“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.” – 1 Timothy 1:15
The apostle Paul was not a delusional man, just an ignorant one. He persecuted the church, and sought to kill or imprison all who would call Jesus the Lord. Yet all the while, Christ looked down on this man with love and compassion. By the apostles own testimony he was the chief of sinners; the worst of the worst, and God saved him.
Jesus Christ can save you from sin. To say otherwise is not to reject any one man, but to reject God himself. His purpose, the reason he came; to save sinners. To save from sin, awful, binding, miserable, damning sin. Jesus came to save us from the committing of sin, and the very nature of sin. The sin in a man’s heart, slumbering within until the age when it manifests itself in his life. When you have sin in your heart, that sin you are harboring is the devil himself, and we know that the devil cometh not but for to “to steal, kill and destroy.” The apostle Paul understood this, and he whole heartily fought it once he was delivered from it. To a degree, we all have to come to a “chief of sinners” state, before we can truly find salvation. There must be an undeniable realization of our lost condition, and a feeling of sharp conviction. Only a vision of the holiness of Jesus can bring about a realization of the ungodliness within man; and when the condemnation of your sin is brought to the surface, and you look your ugliness in the face; all that is left is a plea for mercy and a press for forgiveness. This is the state where one feels that they are the “chief of sinners;” the state of realization, which is, hopefully, followed swiftly by repentance. It is not a stretch to believe that some, perhaps many, have come to this state, or at least taken steps toward it; but how the enemy would come and did come. Often the lie is spun in the hearts of those pressing back toward God: “you are too far gone.” He tells those lost in sin that they are too lost and he tells those that are living in righteousness that they are too righteous; both are lies. Paul declares plainly that Jesus came to save sinners, and Paul was just that indeed, but he obtained mercy, and if he obtained mercy, why can't you?
It is not a matter of how lost you are, but how long you wish to remain that way? The choice is yours, do you want to remain a sinner or do you want to be saved? Do you desire peace or unrest? What could profit more than having the love of God reigning and abiding in your heart? Jesus Christ can save you from all sin; he can make your life anew and give you peace. There is nothing other than Christ that can accomplish this; only he saves; only Jesus.
