The Lord’s Grace to Paul
I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me faithful, appointing me to his service. Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.
Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life. Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Timothy, my son, I give you this instruction in keeping with the prophecies once made about you, so that by following them you may fight the good fight, holding on to faith and a good conscience. Some have rejected these and so have shipwrecked their faith. Among them are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan to be taught not to blaspheme.
I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men—the testimony given in its proper time. And for this purpose I was appointed a herald and an apostle—I am telling the truth, I am not lying—and a teacher of the true faith to the Gentiles.
My Understanding: Paul shared here his personal testimony of God’s saving grace in his life, yet, in principle, what he shared applies to all of us who have come to a saving knowledge of the truth, or to those who are yet to receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
Shown Mercy
Jesus Christ, God the Son, left his throne in heaven to come to the earth, and to take on human flesh. He became a man, as God intended, so that he could sympathize with our weaknesses, suffer as we suffer, be tempted as we are tempted, yet without sin, and so he could die on a cross for our sins. He did this so we could be set free from sin. He did not die for us because of anything we had done to deserve his salvation. While we were yet sinners Christ died for us. When he died, he took upon himself all our sins, so that our sins were crucified and buried with him. When he arose from the dead, our sins remained buried. Yet, he triumphed over death, hell, Satan and sin through his bodily resurrection to life.
Prior to Jesus Christ’s death and resurrection, men were under the law, not under grace. They were still saved by faith, yet they did not have a permanent solution for their sins. A human priest had to offer sacrifices for their sins on God’s altar on a regular basis, yet even these offerings could not completely do away with sin. Yet, when Jesus died, he died for all sin and for all time – once for all. He became the permanent solution to man’s sin problem. Man was created to be in perfect fellowship with God, yet, when man sinned against God in the Garden of Eden, that sin separated man from God and man was cast out of the garden. So, we needed a Savior who could bridge that gap between us and God, could forgive (pardon) our sin, and could become our only mediator between us and God the Father. Jesus Christ was our perfect sacrificial lamb who died on the cross for our sins, and he is our only mediator now between us and God the Father. We no longer have to go to a physical temple to meet with God, for God’s holy temple dwells within the hearts of true believers.
The Bible says that we are saved by God’s grace and through faith, and that both the grace for our salvation and the faith to believe are gifts from God. We learn throughout the New Testament teachings on salvation that repentance (turning from our sins) and obedience to Christ (taking up our cross daily and following him) are necessary for our salvation, and are synonymous with faith. We cannot and should not separate repentance and obedience from faith in Christ Jesus, yet many try to do that. Jesus Christ died so that we could go free from sin, not that we should remain in our sin because someone lied to us and told us we did not have to turn from our sins in order to be saved. They tell another lie to convince the prospective believer, and that is that repentance and obedience to Christ equal works-based salvation, yet we learn here that God pours out his grace upon us, as well as he pours out his love and the faith for us to believe. We can only believe because the Father draws us to Christ, and the Holy Spirit of God convicts our hearts of sin, and because he reveals to our hearts the truth of God’s word, and of his gospel. We can only have a heart transformation via the working of the Holy Spirit within us in cleansing us from sin, purifying our hearts to make us holy, and in resurrecting us to new life in Jesus Christ. By grace we are saved!
The Reason
Paul said that the reason he was shown mercy was so that Christ Jesus might display within him Christ’s unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life. And, Paul does serve as a wonderful example to us of God’s amazing grace to transform lives. Paul was zealous for God, but he lacked knowledge and acted in ignorance. He was a Pharisee and a religious man. He became a persecutor and a murderer of believers in Jesus Christ, because he thought he was serving God in this way. Yet, God, in his great mercy and kindness, visited him on the road to Damascus. Jesus Christ spoke to him and told him that, through his persecution of believers in Jesus Christ, he was persecuting Jesus himself. And, it was there on that road that Jesus Christ gave Paul his assignment for life. Christ Jesus appointed Paul to be his witness and servant – to open the eyes of the spiritually blind and to turn them from darkness to light; from the power of Satan to God, so they might receive forgiveness of sins and eternal life with God in heaven.
Paul, thus, was very thankful to our Lord Jesus Christ for all that he had done for him, first of all in saving him from his sins, and then in appointing him to God’s service, both of which are awesome examples of God’s wonderful grace to us who are so undeserving. I am not in full-time ministry because of my wonderfulness. God lifted me out of a pit of sin, too, for which I am so thankful. It does not take much for me to be reminded of where I once was, and how utterly sinful I was in my human flesh. Yet, God, in his mercy, delivered me. He set me free from this body of sin and death. He rescued me, because he delighted in me (see Ps. 18:19), and because he had a purpose for my life. The first and primary purpose was for me to be saved from sin and to live a holy life pleasing unto God. The second purpose was so that he could appoint me to his service, too. And, this is his purpose for all of us – to be saved from sin and to serve our Lord Jesus Christ. So, we are really no different from Paul.
Instructions
Paul gave instruction to Timothy in keeping with God’s calling upon Timothy’s life, and then he stated that, by following them, he might fight the good fight, and hold on to the faith and a good conscience. God created every one of us for a divine purpose, and it is the Lord’s will that God’s purpose for our lives should be fulfilled. We were first of all saved, if we have believed in Jesus, so that we could be free, not only from the ultimate penalty of sin, but we were set free from the control of sin over our daily lives, as well as we were set free to live holy lives unto God and to walk humbly before our Lord Jesus in daily obedience and surrender to his will for our lives. In addition to that, we were saved, sanctified and made holy unto God for his service. We are all called to be his witnesses and to share the gospel with the world in need of a Savior. Yet, not all of us are called to do this full-time. We are all part of Christ’s body, and we each have a part that our Lord wants us to fill, by his grace. The Holy Spirit has gifted each one of us with spiritual gifts, which we are to use for the building up of the body of Christ, so we might all come to mature faith in Christ.
So, as those who have been set free from sin via Jesus’ ransoming us with his blood, and via him purchasing us back to God and for our salvation, we should make it our goal to live lives holy and pleasing unto God in all things. We should no longer live in bondage to sin and to sin’s deceitfulness, but we should live as slaves of righteousness. And, we should find out what pleases the Lord, and learn what the Lord’s will is for each one of our lives. Then do what he has called us to do, in his strength, by his power, and through the working of the Holy Spirit within us, and out through us, for God’s glory, not for our own glory, nor in our own strength. In doing the will of God for our lives and in following the Lord Jesus’ instructions to us from his word, we can thus fight the good fight of faith and we can hold on to the faith and a good conscience. We will lose this battle if we are still being controlled by sin’s deceitfulness, and if we are still living according to the pattern of the world, and if we are following worldly, or our own evil desires of the flesh. If we are doing that, our faith will be shipwrecked, because we have rejected the truth we once claimed to have received.
God our Savior wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth, yet many are still believing and are following the lies, and many of those are professing believers in Jesus Christ, our Lord, too. That is why we need to have our spiritual eyes opened, and we need to turn from darkness (our sins) to light (faith and obedience to Christ and his gospel), and from the power of Satan to God, so that we might have forgiveness of sins and the hope of eternal life with God, beginning right now and lasting for eternity.
Thank You, Lord / An Original Work / May 19, 2011
Thank You, Lord, for saving me;
From my sins set free.
Crucified and risen Lord,
They hung on a tree.
They thought they had finished You.
You came back to life;
Triumphed over hell and sin;
You gave eternal life.
Thank You, Lord, for victory
Over all my sin,
So that I might live with You;
You cleansed me within;
Filled me with your love and pow’r;
Give me strength each day,
So that I might live for You,
To love You and obey.
Thank You, Lord, for your return.
Soon You will arrive
To receive Your bride to You;
Meet You in the sky.
You’ll wipe away all our tears;
Free us from our fears;
Crown our heads in victory.
We’ll praise You with our cheers!
Song Lyrics @ Public Domain
Audio, song lyrics and sheet music:
https://sites.google.com/site/psalmshymnssongs/home/songs/thank-you-lord
Song on video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LuNbMIAx_kQ
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