Sushi chef training is renowned for being quite demanding. It progresses quite slowly and takes around seven years. Making the rice will be an apprentice’s first significant task after years of training. He can proceed after he has mastered this. The grilled egg dish is prepared by an apprentice in the 2011 documentary Jiro Dreams of Sushi. Before he can satisfy the chef, he has to make almost two hundred attempts.
Learning how to make sushi is not all that different from learning how to do anything else. They can read about it, and you can learn how to do almost anything from books and schematics. They can learn about it and get instructions from someone. But for many things, it’s beneficial to follow a pattern and do it yourself. After seeing an example from a teacher, a student attempts to accomplish the task on their own. The learner develops throughout time by consistently following the teacher’s lead.
The Christian existence is essentially the same. The Bible contains rules and guidelines for living, such as the Ten Commandments. Pastors, elders, and educators impart knowledge to us. Additionally, we can learn from examples. We attempt to model ourselves after the lives of biblical characters. We learn valuable lessons for our own Christian journeys from reading about individuals in church history. Learning benefits from having models and examples to refer to in a variety of ways.
Because He is aware of this, our God gave us several examples. The apostle Paul actually provides us with a model for the Christian life—more precisely, the beginning of the Christian life—in 1 Timothy 1:12–17. What he writes is as follows:
Even though I was formerly a blasphemer, persecutor, and arrogant opponent, I am grateful to Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, for judging me faithfully and assigning me to his service. However, because I had acted foolishly in my unbelief, I was granted forgiveness, and the love and faith found in Christ Jesus overflowed for me as a result of our Lord’s generosity. The adage that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of which I am the most prominent—is reliable and worthy of complete acceptance. However, I was granted mercy primarily so that Jesus Christ could demonstrate his perfect patience in me, serving as a model for those who were to believe in him for eternal life. Forever and ever, honor and glory go to the one God, the King of the ages, who is immortal and unseen. Amen.
Here, Paul presents himself as a model or paradigm for how God saves people, using himself as an illustration of what is involved in salvation. In doing so, he shares with us how unmerited kindness may transform a person’s life for God’s glory via the work of Christ. In a nutshell, Paul provides us with the what, how, and why of redemption in this verse. We shall examine Paul’s concept of salvation by going over this verse in this series.
Understanding some of the circumstances around this letter is beneficial. Paul addressed it to Timothy, his protégé, who was serving the Ephesian church. Paul seems to be addressing certain false professors who were causing problems in the church in this letter.
Although the specifics of what was taught are unknown, verses 3–11 provide some indications. It seemed to require a different interpretation of the law; perhaps the false teachers were arguing that Christians were exempt from the law. Thus, they were promoting immoral behavior.
Paul refers to “the gospel of the glory of the blessed God with which I have been entrusted” in verse 11, which concludes the section on false teachers. Paul goes on to explain what that message is and how he was entrusted with it, thus it is likely that this reference is what motivates him to write what he does in our text.
According to Paul’s model, salvation is unmerited compassion
In verses 12–14, he accomplishes this by briefly narrating his personal conversion experience. He starts off by giving thanks to God for using him in spite of his previous transgressions. In verse 12, he claims that God “judged him faithfully.” He cannot be considering any form of continued faithfulness in his Christian life since he is discussing his journey from unbeliever to believer. He’s talking about the time he became a Christian instead.
God “judged him faithful” at that precise moment, meaning that he was being judged. Furthermore, that verdict was “faithful,” or “righteous.” However, since he describes himself as “a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent” in verse 13, his judgment could not have been based on his actions at the time.
While some people’s conversion tales are quite spectacular, others are not. In actuality, though, the change from atheism to faith is always profound since it entails a total reconstruction of the individual and his life’s course. It is a form of heart surgery in which we receive a new heart that is responsive to God and soft and sensitive to His things.
Paul was a prime example of this shift. His tale is widely known. He was a strong opponent of Christianity before to his conversion. He hunted Christians, found them, and imprisoned them; he was present when Stephen was stoned (Acts 7). He was actually traveling to Damascus to find and arrest Christians when he changed (Acts 9).
Paul’s refusal to acknowledge Christ as God is the reason he deems himself a blasphemer. His opposition to the church made him a persecutor. Additionally, he was a “insolent opponent,” someone violent and uncontrollable, akin to a crazy.
Then, however, something altered. Paul says, “But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief,” in verse 13. He emphasizes God’s kindness in saving him, but he does not absolve him of his sin. His need for mercy would be destroyed if this were done. Paul is using a category from Jewish law when he says that he had acted foolishly. He claims to have sinned without realizing it. Ignorance-based transgressions were covered by the law. However, since they were still sins, some sort of sacrifice had to be offered for such ignorance-based transgressions.
Paul thought he was fervent for God before he was converted. He believed the church to be an abomination, which is why he fought it. He was fighting against God without realizing it. Additionally, he was attempting to get salvation by his good deeds, his fervor for upholding the law, and his opposition to the church. A mindset like this tries to make God accept us by bringing something in front of Him that we can point to and say, “Here.” You must therefore approve of me.
Paul could not have done anything to merit the Lord’s acceptance of him. It would need to be an act of pure mercy and grace if Paul were to be rescued. The works of sinners cannot gain them salvation. After his conversion, Paul realized this fact, and he finds the change from his previous lifestyle here, in God’s mercy.
In verse 14, Paul states that “the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus overflowed for me with the grace of our Lord.” Paul’s life was subsequently marked by faith and love as a result of the grace and love of Christ pouring into it. His life was influenced by his love for God and his faith in Christ. As he states in verse 12, his life was characterized by dedication to God.
The opposite side of the transition is this. It would have been impossible for him to carry on with his old lifestyle in light of this new condition.
Some people nowadays claim that our actions are irrelevant because we are saved by grace. Paul, however, would not tolerate this. By citing his personal experience, he is arguing that conversion is primarily about a fundamental shift in our way of living. We really can’t live the same way we used to after God’s mercy redeemed us and gave us new hearts.
Of course, sin still exists on this side of glory. Paul himself acknowledged this and was saddened by it (see particularly Rom. 7). However, God’s act of charity in converting us encourages us to pursue purity. Fighting sin with the help of the Holy Spirit is one of the characteristics of believers.
According to Paul’s model, salvation is unmerited compassion. Our lives undergo a profound transformation as a result of this unmerited kindness. By God’s grace, we are given a new heart. Because of our faith in Christ, we are declared righteous.
By God’s grace, we then make an effort to abandon our previous lives and pursue holiness—not always flawlessly or regularly, but with the help of the Holy Spirit. This is a component of being saved.
