course, with more and more Gentiles becoming Christians, inevitably boundary markers would gain in importance. The question thus becomes: What does Paul think are the most important, indeed the non-negotiable, elements of the gospel he preaches, and what is their connection with the texts that both Paul the Pharisee and Paul the apostle viewed as sacred? In one sense, doubtless one could say, with Sanders, that the fundamental difference is Christ himself: Christians believe that Jesus is the Messiah;