Exposition of Paul’s Letter
to
TITUS
LESSON 6: A GOSPEL INFLUENCED
SOCIETY
Review
Justin Taylor writes, “The dominant mode of
evangelical preaching on sanctification, the main way to motivate for godly
living, sounds something like this:
You are not _____;
You should be _________;
Therefore, do or be ________!
Fill in the blank with anything good and
biblical (holy; salt and light; feed the poor; walk humbly; give generously;
etc.).”
“This is not how Paul and the other New
Testament writers motivated the church in light of the resurrection and the
outpouring of the Spirit. They did give imperatives (=what you should
do), but they do so only based on indicatives (=what God has done).” Therefore in the last lecture we saw how Paul
did that with Titus. When it came to
giving commands he did it this way:
1.
This is what various gender/age groups must do
(2:1–10); because
1.1.
This is what is true (the Gospel) (2:11–14);
and
1.1.1.
To
summarize (2:15)
2.
Here are more instructions to proper living that you
must do (3:1–2)
2.1.
This is what is true (Gospel) (3:3–7); and
2.1.1.Here is the summary (3:8)
This week we look at the 2nd
section of commands in Chapter 3.
Text:
Titus 3:1–8
1 Remind them to be submissive to rulers and
authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, 2 to speak evil of no one, to
avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people.
3 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. 4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our
Savior appeared, 5 he
saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to
his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us
richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become
heirs according to the hope of eternal life. 8 The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on
these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote
themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people.
Exposition Titus 3:1–11
Here Is What You Are To Do (3:1-2)
“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, and to
show perfect courtesy toward all people.”
Christians have Gospel obligations to civil
government and fellow citizens.
Christians live in God’s Kingdom so Paul uniquely writes to Titus that
Christians are to be “willingly be in subjection” to earthly rulers. The Greek tense is in the “middle voice” and
could be translated “subjecting yourselves to”.
Of course, even in the next phrase (“be obedient”) we know Paul is not
making this an absolute, but is a general rule of conduct (see Acts 5:29). Remember that the Cretan society was recognized
as being rebellious.
There is a transition from civil government
to civil society. Christians should be
ready for good work. I spoke of this
recently considering the cultural mandate in Creation. This seems to be a major theme as we noted in
the last lesson in Titus 2:7
(ESV), “Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your
teaching show integrity, dignity. . ..”
“This seems to indicate the
believer’s sphere of influence for good ought to be felt in every realm.
Joseph, Daniel,”
[3] etc. are good examples of this.
Gospel motivated
Believers are also called to “speak evil of no one”. “The Greek word used here,
blasphēmeō, describes speaking against
someone with the purpose of harming his or her reputation. Believers will ruin
their own reputation if they seek to ruin the reputation of others.”
[4] Christians should not be known to be
quarrelsome and contentious but rather on the positive side being gentle. Rather than retaliating, Believers ought to
be willing to yield rights to another.
The reason we ought to act in these ways is
because of the Gospel which we have believed and has saved us.
What is True? (The Gospel Basis for Holy Living) (3:3-7)
“Paul's opening "for" in the original (
gar, not
represented in the NIV rendering) again indicates that the required conduct is
being undergirded by weighty reasons.”
“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. 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, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the
Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior,
so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the
hope of eternal life.”
1. We remember where we came from (v.3).
Seven indicators of our unconverted
life are stated. Before we were saved we
were:
1.
Without understanding; unable
to perceive truth.
2.
Disobedient.
3.
Deceived.
4.
Enslaved by our own passions
and pleasures.
5.
(When we are self-serving and
selfish) Being mean to others and envying others.
6.
People who were detested by
others.
7.
Involved in hating one another.
Paul says, “Before you jump all over
others, remind yourself of your own history.”
2. We realize that all we have came to
us via free grace (4-7). What was
God’s disposition toward hostile sinners?
Answer: Good and loving-kindness (or mercy). Mercy is withholding justice that is
deserved. And this mercifully, kind Savior, “He saved us.” This
is the aorist tense meaning it happened in the past. It is complete. It will never be repeated. It’s a done deal. How did God save us? What was the channel, the means whereby He
saved us:
a)
NOT …. “not because of works done by us in righteousness.”
[6]
b)
BUT …. “but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration
and renewal of the Holy Spirit.”
[7]
We contributed
nothing to our salvation. God saves us
by mercy (withholding due judgment) and through regeneration – through the New
Birth. Jesus taught on this necessity
for the New Birth (John 3:3, 5, 8). It
is the only way that the Bible determines that dead people can become alive
(Ephesians 2:1–6). Cleansing and
regeneration are two sides of the same coin of New Birth. By the way, there is no linguistic or
exegetical need to read into this the ordinance of baptism. We note however
that Paul refers to the work of the Spirit as “whom
he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior,” (Titus 3:6,
ESV).
“’Whom he poured
out on us generously,’ or ‘richly,’ stresses that God has made ample provision
for the development of this renewed life.”
And what is the
result of this saving mercy of God in Christ?
Answer:
a)
We are justified. We are pronounced righteous. We
are pronounced guiltless.
b)
We are made heirs. Notice Peter’s words: “Blessed
be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy,
he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of
Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled,
and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through
faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” (1 Peter
1:3–5, ESV)
c)
We have hope of eternal life.
Contextual Application
So how does this work? Treat non-Christians with respect and dignity
because the only difference between us and them is mercy – free undeserved
mercy. Belief in the gospel message of free forgiveness for
sinners on the sole basis of faith must result in a merciful, kind and
respectful attitude to unbelievers whether they are in civic office or
society.
Conclusion
(3:8)
“The saying is
trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have
believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things
are excellent and profitable for people.”
“The command to insist on these things is similar to 2:15, both
statements carrying a significant tone of authority. Again, note the emphasis
on good works as a mark of believers (see 1:16; 2:14; 3:1).”
[9] The practice of good works is the logical expectation
of a true receiving and believing of the Gospel of the grace of God,
Questions
[4] Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R.,
Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife
Study Bible (Tt
3:2). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
Expositor's Bible Commentary, The, Pradis CD-ROM:Titus/Exposition
of Titus/IV. Concerning Believers Among Men Generally (3:1-11)/B. The Motives
for Such Godly Conduct (3:3-8), Book Version: 4.0.2
Expositor's Bible Commentary, The, Pradis
CD-ROM:Titus/Exposition of Titus/IV. Concerning Believers Among Men Generally
(3:1-11)/B. The Motives for Such Godly Conduct (3:3-8)/2. The motive from our
present salvation (3:4-7)/c. Its means (3:5b-6), Book Version: 4.0.2
