Paul: The Foremost of Sinners

I invite you turn your Bibles to first Timothy chapter 1, we will continue in our study of the first letter of Paul to Timothy starting in verse 12. Go to verse 17 I think him who has given me strength Christ Jesus our Lord because he is judge me faithful, appointing me to his service, though formally I was a blasphemer persecutor and insolent opponent, but I receive mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. 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 but I received mercy. For this reason that in me, as the foremost, Christ Jesus might display his perfect patients. As an example to those who would believe in him for eternal life. Maybe see us pray heavenly father we do come to you this evening as sinners, we were conceived and send is what we know is our natural bent, but because of your grace and because of your mercy you sought us out called us out of darkness into your marvelous light. You gave us your grace, that is your unmerited favor. Nothing in us but simply and who Christ is, in his mercy to us were thankful we come to you this evening in his name.

Let us look to Paul's words this evening to Timothy into the church. Let us be encouraged that we to wood see these words is trustworthy and of full acceptance that you came to the world to save sinners, but to see ourselves in the text this evening, and let us run to US Paul has run to you and your sons and we pray, amen.

That's the main point this evening really.

Verse 15 is it saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.

This single sentence has encouraged countless souls to come to Christ and believe in him and I think particularly back to our own church tradition back in the Reformation man named Thomas building he was studying law in Cambridge and he later went into ministry and is among the first men that were martyred for the faith back in the English Reformation and stumbled upon this verse and he said the following. This one sentence though God's instruction and interworking did so exhilarate my heart being before wounded with the guilt of my sins and being almost in despair that immediately I seem to know myself inwardly to feel a marvelous comfort and quietness that my bruised bones delete for joy there referencing Psalm 51 were David references is broken bones after this Scripture became more pleasant to me. Then honey a few years later he would be burned at the stake for the very same faith that I preached you this evening that we are saved by grace through faith in Christ alone in this verse and 15 is kind of the crescendo. It's the pinnacle of this passage, but will go back and look at this chapter and give us some context here Paul's greeting. Of course, in verses 1 to 2 versus 3 to 7 Paul addresses the heresy that is going around circulating within the church, marked by vein genealogies and is a merging of Judaism and Christianity in the early church, and so Paul is calling Timothy to watch out and call out any of this false doctrine that exists in his church and then we see that finally he's going to contrast this use of the law, calling out these false teachers is going to put a particular emphasis on the grace and the mercy of God, and he uses his own personal testimony to do so.

So we see in this passage here is that through Paul's testimony, we might see the grace and the mercy of God. First, we see in our first point that Paul is thankful for God's grace in verses 12 to 14. He says I think him. Jesus was given me strength Christ Jesus our Lord because he judge me faithful, appointing me to his service. Paul is writing to Timothy and indirectly to the church to tell them that the saints are to work mightily that they are to rely on God for strength and to do the work of ministry God planned that Paul would be used mightily in his service, and so God is using Paul and Paula's.

In response, thanking God for the strength that he has given him in the grace and salvation is his in Christ God for new and foreordained that Paul would be an apostle and teacher and a preacher to both Jews and Gentiles alike, and so God calls about his work. Of course we know the story. Acts chapter 9 on the road to Damascus, but the language uses. Here God judge me faithful is can be translated into God consider me that I would be faithful, evidenced by the fact that he is appointed and brought into this work of ministry, but at the same time considering his own testimony, he does since his own lack of worth and he doesn't deserve this. He says I was the least of the Saints to which this grace was given, to preach the Gentiles even doesn't deserve to be employed by the Lord to be an evangelist to the Christians going back to acts chapter 9. He was breathing murderous threats against the church. Galatians chapter 1 he says you've heard of my former life in Judaism how I persecuted the people of God violently and tried to destroy the Christian church. Ananias even knew about his reputation before he ever showed up.

He said I've heard about this man, how much evil he has done to the Saints at Jerusalem, and Saul of Tarsus was already known for his opposition to the church. But the thing is, again, we have to remember, Paul didn't know the Lord Jesus he was he was blind to the truth. He had no eyes to see no ears to hear, he didn't understand who he was persecuting thing of Christ when he said, forgive them for they know not what they do heat. He didn't. He did not know he had no understanding.

He acted ignorantly in his unbelief and the grace of the Lord overflowed for me.

He says with a faith in the love that are in Christ Jesus.

We see this pairing of grace and faith and love, all working together to give Paul this testimony of a grace that abounds in his life.

John Bunyan wrote his autobiography called it grace abounding for the chief of sinners.

This is an overflowing of grace. There's an abundance of grace and mercy that Paul has in Christ. And so in response he wants to labor as hard as he can for the Lord Jesus Christ.

One way some of put this is a grace driven gratitude. The first thing he wants to do as a starving, dying center, as he finds the bread of life, and was to tell others of this bread, he wants to lead them and tell them of the life that he has now in Christ. This brings us to our main point this evening that we see why Christ would call such a we evil wicked man like Paul saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost that phrase the saving that saying is trustworthy. This is a mark that this is a normal phrase throughout the church, the way the American evangelical church says we invite Jesus in your heart or wing of the Roman road. We know, the typical language that our culture uses to bring someone to faith in Christ. The saying is trustworthy is that you can rely on this and believe this uses us four more times in the pastoral epistles is a phrase to say that this is trustworthy. You can rely on this you should know these things and accept these things as true, the Christ came into the world. This is a reference to the incarnation that is Christ coming into the world, enclosed in human flesh, and he was among us even notice the way that Paul is using this language. He refers to Jesus as Christ Jesus.

He puts a particular emphasis on Christ. That is the anointed one. He wants to emphasize the fact that Jesus is the anointed one, of God. He is the Messiah that was promised from the Old Testament and now he is in and among us but he knows Jesus as his divinity.

He does not know Jesus of Nazareth and his humanity, the 12 disciples followed Jesus. They knew Jesus. They knew the man they knew him sweating blood in Gethsemane. They knew him as the person that they followed for three years. They knew the humanity of Christ.

Here we see that Paul is putting a particular emphasis on what he does in terms of salvation. Peter does the same thing. In acts in Matthew chapter 16. He also emphasizes his divinity. He knew Jesus in his humanity, but he also said you are the Christ, the son of the living God, emphasizing that divine nature is in Christ, but Paul knew the ascended exalted, enthroned Christ reigning in heaven. King Jesus and he knew him because he was called personally by Christ Jesus. He's thinking of Jesus as not Jesus the man, but God the son, the Lord Jesus Christ before he was incarnate that is enclosed in human flesh were we see him on earth he was in the beginning, creating all things with the father John chapter 1 verses 1 to 3 in the beginning was the word the Word was God. The word word was with God the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God all things were made through him and without him was not anything made that was made. In other words, Jesus was there in the beginning with the father, with the Holy Spirit creating all things we see this in Genesis 1 that he was with God and then John chapter 1 verse 14 the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.

The word became flesh was the Lord Jesus Christ and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only son from the father full of grace and full of truth. Verse nine says that he is the true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world.

Philippians he's telling chapter 2 tells us that he was in the form of God did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. He was born in in human flesh, you Matthew chapter 1 she will bear a son, you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sin. The Son of Man came to seek and save those who were lost and that's the goal of Christ coming of the world is that he might save sinners and so that's exactly what he does with Paul.

He comes into the world and the gospel message goes out. The church begins to grow in.

Paul is brutally persecuting these Christians. But God mightily works. Jesus calls them out next nine and now he is drawing men to Christ through his ministry on earth he comes to call sinners he doesn't call the righteous, but he calls those who are sinners. Historically, this word was something a Jewish person would refer to a Gentile someone who is unclean. The Jews were set apart. They were a holy people and nation of Israel. But now, with Pentecost, we see a expansion of the new covenant spoke about this this morning in baptism. There's this expansion of the new covenant, and now the Gentiles who were afar off to restrain from God, alienated from God. There now grafted into the covenant here and finally, with whom I am the foremost Paul is telling us that of everyone.

He is the worst.

He tells us that he is the protest with the word prototype or the first essay in the first person that ever send you saying that he's the first in line.

He saying that he would be the worst if we were to line up from the worst sinner to the least.

He would say that he is the worst or the foremost of sinners. And when you look at his testimony, he might be right.

Considering the times he is going into Christian homes. Acts chapter 8 he was ravaging the church he was entering the house and entering house after house. He was dragging out men and women and committing them to prison.

X 22 tells us that I persecuted the followers of the way that he would have word Christian back that was to simply those who follow the way and he persecuted them to the point of death thing about his crew credentials back in Philippians 3 he says he was circumcised on the eighth day was people of Israel the tribe of Benjamin. The Hebrew of Hebrews of the law. Pharisee, I think most shocking thing about that. It was, he emphasizes his zeal for persecution. Not only was he a proud Jewish training to be a Pharisee, but he had a zeal and a love for persecuting the church he would delight in his opposition to the church we were parallel today and be like Paul's conversion would be like if the leader of the Islamic state was to come to faith the like of Osama bin Laden. In December 2001 was to say no. I believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and I repent of my sins, I mean his conversion is completely unthinkable. But why would God think of it, why would God do this.

Why would God convert Saul of Tarsus.

Of all the people that were to come to faith. Was it because he needed Paul's knowledge of the law did he need his Roman citizenship to access the Roman populace. What was it that he needed. He didn't need any of this but God uses the traits of Paul that his citizenship all this for effectiveness in Paul's ministry, but he did it. Verse 16.

For this reason that in me, as the foremost, Christ Jesus might display his perfect patients. As an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. God saved Paul so that you and I would know that no one is outside the grace beyond the grace of God. Anyone can be saved. He acted ignorantly in his unbelief he was lost he was dead and his trespasses and sins but God because of the great love in which he loved us, even though he was.

Dennis trespasses and sins. He made Paula live in Christ, got got showed him his air. He showed him in the law where he was guilty and he needed the grace of God and Christ calls him out and draws him to himself and what we see is that Paul is now a mighty weapon in the hand of God to draw in the Gentiles. It was this illumination of Paul's mind. It was giving him eyes to see the truth of God's word. It was the spirit of God that lightning enlightens his mind to the knowledge of Christ renews his will, he embraces Christ by faith as he has offered him in the gospel. He is converted and obtains mercy for himself to be a witness to God and to others of God to others. Back in 1918. There was a man in Tokyo.

His name is Tookie G. E.g. he was in prison for murder and he attacked and nearly killed a prison guard. He was a career criminal, hidden 20 different times.

He was arrested and finally he was arrested for murder before receiving his death sentence he received the New Testament sent by two Christian missionaries a miss West and a miss McDonald. I love examples like that little fateful testimonies in history were someone to simply hands over a Bible to the right person at the right time and God works, resulting in Mr. e.g. coming to know Christ and when he was sentenced to death. He accepted that as quote a fair and impartial judgment of God.

In other words, he knew that he deserved the death penalty for his sins.

During that visit. Miss West directed him back to second Corinthians chapter 6 verse 8 to 10 which deals with suffering were Mr. e.g. noted, among other things, line poor, yet making many rich and he wrote of this. He said this, this certainly does not apply to the evil life I lead before I repented, but perhaps in the future someone in the world may hear that the most desperate villain who ever lived, repented of his sins and was saved by the power of Christ, and so may come to repent.

Also, then it may be, though I am poor myself, I should be able to make many rich he died in faith, and his last words were my soul purified today returns to the city of God.

God there was Grayson reached a man who called himself the most desperate villain who ever lived, just as he had reached the worst of sinners, 1900 years before God's grace can reach anyone, is not your typical convert a Japanese murderer from 100 years ago.

It's not who you typically think of as a convert, and Paul much the same way is not atypical convert.

I sometimes get this when I got to evangelism someone will ask me something like do you think that Hitler is in heaven. If he was to repent of the Holocaust.

Would he be in heaven. If Stalin was to repent of killing so many people would he be in heaven. Mark Sibelius sent you know hundreds of thousands of Christians to their death. Back in the Roman Coliseum. I have to be faithful here and say well I guess the main if our eve are you defending Hitler you defending Stalin are you defending Marcus right now I'm not defending any of them. What I'm trying to say is that God's grace has no limits.

I don't know, to the extent in which God might save someone if they were to truly repent and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, with real repentance that they've sinned against God, that they sinned against others that they are sorry for their sin. Might it be that God would save them. Can we look at Paul and see that he's a Christian murderer. There is no limit to God's grace we don't know I'm just defending the fact that God can save anyone thing about Jonah. He lamented the fact that Nineveh repented he was reluctant he ran away from God.

Got pulled him back and said go to Nineveh called in repentance event was a den of iniquity.

They were evil they were vile. They hated God he goes in reluctantly preaches the gospel and says repent of your sin and they do and he's not happy he's bitter at the fact that they repented.

We ought to be thrilled when God saves even your worst enemy. You ought to praise God that he would save the most evil, vile person that you personally know the person that you still hold any sort of measure of bitterness against we ought to be thrilled that God would give them repentance and faith. If it's true. If there's a real evidence of true repentance and true faith they will be forgiven and reconciled to God will be a great thing to see you be surprised we get to heaven. Who's there and who's not, it will be quite shocking.

But Paul is repenting of murdering Christians he sinned against the church.

He sinned against the Lord Jesus Christ and the church welcomes him in its amazing I think about.

He might've walked into the church I and people thought what on earth is he doing here but again he's coming and having been appointed by Christ directly. It's an amazing testimony that he would murder Christians and be a terrorist but God breaks through.

Saves him and makes him a powerful apostle. The rights of large portion of the New Testament.

I love the quote from AW Pink when tempted to be disgusted at the dullness of another or to be revenged on one who has wronged you call to remembrance God's infinite patience and long-suffering with yourself. Hearing Paul in his testimony can get a certain measure of assurance and understand God's long-suffering nature to convert one of the greatest of sinners. You might think of your own friends and family say there is no way they would ever come to faith impossible.

People would think you have. They have to live. They have left the faith and they would never come back. You think they're never in a darkened the door of the church ever again, but we don't know that life is long and we have no idea that they might one day believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and where we share the faith with them when they were young person that faithful witness of a family member of a Sunday school teacher can last a lifetime.

Unfaithfulness might also last a lifetime. And there we might be to go back and repent and say sorry about my poor witness is a Christian. Sorry where I sinned against you personally repent to you and for God.

I was wrong. They might want to hear that they might need to hear that to be drawn into the Lord Jesus Christ and back to the church and really you might be the instrument in which they hear true repentance and accrued a clear Christian model of repentance and faith. Considering your own life for those who have come to faith. A later age or join the church with a sincere desire to follow Christ. Think back for a moment on your own life.

Think back to where you were outside of Christ. Just like Paul, you had a crowd who knew you. Not as a Christian, they knew you as someone completely different. John chapter 6 verse 42, says, is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know even Jesus dealt with it is just Joseph son Mary son is a the carpenter. What in the just a guy that everyone deals with this. A prophet has no honor in his hometown in these days needed is a Christian.

So when you come back and you tell them that you been redeemed. We tell them that your new creation in Christ there.

There might be. This mocking there might be.

This laughter might remind you of the foolish things they done, but think about what it was like for for Paul to go back for him to brush shoulders with an old Pharisee friend from long ago for him to run back into someone from back in the day when they were in school together it would not be look how foolish you are, it was you have left us.

You've abandoned us. You have left a thousand years of beautiful tradition to be one of those Christ followers you the enemy now you will be persecuted by us. We will hunt you down. The Philippians 3 he says whatever gain I had I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for his sake I have lost.

I've suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ to the righteousness from God that depends on faith and so he walks into the church, a former murderer thing, Luke 18 with the Pharisee and the tax collector he's coming in Steps to the side.

He sprang privately to the Lord and someone had with thought. Why is he in here. Do we need to run out the back door what's going on here and like the tax collector. He says God be merciful to me a sinner.

Paul is reconstituting himself.

He is identifying himself as a Christian is a new life in Christ.

He tells us in Galatians 220 have been crucified with Christ is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me and the life I now live. I live by faith in the son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. You remind yourself of this if I can have anybody read one verse every day be Galatians 220 to see our new identity in Christ. It's not I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me and is what we must do.

We must see ourselves the way that God the father sees us in his son Christ Jesus. We have been part of our sins and accepted as righteous in his sight only for what he has done and what he is, as our Savior and our Redeemer and believing in him, our sins are nailed at the cross and his righteousness is given to us by faith in God sees is not outside of Christ.

He doesn't see Christ outside of the church, his bride his people that are grafted into him with this hope future hope of a wedding feast where we will be united to Christ for all eternity in the church will be brought in as a beautiful bride washed of all sin and washed of any sort of record of any sort of wrongdoing. We are having full communion with Christ for an eternity.

So let us not be crippled by the past must not be crippled by guilt or shame, but let us be accepted as we are in Christ, let us run with endurance the race that is set before us. Finally, we have the closing of a benediction God is the King of all ages who sovereignly governs every age we see that God reigns in creation and after creation before creation, the final age on into eternity. We see that Christ is immortal. He is without decay or destruction.

He will always be. He is imperishable and incorruptible cities invisible that we have his word, but first Timothy chapter 6 tells us that he lives in unapproachable light, for no one has seen or can see, we see that he is the only God.

He is the true triune God of Scripture Isaiah 45 verse 18 says I am the Lord, and there is no other. And so to this God, the one true God. We say with Paul to the King of ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever. So let us look with boldness to Christ, who is our King reigning in heaven because the saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ came in the world to save sinners spray heavenly father we do, we do pray that we would see ourselves as you see us united to Christ, you would see us with your son and what he has done on behalf of guilty repentant sinners as you shown us our sin. Let the seed of faith be sown in good soil, removing any obstructions of pride or self-righteousness. Let us humble ourselves before you. Let us love you. Let us look to your son and in doing so we are united to him. We look forward to that day were we will be united to you for an eternity contain remind us of these things every day since Amy pray on