Who was Paul before he became a Christian?

Before his conversion, Paul was Saul of Tarsus, a Jew's Jew, a Hebrew of the Hebrew, a Pharisee of the Pharisees, educated at the feet of the greatest Rabbi of that time. He was saturated with Judaism and more religious than many of his peers.

Les teaches that Paul, before he became a Christian, was Saul of Tarsus, a Jew's Jew, a Hebrew of the Hebrew, a Pharisee of the Pharisees, educated at the feet of the greatest Rabbi of that time. He was saturated with Judaism and more religious than many of his peers. Les explains that Saul had been so immersed in Judaism—with all its rules, regulations, and law keeping—and in Phariseeism that it took the power of God to cleanse him of that. There is a stark difference between that background and stepping into the grace of God, receiving salvation freely without lifting a finger, which flies in the face of human thinking. Les notes this is where we begin, but we don't stay there; salvation comes when we admit we can do nothing and believe Christ died and rose for us, then we are to move on to a life of service.

What was Paul's religious background before he became a Christian?

Before conversion, Saul of Tarsus was a Jew’s Jew, a Hebrew of the Hebrews, and a Pharisee of the Pharisees. He was educated at the feet of the greatest rabbi of that time, saturated with Judaism, more religious than many peers, and devoted to Jewish rules, regulations, and law-keeping.