The Apostle Paul is purported to have written thirteen letters which have become a very central part of our New Testament scriptures. Not all scholars believe that Paul actually wrote all those letters, but they are at least attributed to him in some way or other. Scholars, in fact, have a lot to say about the Apostle Paul’s letters….a LOT to say! Hundreds of thousands, even millions of pages of student and scholarly work have been written about the Apostle Paul and his letters. Many millions of dollars have been spent researching and studying the Apostle Paul’s letters. Many millions of hours have been spent teaching the Apostle Paul’s letters. I have written many letters in my own time, but who would give a rip? Why does the Apostle Paul get all the attention? Why are so many people interested in studying what he wrote to other people? Was he such a clever writer? Did he offer a new morality that people had never heard of before? Was he a charismatic leader who gained a cult following?
Some people say that the Apostle Paul is actually the founder of Christianity. According to these critics, Jesus preached about God and Paul preached about Jesus. Therefore, Paul preached a different message than Jesus and turned Jesus into a figure that he himself never intended to be.
Some people believe that the Apostle Paul was a renegade Jew who left Judaism to become a Christian. Other people say that the Apostle Paul was a severe rabbi who turned Jesus’ message of love into the dogma of doctrine and gave followers of Jesus many new rules that they had to follow.
Why are people so concerned about who the Apostle Paul really was and what he really said?
I believe that the answer to why the Apostle Paul was and is such a controversial figure is not because he was teaching a new morality, nor because he was inventing a new religion. The Apostle Paul was and is controversial because he was proclaiming a new gospel and spelling out its’ ramifications. And by “a new gospel”, I don’t mean to say that Paul was presenting a new belief system for how one gets to heaven, nor was he offering people advice on how to order their spiritual lives. The Apostle Paul was declaring news about something that has happened, whether you believe it or not. After all, the Greek word “Evangelion” which is translated into our word “gospel”, does not mean “good advice” but rather, “good news”. The Apostle Paul is proclaiming the “news” that the long awaited climax of the story of Israel, the world, and the Creator God has been unveiled in the surprising death and resurrection of Jesus. He is announcing that, because of the resurrection of Jesus, Jesus Himself has become the new Lord of the world. That isn’t advice; that’s news!
Paul, in other words, is central, controversial and important because Jesus is central, controversial, and important. What you think about the Apostle Paul and what you think about Jesus are inseparably connected. Some people would like to take Jesus and leave Paul in the dust, but I am afraid that is only because they haven’t really known nor understood either one.  The Gospel writers give us a picture of the life and work of Jesus and the Apostle Paul (along with the other New Testament writers) articulates what it all means for Israel and the world. I love the letters that the Apostle Paul wrote because they help me understand, appreciate, celebrate and appropriate (apply) the work that Jesus has accomplished through his death and resurrection.
Say what you like about the Apostle Paul, agree or disagree with scholarship, the bottom line is that these letters would have never gotten the attention they have received and are in fact still receiving unless that are deeply important to the human race and to the world.