Why was Paul's gospel different from what came before it?
Paul's gospel was different because it had been a secret hidden in the mind of God until it was revealed, introducing something totally different from what had gone before. It centered on Christ's death for sin, shed blood, and resurrection, unlike earlier Jewish believers who only accepted Jesus as Israel's Messiah.
Les explains that Antioch was now being presented with Paul's Gospel, and Paul differentiates it from everything that had gone before. The reason is that it had been a secret held in the mind of God until it was revealed, and now God was going to do something totally different. Earlier Jewish believers in Jerusalem and Judea remained under the Judaistic umbrella and only believed Jesus was the Messiah of Israel; the Bible never calls them Christians. By contrast, these primarily Gentile disciples at Antioch believed Christ had died for them, His blood had been shed for their sin, and He had been raised from the dead. Barnabas brought Saul to Antioch, where they assembled with the church for a whole year and taught much people, and the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch.
What made Paul's gospel different from everything that God had previously revealed?
Paul's gospel differed because it was a secret held in God's mind until revealed, something totally different from prior revelation. It declared that Christ died for them, shed His blood for sin, and was raised, while earlier Jewish believers remained under the Judaistic umbrella and only believed Jesus was Israel's Messiah.
Why was Paul's gospel at Antioch completely different from everything that had come before?
Paul's gospel at Antioch differed because it was a secret hidden in God's mind until revealed, something God was now doing totally different. Unlike Jewish believers under the Judaistic umbrella who only believed Jesus was Israel's Messiah, this gospel declared He died for them, shed His blood for sin, and was raised from the dead.