The Historical Jesus and Paul’s Letters
Many Skeptics have taken the position that Paul was totally silent on Jesus being a historical person and therefore Jesus is just a myth like the many god-myths of the pagan mystery religions. But if they just took a closer look at his letters that he wrote, I believe they would have to rethink their position on Jesus as a person of History. I will be covering three aspects of Paul letters concerning the historical Jesus. Let’s see what Paul has to say about Jesus in his letters:
Paul in his letters describes Jesus as a real historical person:
Romans 1:3 — Jesus was a direct descendant of King David
Romans 4:25 — Paul speaks of Jesus’ death
Romans 6:6 — Jesus was crucified
Romans 8:3 — Jesus was sent in flesh like ours
Romans 9:5 — Jesus was an Israelite (see also Galatians 3:16)
Romans 15:3 — Jesus didn’t act on his own behalf, but was accused by others
Romans 15:8 — Jesus ministered among the Jews
1 Corinthians 2:8 — The death of Jesus was at the hands of earthly rulers
1 Corinthians 5:7 — Jesus’ death was related to the Passover Celebration
1 Corinthians 11:23-25 — Jesus was betrayed on the night of the Lord’s Supper
1 Corinthians 15:4 — Jesus was physically buried
1 Corinthians 15:5 — Jesus had twelve disciples
2 Corinthians 8:9 — Jesus was poor
2 Corinthians 10:1 — Jesus acted with meekness and gentleness
2 Corinthians 13:4 — Jesus died by crucifixion
Galatians 1:19 — Jesus had a brother by the name of James (see also 1 Corinthians 15:7)
Galatians 4:4 — Jesus was born in human fashion, under the Law of Moses
Philippians 2:7-8 — Jesus became a human being and died a death on a cross
1 Thessalonians 2:14-15 — Jesus’ death was brought about by Jewish leadership
Paul in his letters describes many of Jesus teachings:
Romans 13:6-7 — Paying taxes (see Matthew 17:25; 22:21; Luke 20:22)
Romans 13:9 — We are to love our neighbors as ourselves (see Matthew 19:19)
Romans 14:14 — Ceremonial cleanliness (see Mark 7:1-5)
1 Corinthians 7:10-11 — Divorce and remarriage (see Matthew 5:32; Mark 10:11;
Luke 16:18)
Corinthians 11:23-25 — Paul refers to Jesus last supper (see Matthew 26:26-28; Mark 14:22-24; Luke 22:19-20)
1 Corinthians 9:14 — Ministers being paid wages (see Matthew 10:10; Luke 10:7)
Galatians 4:6; Romans 8:15 — Paul prayed to God using the term “Abba” (see Mark 14:36)
1 Thessalonians 5:2-11 — Jesus’ second coming would be like the thief in the night (see Matthew 24:43; Luke 12:39)
Paul in his letters describes meeting with people who knew Jesus in the year 36 AD:
Jesus’ death by crucifixion was in the year 33 AD. When Paul wrote his first letter to the church at Corinth in 54 AD, he had previously started this church in 50 AD. In this letter he used the phrase “For I passed on to you as most important what I also received” (1 Corinthians 15:3). Where did Paul receive this teaching to pass on to the Corinthians? We know that Paul’s conversion (Acts 9:1-9) was in 33/34 AD, and then in 36 AD he goes to Jerusalem and sees Peter (Cephas), and James, the brother of Jesus. Paul spends 15 days with those who knew Jesus in the flesh and his teaching (Galatians 1:18-19). This happens just three years after Jesus’ crucifixion. Paul was once the avowed enemy of all Christians, now fellowships with those who knew the historical Jesus and his teaching. Paul relays this teaching that he has received to the Corinthian church:
“For I passed on to you as most important what I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve. Then He appeared to over 500 brothers at one time, most of whom remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. Then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one abnormally born, He also appeared to me. For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by God’s grace I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not ineffective. However, I worked more than any of them, yet not I, but God’s grace that was with me. Therefore, whether it is I or they, so we preach and so you have believed.”
(1 Corinthians 15:3-11)
Paul’s mentioned letters are dated very early, earlier than the Four Gospels: Romans: 56-57 AD; 1 Corinthians: 54 AD; 2 Corinthians: 55 AD; Galatians: 48-49 AD; Philippians: 61 AD; and 1 Thessalonians: 50 AD. Paul’s letters are considered as one of the primary evidences for the historical Jesus. This is the first in series of posts about the Historical Jesus.
Further Resources:
The Jesus Legend By Gregory Boyd and Paul Eddy
Paul: Follower of Jesus or Founder of Christianity? By David Wenham
What Saint Paul Really Said: Was Paul of Tarsus the Real Founder of Christianity? By N. T. Wright
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