Did Paul preach Jesus's message?

Question

In the four Gospels, Jesus seems to talk a lot about the Law, about how to behave, about "the Kingdom" and how to restore social order. It doesn't seem like he talks about what Paul talks about: grace, law vs. gospel, gentile-inclusion. Mostly, what most Christians mean by "Gospel" and grace.

What are some examples of passages that demonstrate how (or how not) Paul preached the same gospel Jesus did?

I'm looking for passages of Paul or Jesus that match up with each other, not external verification that they are on the same page.

Answer 1

There are a number of passages that suggest that Paul preached the same message as the first eleven apostles.

1. Paul says so:

   I went up because of a revelation and set before [the Jerusalem church] (though privately before those who seemed influential) the gospel that I proclaim among the Gentiles, in order to make sure I was not running or had not run in vain.—Galatians 2:2 (ESV)

2. Luke implies that the Jerusalem church approved of Paul's message:

   Then it seemed good to the apostles and the elders, with the whole church, to choose men from among them and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. —Acts 15:22a (ESV)

   And later:

   On the following day Paul went in with us to James, and all the elders were present. After greeting them, he related one by one the things that God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry. And when they heard it, they glorified God.—Acts 21:18-20a (ESV)

3. The author of 2^nd Peter put Paul's letters under the banner of Scripture:

   And count the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures.—2^nd Peter 3:15-16 (ESV)

---

According to Paul, he got the gospel directly from God by revelation:

But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone; nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia, and returned again to Damascus.—Galatians 1:15-17 (ESV)

Acts 9, 22 and 26 detail Paul's conversion and show us that he spoke directly to the resurrected Jesus. We read in various places (e.g., Acts 13:4-12) that Paul was filled with the Holy Spirit. And, of course, he did spend time with the Jerusalem church, Peter and the other apostles. Perhaps Barnabas, John Mark, Silas, and others traveled with Paul was so that they bare witness to the events of Jesus' earthly ministry and repeat His teachings.

---

As to why Jesus didn't preach more about the Gospel of Grace, I think that stems from a greater mystery: for some reason God wants us to be part of His grand story. God was surprisingly "hands-off" in the Old Testament period. Sure, He brought down fire on wicked cities and rescued His people miraculously on occasion. But for the most part, God expected His people to be faithful and remember His provision for them without intervention.

In the same way, Jesus did surprisingly little to establish His Kingdom while on earth. And the bulk of the church's work to reach the gentile world fell on their shoulders only after He ascended to heaven. Jesus spoke the language of the Jewish peasant, fisherman, merchant, rabbi, and priest, but He didn't have much to say to gentiles. Paul was the right man at the right time for the job of translating that message into a philosophical framework that a Greek-educated person would understand. His struggle for the church was primarily in helping the gentiles see why a provincial Jew's teaching mattered to them.

Answer 2

There are plenty examples:

Paul: For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. (Rom 13,9)

Jesus: Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets (Mt 22, 37-40)

Paul: Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all,(Rom 4,16)

Jesus: If ye were Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abraham. (Jonh 8, 39)

Paul: Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same (Rom 13 1-3)

Jesus: Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's. (Mt 22, 21)

Jesus: Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above (Jonh 19,11)

And this is just a quick look through one of Paul's letters.

Answer 3

There are, as noted above, many instances of agreement between Jesus and Paul; however, as Paul wrote in his letters to Gentile believers, Christ spoke to him from heaven with the gospel of the Gentiles, while Jesus during His earthly walk ministered to Israel (Rom. 15:8)

The necessary preliminary to understanding the two ministries is to separate Israel from the church (the body of Christ.)