I Was Mercied — I Didn't Graduate from Sinner to Saint

The fifth evening on the open road. Still resting in Santa Comba Dão. And tonight — Paul's own testimony. Not a teaching. Not a doctrine. A confession. The apostle looking back at what he was and what mercy made of him.

And Le's response — in her own words — carries the same weight: I didn't graduate from sinner to saint. I was mercied. Two thousand years apart. Two testimonies. One mercy. The sinner who knows she didn't graduate is the one who still receives mercy every morning.

Paul begins with thanksgiving — and then honesty: blasphemer. Persecutor. Violent man. Un blasphémateur, un persécuteur, un homme violent. Three words. No softening. The apostle does not hide his résumé.

And then: I obtained mercy. J'ai obtenu miséricorde. The passive voice — mercy was shown to me. I was mercied. Le heard it and adopted it: I was mercied because God is merciful. The reason for the mercy is not in the sinner. The reason is in the One who gives it.

"Because I did it ignorantly." Par ignorance. Paul shows how deep the mercy had to reach. He didn't even know what he was doing. And God had mercy on the blind man — not because blindness deserves sight, but because God is merciful.

Exceedingly abundant. A surabondé. The Greek hyperpleonazō — super-overflowing. Not just enough. Flooding. Exceeding the need by an immeasurable margin.

Last night — Ephesians 2:7: l'infinie richesse. Ephesians 3:20: above all we ask or think. Paul keeps reaching for bigger words because the grace keeps exceeding the language.

The sin was deep. The grace went deeper. The blasphemy was great. The mercy was greater. And it came with faith and love — not just pardon but transformation.

"Of whom I am chief." Dont je suis le premier. Present tense. Not "I was." "I AM." Years into his ministry — and still: I am. Not I was.

Le testified: I didn't graduate from sinner to saint. This is the clearest vision. The closer the soul walks with God, the more it sees the distance. The one who thinks she graduated has stopped looking at God. The one who knows she didn't — is the one still looking.

Christ Jesus came to save sinners. Pour sauver les pécheurs. Not saints. Not the graduated. Sinners. The faithful saying. Worthy of all acceptance. The Savior came for sinners — and the chief testifies: the mercy still holds.

The purpose of the mercy: as a pattern. Pour que je servisse de modèle. Paul's mercy was not private. God saved the chief first — as a living display — so everyone after would know: if He saved this one, He can save me.

All longsuffering. Toute sa longanimité. The full measure of patience poured out — so the full measure could be seen.

And the journal — one hundred and sixty-seven entries of mercy displayed. Le's statement of purpose: I share what the Holy Spirit spoke. The journal is not a record of holiness. It is a record of God's mercy — shown in a sinner who didn't graduate. Every entry is the pattern. Every testimony is the display. Every morning's mercy — shown for those who will read and believe.

The testimony erupts into worship: to the King eternal, immortal, invisible. Au roi des siècles, immortel, invisible.

Eternal — the mercy has no expiration. Immortal — the Mercy-Giver cannot die. Invisible — but made visible in the pattern of sinners saved. Alone wise — the wisdom that saves the chief first as a display for all.

Honor and glory forever. Amen. Aux siècles des siècles! The sinner who didn't graduate gives the glory to the One who gave the mercy. And the giving of glory is the proof that the mercy was real. 🙏