Christ's Overflowing Mercy
1 Timothy 1:12-17

June 1, 2008
Third Sunday after Pentecost

Printable version (PDF | 24 KB)

To the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

Have you ever tried to stop something from overflowing? The two-liter bottle was shaken up on the way home from the store. The cap is twisted off and it begins to shoot everywhere. The only hope is to get the cap screwed back on which makes the pop shoot even further. On a larger scale, crews work to keep a river from overflowing its banks. Sandbags are filled and stacked in an attempt to build up the bank, but eventually the river breaks through the bags and it is impossible to stop. The apostle Paul talks about an unstoppable overflow in his own life. It isn't pop and it isn't water. It is the grace of God. Let's give thanks with Paul for Christ's overflowing mercy in our own lives.

Those great words of praise that I began the sermon with were the words that came to Paul's mind as he spoke about Christ's overflowing mercy. Paul gave thanks to Christ because he considered Paul faithful. The whole idea that God considered Paul faithful just blew his mind! How could that be? It was because of Christ's overflowing mercy that Paul was considered faithful.

It wasn't hard for Paul to come up with reasons that he shouldn't be considered faithful. He says, "I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man." Paul himself says that he was convinced he needed to do all that was possible to oppose the name of Jesus Christ, which made him a blasphemer. He put many of Christ's saints in prison and when they were on to be sentenced to death, Paul cast his vote in favor. He went from city to city to persecute them. So, yes, Paul is correct he was a blasphemer, a persecutor and a violent man. All of his actions affected people, but were ultimately aimed at Christ. Jesus himself said when he confronted Paul on the road to Damascus, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?"

Paul recognized why he did it. He writes, "I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief." Paul was not making excuses. His words do not make his actions any less wicked. He is simply putting himself in the same category of people for whom Jesus prayed at his crucifixion, "Father forgive them for they do not know what they are doing." The blindness and ignorance of unbelief is total and complete and Paul was caught in it.

Paul's wickedness and persecution of Jesus himself makes the mercy that Christ showed him even more tremendous. Paul writes, "The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus." The Scriptures have tried to describe the greatness of God's grace in other ways. It is described as the height of the heavens above the earth or the distance from the East to the West.

As Paul describes it here it is more accurate to say that God's grace filled Paul up to overflowing. He was filled with all the grace needed to cover over his sins and then so much more was given that Paul was like a full glass overflowing on all sides. In the book of Romans, Paul makes the point that sinners cannot outsin God's grace. As great as sin is in the world, so much greater is God's grace. Paul experienced that first hand in his life.

It is amazing enough that Christ took this blasphemer, persecutor, and violent man and made him a saint by his grace in taking away his sins, but he also called Paul to service in the Church! He took the blasphemer and made him a beacon of Christ's light. He took the persecutor and made him a proclaimer of the mercy he has been shown. He took the violent man and made him We are familiar with Paul the apostle and missionary whose life work became bringing the overflowing grace of Christ to the Gentiles.

When Paul considered his own life, faithful was not the first word that would come to mind. In fact the word that he thought of was probably "unfaithful". But that is where God's grace comes into the picture. For us too if we were to describe our life before God, we would probably agree with Paul and offer our own verdict of unfaithful. We know that our sins show our unfaithfulness. We are no more likely that Paul to be considered faithful by God. But just as God fills Paul to overflowing with his grace, he fills us too. As great as we know our sins are so much greater is the grace that God pours into us. In mercy Jesus cancelled our debt on the cross by having God's great wrath against sin poured out on him so that God's mercy can be poured out on us. Paul experienced it and we have experienced it too.

Jesus Christ placed Paul into full-time public ministry. These words of Paul are a great reminder for full-time workers in the church and school about what it means to be in the ministry. Just as Christ placed Paul into ministry so also everyone who has a divine call was placed there by Christ through a congregation. What a privilege it is to know that Jesus put us into his service and considered us, frail sinful creatures that we are to be able to serve God's people. The thought of this just humbled the apostle Paul and it humbles us too.

Remember that Paul is writing this letter to a young pastor named Timothy. Paul is writing to encourage him and share with Timothy the wisdom that Paul has learned in his ministry. Timothy had a tough job ahead of him, so Paul gives him a completely trustworthy saying that Timothy can fall back on when times are tough. It is a saying that Timothy will need to remember for himself and a saying that will help guide Timothy in his ministry. Paul writes, "Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst." With this statement Paul summarizes Jesus' whole mission. Paul is exceedingly thankful for Jesus' mission because he feels that he benefitted from Christ's work them most. The person with the greatest debt is most thankful when that debt is cancelled, in the same way Paul was exceedingly thankful to Christ because he feels that he is the worst sinner that ever lived.

This statement served as a constant reminder to Paul of the great of sin that has been paid for in his life. The Messiah came as God promised. He didn't come to save the better Christians. He didn't come to save the well-to-do. He didn't come to save the powerful or influential or rich. Jesus came to save sinners! This filled Paul with great joy. He knew that his sins, great as they may be, were forgiven in Christ.

By pointing out to Timothy that he is the chief of sinners, Paul shows that he can never forget those days as a blasphemer, a persecutor, and a violent man. And so it filled him with great humility to know that all of those things were forgiven. It humbled him to know that Jesus would do that for him, after everything he tried to do to Jesus. Paul was forever on his knees before Jesus in thankfulness and humility.

Paul could also see the wisdom in why Jesus would forgive him and make him one of his apostles. Paul wrote, "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."

Paul knew that his conversion and his new career would be an attention getter. When Paul began his ministry the word got around that the man who was once persecuting Christians is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy. If the great opponent of Christ is now a Christian, then others should stop and listen to why Paul had such a great change of heart. Then Paul would have a great opportunity to share the gospel with a captive audience. But even more than that Paul says that through him Christ is able to show his mercy. If he can have mercy on the worst of sinners, then he can have mercy on me too. Paul's conversion highlights the greatness of Christ's mercy. To have mercy on your greatest enemy shows how great that mercy is. It shows Christ's patience, that instead of immediately turning Paul into a greasy spot on a Roman Empire Road, Jesus was patient until the time was right to call Paul out of the darkness of unbelief to faith in him.

Can we call ourselves the "worst of sinners"? In God's eyes all sins are fatal and damning. It is human beings that like to make categories of better and worse sins. The truth is that we all have sins, no matter their number or severity, that condemn us. Whether your pages in the ledger of sins are more than another person's is immaterial when we see Paul's point. If Christ's death can pay for my sins, if Christ loves me so much that he would have mercy on me for what I have done, if Christ's grace is so great that it can take away all my sins, then it can and does take away your sins too. Christ is patient with you. Paul wants you to see in him an example of how great Christ's mercy is so that you also can see that you have been forgiven. Paul wants you to join him on his knees before Christ in overwhelming humility for all the mercy that you have been shown. As great as your sins may be, Christ has filled you to overflowing with his grace.

How can we not join Paul in those words of praise which ended his review of Christ's mercy to him. We cannot help but shout or speak or sing the praise of him whim is merciful and patient with us, not wanting any of us to perish, but all of us to have eternal life. To the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.