|
“I thank Christ Jesus our Lord…that He has counted me faithful, appointing to ministry him who before was a blasphemer and persecutor, and an insolent and overbearing man” (1 Timothy 1:12-13 JND).
“But we were gentle among you, even as a nurse cherisheth her children” (1 Thessalonians 2:7).
In both of these verses, the Apostle Paul is talking about himself, but what a big difference between the two verses! In the first verse, Paul is referring to himself before he was saved, and he was not a very likeable man then. Not only did he persecute Christians, but he was also rude and disrespectful. But then, when he wrote to the Thessalonians, he described himself as gentle, like a nurse who looks after children. What made the difference?
It was knowing the Lord Jesus as Savior, and having a new life in Him. As he came to know the Lord Jesus more and more, he became more like Him, and was quite a different man from what he was before he was saved.
The Lord wants to change us too. We all have old sinful natures, but God wants that new life in Christ to display itself in our lives. If we walk with the Lord, we will become more like Him.
|
