Imperfect Paul

1 Corinthians 15:9 “I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.”

We often see Paul as being the most important and the least sinful. Indeed, he is the most prolific of the writers in the New Testament with the exception of Luke. He is certainly the most influential second to Jesus.

Sinlessness and importance are a winning combination that most of us view with awe and reverence rather than with a sense of its reality. We tend to overlook the issues Paul contended with: he despised who he was, he had “a thorn in the flesh,” he did things he knew did not honor God (and didn’t do those things which would), and he was conflicted over his separation from his Jewish tradition.

When we see people this gifted and talented, we must keep in mind that they are not any better or worse than us; then we can begin to see our own inherent worth…. the hope that Jesus Christ sees.