He appointed me ......

“I give thanks to Christ Jesus our Lord, who has made me equal to the task; I thank him for judging me worthy of trust and appointing me to his service – although in the past I had met him with abuse and persecution and outrage. But because I acted in ignorance of unbelief I was dealt with mercifully; the grace of our Lord was lavished upon me, along with faith and love which are ours in Christ Jesus. Here is a saying you may trust, one that merits fully acceptance:

‘Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; and among them I stand first. But I was mercifully dealt with for this very purpose, that Christ Jesus might find in me the first occasion for displaying his inexhaustible patience, and that I might be typical of all who were in future to have faith in him and gain eternal life.” (1 Timothy 1: 12 – 16)