secrecy is past, Paul makes known what the Lord had said to him on the way to

Damascus, and before Ananias visited him after the three days blindness:

`I am Jesus Whom thou persecutest' (Acts 26:15 and 9:5).

`But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this

purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which

thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee;

delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I

send thee' (Acts 26:16,17).

'I have appeared ... I will appear'.

Here are two appearings.

'Both of these things ... of those things'.

Here are two ministries.

'Which thou hast seen ... will appear'.

Here are two subjects.

In Acts 9 there were no Gentiles from whom Paul needed to be delivered,

the words `Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now

I send thee' (Acts 26:17) being quoted by Paul from the commission given to him

at the time of Acts 9, concerning the second appearing.  In Acts 9 he only knew

that he had a twofold ministry; subsequently, he realized that the second

ministry would be associated with prison and particularly directed towards the

Gentiles.  So, in Ephesians 3:1 he calls himself `The prisoner of Christ Jesus

for you Gentiles' which is proof that the second ministry had then been entered.

Paul is called a prisoner for the first time in Acts 16:25 when he, together

with Silas, had been thrown into prison at Philippi.  Writing to the

Corinthians, he told them that already he had been

`in prisons more frequent' (2 Cor. 11:23), but these imprisonments could not

have lasted long at a time, as they do not even figure in the record of his

journeys in the Acts.  In Acts 23 Paul is a prisoner on a serious charge, and

was held prisoner at Caesarea for two years (Acts 24:27).  His bonds are

mentioned fourteen times and twice his examiner pronounced that he had done

nothing worthy of death or bonds.  Paul calls himself a prisoner in five places:

`l Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles' (Eph. 3:1).

`I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you' (Eph. 4:1).

`Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His

prisoner' (2 Tim. 1:8).  (See also Philemon 1,9).

`Paul, a prisoner of Jesus Christ' (Philemon 1).

`Paul the aged, and now also a prisoner of Jesus Christ'

(Philemon 9).

Ephesians and 2 Timothy therefore are `Prison Epistles'.  Philippians

speaks very definitely of his `bonds' (Phil. 1:7,13,14,16), and so does

Colossians (Col. 4:18) and Philemon (Philem. 10,13).  These epistles form the

basis of the teaching of the apostle concerning the Mystery, and constitute the

standard of truth for the dispensation of the Mystery.  This does not mean that

nothing outside these five epistles has a message for the member of the One

Body.  Redemption, justification and the great truths of the Gospel of grace,

are assumed rather than taught in these epistles.  Here, as everywhere else, the

Scriptures are accepted as inspired truth.  Here in a pre-eminent manner, Christ

is exalted, ordinances once valid retire, and a new sphere of blessing is