentioned by “non-believers”, claiming that no martyr can ever be properly labeled as such. Aside from the fact that Paul was not a true martyr – in that a true martyr (like Stephen, for example, whose brutal murder Paul witnessed and of which Paul […]
There is possibly no greater – nor more telling – difference in character between Paul & Jesus than the jittery arrogance of the former and the assured humility of the latter. Indeed, Paul (no less than a self-proclaimed “apostle” of Jesus Christ – see Romans 1:1, 1 Corinthians 1:1, 2 Corinthians 1:1, Galatians 1:1, Colossians […]
Possibly due to his obvious low sense of self-esteem &/or his aforementioned high degree of arrogance, Paul frequently treats others with a callousness that is anything but Divine (“I declare to you this day that I am not responsible for the blood of any of you.” ~ Acts 20:26 – see also Romans 2:1‘s “Therefore […]
In line with many of the aforementioned contrasts (see Contrast #04, Contrast #10, and Contrast #11) there is a clearly defined dichotomy between Paul and Jesus in the way they judge the actions of others – with Paul tending to staunchly condemn those believing differently than he does or acting in ways he deems to […]
This next contrast can truly come as no surprise, seeing as how condemnation by its very nature brings division – and forgiveness by its very nature engenders harmony. Indeed, for the entirety of his biblical account – no matter where Paul seemed to go – debate & dissension followed. He first preached in the synagogues […]
For those who are unclear on the matter, the term “passive aggressive” relates to statements or actions which seem calm, detached, or even well-intended on their surface, and yet which have an underlying manipulative motive &/or aggressive intent. Some examples of this dysfunctional trait are found in expressions of melodramatic pettiness, pity-ploys, insincere compliments, blame-shifting, […]
Seeing as how Jesus called the devil “a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44), openly warned his followers of “the yeast of the Pharisees” (see Matthew 16:11-12 – properly juxtaposed with Acts 23:6, Galatians 1:14, & Philippians 3:5) and other “false prophets” who will work to “deceive the elect” (see Matthew 24:24 – […]
It can come as no surprise that two men with such dramatically different upbringings would develop such dramatically different personalities, and it can come as even less of a surprise that such dramatically different personalities would reflect themselves in such dramatically different styles of preaching … “It is frankly more than a bit disappointing to […]
While there are admittedly exceptions to this generality found within the Scriptures – with Paul sometimes writing reservedly (a la his letter to Philemon) and Jesus every now and then booming his message with fervor (a la Matthew 23 or Luke 11:37-52), for the most part it holds true that Paul was fond of brash […]
As mentioned previously (primarily on pages 31 & 32 herein), Paul tended to inspire vehement argument and aggressive opposition whenever & wherever he preached. Indeed, he is seen arguing with Hellenists in Acts 9:29, debating with Judean Jews in Acts 15:2, disagreeing sharply with Barnabas in Acts 15:39, haranguing Thessalonians in Acts 17:2, quarreling with […]
It makes easy sense that relatively cowardly individuals with low self-esteem (see Contrast #09 on page 29 and Contrast #14 on page 34) would tend to gravitate towards speaking to gatherings of people who are either already well-known &/or who are likely to accept whatever is being sold or shared. And this is precisely what […]
;
