#DailyDevotion God’s Grace Trains Us As We Wait For Jesus
Titus 211God has shown His grace. It brings salvation to all people 12and trains us to say no to ungodliness and worldly lusts, and to live sensible, law-abiding and godly lives in this world 13 as we look for the blessed One Who is our Hope, for our great God and Savior Christ Jesus to show Himself in glory. 14He gave Himself as a payment for us to free us from all wickedness and cleanse us to be His own people, eager to do good works.
God has shown us His grace. Now normally I would say when we see this term we should think in terms of a gift, God’s free favor toward us on account of Jesus Christ. While that is certainly in play here, the grace he has shown us here is the Gospel itself and the Holy Spirit who accompanies it. The Holy Spirit brings the Good News of Jesus Christ through those whom he has appointed. They proclaim and teach how Jesus died on the cross as the payment for our sins, namely death. Jesus rose from the dead never to die again and has overcome death for us, for you. Now he brings this Good News, this gift to the world for Jesus did not die and rise again for some and not others. No, Jesus did this for all people everywhere and for all creation.
It is the Holy Spirit through the good news who trains us to say no to ungodliness and worldly lusts. While the Law of God may teach us what to do and not do, it has no power to accomplish this in us. Instead, as Paul teaches in Romans 7, the Law incites sin in us and stirs up in us the desire to do the opposite the Law teaches. Instead, we see here, that it is the grace of God, the Holy Spirit, the Gospel, that trains us and transforms us into people who do what the Law requires. This same Gospel, Grace, the Holy Spirit trains us “to live sensible, law-abiding and godly lives in this world.” The Holy Spirit doesn’t train us or move us to live crazy lives. He doesn’t train us to break laws of men (unless they break God’s Law), and he doesn’t train us to live impious lives. If that is your mode of living then you are not living yet in God’s grace. That is not to say you won’t sin but these will blips on walk of faith, not the main characteristic of it. If you find you are having more than blips and are living life consistently opposed to the grace of God I point you to confession and absolution with your pastor and make a regular practice of it, until the grace of God given in absolution starts training you again in righteousness.
While we are being trained by this grace, we are waiting and looking. Who or what are we looking for? “We look for the blessed One Who is our Hope, for our great God and Savior Christ Jesus to show Himself in glory.” Yes, like faithful servants in the parables of Jesus, we are waiting and watching for our Hope, Jesus Christ, who has given us the promise our sins are forgiven us. We are looking for our great God and Savior, who is Jesus Christ. As our God and Savior, we look for him to deliver us from this veil of tears, save us from all wickedness and bring us into his kingdom. We wait for Jesus Christ to show himself in Glory. When we see Jesus in his glory we shall be changed to be like him in glory and shed this body of death for an immortal, imperishable, glorious body like his.
Almighty God and Savior, you have given us your grace, the Gospel, the Holy Spirit to train us in lives to be conformed to you will. Always give us this grace that we may live as it pleases you until you come in glory and usher us into your eternal kingdom. In your name Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.