Devoted By Grace

Simple, straightforward here at the end, in the conclusion of Paul's letter here to Titus and to the churches on Crete.

And I want to tell you that I have grown to really enjoy reading through these concluding remarks in some of these New Testament letters.

I actually find them to be quite helpful.

If you're like me and you enjoy after watching a movie or a documentary or something like that,

or if you're a sports fan, perhaps you like watching the behind-the-scenes features that come up different times on movies or events and things like that.

You kind of get to peer behind what they want you to see to see the reality of what is true behind the scenes.

I enjoy things like that.

And these conclusions in these letters help us to do that somewhat.

The body of each letter, including Titus, is really packed with theological significance and with practical instruction.

But it's often in the closing comments of an epistle that when the author is particularly concerned with personal notes and travel arrangements and things like that,

giving names of people that are around him,

it's in those moments that we really begin to glean from the example of these faithful Christians.

We can really be edified if we were to just slow down at this point in these letters to consider who these people are and what they were doing,

and we can actually experience a great amount of encouragement there.

There's a sense in which these letters allow us, these portions of the letters allow us to kind of peer behind the instruction.

It's almost as if you go to a Bible conference with your favorite preachers.

Perhaps you sit in the audience and you hear all of the preaching and the instruction that comes through,

and then perhaps you have a backstage pass to where after hearing the instruction of these men,

you step behind the scenes and you get to witness their interaction with the other people on their team or with other Christians in their way.

And you begin to see the true nature of their passion.

Is there a reality in their character and of their personality to what they have just demonstrated or displayed on the platform or as they have preached?

It would be an interesting thing to see.

And as we come to these letters, that's what we begin to see.

And that is such the case here at the end of Titus.

With the exception of verse 14, there's no direct instruction to the church here.

These are just personal notes.

And for the most part, what we learn from these verses comes through observing the example of the people that are involved.

Their gospel conviction, their love for Christ, their passion for serving the church are all revealed in how they live their lives.

And that's what we actually find coming to the surface here.

How they actually live their lives, at least in just a small taste of it.

Which should prompt us to a particular kind of self-evaluation.

We might ask ourselves, does the way that I live my life generally communicate love for Christ?

That is grounded in the transforming work of the gospel of grace.

That's what we find to be true of these men.

That's what we find to be true of their testimony.

We might ask a question like this, to whom or to what am I most devoted?

Because when we come to this text and we ask that same question of these men,

of Artemis and Tychicus and Titus and Zenos and Apollos and Paul,

and we could go on and on through Paul's various lists,

and we were to ask that question, to whom or to what are these men devoted,

as far as we can tell in the scriptures where they're mentioned.

And we would have no other conclusion than to say they are wholly devoted to God and his work,

to the lordship of Christ, to the spread of the gospel.

And then we ask ourselves the same question.

If we were to be included in a letter that someone was writing,

what would be made clear about the way that we live,

that shows to whom or to what it is that we are most devoted?

Would it actually indicate to people clearly that the thing we're devoted most to is the glory of God,

to the work of the gospel, to the lordship of Christ?

Were there other things that seem to distract us along the way?

Through our observation of this particular text,

I think we can discover at least three distinct ways that these men were devoted to God.

And all of them, as we get to the very last phrase, are ultimately rooted in the gospel of grace.

So let me give you the three devotions that they have.

Number one, we see devotion to the work of God.

Devotion to the work of God.

Verse 12,

Now the fact that this is a personal letter from Paul isn't lost on us here, is it?

It's very simple.

He's giving some just administrative notes here, his traveling plans,

some administrative adjustments to the positioning of some of the team members on his ministry team.

And what I love about this is it begins to give us a real sense of the early ministry dynamic of the early church.

And all the moving pieces that were at work here.

All of these moving pieces that are geared toward establishing new churches,

in taking the gospel of grace to places where it has not yet gone.

But then at the same time, endeavoring to strengthen the churches that have been established.

And what a monumental task this is.

Here is Paul particularly.

The other apostles would have certainly been involved with this as well.

But here we see Paul in particular with such a vast concern for the work of God

that he's got this team of men and he's sending some of them to Egypt,

it would appear like in this particular text.

And he's wanting Titus to come back because he needs to send him to Dalmatia,

we would find at the end of 2 Timothy.

And now he's trying to determine, do I send Tychicus or Artemis to Ephesus,

or do I send one of them to Crete, or what do I do?

And we see all these moving pieces, all with one particular goal.

That the work of God would succeed and that it would flourish.

That the gospel would go forth.

And that the churches that have been established wouldn't suffer in the meantime.

That they would continue to grow in grace.

Reveals an incredible commitment to gospel ministry.

That's really what we see here.

An incredible commitment to gospel ministry.

It's almost like a strategic plan for war.

As Paul no doubt alluded to in a few different occasions,

that this life is very much like a war.

It's like a spiritual war.

We are good soldiers, he tells Timothy,

that are fighting for the cause of Christ.

And here he is as a general and an apostle.

And he is putting the plan together.

And he's sending the people in the grace of God.

Paul, we find, will soon send either Artemis or Tychicus to take Titus' place.

And then Titus was to make it a priority to rendezvous with Paul in Nicopolis.

Now, if we look at some of the other letters,

if you care about this kind of side information,

as we look at the other letters,

we find that it would have been ultimately Artemis that goes to Crete,

because Tychicus ends up in Ephesus to take Timothy's place.

Once Titus ends up in Nicopolis to meet up with Paul,

Paul sends him on to Dalmatia,

where we find at the end of 2 Timothy as well.

So you can kind of see the picture of it there and how they're all moving around.

Now, here's something I want you to know.

Note, though Titus had a very specific task in Crete,

he was never meant to stay there indefinitely.

That was never the point.

Nor was he ever instructed by Paul

to see that his specific task was brought to completion

before relinquishing his responsibility to someone else,

perhaps Artemis at this case.

Do you see that unfolding here?

He's never meant to be there permanently.

He was on a temporary assignment with a specific task,

but he is not instructed in this letter at any point

to bring the task to completion

before relinquishing his responsibility to someone else,

which tells us a couple of things.

Number one, it tells us that this letter indeed was not meant,

though it was personal,

it was not meant to be a private letter.

The instructions here were not only for Titus.

The instructions here were for the church

and all of the structures that Paul's talking about,

all the theology here,

all of the practical things.

It's not just for Titus to kind of store away in his own mind.

This was meant for the church to continue on in

whether Titus was there or not.

That's important for us to understand.

The next thing that I think is so significant for us to observe here

is to see that these men were devoted to the work of the ministry,

not their particular role in it at any given moment.

Do you understand what I mean?

Clearly, what they're concerned about is the overall work of God,

no matter what that meant for them,

in whatever way that meant for them to be best used

or in whatever place it meant for them to be most useful to the Lord.

What they cared about is the big picture.

What they cared about was the work of the ministry,

not their particular role that they had become,

perhaps fascinated with or territorial over.

Their flexibility, it shows that their concern

was not to build their own kingdom.

It wasn't to gain their own following.

They were building the kingdom of God

as God gave them grace to do so.

And this is an attitude that is absolutely necessary

for each of us to possess.

The fact is that the work of the ministry,

gospel ministry and the work of the church

is never truly brought to completion

until the Lord Jesus returns.

This task that Titus has been given

is not one that ever ends.

The task that we have been given

is not one that ever ends.

And the ministry that's outlined here

would continue long after Titus was dead and gone.

And it will continue for Lakeside Bible Church

long after Jared is dead and gone.

And long after you are dead and gone.

And Lord willing, the Lord raises up other people,

perhaps even our children,

to take the same task that's outlined for us

in the scriptures

and to move forward out of a concern for God's work.

What a mess these churches would have been in

had Titus decided that he was indispensable to them.

Had he refused to step aside

and make way for Artemis or Tychicus

to come in and to carry on the work there.

Whenever our devotion is to the work itself,

we will happily and humbly serve

in whatever way is most useful

to the work of the church.

Do you see that?

Now I know this room well enough to know

that you've been around churches a long time.

And you know what it's like

to be involved with people

who will not serve the Lord

unless they do it on their terms

and they do it in their way.

They're not concerned about the work of the church

so much as they're concerned

about what they want to do

and how they want to be involved

and all the things that are most concerning to them.

And we find a wonderful example

just in the fact of how flexible

these men were in moving around

and doing the things that were best

for them to do at any given moment.

Something that we should all

take into account of our own lives.

That's not to deny gifting

or that there are particular ways

that the Lord uses us best in the church.

Of course, we need to understand that.

But the attitude here is of humble, happy service

no matter what that means.

Which brings us to the point of usefulness.

What does it actually mean to be useful?

Who is actually useful

and suited for the work of God?

Because when we come to this text,

we find that clearly all of these men

had committed their entire lives vocationally

to gospel ministry.

They had perhaps given up their own work or jobs.

We would imagine that they are probably

single men at this point

that were foregoing the blessings of marriage

and of a family in order to dedicate their lives

solely and entirely to the work of God.

We find that.

We don't find that very often these days.

But we do find that to be true

in the New Testament on a number of occasions.

But does that mean that this kind of devotion

that we find as an example here

is only applicable to people like that?

Like to the people that just decide,

you know what?

I want to give my whole life to vocational ministry

even if it means that I'm not ever going to be married

or anything like that.

I'm just going to go to the mission field

or I'm going to do the thing

or I'm going to give up all the other things

that I care about in order to do this.

Does that mean that this particular type of example

is only applicable to those types of people?

And we would have to say, of course not.

God may or he may not call you

into some kind of vocational ministry

or as a missionary to serve around the world

or as a church planter to go to another part

of even the United States.

But devotion to what he is doing in

and through the church

belongs to every person who is part of his church.

Do you see that?

The example here is not about being Titus

and traveling the globe

to have a specific type of ministry

to specific types of churches.

The goal in the example here

is just to be devoted to the work

in whatever way that means for you

where God has put you

and where he has placed you in your life.

Neither is it true that usefulness

is based on a particular set of skills

or personality.

And we find that because there's at least

half of the men mentioned here

that we don't know anything about.

Two of them we know well.

We know Apollos well.

We know he was a skilled speaker.

We know that he needed to be trained

by Aquila and Priscilla

to understand the gospel better.

But we also know that there was a faction

of people in Corinth

that wanted to follow him

instead of following Paul.

So that clearly he was a gifted speaker

and he had a personality

that was attractive to certain people.

We know that.

We can find Tychicus in a number of places

in the New Testament

always serving faithfully alongside the Apostle Paul.

Artemis and Zenos we know nothing about.

We have no clue who they are.

And I think if not for anything else

it's just a hint of the fact

that you don't have to be somebody

to do something and to be useful to the work.

You just have to care about it.

If you love the Lord

and you desire to serve him

he will use you.

Therefore be devoted to his work.

Give yourself to it.

Give yourself to the work

of the ministry as these men did.

Well then we have to ask

what does it actually look like

to be devoted to God's work?

We see that that was the devotion here.

We see what they were willing to do.

Their care and their concern

for the work even over themselves.

We find that okay

maybe we can glean from this

that I don't have to be

anybody particularly special

to be useful

but how can I actually be useful?

In a practical sense.

And we get a little glimpse of it here

in verse 13.

Look at it with me again.

He tells Titus specifically

do your best to speed Zenos the lawyer

and Apollos on their way.

See that they lack nothing.

Zenos and Apollos probably

were the carriers of this letter.

If we trust church tradition

and ancient church tradition

Apollos ended up in Egypt

and spent quite a bit of time

ministering there.

Perhaps that's his assignment here.

That Apollos and Zenos are on their way

and they're stopping on behalf of Paul

in Crete

in order to deliver this correspondence

to Titus

so that he knows what to do

and so the ministry is flourishing.

They didn't have text messaging

and emails then.

They had to hand carry letters

at that particular point.

And so they stop in in Crete

before they head on

to their other place

and then Titus is given

this instruction.

Do your best here.

It translates the word

for diligence

meaning that Titus

was to diligently

speed the men along

on their journey.

And how was he to do that?

By seeing to it

that they had everything

that they needed.

by making sure

that they were refreshed

in the Lord.

To make sure

they had a place to stay.

That they had some meals

for a few days

to strengthen them.

That all of their resources

were replenished

to get them the rest of the way

to help them.

Titus' job here

was to coordinate the efforts

to meet these basic needs.

An early example

of what it means

to love and serve missionaries.

This is as clear

as I think it gets

in the New Testament for us.

There's such a wonderful

picture of it

as we see

and some of us

have had these conversations

before.

It's always kind of heartbreaking

when you find missionaries

who come

and they load up

the station wagon

so to speak

and they gotta travel

the globe

for three or four years

just to try to get

to where they're going.

And I think part

of the problem with that

is that we don't necessarily

have the mindset

that Paul is trying

to pass on to Titus here

where he says

when they come

refresh them

make sure they have

everything

diligently

do what you can

intentionally

go after coordinating

all the efforts

that you can

to actually help

these men

get where God

is sending them

for the good of the gospel.

They're devoted

to the work

you're devoted

to the work

let's work together

to get them there

and to get the gospel

where the gospel

needs to go.

What a wonderful picture

that is here.

Maybe

it's God's desire

just for you

to be a coordinator

a facilitator

of these types

of things

just meeting

the basic needs

of others

for the good

of the ministry.

Our devotion

to the work

of God

is directly

linked

to our diligence

in assisting

whatever work

is being done.

That's really

the point.

Just be diligent

to see what's happening

and get involved.

Get involved.

It's opening

your home

and hospitality

so that others

can grow

in the Lord

and in fellowship.

You may not be

a teacher

but you can offer

your home

to gather people

around so that

someone else

can do the teaching

work

and the discipling

work.

Devotion

is regularly

giving

so that ministry

can flourish

not only in our church

but in ministries

around the world.

Devotion

is volunteering

to help

with a fellowship

or an outreach event

or a Sunday

ministry opportunity.

Devotion

to the work

of God

is caring

enough

about the ministry

of the gospel

to actively

look for ways

to engage

with it.

And that's

the point

that I want

to get across

to you

as we apply

this to our

own church

and to our

own lives.

Do you have

a concern

for the work?

It's to have

what God

is doing

in the world

and around

the world

at the forefront

of your mind

and desiring

to be a part

of that work

in whatever way

God has made

available to you

to be a part

of it.

Do you care

about the work?

Like the big

picture work?

Like just the fact

that God

has us here

for the purpose

of his own glory

and for the

expansion

of his kingdom

and for the

sharing of his gospel.

Do you ever

think about that?

Is it ever

at the forefront

of your mind?

When you sit

down and you

make your budget

every month

and you begin

to think about

what we're going

to give

or what can

we give?

Is there ever

a thought that

begins with

there is this

dynamic of

God's work

and we need

to be committed

to that?

That's our

devotion.

We need to be

committed to that.

Or is it an

afterthought

that you get to

if you can?

What about

when it comes

time to actually

help someone

or be beneficial

in some way

to a program

or to a ministry?

Is it that

we're going

to devote

ourselves

to this thing

because we're

Christians

and that's

what we care

to do?

We care about

the work.

Or is it

if I can get

to it

I'll get

to it

and that

will be

great

and if I

can't

no big

deal.

This is

an attitude

shift here.

Don't lose

sight of the

purpose

for your

salvation.

Don't lose

sight of the

purpose

for why God

has planted

you in the

place that

he's planted

you.

For why God

has planted

this church

in the place

that he has

planted it.

For why God

has given us

whatever resources

he's given us

and he's given

us the people

that he's given

us.

To be devoted

to the work.

We find that

clearly here.

They're devoted

to the work.

Secondly,

they're devoted

to the glory

of God.

They're devoted

to the glory

of God.

Verse 14.

Let our people

learn to devote

themselves to

good works

so as to

help cases

of urgent need

and not be

unfruitful.

people.

Now this

verse contains

the most

explicit

instruction

that we

find in

this final

passage and

it's right

in line

with what

Paul has

been emphasizing

over and

over again

in this

letter.

Namely,

that Christians

are to manifest

their faith

in visible and

practical ways.

I can't remember

exactly how we

worded the theme

at the very

beginning.

You can go back

and listen to

those if you

care to know

it specifically.

But generally

it is this,

that our faith

moves our

behavior and

it produces

certain conduct

and a huge

part of that

conduct is this

dynamic of

good works.

That Paul is

concerned that

Christians,

Jesus is

concerned that

Christians manifest

their faith in

visible ways.

Our character

is to reflect

godliness and

we are to

intentionally

concern ourselves

with doing

good for

others.

Over and over

this is mentioned

in the letter.

But we have to

ask ourselves,

what is the

ultimate goal

of these good

works?

Why are we

doing them?

Are they an

end in

themselves or

are they a

means to a

greater end?

And the answer

is undoubtedly

the latter.

They are a

means to a

greater end.

The purpose

of our

godliness and

good works

God's

is the

glory of

God.

It's the

glory of

God.

It is to

make him

and his

gospel known

in the

world.

This is what

we talked

about briefly

in our

member meeting

last Sunday

night.

Remember we

looked at

Adam in

creation.

God puts

Adam and

he makes

Adam in

his own

image in

order that

Adam would

be God's

representative

on earth.

And that

image is

marred because

of sin but

God doesn't

do away with

the human

race altogether.

What do we

find him doing

next?

He chooses

Abraham and

then he builds

up a people,

a nation in

the seat of

Abraham and

he calls them

and delivers

them out of

bondage in

Egypt.

Why?

So that he

might have

his glory made

known on

earth through

the people of

Israel.

And then what

do we see him

doing in the

New Testament?

Same thing.

Ekklesia,

church,

called out

ones.

He calls them

out from the

world in

order that he

may be known

in and to

the world.

That's the

purpose of the

church.

That's the

purpose of why

God has saved

us and why

he has put us

here.

It is for his

glory, that is

to make him

known.

And Paul tells

us clearly in

this letter,

part of how we

glorify God and

make him known

is through our

godly character

and our efforts

in goodness

at good works.

according to

chapter 2,

this is the

visible effect

of the gospel.

Just look at

chapter 2 and

verse 14 again.

Jesus gave

himself for us

to redeem us

from all

lawlessness,

to purify for

himself a

people for

his own

possession,

called out

ones we

belong to

him.

Why?

That we

might be

zealous

for good

works.

That's the

purpose.

Are you

fulfilling?

fulfilling your

purpose.

Last Sunday

night we

looked at

1 Peter

1 Peter 2 · chapter mention

chapter 2.

You are a

chosen people,

a chosen race,

a royal priesthood,

a holy nation,

a people for

God's own

possession.

Why?

That you

may proclaim

the excellencies

of him who

called you out

of darkness

into his

marvelous light.

What does that

mean?

It means to

glorify him,

to make him

known,

to be his

representatives

on earth.

And the

point of this

verse is

abundantly clear

when you

begin to

break it

down into

parts.

That we

glorify God

ultimately

through our

works,

our goodness,

our righteousness.

Let me break

it down just

in three quick

things for you

not to get

too nerdy

about it,

but I think

it may be

helpful.

There is an

action that

is followed

by a manner

in which

that action

is to be

carried out,

and then

there is a

purpose statement

for the

action.

So for those

of you that

have heard me

talk about

arcing,

some of us

were talking

about it

this morning,

if you want

to go home

and you want

to arc

this text,

those are

your three

propositions.

There is

an action,

there is

a manner,

and then

there is

a purpose,

an action,

and a purpose

here.

The action

is that we

are to devote

ourselves to

good works.

Look at it

in the verse,

verse 14.

Let our

people learn

to devote

themselves to

good works.

It's very clear,

isn't it?

That's the action

that we are to

take.

We are to

learn.

That means

we are to

grow by

doing these

things.

There is an

action.

Learn to

devote ourselves

to good works.

The manner

in which we

are to carry

out that

action is

in the next

phrase,

by helping

cases of

urgent need.

So pause

a specific

vision here

for this,

that we do

these good

works by

helping cases

of urgent

need.

And then the

third statement

is the

purpose

statement.

So that

we would

not be

unfruitful.

So that

we might

be fruitful,

not useless

in making

God known,

but useful.

In other

words,

the path

to glorifying

God in

this verse

is to

intentionally

concern

yourself

with the

good of

others.

The path

to making

God known

in your

life is to

intentionally

devote

yourself

to meeting

people's

needs.

And Titus

was to be

the example

here.

What he

was going

to do

in coordinating

these efforts

for Zenos

and Apollos

was to be

an example

to the

people.

That as

they watched

him,

who was

already there

temporarily,

who was

already there

having to

mooch off

of others,

so to speak,

right?

He's not

meant to be

there.

That means

he's having

to be there

at the benefit

of someone

else's

hospitality.

And yet,

despite that,

he still

is the one

who is

responsible

for coordinating

all the

things so

that Zenos

and Apollos

can get

on on

their way

and can

be fruitful

in their

work as

well.

And that

was to

be an

example

to the

people.

So that

as they

looked at

Titus,

they would

see,

no matter

what's

going on

in my

life,

no matter

what,

I need

to be

looking for

intentional

ways that I

can meet

the needs

of other

people,

because it

is by

meeting the

needs of

other

people,

that I

make God

known to

them,

because that's

what God

does.

He is a

good God,

and he's a

loving God,

and he's a

gracious God,

and he gives,

and he gives,

and he gives,

and he gives,

and there is

perhaps no

greater way

that we

display the

character of

God in our

lives than

when we take

on this

perspective of

his goodness

and of his

graciousness to

others.

We glorify him

in this.

We make him

known in this.

The lookout

for number

one mentality

of our

world,

sadly,

has invaded

the church

in many

cases,

and it

does seem

that fewer

and fewer

people are

concerned for

this kind

of good

work.

The problem

is we're so

often more

concerned with

meeting our

own needs

than we are

at helping

someone else,

and perhaps

the problem

is that we've

lost sight of

Christ's purpose

in redemption.

That is to

make us a

people who

are zealous

for good

works.

We're

zealous about

a lot of

things,

there's no

doubt about

it.

I'm not

always sure

that fruitfulness

in meeting

needs is one

of them,

but if we

devote ourselves

to the glory

of God,

making him

known in the

world,

works of

mercy will

be the

inevitable

result.

it must

be,

because this

is the

work that

God does

in us,

and when

we concern

ourselves to

this end,

this is what

would happen.

And so we

ask ourselves,

first, are we

devoted to the

work in a

general sense,

in a big

sense, are we

looking for

ways to

concern

ourselves with

gospel ministry?

And then

more specifically,

are we actually

devoted to

God's glory?

How much do

we think about

making God

known in

our character

and in

our works?

We talk a

lot about it.

We do.

That's good.

But as you

know, talk

is cheap.

Let's prove

it.

Let's do

the works.

Not to gain

something for

ourselves, but

because we've

been given so

much in the

grace of God,

concern ourselves

with his

glory.

Thirdly and

finally, we

see they were

devoted to the

people of God.

They're devoted

to the work of

God, the glory

of God, the

people of God.

It's a simple

observation in

verse 15.

All who are

with me send

greetings to you.

Greet those

who love us in

the faith.

It's simple,

isn't it?

But I don't

want to make

too much of

it, but I

also don't

want to finish

without at

least acknowledging

the fact that

there is a

mutual love that

is regularly

displayed in

these letters.

This is more

than an exchange

of pleasantries.

It's the love

that is rooted

in our common

faith in

Christ.

Throughout the

New Testament,

we repeatedly

see this imagery

that God uses

to speak of the

church as a

people called

by God,

brought together

by God,

adopted into the

family of God.

and it is

from this

salvation that

we share with

one another

that comes a

unique love

and devotion

that transcends

time and it

transcends

culture and it

transcends

personality.

The church

really is a

unique thing,

isn't it?

it's the

spiritual binding

of our hearts

by the work

of God's

spirit that

should produce

in us a

devotion to

one another.

Let me see

that here.

I could go

through many

verses that

command this

kind of love.

I know that

you know them

and I won't

go through

them all now.

But I would

just say that

Christians do

need to have

a peculiar

devotion to

each other.

we display

this in

genuine

friendship,

concern,

care.

We display

this in

encouragement,

looking for

people to

build up.

We display

this love

in overlooking

faults.

Isn't that

what Peter

said?

Was it

Peter?

That keep

on loving

each other

because love

covers a

multitude of

sins.

Do you know

what he means

by that?

He means

that when we

love people

we have a

tendency to

ignore the

ways that

they sin

against us.

There's a

uniqueness to

this.

That doesn't

come natural

to us,

does it,

Marty?

Marty gets

mad at me

about stuff

all the

time.

But there

is a

uniqueness to

this.

Instead of

nitpicking

everybody and

constantly being

offended,

there is a

dynamic to

love that

is not

offended

constantly at

every little

thing that

people say

and every

little

disagreement

that we

have.

There's a

uniqueness to

this.

It's part of

our devotion

to one

another.

It reveals

itself in

forgiveness when

we do need to

confront those

hurts and

those offenses.

It reveals

itself in

hospitality,

opening our

homes.

It reveals

itself in

assistance,

in taking

resources that

God has blessed

us with in

order to be a

blessing to

someone else.

And underlying

it is the

realization that

we belong to

one another

because we

belong to

God.

That's the

point.

we belong

to one

another because

we belong

to God.

By God's

grace we

have one

another.

And we

need to do

everything we

can to show

the same

kind of

devotion that

was modeled

and commanded

by the

Lord Jesus.

Let's conclude

with the last

phrase in

verse 15.

Paul finishes

the same way

that he began

with grace.

grace be with

you all.

Grace be with

you all.

Now if you

were to go

through and

you cared to

do this,

not that any

of you would,

but if you

cared to do

this and you

wanted to just

examine all of

Paul's benedictions

in his letters,

you'll find that he

always speaks of

grace and that in

Greek, if you care

to know this,

the grace is

always

articular,

meaning that

though in Greek

there's not a

definite article,

in English it

would make most

sense to put a

definite article

with it.

So we wouldn't

just say

necessarily grace

in an abstract

sense be with

you, but we're

saying the grace,

a specific kind

of grace be with

you.

And most often

in Paul's

benedictions he

attaches a second

phrase to it,

the grace of

our Lord Jesus

be with you all.

It's typically,

that's the sense

of what he means

here.

And the point

is that what

he's wishing

upon and praying

for, for these

people in Crete

is not grace in

an abstract sense,

but he's

specifically

referring to

the grace of

God that is

revealed in the

person and work

of Jesus Christ,

which he's

covered so many

times in this

letter.

What does he

mean by grace

be with you?

He means grace

be with you.

I hope that

God's grace will

be so real to

you that you'll

become a believer,

that you will

turn from your

sin and you'll

follow after

Christ, and

that in following

after Christ you

will experience the

not only

regenerative but

the renewing

effect of the

Holy Spirit that

transforms your

life, that you

will receive the

blessing of God

that comes through

knowing and

following our

Lord and Savior

Jesus Christ.

Everything in

this letter,

including its

conclusion, is

rooted in the

gospel of grace.

We are saved by

God's grace in

Christ.

We are transformed

by God's grace.

We are blessed

by God's grace.

We are enabled

to do these works

that we're talking

about in the

grace of God.

We are devoted

by grace.

And the overflow

of this grace of

God in our lives

will produce a

devotion to his

work, a

devotion to his

glory, and a

devotion to his

people.

It will lead us

to gospel fidelity.

it will lead us

to godly behavior.

And it will

cause us to

desire church

structures and

practices that will

support both of

those things.

That's the power of

God's grace.

And that's the

purpose of the

letter to Titus.

NINGNING