Fact #5: Paul, who was a persecutor of the early believers, had an experience that radically changed him from an antagonist into a devout follower of Christ

  Paul, whose name was Saul prior to his belief in Jesus Christ, was a Jew born about the time of Christ’s birth, in the city of Tarsus in the Roman province of Cilicia in Asia Minor. He was a Roman citizen but he spent most of the early years of his life in Jerusalem where he was a student of the great rabbi Gamaliel and a member of the sect of the Pharisee’s. Phil. 3:5; Acts 16:37; 22:25. He was a devout Jew and was a chief persecutor of the believers in Jesus Christ. According to the book of Acts, Paul (Saul) was on his way to the city of Damascus ( A.D. 33,34) to arrest Christians, when he had an encounter with the resurrected Jesus Christ that totally changed the direction of his life. “Then Saul (Paul) still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. As he journeyed he came near Damascus and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. Then he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? And he said, Who are you Lord? Then the Lord said, I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads. So he, trembling and astonished said, Lord, what do You want me to do? Then the Lord said to him, Arise and go into the city and you will be told what you must do. And the men who journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice but seeing no one. Then Saul arose from the ground and when his eyes were opened he saw no one. But they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus”. – Acts 9:1-8. This same account is repeated in Acts 22:1-16; and in Acts 26:9-18.This testimony of Paul’s conversion is also repeated by early church fathers – Clement of Rome, Polycarp, Tertullian and Origen. 13 Paul also confirms his direct encounter with Jesus Christ in Galatians 1:10-24.The fact that Paul was an antagonist to the Gospel and the message of Jesus Christ is a historical reality. But it also true that he became an ardent follower and missionary, preaching the Gospel throughout Asia Minor after he had an experience that he believed was an appearance of the risen Christ . He wrote at least 13 books recorded in the New Testament.

Paul’s encounter with Christ was not an appearance to a believer, but instead was an encounter that was able to convince a non-believer of the fact that Jesus Christ had risen from the dead. His confidence in what he had experienced was not based on wishful or faith based desire but rather he believed because the evidence of the resurrected Jesus was convincing. Paul proclaimed his faith in Christ until his death. Reliable church history affirms that Paul was beheaded by the Romans for his faith in Christ in A.D. 67-68 under the Roman Emperor Nero. 14