Most people have heard of John Bunyan’s classic Christian story, The Pilgrim’s Progress. Since its publication in 1678, it has become one of the most read books of all time. But most people haven’t heard of John Bunyan’s earlier book which is entitled Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners. Written during his twelve-year imprisonment in the Bedford County jail for preaching, this book is Bunyan’s spiritual autobiography. It chronicles his spiritual journey from his boyhood in his father’s house, through his conversion and call to ministry, to his imprisonment for not conforming to the official Church of England. Bunyan’s spiritual journey spans a life that was characterized by cursing, blasphemy, and desecration and that was transformed by the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Beginning with guilt and despair and ending with a comforted heart, thankful for the abounding grace of God, Bunyan wrote so that others might be encouraged in their struggles by reading about God’s work upon his soul. He chose this for the title for his book because, as a humble recipient of God’s abounding grace, he felt like he was the chief of sinners.
Now if any of you ever read Bunyan’s autobiography, you would learn that he was in fact a bad man before he became a Christian, but I doubt if any of us would call him “the chief of sinners.” But have you ever wondered who the real chief of sinners is? Have you ever wondered who the evilest person in the history of the world is?
Some people would say that it was Nero, Emperor of Rome from 54-68 AD. He murdered his brother, his mother, his first two wives, and many others who threatened his throne. He used to hang Christians on poles and burn them alive to illumine his garden at night. After setting his own capital city of Rome on fire to clear room for his new palace, he took out his fiddle and harmonized with the screams as he watched the city burn.
Some people would say that it was Vlad III of Romania (also known as Vlad the Impaler) who was Prince of Wallachia three times between 1448 and 1476. Vlad is best known for the the exceedingly cruel punishments he imposed during his reign and for serving as the primary inspiration for the vampire main character in Bram Stoker’s popular Dracula novel. The list of tortures he is alleged to have employed is extensive: nails in heads, cutting off of limbs, blinding, strangulation, burning, cutting off of noses and ears, scalping, skinning, and boiling people alive. There are claims that ten thousand people were impaled in 1460 alone.
Many people would say that it is Adolf Hitler, who was appointed Chancellor of Germany in 1933, becoming “Führer” in 1934 until his suicide in 1945. By the end of the second world war, Hitler’s policies of territorial conquest and racial subjugation had brought death and destruction to tens of millions of people, including the genocide of some six million Jews in what is now known as the Holocaust.
Who is the evilest person in the history of the world? Who is the real “chief of sinners? Some of you might say your mother-in-law. Personally, I would never say that, but someone might!
Paul: The Chief of Sinners (13-15)
So, who is really the chief of sinners? It is hard to say! I do find it interesting that in1 Timothy 1:15, the Apostle Paul says, “The saying is trustworthy and deserves full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the foremost.” The old King James translates the last phrase “of whom I am the chief.” I also like The Message translation which says “I am Public Sinner Number One.” Paul refers to himself as the worst sinner in the history of the world.
What is particularly fascinating about this statement is when Paul makes it. Sure, in verse 13 he openly admits that that before he became a Christian, he was formerly a blasphemer, persecutor, and an insolent opponent of the gospel of Jesus Christ. As a matter of fact, when Paul was blinded by the light and Jesus appeared to him on the road to Damascus, he was on his way to murder Christians. Yes, Paul had been a proud, arrogant, and violent man who hated Jesus Christ, but by the time Paul was writing this letter to Timothy, he had been a Christian for close to 20 years. The persecutor of Christians had become a preacher of Christ. He was a completely different person when he wrote this letter, but he still referred to himself as the chief of sinners. Even though he was a recipient of God’s abounding grace, he never forgot where he came from! He didn’t forget who he was. He never forgot the disgusting acts of his past and he knew his propensity toward sin in the present. Yes, Paul was one of the greatest missionaries, evangelists, and preachers in the history of the world, but he called himself the chief of sinners.
As we consider Paul’s humility in this statement, let me ask you again: Who is the real chief of sinners? I think you know the right answer. You are! I am! Before God’s holiness, we are all the chief of sinners. Can you just pause and think about your life for a moment. How have you sinned against God throughout your life? Sure, maybe you have never impaled anyone or massacred six million Jewish people, but if we added up every instance of bad behavior we have ever done, every vulgar or ungrateful word ever spoken from our lips, and every impure thought that has ever flowed through our mind, you will realize that we have all earned the title “Chief of Sinners.” The Apostle Paul and John Bunyan had enough humility to admit it, how about you?
We can’t be beneficiaries of God’s grace until we have reckoned with the fact that we are dreadful, atrocious, terrible, horrendous, sinners, just like all of these others that I have mentioned. Do you realize how bad your sins really are? I hear people say all the time: “Well, I’m not that bad; I never killed anybody.” Wow, how morally impressive! But it is not true! Every one of us is a murderer! How, you ask? It was all of our sins that nailed God’s perfect son Jesus to the cross. Paul understood what he had done, and that put him in a position to receive God’s abounding grace. How about you? Do you understand what you have done?
God’s Grace Abounds (16, 12, 17)
Once Paul establishes that he is the chief of sinners, he is now highlights the role of God’s abounding grace in his testimony. Yes, Jesus Christ came into the world to die for sinners and verse 16 reveals the reason for Christ’s saving Paul, the worst of sinners, was that he could showcase Paul as an example from other sinners who would believe on him for salvation. Paul is making the point that if God could and would save him that no one is beyond the hope of God’s grace or eternal salvation. If God could redeem his life and change him from a persecutor into a preacher, he can do anyone! If you haven’t noticed, God is in the business of transforming murderers into messengers for his kingdom. Now Paul certainly did not deserve salvation, but God showed him incredible mercy so that his unlimited patience in dealing with sinners would be displayed.
And after God saved Paul’s soul and redeemed his life, he gave Paul the strength and faithfulness to carry the true gospel message all over the ancient world. Today most people think of the Apostle Paul as the greatest preacher and missionary ever, but Paul never forgot who he was. Paul knew who saved him; he knew who gave him strength and faithfulness for ministry; he knew who appointed him to Christ’s service. Paul knew that God’s grace abounds even to the chief of sinners.
And that is why Paul concludes his personal testimony with the beautiful doxology in verse 17. A doxology is an expression of praise and thanksgiving to God, often a short hymn. Reflecting on God’s abounding grace to the chief of sinners compelled him to burst into words of praise and worship about God’s character. This particular hymn praises God for his eternality (his rule in all ages), his immortality (he is unlike any mortal on earth), his invisibility (no one can see him in his holiness), and his uniqueness (he is the only true God; all others are false). Therefore, honor and glory belong to him alone forever and ever!
Have you received God’s abounding grace? Have you believed on the Lord Jesus Christ? Has God transformed your life? Do you express your praise and thanksgiving through doxology?
As I conclude this morning, I want you to be 100% clear about today’s message. This is it: God’s grace abounds even to the chief of sinners! Perhaps you are here today and you never realized that you are the chief of sinners and you feel convicted and guilty. I want you to know that it doesn’t matter what you have done because God’s grace abounds to you. If you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, his blood atones for your sins, he restores your relationship with God, and he gives you new life now and eternal life forever.
If this message has moved your heart today and you want to know more about this Christ Jesus who came into the world to save sinners or this grace that abounds even to the chief of sinners, then I would like to get together with you and talk about it. May the eternal, immortal, invisible, and only God bless you forever and ever! Amen!