<p>1:1 <em>Paul, an apostle (not from men, nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead)</em>- Consider how in Galatians Paul uses so many negatives, as if his passion and almost rage at the false teachers is coming out: &ldquo;An apostle <em>not</em> from men&hellip; the gospel preached by me is <em>not</em> man&rsquo;s gospel&hellip; <em>nor</em> was I taught it&hellip; I did <em>not</em> confer with flesh and blood, I did <em>not</em> go up to Jerusalem&hellip; I do <em>not</em> lie&hellip; Titus was <em>not</em> compelled&hellip; to <em>false</em> brethren we did <em>not</em> yield&hellip; those &lsquo;of repute&rsquo; added <em>nothing</em>&rdquo; (Gal. 1:1,11,12,16,20; 2:3,4,6). The way he says &ldquo;Ye have known God, or rather, are known of God&rdquo; (Gal. 4:9) seems to indicate through the &ldquo;or rather&hellip;&rdquo; a very human and passionate touch in his writing, as if he was thinking out loud as he wrote. Throughout 2 Corinthians particularly his writing in places can be described as an inspired flow of consciousness.</p><p>Authority in spiritual ministry doesn't depend upon any human authorisation. Paul's authority is linked specifically to the fact God raised Jesus from the dead. That resurrection led to the great commission and the Lord's empowerment of all witness to Him as risen and exalted. But this empowerment is given not only to Paul. All demands for authorization of ministry, e.g. to perform baptisms or decide who to fellowship in the church, is therefore utterly missing the point. We are authorized by the Lord, and the great commission applies to us all. In any case, once we start arguing that only some are authorized to perform ministry, the question is raised as to <em>how</em> they are authorized. And the Bible is silent about that. All manner of secular power brokering philosophy comes into play, but Paul and anyone led by the Spirit of the risen Lord will have nothing to do with that.</p>