“I am not what I ought to be. I am not what I want to be. But by the grace of God, I am not what I once was.”
Those words were not written by a man with a spotless past.
They were written by John Newton, a former slave ship captain whose life became one of history’s most powerful examples of repentance, transformation, and the mercy of God.
The quote in this image is not shallow encouragement about becoming a slightly better person.
It is the confession of a man who knew exactly how far he had fallen, and how much grace it took to change him.
Before Newton became a respected pastor, he was a rebellious sailor, a deserter, a blasphemer, and an active participant in the Atlantic slave trade.
Born in London in 1725, Newton lost his mother while still a child and went to sea at a young age. His early life was marked by anger, recklessness, and open contempt for God.
Then, on March 21, 1748, everything began to change.
Newton’s ship was caught in a violent storm and appeared close to sinking. Believing he might die, Newton cried out to God for mercy.
That prayer did not instantly turn him into a pastor or erase every sin from his life. Newton continued working in the slave trade for years afterward.
His conversion was not a neat, comfortable story. It was a long road of conviction, repentance, and spiritual growth.
Newton eventually left the sea, studied Christianity, and was ordained as an Anglican minister in 1764.
He became pastor of a church in Olney, England, where he wrote hymns to help ordinary people understand the truths of Scripture.
While preparing for a New Year’s Day sermon in 1773, Newton wrote a hymn originally titled “Faith’s Review and Expectation.”
It began with words that would echo across the world:
“Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me.”
Newton understood those words because he believed he was the wretch.
The hymn was published in 1779. Decades later, Newton’s words were paired in America with the melody now known as “New Britain,” creating the version of “Amazing Grace” still sung today.
Newton later publicly condemned the slave trade, documented its horrors, and encouraged William Wilberforce in the fight to abolish it.
He could not undo his past.
But he could repent of it, speak the truth about it, and spend the rest of his life pointing others toward the grace that had changed him.
That is the meaning behind the quote.
Newton was not claiming perfection.
He was testifying that God had not left him where He found him.