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Devotionals by Raul Ries
FRIDAY February 28, 2025
The Chief of Sinners
And the grace of our Lord was exceedingly abundant, with faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.
1 Timothy 1:14-15
Paul received the grace of God so abundantly when he first believed in Jesus Christ. He came to a place of great understanding––he knew God had extended His grace to him, and he was very thankful. His present position, along with young Timothy’s, and also our position, is in Christ. We have a Savior and an intimate relationship with Him when we place our faith and trust in God for our salvation.
God’s grace is extended to everyone who calls on the name of the Lord: For “whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved” (Romans 10:13). Paul considered himself to be “The chief of sinners.” This means “first in rank” before the presence of God. This should give everyone hope. If God can save Paul, He can certainly save anyone! Consider the depth of God’s mercy and grace written in Ephesians 2:1-9:
And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath... But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ.... For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.
No matter how sinful your past life was, it is not impossible to be saved. Allow God’s Holy Spirit to work in your life and receive Christ, then you can have His salvation and the hope of a heavenly future. Beautiful!
The end for which Christ lives, and for which He has left His church in the world, is the salvation of sinners.
~Charles Grandison Finney~
For more from Raul Ries, please visit SomebodyLovesYou.com!
About Somebody Loves You
About Raul Ries
Author of several books, including Fury to Freedom (the story of his early life and dramatic conversion), Raul Ries has also produced three films: Fury to Freedom (feature film dramatization of the book); A Quiet Hope (a riveting and stirring documentary detailing seven soldier's accounts of the Vietnam War and its aftermath); and A Venture in Faith (a documentary of the history of the Calvary Chapel movement).
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