1 Timothy 1:15 (KJV)
This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.
John Gill writes, “… the remembrance of these sins abode with him, and kept him humble all his days; he was always ready to acknowledge them, and express his vileness and unworthiness on account of them. …”
Previous to this passage, Gill spends some time expressing the definition of the word and tracing it back to Adam, who is the first sinner. Some, I understand, made what Gill calls “a most stupid notion,” that by calling himself “the first (what the word chief means) sinner,” Paul was saying somehow Adam’s original sin had passed from one soul to another until Paul could say his sin was that of Adam’s.
Taken literally, I agree with Gill that it is a “most stupid notion.” But from the doctrinal sense, it is in fact the truth. We all carry the weight of that original sin. It passes from one to another so that we are all sinners by nature, proving it by our own sins.
I suppose, then, it would be good if every believer reckoned himself to be the chief sinner. If we stopped this business of comparing one sin to another and seeing ourselves as somehow better than others, as if our sins are as bad as theirs.
Notice that Paul did not say, “of whom I was chief,” but “of whom I am chief.” He was saved. His sin was put away as far as the east is from the west, buried in the deepest parts of the sea. God remembers them no more forever because they are judged in His Son, Jesus Christ. We now bear the very righteousness of God through Christ. God does not look on our sin. And we do need to reckon with our new-born relationship with God. But it is healthy to remember from what we were saved so that we never allow the roots of those sins to begin to grow up in us again.
Pride, arrogance, a judgmental spirit; these ought never be permitted to spring up anew within us.
#ChiefOfSinners #SavedByGraceAlone #StayHumbleInChrist #RememberYourRedemption #ChristCameToSave
Paul Called Himself the Chief of Sinners (And You Should Too)
What do you think—should every believer see himself as the “chief of sinners”? Leave a comment below and share your thoughts. Then visit marvinmckenzie.org for more Bible teaching that will challenge your thinking and strengthen your walk with Christ.
For this and, more than 7000 earlier Daily Visits with God, visit https://mckenzie-visit-with-god.blogspot.com. There you will find daily visits going back to 2005.
If you have been blessed by this blog, please subscribe to my feed and share it with others.
My books, and other resources, are available at:
https://marvinmckenzie.org
Join me at Daily Visits with God Podcast
https://marvinmckenzie.substack.com/
Merch at my Teespring store https://macz.creator-spring.com/
Be a witness with hats, mugs, t-shirts, sweat shirts, and more
Let’s have coffee?
The link to Ko-fi is an opportunity to support this effort to reach a world of souls with the Word of God. I would appreciate any gift you can give.
No comments:
Post a Comment