“But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me” (1 Corinthians 15:10).

The change in Paul’s life was almost incomprehensible. He was a hater, a persecutor and an arch-enemy of the Church. When he encountered Christ on the road to Damascus his life was transformed completely. He became the Church’s most effective missionary and theologian. His letters comprise a major portion of the New Testament. He suffered for his faith but never wavered from his calling. As he said to King Agrippa, “I was not disobedient to the vision from heaven” (Acts 26:19).

When he explained to the Corinthians how his life had changed, Paul didn’t take a bow. He didn’t even claim credit. He attributed the change in his life to the grace of God. He pointed out that God’s grace wasn’t just given to him at his conversion, but His grace was effective in establishing a godly life and ministry.

We understand what Paul was saying. As we become more like Christ we don’t claim responsibility; we know that God’s grace is changing us. As we are successful in serving Him we realize that, though we work hard, it is God’s grace that empowers us and makes us successful. We share Paul’s testimony. “By the grace of God I am what I am.”