If God should point out to us the greatest sinner in the world, we might be surprised. He might not be at all a criminal, an inmate of a penitentiary, a profligate, or even an infidel. He might be counted as respectable, polished, polite, charming, attractive. He might pass for a gentleman among men. He might profess Christianity and hold a church membership. Who knows? Men rate sin by outward appearance. God has other standards.

      So likewise if the All-knowing should point out to us His greatest living saint, we might again be surprised. Like as not he (or she) would be a very simple person, lowly in station. Possibly he would not even be a "preacher." He could be far from thinking himself great [329] and extraordinary. Certainly he would not rate himself as "a wonderful saint, of whom God could justly be proud." He would be just a plain child of God, childlike, natural, harmless, sincere. His goodness would not be pretentious, self-conscious; nor flaunted, Pharisaic, nor fault-finding. And--he would no doubt be a man sorely tempted, troubled, burdened; hated too, and more or less openly persecuted. For how could Satan let such a person alone? In character he would be full of faith, full of love, prayerful, obedient, full of good works. The fruit of the Spirit would be manifest in him. You would find him living in utter dependence on the Lord Jesus--in fact as Paul in Gal. 2:20, he would be dead and Christ living in him would be doing His works. And withal he would be a "stranger and pilgrim on the earth," of the sort whom the world knoweth not (for it knew Him not), and bearing His rejection and reproach. He would seek the things that are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. And he would be waiting for, looking for, watching for, that blessed hope, and loving the appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ. The principalities and powers in the heavenly places, angels good and evil, beholding him would wonder and admire--yet not to say, "what a great human being this is!" but only to bow before the glory of Christ and exclaim, "What hath God wrought!"

[TGS 329-330.]

      The electronic version of R. H. Boll's "The Greatest Saint" has been produced from the 90th Anniversary Issue of The Word and Work, Vol. 92, No. 11 (November-December 1998), pp. 329-330. The essay is reprinted from its earlier appearance in the magazine, Vol. 27, No. 1 (January 1934), p. 3. Thanks to Alex V. Wilson, Editor of Word and Work, for permission to publish the essay as an electronic text.

      Pagination in the electronic version has been represented by placing the page number in brackets following the last complete word on the printed page. Inconsistencies in spelling, capitalization, punctuation, and typography have been retained.

      Addenda and corrigenda are earnestly solicited.

Ernie Stefanik
Derry, PA

Created 1 October 2000.
Updated 21 June 2003.