Have you ever wondered what the Apostle Paul might have looked like? There are no paintings or statues that we can observe today, but I think he may have looked a little like the man in the picture you see here. In my mind I picture a tough as nails man that lived life full throttle. After all Paul went from an individual who killed Christians for a living to arguably the most bold and influential Christian spokesman in history. His life changed instantly when he saw the blinding glory of Jesus Christ.
The other day a man passed away who had a lot in common with the Apostle Paul. His name was John Bramlett, and he loved to fight and drink and get into trouble. The world remembers him as “the meanest man in football,” a reputation that he richly deserved. His tenacity on and off the field landed him both a job in professional baseball and football and then quickly got him banned from both for life.
Then a funny thing happened. Two men visited John’s home and told him that even though he had done a lot of terrible things during his life that Jesus loved him and so did they. Like Paul, John Bramlett saw the blinding glory of Jesus Christ and as he liked to tell people “nothing has ever been the same.” Suddenly he started living for God with the same ferocity that he lived for the Devil before. He told every single person who would listen about the love of Jesus and spent the next 40 years in prisons and soup kitchens and conferences evangelizing the world for Christ. And like Paul he finished the race well.
We at Shelby Systems were fortunate enough to meet John Bramlett and conduct a short interview with him just before a movie was released about his remarkable life. Feel free to click the links below to see the interview, purchase a copy of the film, or read the story from the Commercial Appeal.
II Corinthians 5:17
Shelby Interview
Purchase the DVD