Remember Who You Are

Well, as you're probably aware, the way of the world during the time of the New Testament

was utterly wicked. You understand that even if you grew up in the secular school system,

you will understand that to be the case in your studies of world history, or maybe once you got

to college and took history of civilization, the consistency of that time frame was nothing other

than wickedness. And that's not to say that our world is without such depravity now.

Events even this week have proven to us once again that sin is as pervasive as it's ever been,

as we think on the tragedy in Nashville this week and other things that have taken place.

But there is somewhat of a difference between our experience today, at least in Western culture,

versus the experience of Titus and the Cretans at the time that Paul wrote this letter.

Our modern Western culture, at least, is influenced by the historical testimony and teaching of

Christianity. In fact, even the secular arguments of morality and ethics often ignorantly have to borrow

from the biblical ethic in order to make their point. Our world is so influenced, at least in its history,

the Western world is so influenced, at least in its history of Christian teaching and Christian influence,

that atheists and agnostics who would try to convince us that their way is right have to actually borrow

from the Christian ethic to even get started. And they do that ignorantly often.

That's really the difference between what our experience is today versus what the experience of

the Cretans would have been in that day. But Christians in the early centuries,

they're immersed in a culture that was in total rebellion against all that God is, all that he commands

in his law. And this led, of course, to tremendous hostility toward those who stood out in the world.

And these early believers were constantly in need of encouragement to remain faithful,

to trust the Lord, to hope in his return, and to continue in godliness. And think about this for

just a moment. As their leaders and the people that they loved were martyred, as their lives were

continually under the threat of death and persecution, the temptation that these Christians faced was

either to abandon the faith, completely isolate themselves away from the world in total seclusion,

or it would be to become embittered and abandon righteous attitudes towards unbelievers.

And we see that all through the New Testament. Constant instruction, constant encouragement,

and exhortation as to how these early Christians were to think about the world outside of their

church, how they were to act towards those people and towards those systems, and how they were to live

and to function in a society that was alien to who they now are as people of God. So the New Testament

is replete with these exhortations regarding how they're to live and act in response to the world.

Let me give you just a few references that show this. We could give many. Let me just give you three.

In John chapter 16, Jesus actually helps us. He provides encouragement.

John 16 · chapter mention

In this lecture that he's giving to the disciples where he essentially says,

I'm going to leave you, and the world's going to hate you,

and they're going to kick you out of the synagogue,

a thing that would have meant something significant to those men.

And eventually they're going to kill you.

Okay, Jesus is telling the disciples all of this.

And then he finishes with this.

I have said these things to you,

that in me

you may have peace.

Do you see what Jesus is getting at there?

Even if your life is easy in this world,

and for many of us it often is,

but even if your life is easy in this world,

your peace does not come from the ease of your experience in the world.

Jesus says,

I'm telling you these things so that when those times come,

your peace would not be found in what you experience in this life,

but that your peace would be found in me.

And he goes on to say,

in the world you will have tribulation,

but take heart, he says,

I have overcome the world.

Now that's a significant instruction from our Lord.

It's encouraging.

And there's times when we're going to face the hostility of the world.

And what we need to do is go back to John 16.

And we need to think about what Jesus was saying.

Our peace does not come from our experience here.

Our peace comes from Christ.

To the Philippians,

the men that have been gathering with us on Wednesday mornings at Chick-fil-A,

we just looked at this a couple of weeks ago.

Paul gives an instruction in these regards.

In Philippians chapter one,

he says,

only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ.

And then he continues on,

for it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ,

you should not only believe in him,

but also suffer for his sake.

Paul speaks of this as if it is a grace from God.

That's the language he uses.

It has been granted to you that not only you should believe in Christ,

but that you should suffer for his sake.

Now, that's not an easy thing to hear, is it?

But it at least helps us in at least this experience of suffering and persecution

that we may face to know that things haven't all of a sudden just completely,

you know, went down the pipe on us here.

That God hasn't stepped away.

That there isn't anything that we're facing that all of a sudden he's kind of lost control

or he's forgotten us.

No, because he's actually told us already,

you need to live your life worthy of the gospel

because it's been granted to you actually to suffer.

This is going to happen.

You will suffer in some way.

And we all are aware of that.

We get to 1 Peter.

The entire letter is really focused on this idea of Peter instructing and encouraging the church

as they were facing persecution and dealing with suffering of their own.

And in this passage, he tells us to endure with hope.

Let me read it to you in 1 Peter chapter 5.

1 Peter 5 · chapter mention

After you have suffered a little while.

Some of you are thinking,

my suffering does not feel like it's been a little while.

It may be the duration of your life, to be honest with you, from a biblical perspective.

What Peter seems to mean here is that the little while is just this life,

this life that is but a vapor that appears for a moment and then it vanishes away.

The suffering is the same thing.

It goes along with your life.

You will experience it, but it too is like your life.

It's a vapor.

It will appear.

It will vanish away.

And then he goes on.

And he says, after you've suffered a little while, the God of all grace,

who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ,

will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.

And this causes Peter to immediately go into doxology.

And he follows it up with, to him be dominion forever and ever.

Amen, he says.

That's amazing, isn't it?

He says, you're going to suffer.

And he's talking about this life.

He says, but the God of all grace, he's going to return.

And when he returns, he will restore you.

He will confirm your salvation.

He will strengthen you.

He will establish you.

Give him dominion because all dominion actually belongs to him.

It's amazing, isn't it?

And so the Bible really helps us here, doesn't it?

It helps us to understand the reality of suffering.

It helps us to understand the dynamics of hostility that we will face

living in a wicked world that is against God.

And it teaches us on how we're to act, how we're to think,

and what our attitude should be.

Well, our immediate culture may not be as imminently deadly

as was the case for the Cretans here.

But it is becoming increasingly more hostile toward Christians,

toward our faith, toward our mental life.

There's no question about that.

The only reason this woman went to that school on Monday

was because they were Christians who stood for truth and against unrighteousness.

To be sure, it's far worse in other places around the world.

We can think about Christians in Afghanistan who today, on the Lord's Day,

it might be that two or three men have to sit in their car and drive around the city

and play the radio.

But as the radio is going, they're singing hymns to one another

and they're speaking the truth of God to one another,

hoping that the people outside will not pick up on what they're doing.

There are some people around our world who are worshiping that way today.

There are some places in Asia today where Christians will gather in apartment complexes

and they'll pack into these apartments and they'll whisper hymns to one another

rather than sing them.

For fear that if their neighbors were to hear and were to turn them in to the government,

they would face persecution.

We don't live under that kind of persecution here.

Sure, it's surely worse in other places around the world.

But undoubtedly, there is enough hostility toward Christianity now in the United States

that we will inevitably face the same temptations that our forefathers in Rome and Philippi

and Ephesus and Crete experienced.

And what we need to ask ourselves and what we must consider this morning in light of this text is

how the Bible instructs us to think and act towards those who seek to destroy us,

who hate us, who hate our God, who live in defiance to Him.

How is it that we're supposed to think about them?

How do we treat them?

What are we supposed to do?

Does the reality of their wickedness change the way that we should behave in any way?

We may ask ourselves a few questions as we come to this text.

Does the wickedness of our government absolve us of the responsibility to submit to its authority?

Do the injustices of our criminal justice system justify rebellion against the agents tasked with enforcing the law of the land?

Does the insanity of worldly ideas of gender and sexuality free us from God's demands regarding kindness, meekness, and the pursuit of peace?

Those are the questions we need to consider.

Because this section of Titus provides us with very helpful and practical and theological answers to those questions.

The exhortations of these verses reflect even the attitudes of believers who,

through a form of elitism, spiritual arrogance,

use their Christianity to justify civil rebellion, community isolation, and a general attitude of harshness toward outsiders.

That's what Paul is confronting here.

These verses expose Christians who have stopped living daily in light of the gospel of grace.

And they instruct believers who are rightfully angry and frustrated about the deep depravity of our world.

Paul's instruction to Titus in leading and teaching the Christians in Crete is what gives us the form for the study this morning.

He says in verse 1, Titus was to remind the Cretan believers of certain things.

He is to remind them of certain things that they are to believe,

and remind them of certain practices that they are to adopt and continue in,

in order to please and represent Christ.

And if we're to please Christ and represent Him well in our world,

we must remember these things as well.

Three of them I'd like to point out to you, okay?

The first thing is this.

Remember how to live in the world.

Remember how to live in the world.

Verses 1 and 2, remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities,

to be obedient, to be ready for every good work,

to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling,

to be gentle, to show perfect courtesy towards all people.

Like I said a moment ago, these two verses are the main clause for most of this final chapter.

Everything that follows in verses 3 through 11, as we'll get to in the next few weeks,

falls beneath the scope of what Paul introduces here.

And it seems like one of Paul's main concerns is that the Cretans were behaving in such a way

that they were causing political agitation,

persecution, which made the gospel and the church suspicious and brought them under more intensified

threats of persecution.

You can understand that, right?

Persecution wasn't hard to find in those days.

Paul here, in one sense, is actually instructing the people,

don't make it worse.

Don't make it worse than what it already is in the way that you act,

in the way, in the attitudes that you have.

Another concern that seems to be on Paul's mind here is that

the spirit of these Christians towards unbelievers

would actually discredit the gospel,

leading the world to hate Christians for their arrogance

and immediately dismiss the message of salvation

before even really giving it a chance to hear it.

Do you see the difference there?

That it's one thing to stand for truth,

but if the way that we're standing for truth

is immediately a turnoff to the world

so that they never hear the truth that we're actually proclaiming,

what good is it?

Paul's confronting these things.

That's the purpose behind what he's saying.

In the Old Testament, it's often said that

the actions of certain people caused the Israelites to, quote,

stink or become a stench.

In the minds of other nations.

And there is a sense here in which Paul is commanding behavior

that will prevent Christians from becoming an unnecessary stench to the world.

But even more important than that

is the fact that these behaviors demonstrate true righteousness.

They mimic the attitudes and actions of the Lord Jesus in his ministry.

That's the most important of these things.

If we are going to live like Christ lived,

then we're going to have to adopt the things that Paul is instructing here in these verses.

And in the end, it all boils down to one thing.

Living with grace towards others.

That's really the key word here.

Grace.

So let me, instead of just going through all of these details,

it would take us forever to do that.

I'll leave it to you to examine each word individually if you'd like to do that on your own.

I've broken them up into two categories that I think will be helpful for us.

Here's the first one.

We are to show grace through civic responsibility.

We are to show grace through civic responsibility.

Look again at verse one.

Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities,

to be obedient to those rulers and authorities,

and to be ready for every good work.

So the items listed here in this first verse,

they all have to do with the Christian's engagement in the life of the community.

And it answers the question,

does the wickedness of our governing rulers justify our rebellion against their general authority?

And the resounding answer is no, it doesn't.

It wouldn't be surprising that the Cretans are actually dealing with this either, would it?

Because as we learned in chapter one,

there were false teachers that primarily belonged to the Jewish sect,

perhaps the party of circumcision,

that were coming into the church,

they were distorting the gospel,

and part of their mindset was an anti-government insurrectionist type of view.

It's the same thing that Jesus dealt with in his ministry,

and this is only a few years later.

This letter is being written only a few years before actually

an ultimate rebellion comes in in Israel,

and Rome comes in and absolutely decimates Jerusalem.

So this is a common mindset among Jews,

this insurrectionist type of mindset.

Remember, one of the reasons that the Jews continued to reject Jesus

is because he did not come to be that messianic ruler that they thought he would be,

but he actually came to give his life for our sins,

and so many of them turned away from him.

But Paul says Christians are to be submissive to rulers and authorities,

that they are to be obedient to them,

because, as he says in Romans 13,

they have been instituted and ordained by God.

We're to pay our taxes.

Jesus said that.

We're to obey the rule of law.

We're to comply with the government's demands insofar

as they do not lead us to violate the commands of Scripture.

This is a part of how we're to obey and live and think in the world.

The final statement in this verse,

to be ready for every good work,

it moves us from passive obedience to active and positive engagement.

Donald Guthrie is helpful here.

He says the Christian should be ready to do whatever is good

in the community in which he lives.

Where good citizenship demands communal action,

he must always be cooperative,

provided no question of conscience is involved,

which confronts our temptations to completely isolate ourselves

from the community where God has placed us.

Whenever we can do good to our neighbors and for our neighbors,

whether they're believers or not,

we must be ready for every good work.

Remember, Jesus, it seems contradictory,

but it's what Jesus said.

Jesus said,

you are not of this world,

but I'm actually sending you into it.

And I'm sending you into it,

not so that you would isolate away from it,

but that you would stand out in the midst of it.

That people may see you in their midst

as his kingdom people.

And if we're not willing to graciously serve our community,

we'll fall short of Christ's desire

and we'll ultimately inhibit the work of evangelism in our lives

and through our church.

You say, well, how am I supposed to be involved?

It may be as simple as casting your vote when the election comes.

Thinking I want to do something that is going to be good for my community.

I want to be ready for every good work,

which means I will exercise the voice that God has allowed me to have,

at least in a local, in a state, in a federal election.

I think that's an implication of this text for us.

It may be advocating for better education in your kid's school.

It may be volunteering in some way,

maybe in the community like we're doing this afternoon.

This is the town's event that we're involved with this afternoon,

not our event.

We are volunteering to help them,

and in response, they are so gracious

to let us influence the people that are coming to their event,

trying to do good in the community.

Maybe it's when natural disasters come

and you find a way to help your neighbors,

find ways to help them get along,

whether they're believers or not.

This isn't a command for political obsession.

That's actually something that we need to avoid.

It's actually seeking good for our neighbors.

And Paul says, this is the way we live in the world.

So we show grace in doing that.

We show grace in civic responsibility.

Number two, we show grace by communicating courteously.

Communicating, is this not the most difficult thing in this passage?

Verse two, to speak evil of no one,

to avoid quarreling,

but to be gentle,

to show perfect courtesy toward all people.

Notice that all of the items here in this verse

are connected to how we speak.

We are to avoid slander,

foolish argumentation,

and instead show gentleness and perfect courtesy

toward all people.

So that no matter how great our frustration,

our stand for truth,

and our stand against sin,

must be wrapped and clothed in

kindness and courtesy

and the love that was modeled by our Lord.

Who Peter writes in 1 Peter chapter two,

when he was reviled,

did not revile in return.

When he suffered,

he did not threaten,

but continued entrusting himself

to him who judges justly.

Is Jesus not our pattern here?

He did not curse those

who nailed him to a cross.

He said instead,

Father, forgive them.

They don't even know what they're doing.

Paul would later on say that

before his conversion,

in the way that he breathed out

threatenings to the church,

he did so in ignorance.

It's the same thing Jesus was saying

from the cross about the Romans

who nailed him there and crucified

and Father, forgive them.

They don't even know what they're doing.

Paul says,

I didn't even know,

I didn't even know how sinful I was

in what I was doing.

I thought I was pleasing the Lord.

I wasn't doing any of those things.

So that when Jesus was reviled,

he didn't revile.

When he suffered,

he didn't threaten.

That's our pattern.

Rather than engaging in spiteful rants

and hateful rhetoric,

we should be discerning in our speech,

seeking to show grace

in our communication of the gospel.

And I've said this,

if I've said it once,

I've said it a hundred times

on Sunday mornings here,

if the world must hate us

and they will,

Jesus said they will,

let it be for the truth

that we proclaim

rather than the way

we communicate that truth.

If they are to despise us,

let it be for the gospel consistency

of our lives

that brings conviction

to their own

rather than an ungracious manner

that actually contradicts

the message of grace

that we say

that we believe and proclaim.

Colossians 4,

walk in wisdom

toward outsiders,

unbelievers,

in the world.

Walk in wisdom.

And how are we to do that?

Letting our speech be gracious,

seasoned with salt,

so that you may know

how you ought to answer

each person.

We can't allow our frustration

with the wickedness

of our culture

to lead us

to respond sinfully

towards them.

Neither must we allow

the wickedness

of our culture

to silence us

from speaking

the truth of God

and calling them

to turn

from their wickedness

to the grace of God.

But in calling them

to turn,

we must do it

in a way

that is gracious,

loving,

kind,

and courteous.

someone may say,

why should we care

to act this way?

Why should we care

to be involved

in a world system

who hates us?

Why should we care

at all

to actually be

of any benefit

to a community

who hates our God

and hates our message?

They don't deserve that.

And you're right.

But the answer

is in the next few verses.

The answer

for the reason

for us to show grace

to the world around us

is because of all the grace

that we have received

when we didn't deserve it.

That's what Paul moves to

in the next thing.

So first,

we are to remember

how to live in the world.

Number two,

remember what you were.

Remember what you were.

Verse three,

for we ourselves.

Remember,

I told you a few weeks ago,

this word for,

often,

it's a grounding statement,

meaning that whatever follows

from this conjunction,

from this particular

turn of phrase,

is going to establish

the motivation

for what has just been said.

So Paul says,

do this,

live this way in the world,

and here's why.

For we ourselves

were once foolish,

disobedient,

led astray,

slaves to various passions

and pleasures,

passing our days

in malice and envy,

hated by others,

and hating one another.

I mentioned before

that the undergirding,

undergirding this section

is the problem

of spiritual arrogance

and elitism

elitism

that can sometimes

pervade the Christian heart.

And it's Paul's appeal

in verses three through five

that leads me to believe

that was the force

behind the issues in Crete.

He could have easily

instructed the things

of verse one and two

by a direct appeal

to the commandments

of the scripture,

but that's not what he does.

Instead,

he told Titus

to remind the Cretan believers

that their motivation

is their life

before Christ.

That's what he says.

Do this

because this is

what you once were.

It's as if they had forgotten

how desperately sinful

they were

before being shown

the grace of God.

They had stopped living daily

in the light

of the gospel of grace

and had begun

thinking of themselves

more highly

than they ought to think.

And again,

I'll leave it to you

to think through

all the details,

but the opening item here

is what shapes

the rest of the list.

He says,

for we were once foolish.

And by foolish,

Paul means that

we were at one time

without spiritual understanding,

which meant that

we were in bondage to sin,

bearing the fruit of wickedness

in the world

and in our lives.

We were as dead

in our trespasses and sins,

according to Ephesians 2,

as everybody else is dead

in their trespasses and sin.

But these Cretans

seem to have

begun to forget

their utter lostness

without Jesus.

And instead of looking

at the world

with compassion

and sympathy

towards their plight,

the general attitude

had become arrogant

and condescending.

Look at where we are.

We're so much better than you.

And that shapes the way

that they look

at the rest of the world,

putting themselves here,

pushing everyone else below.

And they begin,

at least in their minds

and their actions,

to abandon

the gospel of grace.

You see,

this is why

we talk about disagreements

in structures

and formats

and frameworks

for the gospel

and things like that.

But this is one of the reasons

it's so important

for us to care about that

and to have those discussions.

Because at the moment

that we begin

to insinuate

that our salvation

has anything to do with us,

we're going to start

letting issues like this

creep into our behavior

and into our thoughts.

If we decided

to give the world

what it deserves

and demanded

that God do that,

we would also need

to receive what we deserve.

And what we all deserve

is the wrath of God.

But God is so gracious

even to the most vehement

of sinners

reserving His wrath

for a future judgment.

We look at the world

around us and say,

why does God

let any of us live?

Forget even for a moment

the question of

why would God

save any of us

and just think

for just a moment,

why would God

let any of us live?

That's what R.C. Sproul

was getting at

in that famous statement

he made.

People laugh about it

and they've made

t-shirts out of it

when he says,

what's wrong with you people?

He meant that

because he was seriously angry

about a question

where people were questioning

whether or not

God was just

in condemning Adam

for his sin,

a sin that to us

seems like such a little thing.

And Sproul says,

what's wrong with us?

Adam was a creature

of the dirt

who defied

the living God

and it was only

of God's grace

that he breathed

another breath

and when we begin

to understand

the grace of God

we see it is only

by God's grace

that we take

a single breath

in this life.

Matthew 5

Jesus said,

for he makes

his son to rise

on the evil

and on the good.

He sends the rain

on the just

and on the unjust.

And if this is

how God responds

to unbelievers,

shouldn't we be concerned

to do the same thing?

Rather than to be like

James and John

asking to

call down fire

from heaven

to consume the people

who offend us,

should we not instead

respond with the same grace

that God has shown to us?

we should remember

what we were

and in remembering

what we were

it will shape

the way we think

and live in this world

and it should produce

a gracious compassion,

a desire for

the conversion

of the lost

rather than

the condemnation

of the lost.

And I'm not convinced

that conversion

is always

what our hope is.

At least in the way

that we think

and the way

that we speak.

It's as if we relish

the fact

that people will spend

an eternity

away from God.

Why would we desire

that for anyone?

Thirdly,

he says,

remember the goodness

of God.

Remember the goodness

of God.

Verse 4,

but when the goodness

and loving kindness

of God our Savior

appeared,

he saved us

not because of works

done by us

in righteousness

but according

to his own

mercy.

We're going to return

to this verse

in a couple of weeks

but I at least want

to consider it

in light of these

first three verses.

Again,

the fact that Paul

appeals to this dynamic

of works versus grace

helps us understand

what the general problem

must have been in Crete.

The longer we're saved,

the more prone we are

to forget the crucial work

of God's grace

and salvation.

And if we aren't careful

to preach the gospel

to ourselves

every day,

we'll start to think

that our salvation

has something to do

with us.

That we made ourselves

savable

and in return,

God introduced

his grace to us.

And when that happens,

we'll start to speak

to the world

as if their path

to salvation

is to be more like us.

Be more like us.

Think more like us.

Talk more like us.

Do the things

that we do.

Vote the way we vote.

Do all the things

that we do

in our lives.

We'll start to think

that your path

to righteousness

and peace with God

is to be like me

because look how good

I've done

at obeying God.

We'll become evangelists

for conservatism

that is influenced

by Christian ethics

rather than

preachers of the gospel

of grace.

And Paul very quickly

reminds them

that when the goodness

and loving kindness

of God our Savior

appeared,

he saved us

not because of works

done by us

in righteousness.

righteousness.

It wasn't because

you just figured it out.

It wasn't because

you were more savable

than anyone else.

But it was according

to his own mercy

that he shows

on whomever he wills.

Titus was to remind

the people

that they weren't saved

because they got

their lives

put together

in a certain way

and they weren't saved

because they were smart

enough to choose Jesus

when others didn't.

No, they were saved

because the goodness

of God's grace

shone in Jesus Christ

awakened in their heart

by the Spirit of God.

You see,

the gospel of grace alone

ultimately shapes

our attitudes

and our actions

in this life.

It is our hope

of Christ's return

and his eternal rule

that helps us endure

the sufferings

of this world.

That's what Peter

was getting at

in the earlier passage

we quoted.

It's the goodness

of God shown to us

that drives our desire

for others to be saved

rather than destroyed.

That's what Paul's

just made a point of

in verse 3.

And in the end

the gospel

will always,

always,

always

produce humility

not arrogance

and hatefulness.

And if your struggle today

is to live in humility

toward outsiders,

it's because you either

don't understand

or you're not living

in light of

the gospel

of God's grace

because the gospel

always produces humility.

Which is why

it's so important.

We must not think

of the gospel

as something

that is useful for us

at the moment

of conversion

but is just the milk

of the word

that we leave behind

and go on to greater things

like what exactly

will it be like

when Jesus returns

and which millennial

perspective is right.

We think those are the,

we think that those

are the significant things.

We think that's

the meat of the word.

No, the meat of the word

is the gospel.

It's the gospel.

And no matter

how much you dig into it,

no matter how many years

you spend as a Christian

thinking on the gospel

of grace,

it will never grow tired.

It will never grow old.

And even after years

of being a Christian,

you'll have moments

where the spirit of God

awakens your mind

and enlightens your mind

to the reality

of his goodness

and of his grace

towards us.

It always produces

humility.

And if what it's produced

in you is some type

of arrogance

or hatefulness,

it's not the gospel

of grace

that you've come

to believe.

Really,

there's two ways

that we must

think of responding

to this text.

There may be more,

but I'm going to give you two.

And the way

that you respond

really depends

on which side

of the but

in verse four

you find yourself on.

You see that?

Verse four,

but when the goodness

of God appeared to us

in the person of Christ.

And there may be

someone here today

that has never

actually experienced

the saving grace

of God.

of course,

the very fact

that you're here

and that you have breath

and that you're not starving

and that you're not

on the verge of death

is evidence

that you have

in some sense

received

the grace of God

that is given

to every single person

out of the

loving kindness

of God.

What we would call

common grace.

But you may not

have ever experienced

the saving grace

of God.

you're still living

your life

in verse three.

Foolish.

Chasing after passions

and pleasures

of this life.

Filled with malice

and envy.

Hated by others.

Hating one another.

Now your behavior

may be

conservative.

It may perhaps

generally conform

to a Christian ethic

or it could be

the opposite of that.

It could be notoriously

set against everything

that God says

and that God is.

But in either case,

you're resting

your eternal hope

on self-righteousness

rather than the grace

of God.

You're hoping

you'll make it

because you have

the right mindset

and the right worldview

and you're doing

the right things

and since you're doing

the right things

then how could God

ever turn you away?

And you've received

common grace

but you haven't

actually experienced

saving grace.

And this week,

if you would just

look to the cross,

the cross of Christ

exposes

the complete error

of that way of thinking.

If there was anything

good you could do

to be at peace

with God,

then there was no reason

for Jesus to suffer

and die

and be crucified

on that cross.

The very fact

that he did

shows that you are

utterly lost

on your own.

and I beg you

to leave

your self-righteousness

and turn

finally

to the grace

of God

in Christ.

Trusting in him

alone,

clinging

to his work

of mercy

and grace,

abandoning your sin,

abandoning your

selfish pursuits

and the efforts

that you have

burdened yourself

with.

Leave the burden

alone.

Leave it.

Others here,

you know

the grace

of Christ.

You know

the glory

of it.

There's times

in your life

where you're

overwhelmed

when you begin

to think of it.

The fact

that God

has so ordained

the steps

of your life

that he would

be so gracious

that you would

not only hear

the gospel

because there's

many people

who don't,

but not only

that you would

hear the gospel

but that he

would open

your heart

to believe it.

But the truth

is you're not

living in light

of that gospel

day by day.

And it may be

that your general

attitude towards

unbelievers

is kind of

condescending,

!

A little hateful!

And if you're

to be real

honest with

yourself,

you'd have to

say,

my persona

in my community

or maybe

online

or whatever

it is

or with my

family,

I've actually

probably

made the gospel

stink

to a lot

of people.

And if that's

you,

can I just,

if you'll just

reconsider day

by day

the gospel

of grace,

preach to

yourself the

gospel every

single day.

Start your

day by

asking yourself,

what is the

gospel?

What is the

gospel?

And if you

really understand

it,

you'll begin

each day

in praise

that God

would love

you,

that he would

save you,

and that will

shape the way

that you respond

to the other

people that

frustrate

you at

your work.

It will

shape the

way that

you post.

It will

shape your

isolation

versus

engagement.

It will

motivate

evangelism.

It will

do all

those things.

When I

was growing

up,

anytime I

was going

somewhere,

if it was

to a

friend's

house or

maybe on

a youth

activity,

wherever

it was

that I

wasn't

around my

dad and

he couldn't

see me,

he would

the last

thing he

would say

to me is

he would

make me

say my

name.

He didn't

care about

my first

name.

He wanted

me to

hear myself

say my

last name

knowing that

it's also

his last

name.

That was

really the

purpose of

that.

And then

he would

make this

statement.

It's the

last thing

he would

always say.

He would

say,

remember

who you

are and

remember

whose

you are.

And what

dad meant

by that

was two

fold.

Because he

was a

Christian,

he wanted

me to

remember

the fact

that I

belonged to

Christ and

that that

mattered in

the way that

I lived and

the way that

I treated

others and

the whole

thing.

The other

thing that he

wanted me to

remember is

that I

belonged to

him and

that wherever

I went,

I carried

his name

with me.

And that

if I

were to

act in

a way that

was

disrespectful

or sinful

or dishonorable,

it would

not only

reflect my

attitudes and

actions,

but it would

be a reflection

on him because

I belong to

him.

And there

is a sense

in which this

passage,

Paul is telling

Titus,

just gather

the church

together and

just tell

them,

remember who

you are

and remember

whose you

are.

And who

are you?

If you

know Christ,

it's the

song that

we used

to all

probably sing

growing up,

I'm just

a sinner

saved by

grace.

That's all

that I

am.

I told you

a couple

of weeks

ago a

little bit

about Martin

Lloyd-Jones.

When it

came to

his dying

days,

the young

man that

was doing

his funeral,

he told

him,

he said,

when you

stand before

that congregation

at my

funeral,

just tell

them I

was a

sinner saved

by grace.

That's all

I was.

And his

point was

don't make

it about

any accolades

that you

may want

to give

me or

about anything

that perhaps

that I

have done

in my

life.

Just tell

them at

the heart

of it,

I'm just

a sinner.

That's all

that I

am.

That has

been shown

the wonderful

grace of

God.

And if you

know Christ,

that's what

you are.

That's who

you are.

You're just

a sinner.

Remember

what you

are.

But now

remember

what you

are.

You're

saved.

Saved

by grace.

And remember

whose you

are.

You are

not your

own.

For you

have been

bought with

a price.

Therefore

glorify God

in your

body,

in the way

that you

live,

in the way

that you

think.

Because the

things that

you do

are a

reflection

on him

to whom

you belong.

And we

don't want

to make

Cornelius

plug their

noses when

they see the

Christians come

by.

Because the

Christians are

the most

arrogant of

us.

No.

They may

hate us.

But let it

not be because

we're continuing

in the sin

that we've

been saved

from.