Paul’s Teachings and His Impact on Christianity

It is a widely accepted notion that Paul of Tarsus, a Christian teacher living from AD 4- 67, ultimately and significantly impacted Christianity's expression. Through his writings and beliefs, Paul has changed the spiritual dimension of Christianity in its entirety. Paul, originally a persecutor of Christians for the Roman Empire, received his conversion on the Road to Damascus. It is this that prompted his change of heart, and for his incessant preaching of the gospel.Perhaps driven by his former life, Paul preached the notion of love to all. â€Å"If I have no love, I am like a clanging gong,† he wrote in one of his epistles. In Galatians, Paul notes the importance of love as one of the ‘Fruits of the Spirit'. This devotion to loving one another impacted Christianity as previously, this idea had not been taught so prominently (except, obviously, by Christ). Paul taught that Christians were to, as Jesus taught and demonstrated by His death on the cross, love through all circumstances, as love â€Å"never fails†.This idea has led to the teaching, in many churches now, of adherents ‘becoming love', or becoming one with the qualities Paul so admired in the Saviour he worshipped. Secondly, Paul's preaching of salvation through faith, and, more importantly, through God's grace, led to the amazing expansion of Christianity through the salvation of new believers. In this way, Paul made Christianity accessible to all, no matter whether they were â€Å"Jew or Gentile, male or female, freed or slave†.This revolutionised religious expression as anyone knew it, as previously, salvation was earned through works (for example, sacrifices and commandments). Paul, once again building on Jesus' teachings, taught that obeying commandments was not the way to earn salvation, but was a way to show love for Jesus. While this idea was predominately lost until Martin Luther's reformation, Christianity was transformed by this and expanded significantly as a result. Paul also reiterated the importance of relying on Jesus, which is expressed in his letter to the Colossian church.Their reliance on the self was causing nothing but trouble for their spiritual lives, and Paul was quick to point this uot. Rather than testing human capabilities, Paul promoted the idea of keeping faith in the works of God, through constant prayer and reading of God's word. This, he said, would lead to a spiritually stronger church. This idea transformed the way Christian churches react in the face of crisis – whether to stand on their own ideas (â€Å"lean not on your own understanding,† as the Old Testament says) or to â€Å"Trust in the Lord your God† – with many following Paul's example and receiving through prayer.Paul promoted the idea of individual spiritual growth, as proclaimed in his epistles. He compares newcomers to the faith as spiritual babies, but he advises through learning about the Gospel that any believer can g row (â€Å"for we are all one with Christ†). This transformed Christianity as the believer is able t now feel a closer spiritual connection to God – Paul promotes heavenly rewards, but also new spiritual gifts through growth that God lovingly gives. Paul, while teaching that spiritual growth may accompany struggles and sin, also advise d the adherent to â€Å"flee† from sin.In his epistle to the Galatians, Paul refers to the old self – anger, gluttony, jealousy and hatred – as how believers should not act, then describes the Fruit of the Spirit: â€Å"Love, gentleness, meekness, self-control, kindness, joy and peace† as how believers should live. Paul gave examples of the adherent's ideal life, which had a transforming effect on Christianity not because of its content, but because Paul admitted sin was inevitable. Paul accommodated the nature of all individuals but urged the believer to use self-control, to â€Å"make his body a slave† and to try and resist temptation.Paul's words, undeniably, had a profound effect on Christian spirituality and understanding, as well as teaching. Through Paul's teachings of equality and love, his teachings of Jesus' love and God's grace through salvation, Paul revolutionised Christianity for the better and could always use Jesus' preaching’s to support these (a necessity for the faith). Paul himself did not profess to be perfect – â€Å"my body does things I don't want to do† – but spoke always of Jesus' love and forgiveness for all, showing