Paul and Jesus at Odds

Episode Outline:
0:00 Did Paul actually teach the same message as Jesus?
1:18 Bart and Megan on dogs, cats, British snacks, and food brought back from the UK
7:18 Why Paul matters so much for the development of Christianity
8:40 How deeply Paul shaped the New Testament and later Christian theology
10:09 What Jesus’ core message was: repent, because God’s kingdom is near
12:47 The key difference: Jesus taught forgiveness, Paul taught atonement through Christ’s death
15:33 Course promo: Paul and Jesus: The Great Divide
16:55 If someone asked Jesus how to be saved, what would he say?
19:57 If the same question were asked to Paul, how different would the answer be?
21:41 Why most Christians struggle to notice the gap between Jesus and Paul
23:01 How people try to reconcile the two messages
25:30 Would Paul himself have thought he was changing Jesus’ message?
27:26 Major similarities between Jesus and Paul: Judaism, apocalypticism, and divine judgment
29:30 Do their ethical instructions actually contradict each other?
31:37 Bart’s verdict: if forced to choose, he sides more with Jesus than with Paul
34:14 Weekly Update: AJ Levine’s upcoming course on the parables of Jesus
35:44 Reminder: Bart’s own course Paul and Jesus: The Great Divide
37:34 Bart’s Soapbox: weaponizing the Bible in modern politics
42:50 Final summary: Jesus and Paul share broad apocalyptic assumptions, but their teachings on salvation are sharply different

Episode Description

Were Jesus and Paul were on different pages when it came to the most important issue for them both, how a person can be saved? In this episode, Bart and Megan explore the Gospels and the letters of Paul to see where these two pivotal figures share many similar views and yet appear to stand completely at odds on the major question. If they did, then is Christianity the religion Jesus proclaimed or the religion Paul proclaimed about Jesus?

Also watch these episodes:
Did Jesus Have to Suffer? Trying to Make Sense of a Troubling View
Did Jesus Have to Suffer? Trying to Make Sense of a Troubling View

Why the Doctrine of Inerrancy Contradicts the Gospels
Why the Doctrine of Inerrancy Contradicts the Gospels

Did Jesus Really Go to Hell?
Did Jesus Really Go to Hell?

Megan asks Bart:

- Why is it important to consider the teachings of the apostle Paul?

- What role did Paul’s writings play in the formation of Christianity? What role do they play in modern Christianity?

- What are the most important messages in Jesus’ teachings?

- Does Paul teach the same thing in his writings?

- If someone asked Jesus what they had to do to be saved, what would he have answered?

- If the same question was asked of Paul, would he have given the same answer?

- Why do people struggle to see these as different responses?

- What are some of the ways that Christians have tried to make these different messages mean the same thing?

- Would Paul have viewed himself as changing Jesus’ message?

- Do you see any commonalities between what Paul and Jesus said?

- Are any of their instructions contradictory, or is it possible to do what they both say?

- If you had to pick a side between Jesus and Paul, who would you go with?