Since everything that Paul did was an outward manifestation of the internal mission that was birthed in him on the road to Damascus, our journey through the apostle’s life has helped us isolate a number of the things that caused his life to be one of maximum impact:
1. Picking strategic cities for his ministry
2. Exercising of spiritual weapons to confront the forces of evil head-on and free the minds of men to hear and understand the gospel
3. Ministering the gospel to people in positions of authority as a way of bringing its influence into a community from the top down
4. Preaching to the Jews first as a way of starting with the religious community that already has some awareness of the scripture
5. Being willing to put his own life on the line for the gospel
6. Demonstrating the gospel with healings and signs and wonders
7. Praising in the midst of trouble as the way to open doors of deliverance
8. Obeying the civil authorities
9. Caring for the churches
10.Mentoring disciples
11. Being filled with Holy Spirit
12. Partnering with other believers
13. Following God’s directions – even if they lead into danger
Most of the items on this list are actually self-explanatory from the context in which they appeared; however, I’d like to pull out just a few of the points for a little further review.
The first item on our list is that he strategically focused his ministry in significant cities. Even a cursory review of the notions made after the mention of all the cities Paul visited shows us that he never targeted the boondocks or backwater communities – not because the people there didn’t need his gospel, but because he was determined to make maximum impact. Having grown up in Tarsus, which we know was “no mean city,” and Jerusalem, the physical capital of the Jews and spiritual capital of the whole world – Paul was familiar with the significance of power centers. These political, cultural, business, educational, and religious centers of a nation attract the brightest minds, most adventurous spirits, and forward-thinking individuals who will launch out from these power bases to do business, spread ideas, and develop culture through their entire sphere of influence – including all the boondocks and backwater communities. Certainly it was because of this understanding that he understood the necessity of keeping the gospel from reaching Damascus. He knew that it would be impossible to squelch the movement once infected the bloodstream of the empire through the trade routes that interconnected in Damascus. Paul’s conversion radically changed his theology – but not his methodology. Now, rather than taking the nip-it-in-the-bud approach, he saw the flip side of the coin – pollinate the power centers of the community so that they can then cross-pollinate and proliferate the gospel with maximum impact! Of course, the ultimate goal of this strategy was to infuse the gospel into Rome – the ultimate power base of the world – and from there to spread the seed of the gospel as far as Spain – the ultimate reachable limit of the world at that time. Significantly, even though Paul was not the first one to reach Rome with the gospel, he did give the church there an epistle in which he gave his finest expose of the gospel so that as they cross-pollinated the world they would do so with his DNA. Thus, he was able to make maximum impact – even before he personally set foot in the city!
One of the items on this list that might seem a bit foreign to us was Paul’s insistence on living according the laws of the land – even though the government might be hostile to the gospel. In fact, he even defined the government officials as ministers of God. (Romans 13:4) When Paul was arrested and threatened with beating, he took advantage of every right and privilege he had as a Roman citizen. (Acts 22:25) When there was a conspiracy against his life, Paul used his status under the Roman legal system for his protection. (Acts 23:17) When he realized that extradition to Jerusalem would seal his doom, the apostle exercised his legal right of appeal to ensure that he not fall into the deathtrap set for him by the Jewish officials. (Acts 25:11) So, we see that Paul did not see himself as an enemy of the state or the state as his adversary. In fact, even when the government had imprisoned him and was ready to execute him, Paul seemed to say that even their act of killing him would be a fulfillment of God’s will and, therefore, a blessing to him. (Philippians 1:21) He even served as a divine advisor to the government on at least one occasion (Acts 27:9-10); even though they refused his advice, they soon discovered that his instructions were beneficial and crucial to their very lives (Acts 27:21-44). Because Paul held no malice against the Roman government even though they were oppressing and persecuting believers, he was able to receive benefits from the government and give his blessing to it.
Another aspect of Paul’s methodology was his constant concern for the churches. In fact, Paul was consumed with his love for the churches. Reading the introductions to his letters gives us a glimpse into his never-ending concern for the saints. To the Corinthians, he wrote, “I thank my God always on your behalf.” To the Philippians, he said, “I thank my God upon every remembrance of you.” He addressed the Colossians, “We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you.” His greeting to the Thessalonian church read, “We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers.” Timothy he addressed as “my own son in the faith” and “my dearly beloved son” and went on to say, “I thank God, whom I serve from my forefathers with pure conscience, that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day.” Titus also received the loving salutation of “mine own son after the common faith.” In writing to Philemon, Paul also addressed Apphia whom he called “beloved” and then wrote, “I thank my God, making mention of thee always in my prayers.” From these opening lines, we are able to get a glimpse inside the heart of the great Christian leader. His converts were never out of his heart and mind. No matter how many miles and how many years separated them, these loved ones were always in Paul’s prayers. But it is in his greeting to the church at Rome that we are able to really see what is in the heart of this great minister of God. These believers he addressed as “beloved” even though he did not personally know them. They were part of the Body of Christ, so he loved them intently – even without a direct relationship. Paul had a heart of unceasing love and concern for the Body of Christ, whether personal friend or total stranger. In II Corinthians chapter eleven, Paul graphically illustrated how heavily the burden of love for the church weighed upon his heart. Here, he described the physical difficulties he endured for the gospel’s sake: beatings, imprisonments, shipwrecks, long journeys, plots against his life, attacks of wild beasts, assaults by robbers, hunger, exposure, and being stoned to the point of death. Yet he concluded this list with, “Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches.” (verse 28) Here he seems to say that the inner burden he carried for the churches exceeded the physical burdens that had been hurled upon him externally.
This is the life of a man who can – and did – make maximum impact!