Paul and Me, Sinners Saved by Grace

God sent His son Christ Jesus to save sinners. He came for me and the worst of us. Paul was one of the worst.

“¹⁵The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.” — 1 Timothy 1:15 (ESV)

I am a sinner yes, and all of my sins are egregious as all sin is. Whether little white lies or those that are in direct disobedience to the ten commandments, all sin is terrible in the eyes of God. At this moment, I want to talk about in the eyes of man. Make no mistake, I am not condoning any sin and know that God looks at things much differently than man.

Paul (at the time known as Saul) was one of the worst sinners in this world. He was a direct persecutor of those who followed and believed in Jesus as the Messiah. He tracked them down and stoned or killed them just for what they believed. In the eyes of man, Paul was an awful person.

“¹²I thank him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he judged me faithful, appointing me to his service, ¹³though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, ¹⁴and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.” — 1 Timothy 1:12-14 (ESV)

Jesus came for Paul and in His great wisdom and plan, provided the grace needed for Paul to turn to Him and become one of the greatest advocates and apostles to the gospel. Paul was seen as a sinner by God, no different than me. I have every opportunity to do the same or at least to the work that God has for me and in the eyes of man, am not as awful as Paul, so I should have even more opportunity.

Now I want to shift back to the grace of God and share my thoughts on His perspective. Paul and I are the same. We are both sinners who need the grace God has to provide. We both are not deserving, yet God provides for us despite our sin. Whether persecuting followers of Christ or lying to a neighbor, both of us find ourselves in the same room as sinners in need of grace.

God looks at the man (or woman) not the sin. He has to or else He would not be able to look at any of us. He takes us for who we are warts and all. He love us and came to save us despite what we have done and/or will do. Paul and I, where in the eyes of man are vastly different, in the eyes of God, we are the same. And that is what and where it counts. God loves me and came for me, the sinner.

What is your belief in the grace that is provided by God? Is one deserving of grace more than another based on the sins committed? What if you were to recognize that we are all the same in the eyes of God, sinners, and we all receive grace despite the sin we have or will commit, and we only need to accept?