Paul

Paul the Apostle didn't spend his early career as either Paul or as an apostle. He was born into a devout Jewish family in the large Mediterranean trade center of Tarsus, one of the most prominent cities in Asia Minor. He was of the tribe of Benjamin and while he was still quite young he studied under Gamaliel, a very well respected rabbi.

He was known as Saul of Tarsus and, far from being a proponent of Christianity, Saul made it his mission to persecute and put to death early disciples of Jesus in the area of Jerusalem and beyond. He took part in the killing of the first Christian martyr, Stephen.

Although first Mary and then her fiancé, Joseph, were obedient to God and His will, it could not have been easy. They had to live with the fact that those around them would never likely believe their stories about why she was pregnant before marriage.

On one of his murderous missions, Saul was en route from Jerusalem to Damascus. He was intent on arresting Jesus followers in Damascus and bringing them back to Jerusalem. While on the road, Jesus himself appeared to him in a great light that left Saul blind for three days. Jesus asked Saul why he was persecuting him. When Saul asked who was addressing him, the answer was clear: "I am Jesus whom you persecute."

During his three days of blindness, Saul fasted from food and water and prayed a lot to God. The event converted Saul to belief in Christ. His sight was restored thanks to help from a believer called Ananias of Damascus who laid his hands on him and said that Jesus had sent him to restore Saul's sight and for him to be filled with the Holy Spirit. After his sight was restored, Paul was baptized by Ananias of Damascus.

The new convert switched sides and began to preach that Jesus of Nazareth was both the Jewish Messiah and the Son of God. The new apostle became known by his Roman name Paul as he spread the Christian message on many journeys.

Paul was extremely effective as an apostle and founded several churches both in Asia Minor and Europe over the course of three missionary journeys. As he was both a Jewish and a Roman citizen, Paul was able to leverage this status to reach both Jews and Roman citizens with the Christian message. He lived his life enthusiastically telling people of every culture and background about Jesus who had completely changed his life.