When did Paul first see the resurrected Jesus?
After his conversion on the road to Damascus, roughly eight years after Pentecost, Paul saw the resurrected Jesus for the first time. He had not seen Christ during His earthly ministry or the forty days after the resurrection. Paul later claimed he saw the resurrected, ascended Lord face to face.
Les explains from I Corinthians 15:8 that Paul never saw Christ while He walked the earth and did not see Him during the forty days after the resurrection. Paul's first sight of the resurrected, ascended Lord came after his conversion on the road to Damascus, about eight years after Pentecost. In verse 8 Paul says, "Last of all, he was seen of me also," claiming face-to-face contact with the risen Lord. Les connects this to Paul's phrase "one born out of due time," comparing it to a premature birth.
And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time.
More Questions
Why does Paul use the picture of a birth due date for seeing the risen Christ?
Paul uses the due-date illustration to describe his own experience of resurrection power and of seeing the Lord in resurrection as a Jew born before the due date, speaking of the delivery of the offspring.