Paul and James: Backgrounds (Paul)

Paul wrote the letter to the Galatians (Gal. 1:1); very few students of the Bible, if any, contest this authorship. Galatia was a region east of the Roman Empire's province of Asia, in what is now part of modern Turkey. Paul, as an apostle (or envoy) of Christ, with an entourage including a fellow apostle, Barnabas, preached throughout Galatia during his "first" missionary travel. Acts 13-14. Paul and his group went to the cities of Perga, Antioch of Pisidia, Iconium, Lystra, Derbe, Attalia (cities belonging to provinces or districts associated with Galatia including Pamphylia, Pisidia, and Lycaonia). Paul would visit these cities again in the time to come, some of them several times in his "second" and "third" missions. Acts 16:1-6; 18:23. These travels eventually led him as far as Rome, and perhaps even to his desired destination, Spain (for which travel there is no evidence). Acts 28:16ff.; cf. Rom. 15:23-24.

"Paul" was his gentile (Roman) name; his heritage name was Saul. By his admission, he was Jewish, from the tribe of Benjamin, raised to follow Jewish customs and law as practiced among Jews in the Roman colony of Tarsus, one of the great cities of the Empire, in Cilicia. Philp. 3:5. His advanced studies took place under Gamaliel's school in Jerusalem, where he become exceedingly active among the sect of the Pharisees. Acts 22:3; 23:6; cf. Gal. 1:14. As a young man (Acts 7:58), his commitment to the Jewish law and to his cultural customs led him to persecute violently fellow Jews, men and women, who had come to believe Jesus was the Messiah, that is, that God had anointed or appointed Jesus as his unique son, raising him from the dead. Acts 8:3; 9:2. Paul intended to destroy the community of such believers altogether. Acts 26:10-11; Gal. 1:13.

While on mission from the priestly authorities in Jerusalem to imprison believers, he had a vision of a living Jesus. Acts 9:3ff.; 26:10ff. He received new instructions for his life's work, namely, to advance belief in Jesus as the Messiah, not only as savior and lord of his cultural and religious compatriots, but also of all nations, of the gentiles. This was God's special revelation to him. Acts 9:15; 17:21; 26:15-18; Rom. 1:5; Gal. 1:12, 15-16. He became a believer, and committed the rest of his life as a servant of Christ (Greek term for messiah) to pursue the goal of advancing the message that Jesus is Lord and Christ, that God would judge the world through Jesus, evidenced by raising him from the dead. Acts 17:31; Rom. 1:4; 2:16; 2 Tim. 4:1. Acts indicates that he continued preaching and teaching through his internment in Rome. Acts 28:31. Nothing more is known of him with any certainty, late tradition speaks of a martyrdom in Rome.

So, Paul was a Jew who believed that Jesus is the Christ, was committed to preaching that truth and its implications (the gospel, or good news) for living lives accountable to God. Appointed by Christ to proclaim the gospel, he traveled extensively, whether supported financially by others or by his own tent-making trade. 1 Cor. 9:14-15; Phlp. 4:15-16; Acts 18:3. He often wrote letters to the communities where he had previously preached to encourage disheartened believers, to correct mistaken notions, and to call for right living empowered by God's Spirit. His letter to the Galatians has a view to all three of these purposes.