MONDAY February 24, 2025
Obtaining God’s Mercy
And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who has enabled me, because He counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry, although I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent man; but I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbelief.
1 Timothy 1:12-13
Paul wrote to Timothy, knowing that in the church of Ephesus as a young pastor, he had problems with Judaizers and Gnostics. He wanted to encourage him to evangelize these false teachers. Why not pursue them and try to convince them to come to Christ? He should not give up, but look for opportunities to share the truth of God’s Word, as well as his own testimony with them.
It was not an impossibility; no matter what their lives were like, they could be saved. Christ has the power to change people’s lives. Seriously, they need not look any further than Paul himself! He had an incredible conversion on the road to Damascus (Acts 9).
As a blasphemer, Paul knew that God had given him mercy––he did not receive the punishment he deserved. He was spared from God’s judgment. Paul knew firsthand that he had experienced mercy and grace, and these ignorant nonbelievers could receive the same if only they would give their lives to Jesus Christ.
The Apostle then gave a small portion of his testimony. Before coming to Christ, his name was Saul, He was blinded by Satan from the truth of the Gospel. He was a persecutor of the Church and an insolent man. He sought out Christians arresting, injuring and jailing them. His actions were done in ignorant unbelief. As a Christian, he was not accountable for his past sins, but he became accountable for the knowledge of Christ––the Gospel truth.
Each one of us has our own personal testimony on how Jesus Christ has changed our lives. Are you sharing your personal testimony with others? It can give them the opportunity to come to know Christ.
The unbelieving world should see our testimony lived out daily because it just may point them to the Savior.
~Billy Graham~
For more from Raul Ries, please visit SomebodyLovesYou.com!
