The Foremost Of All

Growth In Godliness

The quote from Spurgeon above declares the mark of the Saint and the Sinner.

1 Timothy 1:15, "It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost [of all]."

The average person's day is full of decision-making: What clothes I wear, what I eat, how fast I drive, and judging all vehicles around me to avoid an accident, etc. Some judgments are more complex than others. The judgments we are forbidden to make are the condition of another's motives.

1 Corinthians 4:5, "Therefore do not go on passing judgment before the time, but wait until the Lord comes who will both bring to light the things hidden in the darkness and disclose the motives of men's hearts; and then each man's praise will come to him from God."

However, our Lord does not tell us never to judge; instead, we should judge as commanded and with the wisdom the Holy Spirit supplies. 1 Corinthians 5:11-13, "But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, ...For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within [the church]? But those who are outside, God judges. REMOVE THE WICKED MAN FROM AMONG YOURSELVES."

Any church person can choose not to follow the instructions of the Apostle Paul, writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Still, no person can do so without disobeying our Lord Jesus. How do we discern sin and sinners?

The Foremost Of All Sinners

The Apostle Paul was not afraid to declare to his readers, which now includes us, the kind and degree of sinner he was. Paul's statement from verse 1:15 is trustworthy because God's word says, "For all have sinned..." (Romans 3:23). God's word is without error; meditate much on Psalm 119. Furthermore, Paul says, regarding himself, that he was the foremost of sinners. How did he know that?

Previously, he said in verse 13 what kind of sinner he was, "...a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor." Paul blasphemed what God was doing in His people during a great revival that had begun at Pentecost. The revival was so great that God immediately judged Ananias and Sapphira as false professing believers from Acts 5. We can note that in this letter, he refers to Timothy as his true son in the faith, which means he is authentic and genuine, another judgment that Paul made.

All sinners blaspheme God in many ways, but Paul made it worse by blaspheming God directly by criticizing His work in His people. Saul of Tarsus persecuted those made righteous through the blood of Christ. He was the aggressor and a violent one. Let us understand that all people are made in the image of God, but sin distorts His image. Those being made in God's likeness, "Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness," are being transformed as all things work together for the good of those who love God and are gradually transformed into the likeness of God's Son.

The Foremost Of All, Was Put Into Service

At this point, many will see a separation between those called to exceptional service and ordinary body members. A few are given the high calling of preaching and teaching the Gospel, and the rest have the low calling of warming the pews. However, no such separation can be correctly found in the New Testament. All are sinners, all receive the same sacrificial death of sufferings of Christ, and all will stand before the same judgment Seat. 2 Corinthians 5:10, " For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad (empty)." Romans 12 in Greek teaches that all receive gifts, although not all receive the same portions of each gift.

The significant downside of the separation of believers is a proud, controlling spirit for the haves and a lazy-do-nothing attitude for the have-nots. It is significantly unfaithful at present and a severe loss of responsibility in the future.

The Foremost Of All Acted Ignorantly In Unbelief

Once again, Paul sets forth a true reality for every sinner who repents and comes to faith in Christ. There can be no authentic faith in Christ apart from genuine repentance. We began by considering the difficulty of judging. However, Paul ends the fifth chapter of his letter by saying, "The sins of some men are quite evident, going before them to judgment; for others, their sins follow after. Likewise, also, deeds that are good are quite evident, and those which are otherwise cannot be concealed."

The most quoted verse of the Bible is You shall not judge,

which is superseded by many verses that demand we make judgments.