Why is it that after the ascension of Jesus it was the outsider Paul who never walked with Jesus became the Superstar and not any of the Apostles who walked and studied with Jesus personally?

Answer 1

It is because he was selected by God as a chosen instrument . The above is true only if you assume the Bible is historically correct. The majority of Biblical scholars do not accept the Bible as accurate record of ancient history document in the modern sense. The early church was composed of several different groups. Three major groups were 1)Jewish Christians that followed James, the brother of Jesus.

2)Gnostic Christians, possibly derived from a gnostic community that Yeshua (Jesus) and "John the Baptist" belonged to.

3)Roman Christians, the followers of Paul.

It was the last group that gained political control of the Christian church. They destroyed sacred texts and martyred Christians who belonged to the other groups. So Paul was only the "superstar" of the church as it was told by the Romans and in relation to the orthodox church as created by the Romans. It does not mean that Paul's position in the early church was any more or less exalted than that of James or other apostles or teachers. "History is written by the victors." Winston Churchill Yes, Paul does say that he was a chosen instrument. But I honestly think the original question is faulty. Paul wasn't a "superstar." We may have made him into one today because he wrote so much of the New Testament. But if you look at the history of the early church as found in the book of Acts, you see others (primarily Peter, who did walk with and study with Jesus) as the "superstars."

Peter is the one who, on the day of Pentecost, stood up and preached and 3,000 people got saved. Peter is the one who essentially started the modern day church. Paul was appointed to the gentiles (non-Jews) and Peter was appointed to the Jews (Galatians 2:7). So they each had their own "superstar" circle I guess, if you want to call it that. Peter was the man in Jerusalem and to those people. Paul was the man north of Israel, in Greece and the outlying areas. But in the end, all their actions point to the resurrected savior, Jesus Christ. Now there's the Superstar. ** correction - James was the leader of the church in Jerusalem, not Peter.