It's impossible to discuss the New Testament with someone who totally discounts the Apostle Paul's contribution to it.
The Messiah was primarily sent for the Jews. The Jews didn't need to be taught about God from scratch.
Paul, on the other hand, was sent to spread the Gospel to the Pagan Gentiles,...people who had no concept of God. It's not surprising that he had to use a totally different approach than the Messiah.
I see it like this. If you know God to be omnipotent, you will realize that he would have never allowed Paul to have so much influence in converting Gentiles to Christianity if Paul wasn't genuine.
As for those who say, "God wouldn't do this" or "God wouldn't do that",..you're thinking in human terms. God isn't a human. God does what God does. And whatever God does is correct because God is the supreme arbiter in what is or isn't correct. The Apostle Paul explains this in Romans 9:17-22.
For Scripture says to Pharaoh: “I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.”[a] 18 Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden.
19 One of you will say to me: “Then why does God still blame us? For who is able to resist his will?” 20 But who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? “Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, ‘Why did you make me like this?’”[b] 21 Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for special purposes and some for common use?
It's fairly impossible to get a good handle on God's character while we're functioning through these extremely limited human brains with extremely limited human senses.
But God is "just".
As to your statement "If you know God to be omnipotent, you will realize that he would never have allowed........"
God allowed the Roman Catholic Church to go on a murdering spree that lasted centuries.
Allowing Paul to spread false doctrine to see who would take the bait is small potatoes compared to that.
Actually Paul's doctrine was used by the Catholic Church to justify their crimes.
Patriotism (and religion) is the last refuge of a scoundrel. Jesus: "Take heed that no man deceive you." Hebrew Roots Judaizer
