More Sinful As We Grow In Christ?

Do we get more sinful, the closer we get to God?  That’s kind of crazy but that seems to be how the Apostle Paul seemed to describe his own life.

Paul thought he had it all going on before meeting Christ.  He was a member of the prestigious Jewish Religious group, the Pharisees.  The Pharisees were so religious that the 10 commandments weren’t enough for them.  They made up over 600 more rules to follow.

Then Paul became a Christ-Follower.  Here is the progression of his attitude about his own spiritual standing:

Right after becoming a Christ-follower, he considered himself “the least of the Apostles.”  (1 Corinthians 15:9)  He had “transferred” from the elite group of Pharisees to another “elite” group, the Apostles.  He did, however, now consider himself as the least of the Apostles.

A few years later he wrote Ephesians 3:8.  In this passage, he said that he was the “least of all the saints.”  Now he seems to have slipped in his opinion of himself.  He is now not just the least of the Apostles but the least of the saints.

Checking in on Paul’s writing just a bit later, he now claims to be the “foremost of sinners.”  (1 Timothy 1:15)  He seems to have fallen even farther in his walk.

Although Paul seemed to be on a “down-ward” spiral in his own words, I believe the opposite is true.  Paul came to appreciate the grace of God more and more in his own life.  He didn’t become more sinful but the closer he got to God, the more he realized how much God had done for him in sending His only son to pay for our sins.

What have you learned since you have begun your journey with Christ?