1 Corinthians 15:10 GNT
“But by God’s grace I am what I am, and the grace that he gave me was not without effect. On the contrary, I have worked harder than any of the other apostles, although it was not really my own doing, but God’s grace working with me.”
Although the Spirit of God enabled him to write about two-thirds of the books in the New Testament, the Apostle Paul described himself as “…the least of the apostles and [I] do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God” (1 Cor 15:9 NIV). Left to what his earthly track record had offered (Act 9), there was no way anyone in their ‘right mind’ would expect a persecutor of God’s servants to become a preacher of the very gospel he tirelessly worked against. However, like Jeremiah (1:5), Paul was known to God before he was formed in the womb. God set him apart way before he was born!
The fact that a man set apart by God could still be used by the devil to work against God’s very purposes shows how crafty the devil is, but also how powerful the mercy and grace of God are. Transformed by the power of God’s grace and compassion, Paul would testify as follows: “I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me faithful, appointing me to his service. Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus” (1 Tim 1:12-14 NIV). Oh, hallelujah!
In the same vein, the Apostle shares an insightful truth in our text, saying, “…by God’s grace I am what I am, and the grace that he gave me was not without effect. On the contrary, I have worked harder than any of the other apostles, although it was not really my own doing, but God’s grace working with me.” Notice, the effect of God’s grace upon His servant was not passive, idle, or “without effect”. Rather, it totally transformed his life(style) and empowered him to work “harder than any of the other apostles”! Paul’s Holy Spirit-inspired, grace-enabled, and effective labour partly resulted in several books of our Bible. God’s grace is not without effect. Hallelujah!
Pst. Emmanuel