Paul’s thorn in the flesh was a messenger of Satan (see 2 Cor. 12:7-10) sent to attack Paul’s ministry because of the revelation of the New Birth. God had nothing to do with sending a messenger of Satan to attack one of His children. Satan was constantly attacking and persecuting Paul’s ministry because he was very effective at getting people out of Satan’s dominion and into the Kingdom of God.
All that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. (2 Timothy 3:12) Jesus says: I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. (Luke 10:19) And God’s grace will see to it that we will be victorious over the enemy as Paul later confirmed in Romans 8:37 - No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. And in 2 Timothy 3 - You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, persecutions, sufferings—what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them.
There is nothing wrong with being exalted as long as God is doing it (which would be the case with Paul who was receiving Wisdom and revelations and was teaching them all over the ancient world). — Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time. 2 Peter 5:6
Even Peter admitted that what Paul taught was sometimes hard to understand. He knew Jesus first through His senses and later spiritually after Pentecost. No doubt he had to renew his mind as the Holy Spirit taught him - see the vision on the rooftop concerning the trip to Cornelius’ house.
Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction. 2 Peter 3:15-16
I really don’t see any competition between Peter, John and Paul etc for who was first or most important. They had a love and respect for each other that is seen in most of their writing. Only when Peter’s hypocrisy was rebuked by Paul when it came to the Jew/Gentile issues of the early Church was there any contention and it was done in a very respectful way as acknowledged by Peter.
BTW - the man that persecuted the Church, Saul, died on the Damascus road. He was spiritually reborn as a child of God and filled with the Holy Spirit shortly after that experience. He knew Jesus quite well. Even when it sounds like boasting, Paul gives credit to God’s grace for his work.
For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. 1 Corinthians 15:9-10
The “yet not I” tells you pride was not a problem Paul suffered.
Would you give Cp. and Vs where it is written this thorn concerned his ministry and not him (a human being). Although he may have been full of the holy spirit, that does not mean he was also not a man that could have faults and problems with a thorn of flesh...I am sorry I do not have cp. and vs for that, perhaps you could find it, but I know it is scriptual. But in the cp and vs you mention, (thank you for it) Paul does relate this to keeping him from being too elated (or could being too elated be another way of saying I get too puffed up or prideful) This is a question I have pondered many times.
I am not a big believer in the old Devil made me do it excuse. Its a great way to give us excuses for our own faults and sins...blame it on the devil...just like Eve did and did not take responsibility for her own sin. There fore Satan was not mentioned.
The question was why Paul decided to call himself an apostle when he did not meet Peters criteria for being considered a possible replacement for Judas (necessary to be considered an apostle)....Acts 1 vs 21 -26. There were 12 apostles chosen by Jesus, Matthias made it 12 again.
Jesus's own words to Ananias (Acts Cp 9 vs 15) was that Paul would be his instrument to take the gospel to the gentiles etc....Did Jesus tell Ananias that Paul was to be his apostle to the gentiles....the answer is no, he did not...who do you believe, Jesus words or what Paul called himself. For this reason I think his sin of the flesh may have been pride in putting himself on the same level as the apostles as there was no way he could meet Peters criteria. So was Peter and Jesus wrong and Paul right for calling himself an apostle....simple question.
I don't think you answered the question although you do defend Paul quite well. But you cannot use Pauls own words when he calls himself an apostle, because whether he was or not at the time is the question...Jesus says "instrument", Peter sets criteria...Paul does not meet the criteria and Jesus did not say you will be my apostle...
Just a simple question