Was Paul Really the World’s Worst Sinner?

Ask Pastor John
Episode: 1905
Transcript: www.desiringgo...

[@joshuawalker7992]

I preached on this verse for the 2022 Christmas message. I briefly discuss whether he was or wasn’t the greatest sinner. However, I think what is key is this; whether he was or wasn’t, he believed he was. I think this is a good demonstration of how each individual should approach their own sinfulness prior to God’s making them alive in Christ. This type of recognition helps us to see the great sin we have been forgiven, and helps us to better understand how great a Savior we have.

[@annec988]

Paul, for me, I have realised in later life, is one of the greatest encouragements that no matter what our past God can still forgive us, still love us, and still use us.

[@stand4truth607]

Ha! I was thinking about this yesterday. I thought, "No buddy give me that trophy of shame. You can take 2nd place." I'm definitely the worst, haha. Thanks for God's mercy in our lives! He's so good.

[@Victoria-qq2jh]

Wow! Thank you for this knowledge, Pastor John. God is indeed full of grace and mercy. He is able to save anyone. Our sin has no victory over us. Praise God!

[@maxi2406]

This hits home hard as I look at myself . Thank you Ps John.

[@markdurdle7710]

I was listening to an interview with the minister who brought Dahmer to Christ (the serial killer the Netflix show is about) and Dahmer asked the minister about this passage. The minister pointed out that despite all the evil things Dahmer did, Paul would still consider himself to be a worse sinner. Just goes to show how much our God doesn't want anyone to perish, but desires all to repent and be saved.

[@sportspokerguy3506]

So are dahmer’s victims all saved if dahmer is saved?

[@cirr3587]

‘🎵How marvelous!! How wonderful is my Savior love’s for me🎶

[@TheCreepypro]

may we remember how abundant our Lord's mercy is may we share that mercy

[@williamcopeland6683]

Paul himself had a Revelation of Christ unlike many (if not all) being knocked off his high horse and blinded for three days.. Jesus said "he who is given much, much is required" And every one who starts out.. in Christ..is continuing to be sanctified.. and notices even a misused unkind word is like adultury

[@josephpremkumar7405]

Thank you praise be to god ...I always had this battle in my mind will god forgive my sins ..I wanted to live a sinless life but I will be dragged..to sin ..the time i realise ..it will be too late..to ask for forgiveness and pray again my guilt will not allow me..hope this explanation will help me to draw close to god......

[@cintiahamilton]

Very insighting. Thank you pastor John!

[@hlangs5]

Very powerful teaching

[@kpballa1009]

in the context we are living in - with the man centeredness and God-lessness that is all around, even Christians are influenced by the pagan influence and as a result - sin against man is considered so serious - like rape and murder vs. sin directly against God isn't considered so serious. The reason why Paul rightly considered his sins so serious is because of his correct high view of God along with knowing his sins were directly against Christ - "Saul Saul, why are you persecuting ME?" along with the blasphemy of Christ - which is done today in America (blasphemously throwing out our God Jesus Christ's name). Sinning against mankind is nothing compared to directly sinning against God.. may we keep that in mind..

[@spicy9963]

God is good 🙏🏻

[@keepwalking9050]

God saved Paul, He can save me.

[@maxaplin4204]

The trustworthy saying that Paul refers to seems to be 'Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners' and not 'Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am foremost'. The 'of whom I am foremost' seems to be Paul's comment on the saying.

[@KeepingWatch95]

_Jesus foretold and warned about false prophets to come. He warned what they would do and what they would say. Paul then does come and do these very things._ Matthew 7:15 *Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.* Matthew 7:16 *Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?* _Jesus says in Matt __7:16__;_ *“...Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?”* _Paul said in;_ Galatians 1:11 But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. Galatians 1:12 For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ. Galatians 1:13 For ye have heard of my conversation in time past in the Jews' religion, how that *beyond measure I persecuted the church of God, and wasted it:* _It appears there was no greater among the thorns and thistles than Paul who persecuted the church of God “beyond measure” and “wasted it.”_ _Jesus says in Matt __7:16__;_ *“...Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?”* _Paul said in;_ 1 Timothy 1:15 This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save *sinners; of whom I am chief.* _Paul confirmed that there was no greater among the thorns and thistles for he was the chief of sinners._ _Jesus says in_ Matthew 24:23 *Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not.* Matthew 24:23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. Matthew 24:24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. Matthew 24:25 Behold, I have told you before. Matthew 24:26 Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not. Matthew 24:27 For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. _Regardless of what Jesus had said (“...if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ ...believe it not” in Matt __24:23__) Paul wants others to believe that Jesus meet with Paul._ Acts 9:3 And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: Acts 9:4 And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? Acts 9:5 And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. Matthew 24:26 *Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.* _Furthermore the road to Damascus was a desert/wilderness place and may still be a desert/wilderness._ _Jesus says_ Matthew 24:24 *For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.* _Regardless of what Jesus' warns about signs and wonders in Matt __24:24__, Paul claims to be nothing behind the “very chiefest apostles” because of his signs, and wonders._ 2 Corinthians 12:11 I am become a fool in glorying; ye have compelled me: for I ought to have been commended of you: for in nothing am I behind the very chiefest apostles, though I be nothing. 2 Corinthians 12:12 *Truly the signs of an apostle were wrought* among you in all patience, *in signs, and wonders,* and mighty deeds. _Jesus foretold and warned about false prophets to come. He warned what they would do and what they would say. Paul comes and does these very things._

[@tomdipasquale9633]

I always think of myself as one!!

[@thewhole_picture1743]

Yes it was because Paul persecuted Christians in his past that he made that statement. As regards sin generally, Paul said this: 1 Corinthians 9:27 But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway. So he was overcoming sin.

[@hoc1992]

Great video. It's honestly hard to grasp because I see kidnappers of little girls and rapist as the worst, even worst then pre-conversion Paul. I'm not arguing against Scripture. But that one Scripture of Paul being the worst is hard to believe. The Bible never explicitly says Paul murdered Christians. But I do believe in the inspiration of all Scripture and in this perspective of who Paul was sinning against, especially since he lived during the era of Jesus our Lord, and his insolent pride, persecuting and imprisoning Christians even to foregin areas, in that sense he's the foremost of all.

[@sonnysizemore5456]

I knew it wasn't me🙂

[@naits7457]

Contrary to what is commonly taught, I DO NOT believe that sexual intercourse in marriage is an illustration of our marriage to Jesus in heaven. I do believe that it is the non-romantic and non-sexual aspects of marriage that illustrate the marriage to Jesus. Men and women do not marry or remain married to each other in heaven, so there is no sexual intercourse or childbearing there, and I believe that. Nakedness and sexual intercourse is inherently disgusting to God, but I think that He had to allow it by permit of earthly marriage to produce the amount of people He intended for to exist. No more and no less. We will be clothed in white linen to represent righteousness in heaven, so even within the marriage to Jesus, nakedness is UNrighteous. When God came down onto Mount Sinai, He told MARRIED men NOT to have sexual intercourse with their wives, so there must be something inherently inappropriate about sexual intercourse even within marriage for God to want people to avoid it while He is there. When Paul told husbands to love their wives because it is an illustration of the marriage to Jesus, He was talking about AGAPE love, which is God's love, and not eros love which is romance and sexual intercourse. So in heaven, we will be married to Jesus and in this marriage, we will enjoy His agape love, His spiritual beauty, the fullness of joy at His presence, the eternal pleasures of His Right Hand, His satisfaction of all our desires, and just the mere fact for Him being God. Men and women will still enjoy each other's friendship, spiritual brotherhood and sisterhood, clothed beauty, individual uniqueness, and spiritual beauty, which are the same things that we will enjoy of Jesus in heaven.

[@sujatha00737]

No I am🖐️

[@Fireangelo3]

Ha! Definitely 100% Me 🖐🖐

[@adoge1175]

HaHA! Definitely 101% me 🖐🖐

[@johnyb9884]

I am

[@TheCannonofMohammed]

Question: John Piper said, in so many words, that God hated Trump more than He hated abortion. Did he mean to include late term abortions, where the intense pain the baby endures is off the scale? God hated it when the ancients would surrender their children to the flame in worship of Baal or Molech. Do you think His hatred of Trump surpassed this?

[@EJ-gx9hl]

Did he really say that? Wow

[@TheCannonofMohammed]

@@EJ-gx9hl He did right before the 2020 election. It was his 3rd article wherein he thoroughly eviscerated Trump. I’ve been on his case to apologize ever since. He thinks of himself as a prolife leader.

[@jessethomas3979]

​@@EJ-gx9hl No, that is fake news. He said that Trump's personal and public life involved serious sin which disqualified him from leadership, which is why Piper didn't vote for him. He of course wouldn't even consider voting left because of the abortion issue among others, so he didn't vote for anyone. He didn't consider both evils equal, he simply chose not to go with the lesser or greater evil. People still salty about that in 2023.

[@etho98]

I don’t think Piper reads these at all. I’m stunned you’re dedicated to the colossal amount of time wasted always writing these paragraphs- it takes a light amount of self awareness to understand this.. but you have gone way past that. It’s almost funny how you’re writing these things in a padded room where no one can hear it. You have to have better things to do with your time paul, right?

[@TheCannonofMohammed]

@@etho98 Thank you for your concern! Yes, I probably should be in a padded room. When I think of how the prolife movement was stabbed in the back by John Piper, and how his followers look adoringly at him, I feel it is up to me to correct the record. I do not want anyone to ever forget it is this nice, soft-voiced man, who may as well have wielded the scalpel itself, who’s responsible (along with other celebrity pastors) for potentially millions of global abortions. (Recall that Biden restored funding for Obama-era global abortions…the first week he was in office!). This is what God has called me to do. I will not be dissuaded. Not even a little.

[@thevarietykid686]

So what’s the name of the person speaking at the beginning of the video?

[@jeremiahzeiset]

Tony Rehnke

[@thevarietykid686]

@@jeremiahzeiset thanks for telling me

[@maxaplin4204]

Paul was certainly a really bad sinner. But I can't help thinking that there is probably a degree of hyperbole in what he says about himself here. See in v. 13 how he says that he received mercy because he acted out of ignorance. But surely there were other sinners who acted terribly in some ways without acting out of ignorance. And they would be worse, wouldn't they? Anyway, regardless of whether Paul was or was not literally the worst sinner, he was certainly an awful man whose example shows how God is willing to forgive.

[@zacharienelsen7973]

Interesting thoughts. But maybe there are two types of ignorance. There are people who sin terribly and have no knowledge of the true God. Then there are people who know of God, and maybe who like Paul know of God very well through deep knowledge of scripture. But, as in Romans Paul speaks of the veil over those Jews who read scripture and yet do not understand it, they are ignorant of who God truly is. So there is ignorance with knowledge, and ignorance without knowledge. And those who are not ignorant have had the eyes of their hearts opened by the Holy spirit and have had their hearts regenerated!

[@maxaplin4204]

@@zacharienelsen7973 I don't think your idea of 2 kinds of ignorance holds. I think in different contexts people will have all sorts of ignorance to all sorts of degrees, some greater, some lesser. I don't think there are really 2 clear categories. But regardless of whatever exactly Paul's ignorance was, weren't there others who committed similar sins without being ignorant, and wouldn't they be worse? That's why I tend to think that Paul is using some hyperbole. But on the other hand, we certainly should understand that he was a very evil man before his conversion.

[@sohu86x]

4:00 paul did not live as same time as Jesus. Wtf?

[@jacobsherrill4333]

Most scholars place Jesus' death on the cross, and His resurrection around 30 or 33 AD. We know that Paul was a young man at Stephen's stoning (Acts 7:54-60). Most seem to think that Stephen's death occurred relatively shortly after Jesus' resurrection, maybe 1-3 years. We also know that Paul was put to death around 67 AD, but before that he described himself as "an old man" when he wrote Philemon (Phil 1:9). So, at the very least, it is safe to say that Paul was alive while Jesus was on earth. He may have already been a Pharisee during Jesus' ministry.

[@KeepingWatch95]

Paul was a false apostle.

[@wserthmar8908]

Sad stuff! It’s very unpopular in Christianity to think this way, or at least not to treat his words as 100% inspired

[@KeepingWatch95]

@@wserthmar8908 _Jesus foretold that someone would come and mix a sowing with the good seed Jesus had just sown._ Matthew 13:24 Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: Matthew 13:25 But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. Matthew 13:26 But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. Matthew 13:27 So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? Matthew 13:28 He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? Matthew 13:29 But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Matthew 13:30 Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn. _Jesus sown the good seed. Right after the enemy came and sown the tares among the good seed._ _Good seed = the four Gospels; Matthew, Mark, Luke, & John._ _The tares were sown then after._ _Everyone knows Jesus came and sown the good seed._ _And everyone knows who came right after Jesus and sown much seed intermingled with what Jesus had sown._ _Many people (instead of becoming the fruit of what Jesus had sown) insist upon becoming the fruit of that which was mixed in and sown after Jesus._