Paul of Tarsus - the first Christian?

I think we need to understand Jesus before we can understand Paul's take on Jesus. Then we need to understand Paul's take on Jesus before we can understand Luther's take on Paul.Unfortunately, the fundies go at it backwards - they project Luther's ideas back on Paul and Paul's ideas back on Jesus.I try to read Paul with a how-does-this-relate-to-Jesus? attitude rather than a where-did-Paul-screw-up? attitude.Edit: capitalized "Paul" in subtitle - no slight to Paul intended. This message has been edited by Ringo, 2006-04-11 11:46 AM

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Are you suggesting that Jesus "went up to the mountain" to escape from the crowd?Look at the end of the sermon:

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Mat 7:28 And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine....

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It says "the people", not "the disciples".And then:

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Mat 8:1 When he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him.

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The multitudes were still there after the sermon. Are you suggesting that they didn't hear it?It seems pretty clear that Jesus stepped up to a higher part of the mountain so that the multitude could see and hear Him. It seems pretty clear that the sermon was to the multitude.

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Next time you go to the Opera, take a look around for those giant speaker towers. Given the proper accoustics, the human voice can carry quite well, particularly if the audience is listening with bated breath and not screaming "We love you, Ringo!".Why would Jesus deliberately withdraw from the crowd?

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