Ep.1406: Was Paul an Imposter Apostle or Appointed by Jesus?
Handling several objections to Paul’s appointment as the 12th Apostle
CHAPTERS
Theme Scripture: 1 Timothy 1:1
The Apostle Paul wrote a significant portion of the New Testament. There are 27 different books in the New Testament, and Paul is credited with writing about half of them. For the vast majority of Christians, his writings provide extremely practical teachings and examples for us to build upon the single and solid foundation of Jesus Christ. That being said, there are some Christians who believe Paul was an imposter, a self-appointed apostle who was actually diminishing the power of the Gospel of Jesus. What would make someone question the validity of Pauls’ writings? It turns out there are several varied reasons for this perspective. The question is, are they legitimate and what do they imply?
A major challenge
One of several major challenges to Paul’s apostleship we confront in this episode is that Paul never listed the Ten Commandments in full. While true, this actually mirrors Jesus’ own approach. Neither quoted them entirely but both emphasized their moral essence. Paul affirmed many commandments individually: he quoted the Fifth in Ephesians 6:1–3 and referenced the Sixth, Seventh, Eight and Tenth in Romans 13:9. He also implied the First and Second in Acts 17 and taught truthfulness in Ephesians 4:25, echoing the Ninth. Though he never explicitly cited the Third (against taking God’s name in vain), neither did Jesus, although reverence for God’s name was clearly implied.
Another objection
Another objection claims Paul’s stance on circumcision contradicts Jesus. A key point about Paul’s teaching in Galatians 5 is that he opposed legalism, not circumcision itself. He warned against using rituals for justification, emphasizing that salvation comes through Christ alone. Paul even had Timothy circumcised—not for salvation, but to aid in the ministry work among Jews.
Further objections—such as the claim that all churches in the Roman province of Asia rejected Paul (2 Timothy 1:15) or that Revelation 2:2 denounces him can easily be answered by contextual study. Such study reveals that Paul’s abandonment was due to shame over his imprisonment, not doctrinal rejection. The denouncing of false apostles in Revelation clearly refers to later imposters, and not Paul himself.
Ultimately, Paul’s gospel is given to complement Jesus’ message, as it is tailored for Gentile audiences unfamiliar with Jewish law. His teachings emphasized love, transformation and Christ-centered righteousness, not ritual observance. Scriptural evidence clearly points to Paul as a faithful apostle, not an imposter.
From the title, I assumed this might be a real evaluation of Saul/Paul’s teaching. You might call Saul who changed his own name to Paul, you may call him a disciple, but he wasn’t an apostle.
Saul who changed his name to Paul never spent time with Jesus. There is no evidence other than Paul’s own discussion,, which he’s famous for discussing things about himself, that he was dispatched by Jesus. It’s significant that there’s no other backup in the Bible to authenticate that, Of course other than Paul’s own words.
So why one very well call Saul who changed his name to Paul, a disciple of Christ. Just as you and I are, he cannot be called an Apostle of Christ
Every apostle was a disciple,
but not every disciple was an apostle.
Thank you for taking the time to comment. Hopefully you will have a chance to listen to the whole episode. Paul has the confirming authority of Luke writing in Acts 9:13-17, confirming the eyewitness account of Ananias, and the Apostle Peter in 2 Peter 3:15-16 referring to what Paul wrote as “Scripture.” – Christian Questions