For the foremost of sinners
O Lord God,
Grant your people grace to withstand the temptations of the world, the flesh, and the devil, and with pure hearts and minds to follow you, the only God. Because without you we are not able to please you, mercifully grant that your Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
(Anglican Book of Common Prayer, Proper 18 and 19)
1 Timothy 1:12-17 NRSV
I am grateful to Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because he judged me faithful and appointed me to his service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and a man of violence. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. The saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the foremost. But for that very reason I received mercy, so that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display the utmost patience, making me an example to those who would come to believe in him for eternal life. To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.
Matthew Henry
The apostle knew that he would justly have perished, if the Lord had been extreme to mark what was amiss; and also, if his grace and mercy had not been abundant to him when dead in sin, working faith and love to Christ in his heart. This is a faithful saying; these are true and faithful words, which may be depended on, That the Son of God came into the world, willingly and purposely to save sinners. No man, with Paul’s example before him, can question the love and power of Christ to save him, if he really desires to trust in him as the Son of God, who once died on the cross, and now reigns upon the throne of glory, to save all that come to God through him. Let us then admire and praise the grace of God our Saviour; and ascribe to the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, three Persons in the unity of the Godhead, the glory of all done in, by, and for us.[1]
Warren Wiersbe
Timothy was disturbed because he thought he was too young and lacked the necessary qualifications for the ministry. “Look at me!” says the apostle. “I was a blasphemer and murderer before God saved me! If the grace of God can make a missionary out of a murderer, then it can make a success out of you!” Paul was always careful to give God the glory for his life and ministry. Anyone who serves the Lord (and all believers ought to be servants) needs to depend on the grace of God. We are saved by grace, but we also serve through grace. In v. 14, Paul lists the three motivating forces in his life: grace, faith, and love. His love for Christ and for lost sinners constrained him to labor; his faith in Christ empowered him; and the grace of God worked in his life, enabling him to serve God.[2]
O MY SAVIOR,
I thank thee from the depths of my being for thy wondrous grace and love in bearing my sin in thine own body on the tree.
May thy cross be to me as the tree that sweetens my bitter Marahs, as the rod that blossoms with life and beauty, as the brazen serpent that calls forth the look of faith.
Use it to increase my intimacy with thyself.
Make it the ground of all my comfort; the liveliness of all my duties; the sum of all thy gospel promises; the comfort of all my afflictions; the vigor of my love, thankfulness, graces; the very essence of my religion; and by it give me that rest without rest, the rest of ceaseless praise. Amen.[3]
Come Thou Fount
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Corinthians 4.15).
[1] Matthew Henry and Thomas Scott, Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, 1997), 1 Ti 1:12.
[2] Warren W. Wiersbe, Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines on the New Testament (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1992), 621.
[3] “The Grace of the Cross,” The Valley of Vision, p. 172.
