Chief of Sinners

     Have you ever had a “no, not him” moment?   That is when you hear that someone you had previously put up on a pedestal has fallen into legal or moral trouble.   It may be a teacher you admired, a politician, or an athlete.   The latest of course is Tiger Woods, and if you don't know what I am talking about, you probably don't have an internet connection to be reading this anyway.

     When the news broke about Tiger's sexual escapades, my first reaction was “no, not him!”   I have been an admirer of Tiger since he came on the scene and took the PGA by storm.   I have stopped down many Sunday afternoons to watch him apply his craft so masterfully, and I followed his progress as he set out to break every record in golf.   I always thought he handled himself so professionally and so under control.   How could someone with that much discipline and control allow one certain area of their life to get so out of control?   “No, not him!”

     I recently read a startling verse about someone in the Bible that I have always admired, the Apostle Paul.   In 1 Timothy 2:15 he says, “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. ”   Two things strike me about this verse.   One, that Paul reminds us that Jesus came not to save the righteous, but the unrighteous.   I am thankful for that fact as stated in Romans 5:8, “God demonstrates His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”  

     The other thing, though, is that Paul uses the present tense when speaking of himself and says of sinners not I was chief, but “I am chief.”   That is not a phrase many Christians want to use today in referring to them.   We would rather say “I was a sinner” rather than “I am a sinner.”   I want Paul to say “I am an Apostle, I am an Evangelist, I am a godly person”, and if fact he does say those things in other places in the New Testament, but here he says “I am a sinner”. I want to say, “no, not him!”  

     In Paul's case, he is not saying that he is currently involved in some sinful activity.   He has not been caught by the media.   No secret lifestyle is being exposed here.   Rather, he is telling us that he is no different from any other breathing man.   He has the same natural longings, pressures, and temptations as other men.   He is not unacquainted with lust, anger, greed, or pride.   They once ruled him too, and the fact is, without the mercy and grace of God in his life, he would still be a slave to them.  

     This ought to be good news to people like Tiger Woods.   And it is good news to ordinary men like you and I as we struggle against temptation and deal with guilt over battles lost.   We can look at Paul not as someone who walked at a spiritual level we could never achieve, but rather as someone who has walked the very same path we are now walking, dealt with the same weaknesses, and struggled with the same questions and temptations.   In fact, Paul's point, simply put is, “If God can do this work you see in me, He can do it in anybody, because I am the worst of sinners.”

     From now on, when I hear of another hero of mine falling, instead of saying “no, not him”, I say “Lord, not me, by your grace and mercy.”   For if I am truly honest with myself, I am right there with Paul.   The good news is that God will not only save us from our sin, but He will also work His transforming in our lives, if we will just trust Him.   I need to recognize the reality of what I am, but I don't have to feel powerless against what I am.   God's Spirit and grace are there to uphold me and strengthen me to be the man He wants me to be.