Week One

‘Paper’ a case study on Paul

Paul’s written legacy is one of the most influential in world history. What can we learn from this complex man who lived, breathed and wrote his way through the birth of an earth changing global movement? And in a wider sense, what does it mean to be God’s paper — to be a canvass communicating to the world around us?

SEEDS TO SOW: IMAGINE WRITING A LETTER ABOUT YOUR FAITH TO YOUR HOMETOWN. WHAT WOULD YOU WRITE? “TO ALL THE SAINTS OF...” *

Read Acts 17: 16-31

Here we see Paul the writer as Paul the observer and debater — taking time to walk around and absorb the culture around about him, engaging with it directly.

What do you think of Paul’s actions here? What can this scene tell us about Paul as a writer? And how could it inform how we engage with wider society?

Read 1 Corinthians 9: 19-23

Paul, to use a phrase from Marshall McLuan, is interested in the medium as well as the message — not just the content of what he says but how he says it. Paul communicates differently to different groups.

How does Paul (and by extension how can we) tailor how he talks to others about God while staying true to himself and God at the same time?

Read Romans 12: 9-21

Paul in his writing here is bit like a network engineer encouraging us to be routers of good connections and circuit breakers of evil.

We may not rely on paper as much as Paul but 21st century life is crammed full of writing in our era of instant communication. How can we be inspired by Paul’s words here to overcome evil with good in our daily acts of writing and living? What good connections could we make to continue chain reactions of grace?

* SEEDS TO SOW: These are open-ended and optional prompts and are designed for people wanting to develop their own resources in response to the themes. Perhaps if you are using this material as a group you could use these prompts to inspire a time of prayer, or drawing, or creative writing? They are a short and sweet, simply a starting off place for you and your imagination. Tailor and develop as suits your group.