One of the greatest logical explanations of why Christ had to be who he says he was is the story of Saul, who we know as the Apostle Paul.
1.) Now Paul was a Pharisee and educated by some of the greatest teachers of his time. Paul say’s of himself, that he was a Pharisee of all Pharisees, looking to preserve the Jewish Law above all else. His original name was Saul, and as a young man he stood and held the coats of those who were stoning Stephen, the first recorded martyr of the New Testament, other than Christ of coarse. The scripture is clear that Paul (then known as Saul) approved of Stephens death!
First introduced in Acts 7:57-60, “And Saul was there giving approval to his death”, (which referred to the stoning of Stephen)
2.) In Acts 8:3 it says, “But Saul began to destroy the church, going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison.
3.) In Acts Chapter 9 it says in verse 1, “Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lords Disciples. He went to the High Priest and ask him for letters to the Synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem.”
4.) In verses 3-19 it tells the story of Sauls encounter with Christ through a light from Heaven that flashed around him – blinding him. Christ spoke to Saul asking why he was persecuting Him to which Saul replied, “Who are you Lord?”, and Christ answered saying, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,”..
5.) After reading chapters 8 & 9, before verse 3, it was clear that Saul hated the Christians and obviously believed this new Faith was undermining the Jewish Heritage, to the point he was literally dragging men and women from their homes and imprisoning those who professed to be followers of this Jesus. Now go to 2nd Corinthians, Chapter 11 and read verses 23 thru 28. After reading those verses, consider the severity of things Paul endured for the same Gospel that he had been so zealous to destroy.
23 Are they servants of Christ? (I am out of my mind to talk like this.) I am more. I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. 24 Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, 26 I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. 27 I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. 28 Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches.
2 Corinthians 11:23-28 NIV
The same man who had been destroying the church was willing to suffer all those hardships, imprisonments, and the same 39 lashes that Christ had suffered before being taken to the cross, but Paul received that punishment 5 times before finally being beheaded in Rome. A significant amount of Paul’s New Testament writings we’re letters he wrote from the prison in Rome, while awaiting his death! And still telling everyone he could about Jesus Christ. In his letter to the Philippians, he even said he was blessed to be chained to Roman Soldiers daily because it was resulting in the knowledge of Jesus Christ being spread throughout the Palace of Caesar.
For the record, Paul described the torture of being whipped on 5 separate occasions as 40 lashes minus one. That was significant because at 40 lashes, it was considered so horrific that it would result in the prisoners death, thus given the title of 40 lashes minus one (just sparing the prisoners life). And the same man, the Pharisee of all Pharisees, who was once doing everything within his power to destroy the church, endured that punishment 5 times throughout his ministry for the sake of the same Gospel he had so hated.
6.) We know these people existed and these events took place in history, but realistically, we can’t prove that Jesus Christ actually spoke to Saul thru a bright light from heaven, nor that Christ was who he claimed to be, the Son of God and the Savior of the World.
My Question is one of simple logic: Why would any man that hated the followers of Christ so much, ever have taken such brutal beatings and sufferings for the sake of the same Jesus he had been persecuting?
The only logical explanation is that he had to have truly met Christ on that road to Damascus! An event that Paul proclaimed throughout the rest of his life, all the way to his being beheaded in Rome for that very truth. I think it’s important to realize that at any time up to his death by beheading, as with most all the Apostles, Paul likely could have recanted his story and spared his life, but remarkably, Philippians 1:20-21 records these words from Paul’s letter to the church at Philippi:
20 according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will not be put to shame in anything, but that with all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.
To Live Is Christ
21 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.
I think it’s reasonable to say that for Paul to have made such a change in his life, the only logical conclusion is that he had to have met Christ on that road to Damascus exactly as he described, there is no other logical explanation!
People may ask why I believe in what the majority of people in this world believe is irrational and illogical; First I have to say that I too met Jesus Christ, not in such a dramatic way, but the result was the same certainty and assurance Paul had experienced. But beyond that personal experience, I have come to understand over the years that believing in Christ and the Bible, even the Biblical explanation of The Creation, is not illogical at all, but rather the only logical explanation of life, and it is those who are willing to accept any explanation to avoid having to acknowledge that God exists, who are the most illogical and irrational in their thinking!
I truly hope that something I have said helps in some way for those struggling to believe!
In Christ, Richard Humble