Why was Paul called the apostle to the Gentiles?

Answer

Paul refers to himself as “the apostle to the Gentiles” in Romans 11:13. While Paul did preach to the Jews, his usual practice was to start preaching in the synagogue when he arrived in a new city “and Paul, as his custom was, went in unto them, and for three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures,” (Acts 17:2). Although other apostles also preached to Gentiles (see Acts 10), Paul’s ministry among them was distinct. His mission was to spread the gospel to the Gentiles: “He appointed me as a servant of Christ Jesus for the Gentiles, to minister the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an acceptable offering, sanctified by the Holy Spirit” “that I should be the minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, ministering the gospel of God, that the offering up of the Gentiles might be acceptable, being sanctified by the Holy Ghost.”, (Romans 15:16, CEV).

Paul was chosen by God to be the apostle to the Gentiles. Jesus Himself revealed that Paul had a specific mission: “This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel” “But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel.”, (Acts 9:15). Paul was set apart from birth and called by God’s grace to “preach [Christ] among the Gentiles” (Galatians 1:15-16).

Paul became the apostle to the Gentiles becauseThe majority of his ministry was spent in pagan lands establishing churches among the Gentiles. Paul was the first to proclaim the gospel on European soil. His three missionary journeys took him far from Jewish territories to Gentile regions where Diana, Zeus, and Apollo were worshipped, to Cyprus, to Athens, to Malta, and eventually to Rome. He also had a desire to preach in Spain «whenever I journey to Spain, I hope to visit you, and then to have you assist me on my journey there after I have enjoyed your company for a while. », (Romans 15:24), although it is uncertain if he ever reached that destination.

Paul was designated as the apostle to the Gentiles because he was entrusted to serve in Gentile regions. Paul’s mission was to proclaim “the boundless riches of Christ” to the Gentiles «To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ; », (Ephesians 3:8). While Peter focused on preaching to the Jews, Paul was tasked with preaching to the Gentiles: “God had entrusted me with the gospel for the uncircumcised, just as he had entrusted Peter with the gospel for the circumcised” «On the contrary, they recognized that I had been entrusted with the task of preaching the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been to the circumcised; », (Galatians 2:7, NLT).

Paul was highly qualified to be the apostle to the Gentiles. He was well-educated, having been thoroughly instructed in the Mosaic Law by Gamaliel «I am indeed a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city. I was educated at the feet of Gamaliel in strict conformity to the law of our fathers, ».

Paul was zealous toward God, as you all are today. », (Acts 22:3) He received a classical Roman education in Tarsus. He had the ability to argue his point from Jewish Law (Galatians 4:21-31) and to illustrate it from Greek literature (Acts 17:28;Titus 1:12;1 Corinthians 15:33). Paul’s training as a Pharisee «circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee; », (Philippians 3:5) allowed him access to synagogues everywhere. He also held the privileges of Roman citizenship, which opened doors of opportunity throughout the Roman world (Acts 22:3,25-29;28:30).

The Lord specifically chose Paul to be the apostle to the Gentiles to demonstrate that salvation is offered to all people. Ephesians 3:6 speaks of how Christ brings together both Gentile and Jew: “And this is God’s plan: Both Gentiles and Jews who believe the Good News share equally in the riches inherited by God’s children. Both are part of the same body, and both enjoy the promise of blessings because they belong to Christ Jesus” (NLT). May the Lord continue to reach people everywhere for His glory, and may we display Paul’s willingness to go wherever God calls us.