The Apostle Paul is a major figure in the New Testament. In fact, in the book of Acts he could be called the predominant character, his life providing the greatest drama and action.
There are also all the letters, or epistles, of Paul, comprising perhaps the most influential teachings on Christianity after the teachings of the Master, Christ Jesus himself. In his establishing and encouraging of the early Christian churches, Paul showed single-minded vision and spiritual energy in obedience to Christ Jesus' commission "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature."Mark 16:15. Paul is such a remarkable figure that it is difficult to imagine the New Testament without him.
But there is an almost unrecognized Christian we owe so much to for what we have in Paul. This less-known man made a quiet decision to be obedient to God, and in so doing, he played an essential part in enabling the blind and confused terror-of-a-man named Saul of Tarsus to be transformed forever from the Church's worst enemy into its greatest champion.
