GRACE CALLS FOR PERSONAL HOLINESS

Titus 2:12
Bob Bonner
March 22, 2009

A little over a year ago, I had the privilege of introducing an acquaintance of mine to Jesus Christ. This man is about my age, but as he would quickly tell you, he has lived a hard and fast life. He is the only one left alive in his family. All of his young adult friends whom he grew up with have been killed by an accident, murdered, died from an overdose, or took their own lives. He will tell you that he never expected to live beyond the age of thirty. Two years ago, his body, which had been abused for years by the hard living he had done, began to show the effects of that lifestyle. All of this got him to thinking, “Why am I still alive?” 

One afternoon he began asking me some serious questions about God. It wasn’t long afterwards that he committed his life to Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. Following that day, my friend announced, “You know, I have never read the Bible before. So, I’m going to read it from cover to cover.” I responded, “That’s great. While you are doing that, how would you like to meet with me for one hour a week to specifically read about Jesus, from just one book in the Bible?” And he enthusiastically jumped at the chance.

Ever since that day, we have tried to meet weekly to read the Gospel of John. We haven’t gotten too far in the Gospel, because he has so many questions about Jesus and God that we often get sidetracked from our reading. Several weeks ago, I said to my friend as we were finishing one of our sessions, “You know, we have been reading God’s Word together for just about one year. When you look back at this past year, what stands out in your mind as significant lessons you have learned about God and life? I don’t want you to answer that right now, but instead think about it and tell me next week.”

The following week we met and he said, “I want you to know that I have been really thinking about what you asked me last time. Obviously, there have been a lot of things I have learned, but three things stick out in my mind as being most significant.  First, I wasn’t just a rebel, I was a rebel against God, and I needed his forgiveness.  Second, there is absolutely nothing I could do to earn or hold on to his forgiveness. His forgiveness of me is a gift that comes as a result of putting my trust in Jesus Christ and what he did for me on the cross. But the third thing I have learned is that as much as I want to honor Him by doing what is right, and as hard as I try to do what is right, I don’t always do it. Furthermore, I have learned that unless I depend upon Him moment by moment to enable me to live right, I can’t. But I keep forgetting that! I keep forgetting that I need to ask Him to live His life through me when it comes to curbing my tongue, my thoughts, or my actions toward my own wife.” 

At that point I laughed out loud and said, “Welcome to the club! But I have some good news for you. I can tell you the exact day you won’t have that problem any more.” And he asked, “Yeah? When’s that?” And I told him that day will be either when he dies or when Jesus comes and takes us away. Either way, this struggle won’t go on forever. In the meantime, God will continue to grow us up here to be more like His son Jesus.

I tell you that true story simply to illustrate what genuine faith in Christ produces in someone’s life. When a person understands and personally experiences God’s grace, love, and forgiveness in his or her life, the natural and expected response is a transforming of life. Experiencing God’s grace motivates you to want to please God in everything that you do. As you begin to read God’s Word, like my friend did, you begin to realize that there is much in your life that displeases the Lord, who gave Himself on the cross to save you from God’s judgment. So you begin walking on the path that Jesus described as denying yourself daily, taking up your cross, and following after Him. (Luke 9:23)

With the passage of time, as Paul alludes to over and over again in his letter to Titus, one’s behavior as a true follower of Christ begins to match one’s belief in Christ. Out of a deep sense of gratitude to God for His forgiveness and acceptance, a person naturally wants to live in a manner that is honoring to Him.

But not all Christians believe this, nor are all who say they are teaching the Bible teaching beliefs that will reveal themselves in one’s behavior. Many are taught that once you ask Jesus Christ to forgive you of your sins, it doesn’t matter how you live your life. And that is out and out false teaching. It is one thing for me to behave in an improper manner when I don’t know better or I have not been instructed in what is right. But it is quite another to live knowingly in a manner that dishonors God.

This morning, our study of God’s Word deals a death blow to the false teaching that separates salvation from any demands of living in obedience to the lordship of Jesus. When we study the Apostle Paul’s letter to Titus, and in particular, Titus 2-3, we see that we are clearly instructed that salvation goes way beyond just receiving a ticket to heaven. Salvation always leads to a changed life. Salvation always includes discipleship or the ongoing practice of following after and depending upon Jesus Christ.  The false teachers on the island of Crete taught just the opposite, and that is why Paul strongly instructs Titus in chapter 2 to start teaching the ignorant Christians how to live in a God-honoring way.

As we saw last time, our passage Titus 2:11-15 is part of a larger segment that begins with Titus 2:1.  Titus 2:1-10 explains the “what” of our behavior as Christians in our world. In those verses, Paul has instructions about our lifestyles that are directed specifically at older men, older women, younger women, younger men, and slaves/employees. Then, when we come to our passage in verses 11-15, Paul explains the “why” of our behavior. In other words, what is it that motivates and enables us to live lives that are so different than the lives of others who don’t know Christ.

As we also noted last time, verses 11-14 make up one long sentence, the subject of which is God’s grace. Ultimately, it is the personal understanding of and the experiential knowing of what God’s grace means to you the individual that is the motivating factor behind our choosing to live differently than we have in the past. 

Last time we looked at just verse 11 and the subject of God’s grace and what He did to bring the offer of salvation to all people. At that time, I gave you the following rather lengthy definition of God’s grace: God’s “grace” or “gift” is God’s beneficial activity on behalf of all humans, based solely on His love for us.  It is not something we deserve, nor can it be earned by us. It is “God’s unmerited favor toward the human race.”

We went on to explain that, specifically, this gift of God’s grace was the sending of His son Jesus Christ to die on the cross for our rebellion or for our having ignored God all of our lives. This is what the Bible calls sin. We sin when we want to take charge of our lives, ignoring God altogether. But as so often happens, after living that way for awhile, we discover various forms of failure in our lives. We have no sense of purpose, direction, or meaning to our lives. As a result, many experience a deep sense of hopelessness. We know instinctively that there must be a better way. And there is, and that’s why Jesus came--to show us how to get back to God and how to find His purpose for our lives.

This morning we want to continue our study of God’s grace and its immediate effect upon the Christian’s life. This is spelled out for us in verses 12-14. This morning, we will stick with just verse 12, and next time we will cover verses 13-14.  Suffice it to say, verses 12-14 explain what the expected response is for those who have truly experienced God’s grace in their lives—those who have put their trust in Jesus Christ as their personal Savior and Lord.

Let’s begin again by reading this rather long sentence, beginning with verse 11. Paul writes to Titus saying,

For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation

to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and

worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and

godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope

and the appearing of the glory of our great God and

Savior, Christ Jesus, who gave Himself for us to

redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for

Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for

good deeds.

In verse 12, Paul tells us that one of the outcomes of understanding and experiencing God’s grace in our life is that God’s grace literally becomes a teacher or an instructor to us.  This word “instructing” comes from a word used to describe the training of children. This kind of instruction obviously involves teaching, but it also includes correcting and disciplining. This instruction is a process that begins for all Christians at salvation and continues until we stand before the Lord. 

Furthermore, this godly education in Christian behavior is seldom a painless process.  The writer to the Hebrews tells us in Hebrews 12:5-7, 11: 

“My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,

nor faint when you are reproved by Him; for those whom

the Lord loves He disciplines, and He scourges every son

whom He receives. It is for discipline that you endure; God

deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his

father does not discipline? . . . All discipline for the moment

seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have

been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of

righteousness. 

I really appreciate that last verse, for it reminds me that, although God’s discipline is unpleasant at the moment, it does come from the loving hand of God and is meant for good in my life.

But how is one to be educated or trained or even disciplined by God? The Apostle Paul tells us in his second letter to Timothy. He states in 2 Timothy 3:16-17, ^“All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” God’s Word is His chosen tool to help us grow up—to help us learn how to live, to get the best out of life, and to thus bring honor to Him.

Hence, any teaching that suggests that living by God’s grace means you can simply “hang loose and live as sloppily as you please” is false teaching. The Apostle Paul teaches against this throughout his letters. For instance, in Romans 12:2 Paul exhorts us, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.” The only way for one’s mind to be renewed is through washing it in the water of God’s Word. And as this verse states, it is by our changed lifestyle that we prove to those around us what the will of God is, and that it is good! The bottom line is, Titus 2:12 teaches us the same thing: the observable work of God’s grace taking place in our life is that it trains, disciplines, and instructs us in godly living.

The Apostle Paul gets even more specific in Titus 2:12 as to this expected transformation of a believer’s life than he does in Romans 12:2. In Titus 2:12, Paul points out that God’s grace trains us to do two things. The first half of verse 12 is stated negatively, and the second half of the verse is stated positively.

In a negative sense, Paul tells us that grace trains us to deny two things, ungodliness and worldly desires.  Generally speaking, that means that grace trains us to separate ourselves from a sinfully driven lifestyle. Note, Paul does not say that God’s grace teaches us to “avoid” ungodliness and worldliness, but to “deny” it. To deny something implies deliberately choosing to stand against it or to have a great hatred or aversion toward it. In other words, as a result of experiencing God’s unmerited favor in Jesus Christ, grace motivates you to turn away from that which is wrong.  As you read God’s Word, you begin to realize that there is much in your life that displeases the Lord, who gave Himself on the cross to save you from God’s judgment. So you deliberately choose to turn away from or deny your old ways to follow Christ. 

“Ungodliness” and “worldly desires” are two closely-related but different expressions. Ungodliness is the root problem, and worldly desires or passions is the manifestation of that root problem of ungodliness. Let’s see if we can’t put this expression “ungodliness” into more understandable or applicable terms. Ungodliness describes a person who does not revere or stand in awe of God. As a result, an ungodly person lives by ignoring God. To be ungodly describes one who has an attitude of heart or an activity in lifestyle that clearly demonstrates he does not take God seriously.

It may describe a person who is openly immoral or evil, but it also includes the outwardly nice person who simply has no place for God in his life--one who does not recognize or acknowledge his dependence upon God as his creator or the sustainer of all life. An ungodly person’s everyday life may be well-organized, he may be highly praised and successful, she may be highly motivated, and he may be even somewhat moral by society’s standards. But what’s missing is that the ungodly person simply has no place for God in his life. 

In contrast, the person who has tasted of God’s grace will give the key place of his heart to the One who forgave him, saved him, and promised him eternal life, something he did not deserve nor could he have earned. Out of gratitude, he seeks to obey and to bring honor to Jesus Christ. He seeks to make God’s will his will.

Paul views the manifestation of ungodliness as “worldly passions” or “desires.” These passions are the desires that the Cretans and all unbelievers find so appealing but which are not in harmony with God's character and will. These worldly passions are the desires for possessions, pleasures, and prominence derived from this present, secular worldly system which is hostile to God and all He stands for.

Look at how the Apostle John describes these worldly passions in 1 John 2:15-16. He writes,

Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone

loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all

that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the

eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father,

but is from the world. 

These expressions, “the lust of the flesh,” “the lust of the eye,” and “the boastful pride of life” point to this world’s obsession for the following three things: those appetites that feed physical pleasures (food, drink, drugs, sex, thrills that bring us a rush); those obsessions for things that catch our eye (or materialism); and the selfish and prideful pursuit of personal prominence and power. 

Paul is telling us here in Titus 2 that the more you come to understand the grace of God in your life, grace trains you to say “no” to seeking after this world’s pleasures and to say “yes” to giving God the prominent place in your life. The more we learn about God from His Word and all that He has done for us and wants to do for us even now, the more we realize that His grace, the knowledge of Him, and His presence in our life is far sweeter than anything this confused world can offer. That’s why Paul tells us in Romans 12:2 to stop allowing ourselves to be conformed by this world’s standards, but to begin to see things from God’s perspective. As we do, our lives will automatically begin to change.

As we turn to the latter part of verse 12, Paul speaks positively about how grace trains us to live. He shows us that through understanding and experiencing God’s grace, grace trains us to separate ourselves to God. We are being challenged to embrace godliness by living sensibly and righteously in this present age. The meaning behind the verb “to live” captures the idea of making godliness our focus in life. It is the very opposite action of “denying” or turning away from something that was mentioned earlier in the verse. To live is to turn to and to zero in on becoming more Christlike in our attitudes and actions.

But just in case you misunderstand and attempt to become godly apart from God’s changing you, let me remind you that godliness is not the consequence of human resolution or willpower to be more moral. That practice of trying to become godlier in your own strength leads to legalism and pharisaism. Godliness is not proving anything to God. It is the result of seeking a closer relationship with God and desiring to honor Him with your life. As you do that, He changes your heart from within. Pretty soon your attitudes, perspective about life, and eventually even your actions and words begin to change. This results in a life honoring to God. 

This challenge to live “sensibly” is not a new concept in this letter to Titus.  Paul has repeatedly used this word six times since 1:8. It’s a term that points to living in a self-controlled manner, not yielding to various passions and impulses. The more we study and desire to apply God’s Word to our lives, the more His grace begins to train us to live “sensibly.”

God’s grace also trains us to live “righteously.” This refers to a life of integrity and uprightness in dealing with others. It means conforming to God’s standards of conduct toward others as revealed in the commandments of His Word. Keep in mind that on Crete, dealing fairly, honestly, and selflessly with others was not the common manner of life. Their society was built upon cheating out others in order to get ahead.

Finally, God’s grace trains us to be godly. This refers to holiness and devotion to God, beginning on the heart level. It means to live a God-ward life, knowing that He examines your heart. It necessitates keeping short accounts with God, confessing even your sinful thoughts. And it comes down to passionately living to love the Lord for all He has done.

Notice the relationship between these three positive characteristics taught by grace. As you do, you will notice that the life trained by grace is comprehensive. Choosing to live “sensibly” involves oneself, choosing to live “righteously” involves one’s relationship to others, and choosing to live “godly” involves one’s relationship to God. Grace trains us how to live on all of the important relational planes of life!

And to live that way, one does not have to move into a monastery somewhere. In fact, the expression, “in the present age,” emphasizes that we do not need to isolate ourselves from this evil world and live in Christian communes. Rather, in the midst of this present evil age, we are to live sensible, righteous, godly lives. Why? So that those in the world, both other Christians and non-Christians, will be encouraged to seek Christ as a result of seeing what has happened to us as we have sought to love Him.

Not wanting to leave our study with merely giving you the facts of this passage, but to complete our study by applying God’s Word to our lives, allow me to ask all of you who claim to know Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord some questions about your present living under the training of God’s grace.

Do you consistently evaluate what you are doing and why you are doing it in light of your relationship to Jesus Christ? Are you evaluating the evil around you, and, as a result, are you turning away from it or simply enjoying it? Are you living as though there is no division of the sacred and the secular? Specifically, are you watching, reading, and listening to entertainment conscious that whether you are in a bright church, darkened theater, or a secluded room you are in the presence of a holy God?

These are hard questions even for the one who now asks them. My flesh fights against this need to continually evaluate what I am doing and then to correct my habits or participation in light of what I see. My desire is to bring my life into accord with that which is godly, because I am grateful for God’s gift of mercy toward me, and I want to live today in a way that brings Him honor. But I have to deliberately choose to deny my worldly passions and deliberately choose to live sensibly, righteously, and godly. Are you actively involved in this same struggle?

We must honestly assess our internal compulsions or “worldly passions.” Do worldly passions control you? Have you lost the desire to say “No?” Do you see certain movies, watch certain shows, read certain books, or listen to certain music not because of their aesthetic excellence but because you need a sexual fix or an adrenal rush or a romantic heart massage? No one can answer for us—we must each examine our own hearts with candor and rigor about these matters if we are to honor our Lord. 

When we don’t stand guard against the prevalent and pervasive sin that floods our lives through our culture, these evils have the ability to make us callous and to desensitize us to evil in our lives. This in turn causes us to live lives that are no different than those who are ungodly.  And when we live this way, we can make no eternal difference in the lives of those around us. Christians are not encouraged to join us in godly living and non-Christians see no reason to turn their lives over to Christ.

Which is the greater problem in Christian circles today: legalism or licentiousness (the false belief that God’s grace allows us to live any way we wish without serious consequences)?  How can we avoid both errors?

Share one area of your struggle to deny ungodliness in your life that you might live sensibly, righteously, and godly. Then pray together with each member of your small group to find victory in God’s grace in this area.

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