1. Adult Bible Study Guide Jul Aug Sep 2015 Adult Bible Study Guide Jul Aug Sep 2015 powerpoint presentation designed by claro ruiz vicente http://clarovicente.weebly.com

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4. Biblical Missionaries Our Goal We will look at mission first and foremost as God’s means for commu- nicating the gospel. Mission is a core part of God’s sovereign activity in the process of redeeming humanity. We will study how God’s eternal purpose has been accomplished in the lives of individuals in the Bible whom He has used to be missionaries to the lost.

5. Biblical Missionaries Contents 1 The Missionary Nature of God 2 Abraham: The First Missionary 3 The Unlikely Missionary 4 The Jonah Saga 5 Exiles as Missionaries 6 Esther and Mordecai 7 Jesus: The Master of Missions 8 Cross-Cultural Missions 9 Peter and the Gentiles 10 Philip as Missionary 11 Paul: Background and Call 12 Paul: Mission and Message 13 Must the Whole World Hear?

6. Biblical Missionaries Lesson 11, September 12 Biblical Missionaries Lesson 11, September 12 Paul: Background and Call

7. Paul: Background and Call Key Text Acts 9:15, 16 NIV “ But the Lord said to Ananias, ‘Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.’ ”

8. Paul: Background and Call Quick Look 1. Paul, the Man (Acts 13:9, 10) 2. Paul and the Mission (Acts 26:16-18) 3. Paul and Multiculturalism (Galatians 2:11-14)

9. Paul: Background and Call Initial Words M ORE is known about Paul than any other first-century Christian. He is especially remembered for his significant contri- butions that have influenced Christian outreach during the past two millennia. His missionary visits and activities to the nations around the Mediterranean Sea set a powerful example for Christian missions in coming generations.

10. Paul: Background and Call 1. Paul, the Man Acts 13:9, 10 NKJV “Then Saul, who also is called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him and said, ‘O full of all deceit, and all fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord?’ ”

11. 1. Paul, the Man Saul of Tarsus Saul’s parents were Diaspora Jews from the tribe of Benjamin. Also, since he was a Pharisee, Paul probably had a wife, though we know nothing about her. In fact, we don’t know much about his family at all, though a sister and a nephew are mentioned (Acts 23:16). Paul was also a Roman citizen (22:25– 28).

12. 1. Paul, the Man Saul of Tarsus Saul was probably educated in a synagogue school in Tarsus until 12 years of age, followed by rabbinic study in Jerusalem with the famous Rabban Gamaliel (vs. 3). Like most Jewish males, he learned a trade—in his case, tent making (18:3).

13. 1. Paul, the Man Saul of Tarsus The Pharisees insisted that all the laws of God, both those written in the books of Moses, as well as those handed down verbally by generations of scribes, were binding on all Jews. This could make them appear hypocritical and judgmental. Paul, however, did not hide the fact that he and his father were Pharisees (23:6).

14. 1. Paul, the Man Saul of Tarsus Paul’s pharisaic background was an important element in his successful missionary work for both Jews and Gentiles. It equipped him with detailed knowledge of the Old Testament, the only Scriptures available to early Christians. It also acquainted him with the scribal additions to, and expansions of, the Old Testament laws.

15. 1. Paul, the Man Saul of Tarsus He was thus the apostle best qualified to discern between timeless, Scripture-based divine absolutes on the one hand and later Jewish cultural additions, which were not binding, and which therefore could be ignored by Gentile followers of Jesus.

16. 1. Paul, the Man From Saul to Paul Paul was clearly a man of great conviction and zeal. He used his zeal to persecute the early church. Paul’s zeal showed as he dedicated his life to the preaching of the gospel, despite incredible hardships and challenges. Paul was also a humble man.

17. Paul: Background and Call 2. Paul and the Mission Acts 26:16-18 NKJV “ ‘I appeared to you...to make you a minister and a witness.... I will deliver you from...the Gentiles, to whom I now send you, to open their eyes and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance....’ ”

18. 2. Paul and the Mission Results of Authentic Missionary Work 1. Open people’s eyes. Make God and Jesus real, present, active, and appealing. 2. Move from darkness to light, ignorance to knowledge—a core gospel theme. (see Luke 1:78, 79). 3. Turn from the power of Satan to God.

19. 2. Paul and the Mission Results of Authentic Missionary Work 4. Receive forgiveness of sins. The problem of sin has a solution. This is the living, healing, core message of Christians. 5. Receive a place among the sanctified, this means membership in God’s church, regardless of ethnicity, gender, or nationality.

20. 2. Paul and the Mission Three Elements of Paul’s Work 1. Proclaiming Jesus. No matter where he went, the preaching of Christ and Him crucified was central to his message. 2. Planting Church. Central to his work was to raise up churches, to start Christian communities region by region throughout his part of the world wherever he could.

21. 2. Paul and the Mission Three Elements of Paul’s Work 3. Nurturing Churches. Many of his letters were written to established church communities. In other words, included in Paul’s missionary endeavors was the work of pastoral care, edification, and nurturing the churches.

22. Paul: Background and Call 3. Paul and Multiculturalism Galatians 2:11-14 NKJV “When Peter came to Antioch, I withstood him to his face...for before certain men came from James, he would eat with the Gentiles, but when they came, he withdrew and separated himself.... I said to Peter.... ‘If you, being a Jew, live in the manner of Gentiles and not as Jew, why do you compel Gentiles to live as Jews?’ ”

23. 3. Paul and Multiculturalism Jew/Gentile Divide For For many ancient peoples, there were only two categories of humanity—us and them, our tribe and not our tribe. For Greeks, all non-Greeks were “barbarians.” For Jews, all non-Jews were “Gentiles.”

24. 3. Paul and Multiculturalism Jew/Gentile Divide As we have seen already, the success of the Gentile mission forced the infant church and its leaders to deal with the Jew/Gentile divide. The question, at heart, was whether a Gentile could become a Christian without first becoming a Jew.

25. 3. Paul and Multiculturalism Jew/Gentile Divide Paul faced the issue with Peter and took a firm stand for what today could be called a multicultural church. Paul’s complex background eminently qualified him to distinguish timeless, unchanging divine absolutes on one hand and their temporary cultural and religious vehicles on the other.

26. Paul: Background and Call Final Words Modern missiology applies the term “contextualization” to Paul’s mission methods. Contextualization is defined as “attempts to communicate the Gospel and to establish the church in ways that make sense to people within their local cultural context...thus allowing them to follow Christ and remain within their own culture.” —Darrell L. Whiteman “Contextualization: The Theory, the Gap, the Challenge,” International Bulletin of Missionary Research 21:2.