Paul's Exhortations & Instructions to Brother Timothy 1st Letter Volume 9

Paul Gives Glory to God for His Grace Part 3

1 Timothy 1:14 And the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. KJV

As Paul continues in his declaration to Brother Timothy of who he was before he encountered our Lord, Master, and Savior Jesus Christ, we find Paul pausing for just one moment and writing of what turned him around and opened his blind spiritual eyes and halted him in his tracks from wanting to do harm to Christians, to him now wanting to help his fellow Christians in any way he could and this was due to the grace applied to his inner man by our Lord, Master, and Savior Jesus Christ as Paul so writes with these words, "And the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus." (1 Timothy 1:14) (KJV). The English word 'grace' is translated by the Greek word charis meaning graciousness (as gratifying), of manner or act (abstract or concrete; literal, figurative or spiritual; especially the divine influence upon the heart, and its reflection in the life. In other words, Paul's mercy received manifested itself in the grace of God he received in his inner man causing him to no longer want to blaspheme the Name of Christ, but now he worshipped the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ and regarded Him as the One and Only True God.

The grace of God caused him to have his spiritual eyes opened to the truth and now as a fellow believer in Jesus Christ, Paul saw other Christians as his brothers or his sisters and no longer as his spiritual enemy because he had now (by grace) been delivered from the power of Satan just as he declared to the believers in the Church @ Colosse with these words, "Giving thanks to the Father, Who has qualified {and} made us fit to share the portion which is the inheritance of the saints (God's holy people) in the Light. [The Father] has delivered {and} drawn us to Himself out of the control {and} the dominion of darkness and has transferred us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, In Whom we have our redemption {through His blood,} [which means] the forgiveness of our sins." (Colossians 1:12-14) (Amplified Bible). This is what Paul (and everyone of us who truly believe today) had obtained by receiving mercy that translated into God's grace, that is, His Divine influence upon the heart or the inner man or inner woman and its reflection in the individual sinner (now saints) life.

The little English phrase 'was exceeding abundant' is translated by one big Greek word used this one time only in the New Testament huperpleonazō which means  to super abound: - be exceeding abundant. In other words, Paul's sin (just as every persons sin is whether they think so or not) was enormous against our Heavenly Father, yet he (as well as I and every saint of God) received an overwhelming, overcoming, and even an overpowering abundance of grace/divine influence that broke his stubborn, that is, his resolute adherence to his own ideas and desires or his stubborn unbelief in refusing to see Jesus Christ as the Messiah just as he wrote of this dichotomy or duality to the believers in Rome concerning sin and grace, "But then Law came in, [only] to expand {and} increase the trespass [making it more apparent and exciting opposition]. But where sin increased {and} abounded, grace (God's unmerited favor) has surpassed it {and} increased the more {and} superabounded, So that, [just] as sin has reigned in death, [so] grace (His unearned and undeserved favor) might reign also through righteousness (right standing with God) which issues in eternal life through Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One) our Lord." (Romans 5:20-21) (Amplified Bible).

Paul is also now declaring to Timothy that the grace of God that came to him was exceedingly abundant in dispensing to him 'faith' (that he previously did not have) and this English word is translated by the Greek word pistis meaning persuasion, that is, credence; moral conviction (of religious truth, or the truthfulness of God or a religious teacher), especially reliance upon Christ for salvation; abstractly constancy in such profession; by extension the system of religious (Gospel) truth itself: - assurance, belief, believe, faith, fidelity. In other words, now in a complete turn around, that is, totally opposite to his previous unbelief (1 Timothy 1:13) Paul is now flooded in his inner man with a firm, fixed, and focused conviction that Jesus Christ is the One True and Only God and the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the only message sinful humanity needs to hear and this faith was not his own faith, but it was what he received by obtaining mercy that brought the grace of God enabling, empowering, and ensuring that he (Paul) would believe (Wow!).

Just as this grace had implanted faith in Paul's heart or inner man, it also brought to Paul's inner man 'love' and this English word 'love' is translated by the Greek word agape which means love, that is, affection or benevolence; specifically (plural) a love feast: - or simply put it is God's love implanted in the inner man or inner woman. In other words, as Saul of Tarsus he was doing as it is written here for us by Dr. Luke with these words, "Meanwhile Saul, still drawing his breath hard from threatening and murderous desire against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and requested of him letters to the synagogues at Damascus [authorizing him], so that if he found any men or women belonging to the Way [of life as determined by faith in Jesus Christ], he might bring them bound [with chains] to Jerusalem." (Acts 9:1-2) (Amplified Bible).

But now the 'new creation' Paul as it is written by him to the Corinthian Church with these words, "Therefore if any person is [ingrafted] in Christ (the Messiah) he is a new creation (a new creature altogether); the old [previous moral and spiritual condition] has passed away. Behold, the fresh {and} new has come!" (2 Corinthians 5:17) (Amplified Bible), now no longer desires to persecute and oppress believers in Jesus Christ, but a true believer in Christ himself he loves his fellow brothers and sisters and only wants to show them this love that has been implanted into his inner man by God the Holy Spirit as it again is written by Paul himself with these words to the Roman believers, "Such hope never disappoints {or} deludes {or} shames us, for God's love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit Who has been given to us." (Romans 5:5) (Amplified Bible). All that this Apostle (and we believers today) received was and is found in our Lord Jesus Christ, for He Only is the source of all mercy, grace, hope, faith, and love.

"That is, in his conversion under these circumstances and in the aid which was afterward imparted to him in his work. Accompanied with the exercise of faith and love; or producing faith and love. The grace which was imparted to him was seen in the faith and love which it produced." Albert Barnes

"The original is very emphatic, that grace of our Lord, hath superabounded - it manifested itself in a way of extraordinary mercy. Not only pardoning such offenses, but leading me to the full experimental knowledge of Christianity; of that faith and love which are essential to it; and giving me authority to proclaim it to mankind." Adam Clarke

"That is, the love of Jehovah the Father; so the Ethiopic version reads, 'the grace of God'; of God the Father, since He is distinguished in the text from Jesus Christ. God is abundant in grace and goodness; He is rich and plenteous in mercy; there is an overflow of love in His heart to His chosen people, and in conversion it flows out, and abounds and superabounds. These are the effects of the love and favour of God displayed in conversion, or which the grace of God brings along with it, and implants in the soul at that time, as it did in the Apostle; for by 'faith' is not meant the faithfulness of God to His Son, and to His covenant, oath, and promise, which now began visibly to be made good; nor the faith of the Gospel committed to the Apostle's trust, which was an high favour; but the grace of faith, which is a pure gift of God, and a distinguishing instance of His grace; for all men have it not, only His elect; and is a most precious and excellent grace, and of great use and importance: it receives every blessing from Christ, and gives Him all the glory; through it much peace, joy, and comfort are enjoyed here, and with it is connected eternal life and salvation hereafter: and by 'love' also is meant, not the love with which God loves His people, for that is designed by the grace of our Lord, though there is a very great display of that in conversion, which is a time of love; but the internal grace of love, even love to God, to Christ, and to His people, which the Apostle was before destitute of; but now instead of unbelief he had faith, and instead of rage and madness against Christ, and the saints, his soul was filled with love to both." Dr. John Gill

If you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ and His amazing healing power, pray this from your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ (you speaking directly to Him), Dear Lord Jesus, I confess to You that I am a sinner and I need Your forgiveness. I believe You shed Your Blood and died for my sins. I believe that You rose from the dead proving that You alone are God. I repent of my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I ask You Dear Lord Jesus to come into my heart and take control of my life. I want You to be my Lord, Savior, and my God. Amen...

Sincerely in Christ,

Clifford D. Tate, Sr.
Author of “Silent Assassins of the Soul - Are you Broken by Pornography and Masturbation? You can be Restored by the Lord Jesus Christ and brought into Deliverance, Freedom, and Victory! A Guide for Men and Women in the Enemy’s Crosshairs” e-book available now @ Amazon Kindle, @ Apple I Bookstore for IPod, Barnes and Noble for Nook, Reader Store for Sony Reade, Kobo, Copia, Gardners, Baker and Taylor, and eBookPie…