Undeserved Grace

I thank Jesus Christ our Lord, who has given me the strength for my work because He knew He could trust me.  I used to say terrible and insulting things about Him, and I was cruel.  But Christ had mercy on me because I didn't know what I was doing, and I had not yet put my faith in Him.  Christ Jesus our Lord treated me with undeserved grace and has greatly blessed my life with faith and love just like His own.------1 Timothy 1: 12-14

These are the words of the Apostle Paul to Timothy, one of Paul's converts and fellow-servants in Paul's missionary journeys.

Paul is offering up THANKSGIVING to our Lord Jesus Christ, ACKNOWLEDGING that the STRENGTH that he has to further the Gospel of Jesus Christ is NOT his OWN strength, but that of the ONE who called him into that ministry.

We who have also been called to do certain ministries work with the SAME strength from the SAME power source, the Lord Jesus Christ.  Paul says that he has obtained that STRENGTH because the Lord knew that He could TRUST him to SPREAD the GOOD NEWS that SALVATION comes from NONE OTHER than JESUS CHRIST.

But that was NOT always the case, before Paul's CONVERSION and CALLING, Paul was NOT a NICE guy.  He went around causing havoc for the Christians.  He was very good at his job of persecuting them.

However, Jesus Christ had different plans for this SINNER, so one day while Paul was on the dusty road to Damascus to round-up a new bunch of Christians to arrest and torture, he had a LIFE-CHANGING EXPERIENCE with the Lord, Himself.

Paul says of his LIFE-CHANGING EXPERIENCE, that Jesus treated him with UNDESERVED GRACE, which means that Paul couldn't EARN or BUY his SALVATION, but he received it ONLY by THE UNDESERVED GRACE of a LOVING, MERCIFUL HEAVENLY FATHER through the shedding of the PRECIOUS BLOOD of His ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, Jesus Christ.

Then Paul says that God GREATLY BLESSED his life with FAITH and LOVE.

If you can relate with Paul's life before his conversion, at least the part of not knowing the Lord and living a life of doing and saying things you know are BAD, and SINFUL and you want the same UNDESERVED GRACE that Paul received, you can have it by:  CONFESSING your sins to God and asking for His FORGIVENESS, BELIEVING, with ALL your HEART, that Jesus died for YOU and is ALIVE, in Heaven, making intercession for you before God, then ACCEPT His gift of SALVATION.  Do it NOW, while you STILL can.  He's waiting!!!