“Then the Lord said to me, ‘Go; I will send you far away to the Gentiles’ ” (Acts 22:21).

I’m like most of us. I like to stay in my comfort zone. There are places in which I am relaxed because I am familiar with that culture. There are people with whom I am comfortable because I can relate to them easily.

Paul is a model for all of us whom God calls to leave our comfort zones. Paul was sent far away and He brought the message of Christ to Gentiles. He was reared as a Jew and knew the Jewish religion thoroughly. He had been taught by the great teacher of Judaism, Gamaliel. I would have thought him the ideal minister to reach the Jewish faithful.

Yet, God sent him to the Gentiles. I am glad for that because it was out of his ministry to churches around the Roman Empire that he wrote letters to help them understand their faith. He didn’t start a new religion but showed that reaching the entire world was God’s intention from the beginning. Paul connected the Old Testament to the New Testament for Gentiles. Those letters have helped to shape my understanding of Christianity. He taught that faith in Christ was the fulfillment of Judaism and stood above pagan Gentile idolatry. He presented to the world a faith that helped both Jewish and Gentile believers transcend their traditions.

Paul took His role as a missionary to both Gentiles and Jews seriously and he touched the world. Thank you, Paul. And, as a Gentile, I thank you Jesus for sending him to us.