Skeeter, here is Mike's "challenge":
Take time to step out of the arena of Catholic or protestant to meet with Christ in the spirit. Then study the scriptures asking Jesus to give more knowledge and understanding of His word.
Neither Peter nor Paul "met with Christ in the Spirit". Peter met with Christ in the flesh, not in the Spirit. Paul had Christ come to him in an appirition, which is different from what Mike is saying.
We cannot choose to meet Christ today the way that they met Christ. Christ had to come to them in the manner that He did, and it is not in a way that we can induce today. Thus Peter nor Paul nor anyone else in the Bible "took the challenge". Rather, they met Christ through the Church, by the preaching of the apostles. And THEN and only then did they come to truly know Christ in the scriptures.
oh yes, they both did. Peter - Matt 16. You need to do more studying on Paul - Paul did not find Christ from the 'Church' or the Apostles. Christ did not need the 'Church' to draw anyone to Him. There was no church then.
Peter and Paul met Christ by the teachings of the apostles?
Paul did in fact "go up to confer with Peter and James".
Galatians 1
“After three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and remained with him fifteen days. But I saw none of the other apostles except James the Lord’s brother” (vv. 18–19).
And there are parallels in the book of Acts between Peter's ministry and Paul's ministry, seemingly intentionally pointed out. Paul needed to be in communion with the apostles to be taken seriously and the book of Acts frames their ministries in such a way to make sure that is known. In addition, Paul insists that there is only one Gospel in Galatians 1 also:
No Other Gospel6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7 which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. 8 But
even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse! 9 As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let them be under God’s curse!
And there certainly is a Church then. Don't you know that the "Church" are those people are united to Christ, those members of their body? Paul was the Church. Peter was the Church. Thousands were added to the Church on the day of Pentecost. There certainly was a Church, and that Church spread the gospel, and that is how Jesus intended it to be.
And there is just one Church because the Church is Christ's body, and Christ only had one body. Not two Churches and not two gospels.