Titus 3:4-8

But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

This is a faithful saying, and these things I want you to affirm constantly, that those who have believed in God should be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable to men.

Encouraging Words

It is so good to know that God’s kindness and love are shown toward mankind is not dependent upon our works or righteousness. If it was, then we would never see the salvation from eternal death that we so desperately need. It is only because of His mercy and the works and righteousness of His incarnate Son that we receive salvation. It is through Him and our baptism by water into Him and the receding of the Holy Spirit through chrismation that we become heirs in the Kingdom of God. Glory be to God!

Titus 3:1-2

Remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men.

Personal Challenge

How are we as Christians supposed to treat others? In Paul’s letter to Titus, we have a few more guidelines other than “love your neighbor”. If we are subject to a ruler or authority (government, law enforcement, teacher, employer, etc.), which all of us are, then we are to obey them and to be ready to do good works for them. For everyone else in our lives, then we are to speak evil of no one, be peaceable with all, be gentle, and show humility to all. This is no small task, yet one that we signed up for when we chose to follow Jesus. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Loud, have mercy!

Titus 2:11-14

For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.

Personal challenge

So, we are being told by Paul, as he teaches Titus, to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts and to live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age. Doesn’t this sound a bit like how we are supposed to be living during Great Lent? It does, but in reality, we should be living this way every day of our lives as we strive to be like Christ. This is a good lesson for the Lenten season. We should be trying to live the Lenten way all the time and not just the seven weeks leading up to Pascha. Maybe if we did this, Lent would not be so hard for us. And why do we do this? We do this because we are looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We live this way to be always ready for His return. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Titus 2:9-10

Exhort bondservants to be obedient to their own masters, to be well pleasing in all things, not answering back, not pilfering, but showing all good fidelity, that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in all things.

Personal Challenge

I have heard people say that the Bible does not apply to our world today. I have also heard people complain that there are not enough clear guidelines in the Bible for how we should act in certain situations. Both of these comments baffle me. Some of the terminologies may have changed over the last 2,000 years, but the concepts are still relevant, as they have remained so for all of those years. We do not have bondservants and masters, but we do have employees and employers, subordinates and managers, students and teachers, customers and suppliers. In all of these modern-day relationships, we can apply these teachings to Titus. Be obedient to the one that is in the lead. Strive to meet their needs by being well-pleasing, not answering back, not pilfering, and showing good fidelity. We do this to please our Lord and be an adornment to His doctrine. Glory be to God!

Titus 2:6-8

Likewise, exhort the young men to be sober-minded, in all things showing yourself to be a pattern of good works; in doctrine showing integrity, reverence, incorruptibility, sound speech that cannot be condemned, that one who is an opponent may be ashamed, having nothing evil to say of you.

Personal challenge

What is driving the direction of our country, a country founded on the principles of a loving God, to be such a judgmental, self-focused, angry, unloving country? Maybe a key contributor to this is that we have walked away from the sound doctrine of the early church. And when I say early church, I mean the one that started around AD 30. Paul was exhorting Titus, as well as us, to be sober-minded in our actions, to perform good and godly works, and to live out doctrine in our lives that produce integrity, reverence, incorruptibility, and sound speech. Instead, we have created and adhere to a doctrine that is self-focused, self-aggrandizing, angry, judgmental, and lifeless. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

Titus 1:1

Paul, a bondservant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect and the acknowledgment of the truth which accords with godliness,

Personal Challenge

In Paul’s day, the concept of being a bondservant had two very different and strong definitions. The Jewish concept, based on the Old Testament usually meant a person who had dedicated their entire life to their master. The bondservant would often end up as the master’s right hand man. In the Roman empire, the bondservant was one who had lost everything including his ability to choose for himself and who was totally submissive to his master, whether good or bad. Paul determined that his role and calling as an apostle fit both of these definitions and he was okay with that. Do we, today, put that much faith in our Lord? Are we willing to give over our entire being and our desires to do what we want to do so that God can use us to build His kingdom? Are we acting on the knowledge of the truth that He has bestowed on us? Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

2 Timothy 4:18

And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly kingdom. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen!

Encouraging Words

Once again we are reminded that we are not alone on our lifelong journey to theosis. Our Lord is with us on this journey and will deliver us from any evil that might come our way. We can choose to accept and receive that help or press on into the midst of the evil and receive the consequences accordingly. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

2 Timothy 4:7-8

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.

Personal Challenge

Life is tough. Paul talks about fighting the fight and running the race. Living a godly, Christ-centered life is not for the weak or the uncommitted. It is an all or nothing decision that we must make. And when we choose to commit our all to the life of Christ we can expect to be beaten, spit upon, ostracized, and even crucified. But there is a plus side to all of this. What we choose to give up in this world turns out to be a down payment on all the treasures that God has in store for us in eternity. We believe, we know, that in that day He will give us our crown of righteousness and He will welcome us into His Kingdom and the presence of our glorious God. This may be our personal challenge, but it will definitely be worth it. Glory be to God!

2 Timothy 4:1-4

I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.

Personal challenge

We have been duly charged by Apostle Paul to be ready to stand firm on the teachings of our Lord through His Church. Our charge is to preach the Word of God, Jesus Christ, to be ready at all times to give an answer with regards to whom we put our hope in, Jesus Christ, and to rebuke, exhort, and to do it all with long-suffering. We are also to be on our guard against fake teachings and doctrines that will infiltrate the body of Christ. We have our work cut out for us. Glory be to God!