"Schooling Grace"
Titus 2:11 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,
12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;
13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;
14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.
15 These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee.
INTRODUCTION: I have read and preached from this passage on more occasions than I can count with all my fingers and toes and I will tell that it has always been a favorite of mine and probably yours too. Most of the time when we read this text the focus is on the "...grace that bringeth salvation..." and I'll have to admit that this is true for me but today I want us to consider verse 10 where we find the phrase "...Teaching us..." from which we get our word education. So grace not only saves us, it educates us, it schools us, it instructs us, it informs us, it trains us, it edifies us, it disciplines us and to use a sports metaphor, it "coaches us up."
Before I go any further though, let me make a couple of observations that are shared by many in the faith community. First, Christian writers, pastors and others in the Lord's work are voicing a concern that there seems to be a disconnect between the concept of a conversion experience and the incarnation of a Christian life and lifestyle. What I mean is that we know what to do but we are not doing it. All over the faith community there are voices being raised about the failure of modern day believers to behave like believers. Survey after survey tells us that there is almost no difference between the sinners' lifestyle and the saints! This may explain why the church is having so little influence on the culture we deal with daily. Second, and I would think that this is even more important is we need to ask ourselves a question. What is the point and purpose of God's plan of redemption? Is it not to make us more and more like Christ so that ultimately we will be "...like..." Him? Remember that Jesus is the sinless, guileless son of God. The goal of the Christian life is that we would be conformed to His image.
The question then is "What comes after salvation by grace?" The answer is, "Schooling by grace!" If you really get what Jesus has to give it will not only change your life, it will change your lifestyle! Today, I'm going to share three truths found in this text that speak directly to this issue and hopefully make some relevant life applications. First, grace teaches us that we are to:
I. Leave the Sinful Life
Some commentaries translate the word "...teaching..." found in verse 12 to mean disciplining us and it is certainly obvious that where our flesh is concerned we need discipline. What does the grace of God discipline us to do?
a. Teaches the denial of individuality
This is essential to discipleship. That's what our Lord taught His disciples.
ILL - Mark Dever, in his book, Nine Marks of a Healthy Church, says, "According to [Jonathan] Edwards, while all these things [loving the church, an increase in joy, etc.] may be evidences of true Christian growth, the only certain observable sign of such growth is a life of increasing holiness, rooted in Christian self-denial."
Luke 9:23 And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.
b. Teaches the denial of idolatry
All ungodliness is ultimately a form of idolatry and a violation of the first and greatest commandment.
Exodus 20:3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:
5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them...
And before you say "how can idolatry be an issue in the life of a Christian?" you need to remember the several of the NT writers warned believers about the dangers of this sin. Paul asks the question in regard to the dangers of idolatry in his second letter to Corinth.
2 Corinthians 6:16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
The Apostle John who was the Bishop of Ephesus certainly knew the problems associated with idolatry and he warned believers in his first epistle.
1 John 5:21 Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen.
c. Teaches the denial of impiety
"Denying... lusts -- Luke 9:23. The Greek aorist expresses "denying once for all." We deny "worldly lusts" when we withhold our consent from them, when we refuse the delight which they suggest, and the act to which they solicit us, nay, tear them up by the roots out of our soul and mind [St. Bernard,
Sermon 11]. JFB
1 John 2:16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
James 1:14 But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.
ILL - Why do we have such a hard time quitting sin?
a. We enjoy sin, God, make me good, but not yet.
St. Augustine.
b. There is much to do
When a person becomes a Christian, he usually undergoes some radical life changes, especially if he has had an immoral background. Through the first steps of spiritual growth and self-denial, he gets rid of the large, obvious sins. But sad to say, many believers stop there. They don't go on to eliminate the little sins that clutter the landscape of their lives.
Gordon MacDonald, in his book Ordering Your Private World, told of an experience in his own life that illustrates this truth. "Some years ago, when my wife Gail and I bought the old abandoned New Hampshire farm we now call Peace Ledge, we found the site where we wished to build our country home strewn with rocks and boulders. It was going to take a lot of hard work to clear it all out....The first phase of the clearing process was easy. The big boulders went fast. And when they were gone, we began to see that there were a lot of smaller rocks that had to go too. But when we had cleared the site of the boulders and the rocks, we noticed all of the stones and pebbles we had not seen before. This was much harder, more tedious work. But we stuck to it, and there came the day when the soil was ready for planting grass."
Our Daily Bread.
II. Learn the Sanctified Life
The first part of verse 12 is only one side of the coin. What God disciplines us to do is both negative and positive. Notice that the goal of grace is that "...we should live..." a certain way, a particular lifestyle.
a. In respect to ourselves
"Soberly..." is "self-restraint". Only the Holy Spirit can produce the fruit of temperance (self-control) in us. Galatians 5:22-23
ILL - During the 1960s, psychologist Walter Mischel conducted what became known as "the marshmallow test" with four-year-olds in the preschool at Stanford University. The object of the exercise was to assess each preschooler's ability to delay gratification. Each child was given one marshmallow. They were told that they could eat it immediately or, if they waited until the researcher returned in 20 minutes, they could have two marshmallows. Some kids in the group just couldn't wait. They gobbled down the marshmallow immediately. The rest struggled hard to resist eating it. They covered their eyes, talked to themselves, sang, played games, even tried to go to sleep. The preschoolers who were able to wait were rewarded with two marshmallows when the researcher returned. Twelve to fourteen years later the same kids were re-evaluated. The differences were astonishing. Those who had been able to control their impulses and delay gratification as four-year-olds were more effective socially and personally as teenagers. They had higher levels of assertiveness, self-confidence, trustworthiness, dependability, and a superior ability to control stress. Remarkably, their Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores were also 210 points higher than the "instant gratification" group! A key difference between successful people -- leaders -- and those who struggle to get by is self-discipline. As Confucius wrote, "The nature of people is always the same; it is their habits that separate them." Successful people have formed the habits of doing those things that most people don't want to do.
ILL - "Self-discipline begins with the mastery of your thoughts. If you don't control what you think, you can't control what you do. Simply, self-discipline enables you to think first and act afterward."
b. In respect to others
"Righteously..." is in relationship to our neighbor. I submit that grace teaches us to treat others rightly!
While at our National meeting recently I had two separate experiences that illustrate what this means. First, I was in a Starbucks getting an item and I gave the cashier a twenty dollar bill to pay the check. When he made my change he gave me too much money and I promptly returned the overage to him. He saw his error and sheepishly thanked me. What happened next is something I will never forget. I didn't know it but there was a young man in line behind me who had observed the whole transaction and responded by "...way to go man." Second, while checking into the hotel the bellman saw my laptop and asked for a piece of paper and a pen, he wrote down the password to the hotel internet, handed it to me and said, "...here is the internet password, the hotel charges for this service but this will get you on line w/o having to pay." I said nothing too him but I threw away the paper and paid for the service. I've thought about it since and have realized that we never know who is watching, that God often tests our willingness to do right, that living righteously is an everyday experience and our testimony with others can be destroyed with just one thoughtless act.
Dr. David Wells (GCTS) observes, "Worldliness is what makes sin look normal in any age and righteousness seem odd."
"The church is so subnormal that if it ever got back to the New Testament normal it would seem to people to be abnormal." (Vance Havner)
ILL - The mantle of righteousness that comes with forgiveness is made of vertical and horizontal threads. The vertical threads are the relationship between us and the Lord, representing our restored relationship. Horizontal threads are the relationships we have with others, established by our forgiving one another. It is not possible to have a lasting garment made of just vertical threads, nor is such a garment useful if there are only horizontal threads. Our mantle can only be fashioned when both types of threads exist (Isa. 61:10).
c. In respect to our God
"Godly..." is piety and is the reverse of the ungodliness of verse 12!
III. Live the Servant Life
Paul tells Titus that grace produces a life of service for God and others; that true grace is "...zealous of good works."
Matthew 20:27 And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant:
Matthew 23:11 But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.
ILL - "The cost of true greatness is humble, selfless, sacrificial service. The Christian who desires to be great and first in the kingdom is the one who is willing to serve in the hard place, the demanding place, the place where he is not appreciated and may even be persecuted. Knowing that time is short and eternity is long, he is willing to spend and be spent. He is willing to work for excellence without becoming proud, to withstand criticism without becoming bitter, to be misjudged without becoming defensive, to withstand suffering without succumbing to self-pity." (The MacArthur NT Commentary, MT. 16-23. Chicago: Moody, 1988. 243).
a. The servants' character
QUALIFICATIONS FOR MINISTRY
What qualifies someone for a task? There is a story of the testing of a candidate for missions work:
One snowy morning at 5:00 A.M., a missionary candidate rang the bell at a missionary examiner's home. Ushered into the office, he sat three hours past his appointment time waiting for his interview. At 8:00 A.M., a retired missionary appeared and began his questioning. "Can you spell?"
Rather mystified, the candidate answered, "Yes, sir."
"All right. Spell 'baker.'"
"B-A-K-E-R."
"Fine. Now, do you know anything about numbers?" the examiner continued.
"Yes, sir, something."
"Please add two plus two."
"Four," replied the candidate.
"That's fine," said the examiner. "I believe you have passed. I'll tell the board tomorrow."
At the board meeting, the examiner reported on the interview. "He has all the qualifications for a fine missionary. First, I tested him on self-denial, making him arrive at my home at five in the morning. He left a warm bed on a snowy morning without any complaint. Second, I tested him on promptness. He arrived on time. Third, I examined him on patience. I made him wait three hours to see me. Fourth, I tested him on temper. He failed to show any anger or aggravation. Fifth, I tried his humility by asking him questions that a seven-year-old child could answer, and he showed no indignation. So you see, I believe the candidate meets the requirements. He will make the fine missionary we need."
"Spirit-given abilities are needed, but Spirit-produced fruit is more significant."
(Source: Green, Michael P.: Illustrations for Biblical Preaching :1989)
b. The servants' commands
John 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.
John 14:21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.
ILL - Several years ago, I read Patrick Morley's book "Walking with Christ in the Details of Life." It is a book of meditations that includes one called "Revival: The Gospel of Addition." In it, he said the following, "The American gospel has evolved into a gospel of addition without subtraction. It is the belief that we can add Christ to our lives, but not subtract sin. It is a change in belief without a change in behavior... A changed life is one that has added Christ and subtracted sin, that attracts a world weary of worn-out words. Obedience is the proof."
c. The servants' commitment
Eugene Peterson in A Long Obedience in the Same Direction writes, "It is not difficult in our world to get a person interested in the message of the Gospel; it is terrifically difficult to sustain the interest. Millions of people in our culture make decisions for Christ, but there is a dreadful attrition rate. Many claim to have been born again, but the evidence for mature Christian discipleship is slim. In our kind of culture anything, even news about God, can be sold if it is packaged freshly; but when it loses its novelty, it goes on the garbage heap. There is a great market for religious experience in our world; there is little enthusiasm for the patient acquisition of virtue, little inclination to sign up for a long apprenticeship in what earlier Christians called holiness."
From "A Long Obedience in the Same Direction", Eugene Peterson
