It has been our endeavour during the last few years to emphasize the claims of the

apostle Paul upon believers of the present time; not that Paul is anything of himself, but

because to him was given the dispensation of the mystery (Eph. 3: 2-10).

In the endeavour rightly to divide the Word of truth we are sure to have difficulties,

one great reason being that centuries of neglect and tradition have left us prejudiced in

favour of a system foreign to the teaching of Paul, and further, the low spiritual state of

the church as a whole has rendered it incapacitated for the reception of the mystery

(I Cor. 3: 1-3).

Those who have had the eyes of their heart enlightened (Eph. 1: 18), still find many

difficulties and problems, which we must all expect while in the flesh, and among the

many causes of difficulty is the fact that the ministry of Paul has a two-fold aspect; in one

case he is seen severed from the teaching of the twelve, while in another he is found

working in harmony with them. His epistles, covering a space of some sixteen years, are

not confined to one period, some epistles being written while he worked in fellowship

with Jerusalem, and some being written after Israel was set aside and Paul was a prisoner

at Rome.

The book of the Acts records the conversion and early labours of the apostle Paul, so

let us turn to the book to learn something more concerning this wonderful ministry.

Three cities constitute the three turning points of dispensational interest in the Acts, viz.,

Jerusalem, Antioch, and Rome. Two ministries occupy the bulk of the record, those of

Peter and Paul. Peter's ministry commences at Jerusalem and ends (so far as the record is

concerned) with imprisonment. Paul's definite ministry commences at Antioch and ends

(so far as the record is concerned) with his imprisonment at Rome.

The Acts commences with "the Jew first" and closes with the Jew set aside. The

opening and closing verses are worthy of careful study:--