Ephesians 3:8
“To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ.”
Paul calls himself the least of the saints. Why? Maybe because he would have been the last one a person would have expected to come to Christ. He says in Galatians 1:13,14, "For you have heard of my former way of life in Judaism, how I used to persecute the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it; and I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries among my countrymen, being more extremely zealous for my ancestral traditions." He was a chief architect against the church. He appears to have some role in the stoning of Stephen, (Acts 7:58). He had no sympathies towards the church. Quite the opposite, Acts 9:1 says, "Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the disciples of the Lord..."
Paul had a fearsome reputation. When Jesus confronted him on the road to Damascus, he was in a state of shock. The Lord spoke to a believer there asking him to minister to Paul. His response was this, 'But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many people about this man, how much harm he did to Your saints in Jerusalem', (Acts 9:13). He was the complete opposite of a christian minister. He would have been more closely aligned to the demonic, than Christ. This may be why he says he's the least of the saints.
Next it says he "was given grace". He certainly was. We refer to a person doing a 180. This is when one changes course and goes in an opposite direction. Paul did a 180. In the Galatian passage quoted earlier it says he was "extremely zealous". The word zealous is extreme on it's own. But Paul was much more than zealous, but in an extreme manner. He was scary. He was given grace as to have not been struck down in death. In Acts 9, Jesus said that Paul was persecuting Him. Jesus didn't strike him down as in judgement, but he appeared to him in a blinding light. This was grace.
Paul was stunned. He was persecuting the very God he thought he was serving. He was blinded and needed to be led by the hand. He was brought to Damascus and sat for three days, neither eating or drinking. He began to pray to Jesus and was answered with a visit by Ananias. He laid his hands on him and prayed. He regained his sight was baptized and ate. Shortly thereafter this church destroying man changed sides and began to preach Christ.
The conversion of Saul of Tarsus is so extraordinary that it is used as an apologetic proof. He had to have seen Jesus to make this type of change. This is the grace of God. Paul was to receive further grace. He had some sort of affliction which he called "a thorn in the flesh" that he sought three times to have removed. Here is the Lord's response in 2 Corinthians 12:9, 'But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest on me.' Paul was being used in a massive way. This thorn was necessary for him to stay humble and dependent on God. He called it being weak. This weak state allowed the grace of God to flow through him more abundantly.
God blesses all of His children with grace. We earn none of it. Ephesians 2:8,9 says, "For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not from yourselves; it is the gift of God." We are saved by grace, adopted by grace, cared for, loved and guided by grace. We are used to bless others in a fruitful manner. It's all by grace. The last phrase says "it is the gift of God". How amazing.
The message of God's grace is very foreign to human thinking. Those that have religions based on nature have god's of power. Other man made religions have god's that require much to please them. Grace isn't part of any of them. It had to be revealed by God.
God used Paul to share this message of grace. The entire book of Romans is the great masterpiece on grace. The Lord wants us to understand it and walk with Him in that grace. The heart responds to it. Just as the warmth of the sun opens flowers, so do our hearts when they are exposed to grace. Much is written about how the nurturing of a parent blesses the child. So grace blesses God's children.
Listen to Jesus' words in Matthew 11:28-30, “Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. For My yoke is comfortable, and My burden is light.” This is grace. We are beckoned to come and receive rest. We don't expect that from God. We see it as frightening as if we are approaching the great Oz. Not true.
Oddly enough, Hollywood hasn't produced a movie about our God. Mainly because they don't know Him or have the slightest grasp of Him. Quite the opposite, they serve their flesh, the world's cause and are under the evil one's control. Presently there is a series called, The Chosen. It's about Jesus and His disciples. It's amazing and not done through Hollywood.
Our gracious God is the origin of all that is good. Just as the sun is so crucial to all life, God, being it's creator and sustainer, is like that. All that is good comes from Him. Most are addicted to the good things of this life and most don't serve Him. They would be shocked to see that just a step or two back from all they love and enjoy is God. A few examples of this are good friends, good food, thrills and so on. All of this is from God. They just don't know it.
Thank You God for Your grace. We only have a slight grasp of it. What we do know is so amazingly life changing. Thank You.