A little girl was shopping with her mom. She was impressed by the automatic doors. When she came close to the grocery store, she asked her mom, “Will they open for me?” No one has ever been so immersed in sin that the door will not open for them. The Apostle Paul is a very good example.
Listen to the text: “I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus. It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life.”
FIRST, CONSIDER PAUL’S PAST:
I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. It would not be an exaggeration to say that Paul (as Saul from Tarsus) hated the church of Christ and he hated Jesus the Christ.
BUT, CONSIDER WHAT CHRIST DID FOR PAUL:
“I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service.”
The power to change comes only from Jesus. If we want to live for Jesus, we can do this only through Jesus. Forgiveness of sins comes only through Jesus. We draw near to God in prayer, only through Jesus. We can overcome sins and temptation only through Jesus. Jesus has already conquered the power of sin. Jesus has already conquered the power of temptation. Jesus conquered Satan.
“The grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus.” If the mercy of God is the Atlantic Ocean, the grace of God is the Pacific Ocean. Observe the way in which Paul accentuates the grace of God – “more than abundant.” What do you need? In the end, we all need the grace of God. You and I deserve death. But God offers us salvation through His grace. Paul found grace in the eyes of the Lord.
WHAT PAUL’S LIFE MEANS TO US:
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Among sinners, Paul believed that he was the “foremost” or “first among the sinners.” Have you ever felt that way? In another passage, Paul says, “I am not even good enough to be called an apostle” (1 Corinthians 15.9). I am a sinner, but I would not say that I’m the foremost! Truly nobody is worthy to wear the name Christian. But only through the grace of God.
Why did Jesus show His patience in Paul? Not only for Paul but “as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life.” Paul is an example of a sinner whom Christ came to save – he is an example that no one can commit any sin which cannot be forgiven.
Paul is an example that the Christian life is possible. It is possible. It’s not easy. But it is possible.
What do we deduce from here? What does this mean for us? First, it gives us motivation to live each day (vs 15).
In the second place, this passage tells us what we should do: “fight the good fight of faith” (1:18). If we win, heaven is our reward and there is not a better reward than heaven – being in the presence of God, of Christ, of the Holy Spirit, and of the believers who died before us.
Paul further tells us: “keeping faith and a good conscience” (vs 19). Don’t forsake the faith! Don’t abandon the faith! The fight is hard. Sometimes Satan wins a battle, but keep the faith! And you will win the war. Forgiveness is accessible always through the blood of Christ. God will wait daily for our return to Him – until we die. God wants the whole world, especially those clothed with Christ, to be saved. Keep the faith.
There is nothing that can put you outside of the grace of God. Obey Him and receive His grace.
–Paul Holland
