“For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office.”
— Romans 11:13 (KJV)
This is one of the clearest verses in all of Scripture.
Yet many believers read right past it.
Paul doesn’t say he was an apostle to the Gentiles.
He says:
“I am the apostle of the Gentiles.”
Those are not Paul’s words alone.
They are the words of the Holy Spirit.
▪️WHY DOES THIS MATTER?
If God specifically appointed Paul as the apostle of the Gentiles, shouldn’t we listen carefully to what he wrote?
Paul wasn’t promoting himself.
He was magnifying the office Christ Himself gave him.
The risen, glorified Lord appeared to Paul and entrusted him with a message that had been “kept secret since the world began” (Romans 16:25).
That message is the revelation of the Mystery.
▪️PROPHECY VS MYSTERY
Throughout the Old Testament and the earthly ministry of Christ, God’s prophetic program focused on Israel.
The kingdom was promised.
The prophets spoke of it.
Jesus came as Israel’s Messiah.
But after Israel’s rejection, the glorified Christ revealed something entirely new.
The Mystery.
Not a change in God’s character.
But a change in His dispensational dealings.
A heavenly people.
A heavenly calling.
The Body of Christ.
This truth was committed to Paul.
▪️ISRAEL VS THE BODY OF CHRIST
Many of the doctrinal problems in Christianity arise because God’s program for Israel is blended with God’s program for the Church.
Kingdom promises become Church promises.
Israel’s ordinances become Church ordinances.
Tribulation warnings are applied to believers living under Grace.
The result is confusion.
But when we recognize Paul’s unique apostleship, the Bible begins to fit together exactly as God intended.
▪️LAW VS GRACE
Paul proclaims a glorious message:
• We are not under the Law.
• We are under Grace.
• We are justified freely.
• We are complete in Christ.
• We are sealed unto the day of redemption.
These truths belong to the Church, the Body of Christ.
They are part of the revelation Christ entrusted to the apostle of the Gentiles.
▪️THE GOSPEL FOR TODAY
Paul faithfully declared the Gospel that saves today:
“How that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.”
1 Corinthians 15:3–4 (KJV)
Salvation is not found in religious rituals.
Not in keeping the Law.
Not in personal merit.
It is found in the finished work of Christ alone.
Believe the Gospel.
Rest in His grace.
▪️MAGNIFY THE OFFICE—NOT THE MAN
Some object,
“Are you following Paul instead of Jesus?”
Not at all.
We follow the revelation that the risen Lord Jesus Christ gave through Paul.
Paul himself wrote:
“Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.”
1 Corinthians 11:1 (KJV)
To recognize Paul’s apostleship is to honor Christ’s appointment.
It is Christ who chose Paul.
It is Christ who revealed the Mystery to Paul.
It is Christ who sent Paul to the Gentiles.
▪️THE BLESSED CONCLUSION
When you understand Romans 11:13, many difficult passages suddenly become clear.
• Israel and the Body of Christ are not the same.
• Prophecy and Mystery are distinct.
• Law and Grace must not be mixed.
God has given the Church a pattern for doctrine through the ministry of the Apostle Paul.
So don’t ignore the one whom Christ sent to the Gentiles.
Study his epistles.
Rightly divide the Word of Truth.
And rejoice in the riches of God’s grace revealed through the apostle of the Gentiles.
