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Sanctifying View of Grace

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For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.
(1 Corinthians 15:9)

To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ
(Ephesians 3:8)

The 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)

At a recent Bible study my wife and I attended, we looked at these three verses to see how the apostle Paul described himself throughout his ministry. Notice the following:

At the beginning of his ministry, Paul described himself as “the least of the apostles” (1 Corinthians 15:9).

Later, he described himself as “the very least of all the saints” (Ephesians 3:8).

Toward the end of his ministry, he considered him the chief—the foremost—of all sinners (1 Timothy 1:15).

Here’s the amazing truth: as Paul grew in his relationship with Jesus, and as he matured in his faith, the more he actually saw himself as a sinner. It is not that Paul sinned more frequently; it is that Paul’s view of his sin grew. And as a result, the apostle’s appreciation for God’s grace grew as well. You see, the more he got to know our amazing God (in the fullness of His attributes), the more Paul saw himself and unworthy of such grace. It gave him a high view of God—the “fear of the Lord”—and in reverential awe, Paul realized that the free offer of grace through Jesus Christ grew more and more amazing to him.

What about you? As you mature in your faith in the Lord, does your view of His grace stay the same, or does it grow?

Comments

  1. Chris,

    A parallel lesson can be that Paul’s Title and Office diminished – from “Apostle” to “Saint” to “Sinner”.
    We love out titles…..

    J.

  2. It will be so amazing to meet these saints in heaven. To hear them talk about their lives and their experiences with the Lord. It’s hard to view them as just people like us but they were.

    The more I learn the more I realize just how much I don’t know. The more I study and seek His face the more deeply I love Him and the more awesome the gift of Salvation through is grace becomes to me. Each day I pray, “More of you and less of me Lord.” Each day I realize the time is short and the world is in desperate shape. Come quickly Lord Jesus. Help me in every way to be pleasing in Your sight. Amen!

    WONDERFUL post Chris. Thank you and God bless you.

  3. We, “who have tasted that the Lord is gracious.” 1Pe 2:3, are those Jesus prays for.
    Jhn 17:15 “I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.
    We are lights, we are seeds, we are to continue with the work of the Holy Spirit for His Acts today.

    As much as we want to be with Him, we are with Him partaking of His work in this world. We are not to fear that we will fail or fall by keeping our being fixed on Him. We love Jesus and know that He is love. So in love we learn of His will that none should perish. We consider the dead and dying with compassion.

    Luk 4:18-19, Jhn 4:34-37, 1Cr 13:4-7, Mar 14:34-36

    So we join with Paul to preach the unsearchable riches of Jesus.
    2Cr 5:1-21, Rom 10:8-21, 2Ti 4:1-5
    We who are in Him, in the Father are included in His work and share the blessings, the riches of God with all those who He preaches to through us. Be strong in our God, Who will never leave or forsake you. You are also in saintly company right now.

    It is wholly necessary to attribute, to credit all things to our Father, Who continues His Word to fulfillment. Unto whom much is given much is expected. There may be too many quotes in this comment for some yet it is His Word that is life.
    Mat 9:2, Mat 14:27, Mar 6:50, Jhn 16:33, Act 23:11, Act 27:22, Act 27:25

  4. Amen Bob! I’m blessed by your comments. They are a great encouragement. Psalm 34:7-9

  6. His Grace is sufficient.
    The closer the walk the greater the Grace.
    The deeper the Love the more amazing its Mercy.
    I too can only begin like Paul to understand My Lords Amazing Love for us.
    Yes us sinners as we are, fallen though we may be.
    I am ever so gracious that I may be allowed to be covered by Him who gave His Life for me.
    I thank you My Father for you Gift Of Love, Mercy, and Grace. Thank you for Making A Way For Me…….
    Child Of God, Daughter of The Most High,
    Donna

  7. Compare…

    Exd 20:5-6 HNV
    Deu 5:9-10 HNV

    Jhn 14:15 HNV
    Jhn 14:23-24 HNV

    Same WORDS from the same GOD some 1500 years apart.

    How do these verses work with NT Grace if the LAW has been replaced, cursed, done away with, etc?

    J.

    P.s. (This is a rhetorical question).

    • If I understand you correctly… Yes Steve, The LAW is the measuring line by which we are judged / justified. Still in full enforcement and OOOHHH, are we thankful the FATHER loves the SON and the SON loves us. Jhn 15:13 HNV.

      J.

  8. Time is a condition of this world, of death. When there is no death time is irrelevant. Jesus is the same from before the foundation of the world for evermore.
    Hbr 13:8
    What does matter is His Word, His promises, His name.
    Act 15:14 Simeon hath declared how God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name.
    Act 15:15-18
    No one has said that the law is cursed. The gift that only our Father can give, RIGHTEOUSNESS is the grace of this dispensation.

      • Rev 1:18 I [am] he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.
        Rev 21:22 And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.
        Rev 21:23 And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb [is] the light thereof.
        The world hastens to deny the deity of Jesus. Many can be heard bemoaning those who have made Jesus more than a man, elevating Him to God. Scripture declares Jesus is God and Son of man. Scripture also identifies the spirit of antichrist. That spirit is so very bold it deflects; defeats the testimony of many who would believe God.
        1Ti 3:16, 1Jo 4:3, Col 2:2

  9. Hallelujah.

    Thank you Lord Jesus for these words and the teaching and encouragement contained therein. Thank you Chris.

    I personally have found the teaching of the Lord’s apostle Paul a treasure. I must admit that I do struggle when people tell me that the teaching of the gospels was written to a people of the time and not to our generation.

    Jerry S. you have quoted Exodus 20:5-6 and Deuteronomy 5:9-10.

    What I realize is that our God will always keep His promises, He will give His mercy to the thousands toward those who fear Him and keep His word and and will punish the iniquity of the fathers to the 3rd and 4th generation. Exodus 20:5-6.

    I can say without reservation that I am a chief of the sinners. How is it that while practicing a martial art in a Shinto temple in Japan, the Lord of Grace would one day be amongst my group, (who were bowing down to false God), and delcare while I was practicing “They do not like us.”

    To this day I have not been worthy of the forgiving heart of God the Father who by His Holy Spirit intervened that day to take me from Satan’s gate and lead me to Jesus Christ.

    As is written by the apostle Paul in 1 Timothy 1:15 “The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.”

    The day I heard “They do not like Us” was the last day I would step into that Shinto temple.

    I can only but think that the Lord YHWH Jesus Christ was there Himself to rescue a ‘lost sheep’ with God the Holy Spirit. It is God the Father who draws men to Christ and the Holy Spirit who convicts.

    ‘How unsearchable are the riches of Christ.’ My own dear son (now 17yrs) at the age of about 10yrs broke both his arms near the wrist in a fall headfirst from the top of a slide. More recently when he was around 15yrs, going headfirst again but this time while going downhill on a surfaced road, hurtling over the handle bars of a bicycle, he again broke an arm (near the wrist).

    God says that He will visit the iniquity of the fathers to the 3rd and 4th generation of their children.

    Elsewhere it says in scripture that God will break the bones of the wicked. It is a hard thing for some, but I can only but consider that my iniquity was brought as a curse upon my child.

    The first injury happened to my son when I was walking as an enemy of God.

    The second happened several years after I had been brought to my knees repentent before the Lord Jesus Christ believing that not only I was cursed, but also that I had brought a curse on my family.

    Yet there was a difference at the time of the second accident. Prior to my son’s second injury, that morning while at work I was by vision warned of danger to my child, a good swimmer, about to suffer an accident as if diving head first. I prayed to the Lord for His mercy and protection.

    My son had returned to home at the day’s end injured. He had PRAISE GOD suffered no head injuries, (he was cylcing down hill) and by God’s grace managed to break his fall and protect his head with his arm. Thank you Lord Jesus for your blood.

    I am a chief of sinners BUT this year by grace led by the Lord Jesus Christ, His Holy Spirit, I destroyed by fire the remaining objects of my idolatry stored in my home and sought the Lord’s mercy for the curse upon my children to be released.

    The riches of Christ are unsearchable to some, but by the Father’s mercy and the Lord Jesus’s grace He is in His good time, not only daily sanctiying me but also my family.

    This is by the blood of the Lamb. He who fulfilled the law and paid the price of my sin, taking the curse given to me and my children upon Himself.

    Glory be to God.
    Amen.

    In Christ
    Mark H NZ

    • I know what you mean Mark. When my BIL (bro-in-law) had his brain aneurysm I rushed to the aid of my sister and one day while she was visiting at the hospital I was cleaning her house. In the computer room my BIL had set up a board game that he and his son had been playing in the days before. It was a magical, spell casting game. I was overcome with a sense of evil and loathing as I cleaned it up and took it to the trash.

      My BIL is a wonderful Christian man but saw these games as harmless. He’d viewed my sister’s objections to them as emotional responses. I knew the moment I saw it that it had been a gateway for harm to this wonderful man.

      Thankfully my BIL made a full and very miraculous recovery. Praise God. And once he recovered sufficiently we had a very serious talk with him about this sort of thing.

      More and more we turn a blind eye as satan bombards the world with his evil influence. Each day the airways become more and more vile and satanic and what is shocking to me is that not only do CHRISTIANS not stand up against it they participate in it. They sit in church on Sunday after having watched the latest evil movie on Saturday night with popcorn and a coke. God forgive me for the times I’ve done this sort of thing and I pray that He would help me to battle against it.

    • “Cause and Effect” are not always the Principle behind the circumstances we find ourselves in.
      Job 1:8-12 HNV
      J.

  10. Chris,
    Thank you and BLB for this wonderful post. I’m encouraged as I read all the comments. I’m so grateful for this.

    Chris, having not read your books, I’ve been looking forward to you commenting on “fearing God” which in many North American Christian circles seems to have diminished to the point of non existence.

    This post, although brief, is a power packed gem which to me, begs to highlight what I call “Direction of travel” (DOT).

    No mater where one is in life, where one IS going is dependent on ones direction of travel. I can be sitting in “church” and my thoughts can be far from God, and actually moving away from God, or I could be a prostitute on the street and realize my need for God in my life and “move” toward him. In either case “movement” and direction of travel are involved. ( just a thought)

    As Apostle Paul grew in maturity, he “saw” God differently, and therefore, “saw” himself differently. Depending on one’s position while looking at something, your perspective changes. For instance, I saw New Your City many times, but I never saw NYC like the time I went to the top of the world trade center and looked out from the observation deck. NYC didn’t change, but my perspective in how I saw it changed, therefore changing my view or outlook.

    Growing with God MUST CHANGE us. Our D.O.T. must continually (generally) be toward him. As we grow in revelation of his Person-hood and attributes, we must see ourselves more as we really are “in the light of his wonderful grace” and our true identity in Christ ( by his Word). I say generally because, obviously we may have times where we stumble or fall, but we get up, brush ourselves off, 1John 1:9 and keep going.

    The progression of Paul’s D.O.T. was one of diminishing “importance” from a worldly standpoint. Least of apostles,to least of saints, to chief of sinners. I love this.

    Again i see the inverse economy of God at work. If you want to go higher in God, you must go lower. You must grow in humility and lowliness. This is where we as a culture Chris, miss this. We fail to “fear” God because, in part because we fail to be humble before him and others. We generally choose NOT to take the low road. We fail to fear God because we fail, as a culture to grow in him and gain deeper and higher perspectives of who he is —and isn’t. Of, this is just my opinion and “VIEW POINT”–My “perspective” This is how I see it from where I am.

    This encourages me to no end because over several years I have heard Holy Spirit continually direct me in a direction of travel. The direction of travel is the same I see Apostle Paul has traveled. Humility. Lowliness. Esteeming others greater than myself. Jesus.Others.Yourself= (J.O.Y.), Living by the “I’m third” principal instead of the “I’m first” principal. I know this is counter culture by the world’s standards, but it is also counter culture by the North American church standard.

    Help us Lord Jesus to clearly hear your Holy Spirit and follow. Help us to trust and obey…Help us to see you and grow in you as Paul did. Help us to not think of ourselves so highly and so important. Help us to be mindful of our direction of travel, and where our eyes are looking, for we always go where we look. I love you Lord Jesus and pray in your mighty name. Amen.

    Co-laboring-
    Breaux Mann

    • Wonderful thoughts Breaux Mann. I’m blessed by them and reminded to count myself the lowliest and most undeserving of Gods loving grace. I’m so thankful to Jesus that it is His Righteous and not my own that allows God to bring me ever closer and nearer to His Glory through His grace. Lord help me to be your humble servant in my every day walk.