1 Timothy 1:12–17

Lektorin Renita Gevers

Our sermon text today is about mercy, a change of direction and the power of love. 

The Lord’s Grace to Paul - 1 Timothy 1:12–17

12 I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me trustworthy, appointing me to his service. 

13 Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. 

14 The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.

15 Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. 

16 But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life. 

17 Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.

Dear congregation,

Imagine that you have believed all your life that you were on the right track. You are convinced that what you are doing is right – even necessary. And then – suddenly – you realize: I was wrong. Not a bit. But completely!

What does that do to a person?

This is exactly what happened to Paul. The great Paul, who is now considered one of the most important people in the New Testament, used to hate Christians. He was convinced: These people are dangerous. They threaten faith, order, truth. So he pursued her. And with zeal.

But then, on the way to Damascus, he was literally stopped. From Jesus himself.

And at this moment, in the middle of being on the road, he suddenly stops.

1. Pause: When was the last time you were really with yourself?

Dear congregation, when was the last time you were really with yourself? When did you put away your cell phone, turn off the TV or the Radiio, turn off the noise, sit down and listen to yourself?

Paul was on the road a lot, had many convictions, a lot of zest for action. And yet – or precisely because of this – he had to stop for the time being, in his case forced to realize: I have done something wrong.

And the amazing thing is that he is not convicted. No "You're a bad person." Instead: Jesus meets him with mercy.

2. Realization: In this mercy he recognizes that I can do otherwise!

Paul recognizes: I was full of hatred. I thought I was fighting for God. But I was wrong.
And with this realization comes the miracle: He is allowed to become different.

In 1 Timothy, Paul writes:

"I thank our Lord Jesus Christ again and again that he considered me trustworthy to serve him and that he also gave me the strength to do so. [...] All the richer I then experienced the undeserved kindness of the Lord."

God did not push him away, but took him in his arms.

3. Mercy: With Others – and with Ourselves

What moves me, dear congregation:How often are we merciless – with others, but also with ourselves? How often do we walk around with feelings of guilt, shame, anger or fear of not being good enough? How often do we try to function because we have learned it that way – through upbringing, religion, culture?

I experience this again and again in my work with traumatized people. There are so many who feel empty inside, not held, not heard, not understood, not seen, not supported – not loved.

Today, we call this "attachment pains" in technical language  – injuries in our earliest relationships.
And if these are not healed, we believe lies about ourselves:
 I am not lovable. I have to be strong. I can't show any weakness...

And then we act mercilessly – with ourselves and with others, 
sometimes out of fear, sometimes because we believe we have to be like this, we have to prove ourselves.

4. The power of love: I can start anew.

What Paul experienced is exactly what we all need: 
a loving interruption.
A pause. An encounter with the God who does not punish, but heals. With the God who says
, "I know where you come from. I know what you did. But I also see what you can become."

Paul is not only forgiven—he is transformed.
The persecutor becomes a herald.The hater becomes a lover.The driven one becomes a blessed one.

And why? Because God has seen him  . God has not ignored his anger, his blindness, his past – but he has not let it stand as the ultimate truth either.

5. What about you? What about us?

Dear congregation,
 perhaps we also know this: We think we are in the right. We think we have to fight and defend what we believe in, what we believe in. And then suddenly we realize – perhaps very quietly or perhaps as with Paul, as with a lightning bolt: 
There is another way.
I can do it differently.

And then something new begins.
Not because we deserve it. But because God is merciful.

6. The faith that unites – despite differences of opinion

Paul learned that you can have different opinions – and still meet each other. You don't have to separate, hate, divide right away. You can stop, listen, learn to understand.

This is what I wish for us as a world, as a country, as a church, as a congregation, as human beings.That we say: "I see you. Even if you think differently."
Because that is true mercy.

God is different – and that's a good thing!

Dear congregation,
 perhaps this is Paul's greatest insight – and perhaps also ours:

Not the world is different from what we thought.
God is different.

He is merciful - patient - loving. He holds us, hears us, understands us, sees us, supports us – loves us.

And because this is so, we can say – as Paul did:

"I thank Jesus Christ that he did not give up on me."

"Glory and praise to God forever."

And the peace of the Lord, which surpasses all understanding, be with you all. AMEN.