Part 2 Early Christians
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Part1EarlyChristianChurch.docxRunning Head: EARLY CHRISTIAN CHURCH DRAFT 1
EARLY CHRISTIAN CHURCH DRAFT 2
Who started the Christian Church – Jesus or Paul?
Jhantiana Harris
3/27/20
Introduction
The history of Christianity is majorly concerned with the Christendom, Christian religion and the church in companion with all its various denominations from the 1st century to the present. There has being wide debate, several documentations and journals printed to support the debate on the issue of Christianity origin. From my point of view and the deep understanding on Christianity, its origin traces back from the ministry of Jesus in the 1st Century Roman province of Judea. According to the Gospels, Jesus was a teacher to Jews and a healer. Jesus proclaimed the imminent kingdom of God .He was crucified at 33AD.The Christ’s followers believe that after three days he was raised back to life and thereafter, exalted by God. Christ’s followers believe that he would return soon to take God’s kingdom (Royalty, 2013). .
A Christian church refers to a protestant ecclesiological term. The term protestant is majorly used to refer to the invisible church comprising of all the Christians. Christianity is also a different term used to address all those who believed in the gospel of Jesus Christ. Christians believe in the four gospel books that gives the teachings of Jesus, his life on the earth and His ministry. Many people have battled with the question “Who started the Christian Church –Jesus or Paul?” In answering this question it is essential to answer these three questions which will help us get to the final answer. These questions are;
a) Who was Jesus in the early church?
b) Who is Paul in the Christian church?
c) When did Christianity start and between Jesus and Paul, who is the founder of the Christian name?
Before answering these three questions, it is very important to note that, between Jesus and Paul, Paul came before Jesus. Paul came to make a way for the so called Messiah who in our context is Jesus. However, it can be inferred that Paul was born almost at the same times as Jesus rather a little later.
a) Who is Jesus Christ in the early Church?
Jesus who is also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth was a religious leader and a first-century Jewish preacher. He is the Central figure of Christianity. Many Christians believe that that Jesus is the incarnation of God the son and the awaited Messiah who is prophesied in the Old Testament. Jesus is the bridge between the Old Testament and the New Testament. His come was prophesied by many prophets in the Old Testament such as Isaiah, Psalmist among many other Old Testament. His birth was a fulfillment of the prophesies made by the prophets and came as a mediator and a reconciliatory (Bauckham, 2004). .
Jesus was a Galilean Jew who was baptized by John the Baptist and begun his own ministry. He spent his entire life in preaching and His ministry involved several actions including teaching of the word, performing miracles such as healing the sick, raising the dead back to life among others. He was arrested in the end of his ministry and tried by the Jewish authorities, turned over the Roman government, and later crucified as per Pontius Pilate order and the Roman perfect.
After Jesus death, his followers (Christians) believes that he raised from the dead, and the followers community became the early church that eventually formed after His ascending to heaven. All Christian doctrines has explanation based that Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit, he was born of virgin whose name was Mary. Of importance is that he performed miracles and founded the Christian Church. From the events that surrounded Jesus Christ it is clear that, right from His birth, ministry then cruxification and later resurrection, there was ‘supernatural powers’ that was working in him and he came with a purpose. This purpose as believed by Christians was that he came to introduce Christianity and he became the ambassador of the gospel. Jesus is also revered outside of Christianity like in Islam (Finegan, 2014).
b) Who is Paul in Early Church?
Paul the Apostle was originally called Saul of Tarsus. Of importance is that he was one of the leaders of the first generation of Christians. This clearly shows that Paul was a leader just after the introduction of Christianity by Jesus. Paul is considered the most important person after Jesus in the history of Christianity (Aageson, 2007). Another evident that Paul was the immediate successor of Jesus after introduction of Christianity is that he was a couple of years younger than Jesus. Scholars put it that the birth of Paul was between 2 to 6 years after the birth of Christ.
Paul is considered the most important person after Jesus in the history of Christianity. This is an indication the Paul the Apostle came to establish Christians on the gospel of Jesus after the foundation of Christianity by Jesus. He is known for his contribution in the Bible because he is considered to be the person who wrote the highest number of epistles and letter. The letters served to keep believers and faith establishment of the churches that Jesus had established. In addition, these letters were written to different churches which are clear indication the Christianity was already in existence, and his work was to teach them and remind them of the gospel of Christ (Schnabel, 2004).
In the history of Paul as portrayed in the Bible it clearly shows that in his youthful lifestyle, his trade was tent making which continued to practice after conversion to Christianity. The fact that he was converted to Christianity from the tent making skills is a clear indication that Paul was not the founder of Christianity but a convert. Moreover, he knew how to write and how to dictate in his own large letters like Galatians 6:11, though not in the small, neat letters of the professional scribe .Until about the midpoint of Paul’s life he was a member of Pharisee. Pharisees normally believed in life after death which was one of the deepest Paul’s convictions. By his account, Paul was the best Jew and one of the best Pharisees in his time; Philippians 3:4-6; Galatians 1:13-14, however, he claimed to be the least among the apostles 2nd Corinthians 11:22-23; 1 Corinthians 15:9-10 (Ludemann, 2010). All these are a clear indication that he had a religion before the foundation of Christianity hence he was not the founder.
c) When did Christianity start and between Jesus and Paul, who is the founder of the Christian name?
Christianity began in the 1st century AD after Jesus died. This shows that Jesus was the founder of Christianity. Christianity originated from the ministry of Jesus in the 1st century Roman province of Judea. From the ministry of Jesus Christ, Judea was key place since its where Christianity begun. From the ministry and the life of Jesus Christ it is clear that Jesus was the founder of Christianity. It was after the Cruxification, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ when the name Christianity begun. The name Christianity originated from the teachings of Jesus Christ. Christianity means that is a person who believes and practices the Christ teachings.
From the life history of Apostle Paul and Jesus Christ, a keen observation is that Jesus was the founder while Apostle Paul was the immediate religious leader after the foundation of Christianity. Apostle Paul came under God’s grace to establish Christianity and make Christians have a deeper understanding on the gospel and teachings of Jesus Christ. In other words, Paul was a convert to Christianity and had a deep understanding on the teachings of Christ.
Conclusion
From the illustrations on the history and life of Jesus and Paul it is clear that Jesus was the founder of Christianity. Paul was the immediate religious leader who had a deep understanding on the teaching of Jesus and therefore Paul took the mantle of spreading Christianity from Jesus who is the founder. Paul is the person who made Christianity to spread in all parts of the Roman Empire since Christianity came after Christ ascended to heaven. Paul contributed much on continuing the work of Jesus as he based his teachings on Christ doctrine. He also wrote many letters to churches as a guide as teachings on Christianity life.
References
Aageson, J. W. (2007). Paul, the Pastoral Epistles, and the Early Church (Library of Pauline Studies). Baker Books.
Bauckham, R. (2004). Jude and the Relatives of Jesus in the Early Church. A&C Black.
Finegan, J. (2014). The Archeology of the New Testament: The Life of Jesus and the Beginning of the Early Church-Revised Edition (Vol. 154). Princeton University Press.
Ludemann, G. (2010). Paul: the founder of Christianity. Prometheus Books.
Schnabel, E. J. (2004). Early Christian Mission: Paul & the Early Church (Vol. 2). InterVarsity Press.
Wright, N. T. (2014). What Saint Paul Really Said: Was Paul of Tarsus the Real Founder of Christianity?. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing.
Royalty, R. M. (2013). The Origin of Heresy: A History of Discourse in Second Temple Judaism and Early Christianity. Routledge.
