Paul Was No False Prophet! (traditions, Gospel, Epistles, testimony)
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I’ve never understood how anyone could think otherwise. The seven epistles indisputably attributed to the Apostle Paul are clearly NOT the writings of a false prophet. Nor, is the life he led indicative of a false prophet. Before I begin to look into one aspect of Paul’s life, let's define a false prophet.
In chapter 13 of Ezekiel characteristics of false prophets are given. Let’s see if Paul “fits.”
The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel, who are prophesying, and say to those who prophesy from their own hearts: ‘Hear the word of the Lord!’ Thus says the Lord God, Woe to the foolish prophets who follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing! 3 Your prophets have been like jackals among ruins, O Israel. 4 You have not gone up into the breaches, or built up a wall for the house of Israel, that it might stand in battle in the day of the Lord. 5 They have seen false visions and lying divinations. 6 They say, ‘Declares the Lord,’ when the Lord Has not sent them, and yet they expect him to fulfill their word. 7 Have you not seen a false vision and uttered a lying divination, whenever you have said, ‘Declares the Lord,’ although I have not spoken?”
8 Therefore thus says the Lord God: “Because you have uttered falsehood and seen lying visions, therefore behold, I am against you, declares the Lord God. 9 My hand will be against the prophets who see false visions and who give lying divinations. They shall not be in the council of my people, nor be enrolled in the register of the house of Israel, nor shall they enter the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the LordGod. 10 Precisely because they have misled my people, saying, ‘Peace,’ when there is no peace, and because, when the people build a wall, these prophets smear it with whitewash,[a] 11 say to those who smear it with whitewash that it shall fall! There will be a deluge of rain, and you, O great hailstones, will fall, and a stormy wind break out.12 And when the wall falls, will it not be said to you, ‘Where is the coating with which you smeared it?’ 13 Therefore thus says the Lord God: I will make a stormy wind break out in my wrath, and there shall be a deluge of rain in my anger, and great hailstones in wrath to make a full end. 14 And I will break down the wall that you have smeared with whitewash, and bring it down to the ground, so that its foundation will be laid bare. When it falls, you shall perish in the midst of it, and you shall know that I am theLord. 15 Thus will I spend my wrath upon the wall and upon those who have smeared it with whitewash, and I will say to you, The wall is no more, nor those who smeared it,16 the prophets of Israel who prophesied concerning Jerusalem and saw visions of peace for her, when there was no peace, declares the Lord God.
17 “And you, son of man, set your face against the daughters of your people, who prophesy out of their own hearts. Prophesy against them 18 and say, Thus says the LordGod: Woe to the women who sew magic bands upon all wrists, and make veils for the heads of persons of every stature, in the hunt for souls! Will you hunt down souls belonging to my people and keep your own souls alive? 19 You have profaned me among my people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, putting to death souls who should not die and keeping alive souls who should not live, by your lying to my people, who listen to lies.
20 “Therefore thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against your magic bands with which you hunt the souls like birds, and I will tear them from your arms, and I will let the souls whom you hunt go free, the souls like birds. 21 Your veils also I will tear off and deliver my people out of your hand, and they shall be no more in your hand as prey,and you shall know that I am the Lord. 22 Because you have disheartened the righteous falsely, although I have not grieved him, and you have encouraged the wicked, that he should not turn from his evil way to save his life, 23 therefore you shall no more see false visions nor practice divination. I will deliver my people out of your hand. And you shall know that I am the Lord.”
There are at least 10 signs of a false prophet given in the passage above;
Follow their own spirit rather than God (v. 3).
Claim God has spoken to them or through them when He has not (vv. 6-7).
Are liars (v. 8).
Speak “peace” and give people false assurance regarding their standing before God (v. 10).
Whitewash evil. They dress up wickedness trying to make it presentable (vv. 11-12).
Will eventually be exposed and judged by God (vv. 13-16).
Utilize good luck charms and other superstitious methods (v. 18). Do not really care for those they claim to minister to (v. 18).
The false teacher’s main concern is himself, not those sitting under his teaching.
Spare the guilty and punish the innocent, often for financial gain (v. 19).
Encourage sinners to continue sinning leading to their destruction (v. 22). False teachers encourage people in their sin rather than pleading with them to turn from it.
It is argued Paul was guilty of falsely claiming God (Jesus) spoke to him in a vision. I don’t believe for a minute the Apostle Paul schemed to hijack the infant Christian movement whose leader had been killed in the most horrific manner known at the time, considering he'd look forward to a similar fate. No one willingly leaves a lucrative career for a path where belittlement, financial insecurity, imprisonment, stoning and beheading awaits-unless convinced God called you. Through that vision, the Apostle Paul was transformed from a fierce persecutor of Christians to one of the early Christian movement’s greatest proponents. Becoming their leading spokesperson, missionary and theologian he believed that his vision of the resurrected Jesus proved Jesus to be the divine Son of God and the human flesh Messiah. His further belief that Jesus offered salvation not only for the Jew but for the Gentile was his biggest contribution to the fledgling movement. It seems obvious, from his life alone, he was not in it for personal gain, otherwise he would have abandoned the cause for Christ immediately when the going got rough.
Within the seven undisputed epistles written by the Apostle Paul we’re given a view into the thinking and lives of the earliest Christians. It is believed by many scholars that some of Paul’s writings are pre-Pauline creeds and hymns said and sung by the early Christians in services. His capturing of these preliterary traditional creeds and hymns provides our ONLY surviving view into this world. It makes little sense that a false prophet would quote the creeds, hymns, and views of the early Christian movement and not his own views if trying to steal the show so to speak. Briefly, one such creed is found in Romans 1:3-4, Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead...This concise, to the point creed Paul is quoting is said, by scholars, to be one of the oldest statements of faith surviving. That Paul in verse 1 of this chapter would write, This letter is from Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, chosen by God to be an apostle and sent out to preach his Good News, and then to follow with what is perhaps the oldest creedal statement of belief from the early Christian movement is uncharacteristic of a false prophet.
Whether you choose to believe the Apostle Paul was a false prophet is your concern, but one I could never agree.
I’ve never understood how anyone could think otherwise. The seven epistles indisputably attributed to the Apostle Paul are clearly NOT the writings of a false prophet. Nor, is the life he led indicative of a false prophet. Before I begin to look into one aspect of Paul’s life, let's define a false prophet.
In chapter 13 of Ezekiel characteristics of false prophets are given. Let’s see if Paul “fits.”
The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel, who are prophesying, and say to those who prophesy from their own hearts: ‘Hear the word of the Lord!’ Thus says the Lord God, Woe to the foolish prophets who follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing! 3 Your prophets have been like jackals among ruins, O Israel. 4 You have not gone up into the breaches, or built up a wall for the house of Israel, that it might stand in battle in the day of the Lord. 5 They have seen false visions and lying divinations. 6 They say, ‘Declares the Lord,’ when the Lord Has not sent them, and yet they expect him to fulfill their word. 7 Have you not seen a false vision and uttered a lying divination, whenever you have said, ‘Declares the Lord,’ although I have not spoken?”
8 Therefore thus says the Lord God: “Because you have uttered falsehood and seen lying visions, therefore behold, I am against you, declares the Lord God. 9 My hand will be against the prophets who see false visions and who give lying divinations. They shall not be in the council of my people, nor be enrolled in the register of the house of Israel, nor shall they enter the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the LordGod. 10 Precisely because they have misled my people, saying, ‘Peace,’ when there is no peace, and because, when the people build a wall, these prophets smear it with whitewash,[a] 11 say to those who smear it with whitewash that it shall fall! There will be a deluge of rain, and you, O great hailstones, will fall, and a stormy wind break out.12 And when the wall falls, will it not be said to you, ‘Where is the coating with which you smeared it?’ 13 Therefore thus says the Lord God: I will make a stormy wind break out in my wrath, and there shall be a deluge of rain in my anger, and great hailstones in wrath to make a full end. 14 And I will break down the wall that you have smeared with whitewash, and bring it down to the ground, so that its foundation will be laid bare. When it falls, you shall perish in the midst of it, and you shall know that I am theLord. 15 Thus will I spend my wrath upon the wall and upon those who have smeared it with whitewash, and I will say to you, The wall is no more, nor those who smeared it,16 the prophets of Israel who prophesied concerning Jerusalem and saw visions of peace for her, when there was no peace, declares the Lord God.
17 “And you, son of man, set your face against the daughters of your people, who prophesy out of their own hearts. Prophesy against them 18 and say, Thus says the LordGod: Woe to the women who sew magic bands upon all wrists, and make veils for the heads of persons of every stature, in the hunt for souls! Will you hunt down souls belonging to my people and keep your own souls alive? 19 You have profaned me among my people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, putting to death souls who should not die and keeping alive souls who should not live, by your lying to my people, who listen to lies.
20 “Therefore thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against your magic bands with which you hunt the souls like birds, and I will tear them from your arms, and I will let the souls whom you hunt go free, the souls like birds. 21 Your veils also I will tear off and deliver my people out of your hand, and they shall be no more in your hand as prey,and you shall know that I am the Lord. 22 Because you have disheartened the righteous falsely, although I have not grieved him, and you have encouraged the wicked, that he should not turn from his evil way to save his life, 23 therefore you shall no more see false visions nor practice divination. I will deliver my people out of your hand. And you shall know that I am the Lord.”
There are at least 10 signs of a false prophet given in the passage above;
Follow their own spirit rather than God (v. 3).
Claim God has spoken to them or through them when He has not (vv. 6-7).
Are liars (v. 8).
Speak “peace” and give people false assurance regarding their standing before God (v. 10).
Whitewash evil. They dress up wickedness trying to make it presentable (vv. 11-12).
Will eventually be exposed and judged by God (vv. 13-16).
Utilize good luck charms and other superstitious methods (v. 18). Do not really care for those they claim to minister to (v. 18).
The false teacher’s main concern is himself, not those sitting under his teaching.
Spare the guilty and punish the innocent, often for financial gain (v. 19).
Encourage sinners to continue sinning leading to their destruction (v. 22). False teachers encourage people in their sin rather than pleading with them to turn from it.
It is argued Paul was guilty of falsely claiming God (Jesus) spoke to him in a vision. I don’t believe for a minute the Apostle Paul schemed to hijack the infant Christian movement whose leader had been killed in the most horrific manner known at the time, considering he'd look forward to a similar fate. No one willingly leaves a lucrative career for a path where belittlement, financial insecurity, imprisonment, stoning and beheading awaits-unless convinced God called you. Through that vision, the Apostle Paul was transformed from a fierce persecutor of Christians to one of the early Christian movement’s greatest proponents. Becoming their leading spokesperson, missionary and theologian he believed that his vision of the resurrected Jesus proved Jesus to be the divine Son of God and the human flesh Messiah. His further belief that Jesus offered salvation not only for the Jew but for the Gentile was his biggest contribution to the fledgling movement. It seems obvious, from his life alone, he was not in it for personal gain, otherwise he would have abandoned the cause for Christ immediately when the going got rough.
Within the seven undisputed epistles written by the Apostle Paul we’re given a view into the thinking and lives of the earliest Christians. It is believed by many scholars that some of Paul’s writings are pre-Pauline creeds and hymns said and sung by the early Christians in services. His capturing of these preliterary traditional creeds and hymns provides our ONLY surviving view into this world. It makes little sense that a false prophet would quote the creeds, hymns, and views of the early Christian movement and not his own views if trying to steal the show so to speak. Briefly, one such creed is found in Romans 1:3-4, Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead...This concise, to the point creed Paul is quoting is said, by scholars, to be one of the oldest statements of faith surviving. That Paul in verse 1 of this chapter would write, This letter is from Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, chosen by God to be an apostle and sent out to preach his Good News, and then to follow with what is perhaps the oldest creedal statement of belief from the early Christian movement is uncharacteristic of a false prophet.
Whether you choose to believe the Apostle Paul was a false prophet is your concern, but one I could never agree.
What passes for Christianity in these forums was an eye opener for me and has still never ceased to amaze me. There is no doubt in my mind that many here would (and probably have) cut whole books out of their Bible.
No, of course the apostle Paul was not a false prophet or a false teacher. No one who has a high view of the Bible, who believes it to be the Word of God, which it is, would believe that God would allow roughly half of the New Testament to be hi-jacked by a false teacher. All of the epistles which bear Paul's name were written by him regardless of the opinions of critical scholarship, and all of those epistles teach Church-age doctrines. Paul was accepted by the other apostles and by the church. To believe that Paul was not a true apostle you have to disregard the testimony of Luke who wrote the Book of Acts, and the testimony of Peter in 2 Peter 3:15-16 which by the way was indeed written by Peter, again, regardless of the opinions of critical scholarship. Paul was appointed by the Lord to take the gospel to the Gentiles. And this he did faithfully. At the end of his life he was able to say,
''I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.'' 2 Timothy 4:7-8.
It's a shame to have to even post that in this area.
Agreed. But Satan has always attacked the Bible and has sought to discredit or destroy it. And he has many pawns who aid him in this effort. One such way of attempting to discredit the Bible is to try to discredit Paul. And the internet, and forums such as this one which is Christian in name only are ways to plant seeds of doubt in the minds of many.
I’ve never understood how anyone could think otherwise. The seven epistles indisputably attributed to the Apostle Paul are clearly NOT the writings of a false prophet. Nor, is the life he led indicative of a false prophet. Before I begin to look into one aspect of Paul’s life, let's define a false prophet.
In chapter 13 of Ezekiel characteristics of false prophets are given. Let’s see if Paul “fits.”
The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel, who are prophesying, and say to those who prophesy from their own hearts: ‘Hear the word of the Lord!’ Thus says the Lord God, Woe to the foolish prophets who follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing! 3 Your prophets have been like jackals among ruins, O Israel. 4 You have not gone up into the breaches, or built up a wall for the house of Israel, that it might stand in battle in the day of the Lord. 5 They have seen false visions and lying divinations. 6 They say, ‘Declares the Lord,’ when the Lord Has not sent them, and yet they expect him to fulfill their word. 7 Have you not seen a false vision and uttered a lying divination, whenever you have said, ‘Declares the Lord,’ although I have not spoken?”
8 Therefore thus says the Lord God: “Because you have uttered falsehood and seen lying visions, therefore behold, I am against you, declares the Lord God. 9 My hand will be against the prophets who see false visions and who give lying divinations. They shall not be in the council of my people, nor be enrolled in the register of the house of Israel, nor shall they enter the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the LordGod. 10 Precisely because they have misled my people, saying, ‘Peace,’ when there is no peace, and because, when the people build a wall, these prophets smear it with whitewash,[a] 11 say to those who smear it with whitewash that it shall fall! There will be a deluge of rain, and you, O great hailstones, will fall, and a stormy wind break out.12 And when the wall falls, will it not be said to you, ‘Where is the coating with which you smeared it?’ 13 Therefore thus says the Lord God: I will make a stormy wind break out in my wrath, and there shall be a deluge of rain in my anger, and great hailstones in wrath to make a full end. 14 And I will break down the wall that you have smeared with whitewash, and bring it down to the ground, so that its foundation will be laid bare. When it falls, you shall perish in the midst of it, and you shall know that I am theLord. 15 Thus will I spend my wrath upon the wall and upon those who have smeared it with whitewash, and I will say to you, The wall is no more, nor those who smeared it,16 the prophets of Israel who prophesied concerning Jerusalem and saw visions of peace for her, when there was no peace, declares the Lord God.
17 “And you, son of man, set your face against the daughters of your people, who prophesy out of their own hearts. Prophesy against them 18 and say, Thus says the LordGod: Woe to the women who sew magic bands upon all wrists, and make veils for the heads of persons of every stature, in the hunt for souls! Will you hunt down souls belonging to my people and keep your own souls alive? 19 You have profaned me among my people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, putting to death souls who should not die and keeping alive souls who should not live, by your lying to my people, who listen to lies.
20 “Therefore thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against your magic bands with which you hunt the souls like birds, and I will tear them from your arms, and I will let the souls whom you hunt go free, the souls like birds. 21 Your veils also I will tear off and deliver my people out of your hand, and they shall be no more in your hand as prey,and you shall know that I am the Lord. 22 Because you have disheartened the righteous falsely, although I have not grieved him, and you have encouraged the wicked, that he should not turn from his evil way to save his life, 23 therefore you shall no more see false visions nor practice divination. I will deliver my people out of your hand. And you shall know that I am the Lord.”
There are at least 10 signs of a false prophet given in the passage above;
Follow their own spirit rather than God (v. 3).
Claim God has spoken to them or through them when He has not (vv. 6-7).
Are liars (v. 8).
Speak “peace” and give people false assurance regarding their standing before God (v. 10).
Whitewash evil. They dress up wickedness trying to make it presentable (vv. 11-12).
Will eventually be exposed and judged by God (vv. 13-16).
Utilize good luck charms and other superstitious methods (v. 18). Do not really care for those they claim to minister to (v. 18).
The false teacher’s main concern is himself, not those sitting under his teaching.
Spare the guilty and punish the innocent, often for financial gain (v. 19).
Encourage sinners to continue sinning leading to their destruction (v. 22). False teachers encourage people in their sin rather than pleading with them to turn from it.
It is argued Paul was guilty of falsely claiming God (Jesus) spoke to him in a vision. I don’t believe for a minute the Apostle Paul schemed to hijack the infant Christian movement whose leader had been killed in the most horrific manner known at the time, considering he'd look forward to a similar fate. No one willingly leaves a lucrative career for a path where belittlement, financial insecurity, imprisonment, stoning and beheading awaits-unless convinced God called you. Through that vision, the Apostle Paul was transformed from a fierce persecutor of Christians to one of the early Christian movement’s greatest proponents. Becoming their leading spokesperson, missionary and theologian he believed that his vision of the resurrected Jesus proved Jesus to be the divine Son of God and the human flesh Messiah. His further belief that Jesus offered salvation not only for the Jew but for the Gentile was his biggest contribution to the fledgling movement. It seems obvious, from his life alone, he was not in it for personal gain, otherwise he would have abandoned the cause for Christ immediately when the going got rough.
Within the seven undisputed epistles written by the Apostle Paul we’re given a view into the thinking and lives of the earliest Christians. It is believed by many scholars that some of Paul’s writings are pre-Pauline creeds and hymns said and sung by the early Christians in services. His capturing of these preliterary traditional creeds and hymns provides our ONLY surviving view into this world. It makes little sense that a false prophet would quote the creeds, hymns, and views of the early Christian movement and not his own views if trying to steal the show so to speak. Briefly, one such creed is found in Romans 1:3-4, Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead...This concise, to the point creed Paul is quoting is said, by scholars, to be one of the oldest statements of faith surviving. That Paul in verse 1 of this chapter would write, This letter is from Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, chosen by God to be an apostle and sent out to preach his Good News, and then to follow with what is perhaps the oldest creedal statement of belief from the early Christian movement is uncharacteristic of a false prophet.
Whether you choose to believe the Apostle Paul was a false prophet is your concern, but one I could never agree.
Dear Cephas,
Let us examine a description of "false prophets" given by Yeshua in Mt 7. "They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.".. "You will know them by their fruits" "Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name cast out demons, and in your name perform many miracles?".. "And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS". His brother in arms, Petros, known as Cephas, is also a problem with respect to his ultimate position of being a "Stumbling Block" to God. (Mt 16:23) This problem was to be rectified at "the end of the age" (Mt 13:41).
Paul comes in the form of a sheep, yet like a wolf, he physically killed disciples (Steven). He is supposedly of the tribe of Benjamin, which is described as a "ravenous wolf" in Gen 49:27. He preaches to call on the "Lord" to be saved. He does miracles, cast out demons in "your name", and he taught and practiced "Lawlessness" (Romans 7:6).
As for the fruit of Paul's tree, the "Christian" church, one simply has to look at the rotten fruit, such as the Inquisition, based on turning individuals over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh (1 Cor 5:5), and the continuing conflicts and exposures, and approximately 41,000 competing denominations, to figure there is a problem with respect to the fruit of his tree.
As for what a "prophet" is, a dictionary is a good source, since you don't seem to recognize the obvious attributes of Paul in your passage of Ezekiel.
Agreed. But Satan has always attacked the Bible and has sought to discredit or destroy it. And he has many pawns who aid him in this effort. One such way of attempting to discredit the Bible is to try to discredit Paul. And the internet, and forums such as this one which is Christian in name only are ways to plant seeds of doubt in the minds of many.
Dear Mike,
I think the devil (Satan), planted his seed among the good seed of the son of man a long time ago. (Mt 13:37-40) The tare seed produces fruit in the appearance of the good seed, but it is not palatable. The seed of the devil, and the tares produced, will continue to remain among the wheat until the "end of the age". (Mt 13:40-41) At the "end of the age", the seed of the devil will be gathered out and disposed of. This seed of the "evil one" resides in your NT in the form of the teacher of Lawlessness, and comprises approximately 2/3 of the Roman church's canonized NT. Yeshua instructed the disciples to leave the bad seed among the good seed until the "end of the age" when the tares would be preliminary harvested to be burned up. (Mt 13:30)
What passes for Christianity in these forums was an eye opener for me and has still never ceased to amaze me. There is no doubt in my mind that many here would (and probably have) cut whole books out of their Bible.
The number of legalists here is staggering.
Dear Mike,
It might have been beneficial to you to have heeded Proverbs 20:25, before accepting the canon of the Roman church as that of being holy. Now that you have been ensnared, it is hard to disentangle yourself from a life of false beliefs.
Proverbs 20:25, "It is a snare for a man to say rashly, 'it is holy', and after the vows to make inquiry."
The Roman church that canonized your bible, and the men who participated and supported that effort, are not holy, and neither is the canon itself, which has become an idol to a large segment of our Country, which has resulted in the populace not being able to discern good from evil. A country with a "Christian" population of 73%, Moderator cut: political rant removed , and has brought down their judgment on themselves. It is one thing to be fooled once, "shame on me", but to be fooled twice, "shame on you". There is no discernment or wisdom among this people because they "honor Me" with the traditions learned by rote". (Isaiah 29:13)
Your new "covenant with death" (Is 28:15), Paul's gospel of grace, is based on "falsehood and deception". It "shall not stand" (Is 28:18) Paul, the 1st staff of Zechariah 11:10, is one of the two shepherds of Zechariah 11:7 who were to shepherd the "flock doomed to slaughter".(Ze 11:7) Peter, the 2nd staff "union" was to be the "worthless shepherd", who would not care, feed, or sustain the sheep. (Ze 11:17 & John 21:16)
Last edited by mensaguy; 07-26-2014 at 11:19 AM..
Reason: political rants are not allowed in the Christianity forum.
Some people get themselves in the higher critics of the gospel of Jesus and His salvation , and become a form of godliness , and reject Paul`s Epistle and the many scriptures of the gospel makes no sense ....
No, of course the apostle Paul was not a false prophet or a false teacher. No one who has a high view of the Bible, who believes it to be the Word of God, which it is, would believe that God would allow roughly half of the New Testament to be hi-jacked by a false teacher. All of the epistles which bear Paul's name were written by him regardless of the opinions of critical scholarship, and all of those epistles teach Church-age doctrines. Paul was accepted by the other apostles and by the church. To believe that Paul was not a true apostle you have to disregard the testimony of Luke who wrote the Book of Acts, and the testimony of Peter in 2 Peter 3:15-16 which by the way was indeed written by Peter, again, regardless of the opinions of critical scholarship. Paul was appointed by the Lord to take the gospel to the Gentiles. And this he did faithfully. At the end of his life he was able to say,
''I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.'' 2 Timothy 4:7-8.
That fits with one of those ten bullets...
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