#DailyDevotion The Grace Of God Appeared!
February 3rd
Read Titus 2:7—3:15
Tit 2:11-14 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, (12) training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, (13) waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, (14) who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works. Tit 3:4-7 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, (5) he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, (6) whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, (7) so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
So in these two chapters of Titus, we get a lot of direction for our lives as Christians. Sometimes because of the fallen flesh, we need to be reminded. Yet it is in the quoted passages above which are the power which transforms us into people who don’t need to be told what to do. These words of good news transform our hearts, minds, affections, desires, and everything about us that do as we have been saved to be.
The grace of God APPEARED! The APPEARING of the glory of our Great God and Savior Jesus Christ! The goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior APPEARED! Three times Paul calls our attention to something appearing. What is it that appeared? What is appearing? The grace of God, that is God’s good favor towards us is what has appeared and come to us. This grace brought us salvation, a salvation for all people (so we never to have to worry about, “But not for me.”) This salvation trains us. What does it train us to do? To renounce ungodliness, that is false confessions of faith. What does it train us to do? To renounce worldly passions, yes all that bad stuff that most people pay attention to. But it also trains us in positive things. It trains us to live self-controlled, upright lives (what people are watching) and godly lives in this present age (what we confess that most people don’t care about).
It waits for the appearing of our God and Savior Jesus Christ. Why would we be waiting for him? Because he redeemed us. He redeemed us from a life of lawlessness—opposing the will of God. His redemption of us, freely by his grace is what makes us zealous for good works, that right, we desire to do good works!
Finally he tells us how we have been brought into this grace of God, when he appeared, he washed us, that right, baptized us, therein justifying us, saving us freely, giving us his Holy Spirit, purifying us to be his holy people. And we are commended one more time to adorn this gospel of a free salvation, with our good works wrought by the Spirit of our God.
Lord Jesus Christ, you appeared to us and brought us the gift of salvation. Continually give us your Holy Spirit that we may confess you rightly and live lives according to that confession. Amen.