Marketing with the Apostle Paul: About His Life and Influence


	Paul's Life and Influence

		To gain a better understanding of Paul's marketing techniques and his impact on the world, it is imperative to learn more about the man himself. Paul's Life \| His Influence

	Paul's Life Originally named Saul, born in Tarsus, Cilicia, he did not come to Jerusalem until after Jesus was crucified. He never met Jesus. He is hired by the Temple’s Security Force as a goon. He is a strong-arm person who goes around Jerusalem beating up Jesus Movement Jews and fellow travelers. Is so good at finding Movement members that he is put on temple travel orders and sent to Damascus to find many who fled to there. The trip by foot is a little over 150 miles. While on the road, without warning, he is struck blind and hears voices no one else hears. Companions take him into Damascus where he is baptized. He then goes alone into “Arabia” to meditate. There God reveals himself and gives Paul a mission to preach to the world about Jesus Christ. After about three years, he goes back to Jerusalem. He hooks up with Barnabas who is his patron and introduces him to the leaders of the movement. The leaders are trying to maintain a low profile but Paul insists on taking everything to the streets. He quickly wears out his welcome. The leaders put up the money and ship him back to his home town of Tarsus. Some time later, the brethren send Barnabas to Antioch to bring some semblance of order to the Antioch Church. Quickly he realizes the job is too big for one person so he sets out for Tarsus to find Paul and bring him back to Antioch. They work in the Antioch Church until the Holy Spirit reveals they are to make a missionary journey. Nothing goes right on this trip and they are taunted, maligned, attacked, stoned and left for dead before beating a retreat to Antioch. They get back to Antioch and continue to work in the Antioch Church. Paul puts together a plan to market the movement to Gentiles. He and Barnabas plan to do this trip together but at the last minute they have a quarrel that ends their friendship. Paul leaves in on the trip in 46 CE and goes north with Silas. He, Silas and Timothy work this strategically planned marketing campaign and “second missionary” journey across the province of Asia and end up in Corinth. The city is unbelievably wicked and evil. It is so disgusting the Greeks had a verb “to Corinth.” It meant to live a wanton, degrading and lewd life. Paul had established house churches in and around the Aegean Sea. In 51 CE, he returns to Jerusalem, completing the marketing campaign. Shortly after his return, he sets out a follow up trip that is actually an inspection to find out how the converts are doing. He follow-ups by teaching, preaching and counseling the faithful. Again, he ends up in Corinth From Corinth he first returns to Jerusalem in 56 CE. He is the object of a Temple riot and the Roman military police take him into protective custody. After hearings before Jewish Temple and Roman officials, the Romans send him down to Caesarea for safekeeping. There before the King Agrippa claims Roman citizenship and demands to appeal his case to Caesar as is his right. The government sends him under guard to Rome but the ship sinks and after spending the winter on an island. He reaches Rome the next summer, lives there for a while, and the story fades out. His Influence Paul was preaching before the first gospels were written. He established redemption by faith, the ending of the old Law of Moses, and the beginning of the age of the Spirit. He also establishes the Movement in the form as church as the mystical body of Christ, that Christians live in Christ and are transformed at the final resurrection. Paul’s influence is felt through such figures as Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Luther and Calvin. The influence continues today in home group bible study of the faithful.