God's Grace & Godliness

Titus chapter 2. You'll find Titus after 1 and 2 Timothy.! And in endurance.

Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live. Not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can train the younger women to love their husbands and children.

To be self-controlled and pure. To be busy at home. To be kind. And to be subject to their husbands so that no one will malign the word of God. Similarly, encourage the young men to be self-controlled.

And everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching, show integrity, seriousness, and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned.

So that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us. Teach slaves to be subject to their masters and everything.

To try to please them. Not to talk back to them. And not to steal from them. But to show that they can be fully trusted. So that in every way, they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive.

For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say no to ungodliness and worldly passions. And to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in this present age.

While we wait for the blessed hope. The glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ. Who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness.

And to purify for himself a people that are his very own. Eager to do what is good. These, then, are the things you should teach.

Encourage and rebuke with all authority. Do not let anyone despise you. What can change a person's eternal address from hell to heaven?

What can make a sinful man, woman, boy, or girl to gladly live a godly life? What can make them consistently resist temptations to sin and to obey God's commandments?

Not reluctantly, but with an eagerness to do what is good. Now, if you've been thinking, I know the answer to that. It's the grace of God.

You're spot on. That's the answer. We owe far more to the grace of God than we may realize. There's no power like it anywhere in the universe.

Its effects are awesome. It is truly amazing grace. And we ought to be more in awe of it. And that's what God wants to do for us in our passage this morning.

To amaze us and to move us with his grace. Now, we're in this little letter of Paul to Titus. I hope you found it and have it there open before you.

And oh, how relevant this little letter is to our day. In our nation, we have many people claiming to know God, but who do not live anything close to godly lives.

And we find this is nothing new. That 2,000 years ago, the apostle Paul wrote to a minister, Titus by name, on the island of Crete.

And he says in chapter 1 and verse 16 about these people that they claim to know God. Well, their actions prove the falsehood of their claim.

The way they live clearly demonstrates they don't really know God at all. Because all who know God will live a godly life. That's the keynote that gets banged over and over in this little letter of Titus.

From the very first verse, Paul speaks of the faith and of the knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness. The truth leads to godly living.

So for Paul, all of God's saving grace and truth is given for this purpose. To shape godly hearts and lives.

Reaching to the most practical areas of everyday living. Matthew Henry insists that this is the very aim and business of Christianity.

To make people godly. So Titus is to teach older women, younger women, older men, younger men, slaves, masters.

He's to teach them what godliness looks like in their everyday living. And so verses 1 to 10 give us these specific instructions to these specific groups.

What does a godly life look like for an older man, a young man, an older woman, a young woman, a slave, a master? And they're to live these godly lives so that no one will malign the word of God.

But that they might make the teaching about God our Savior attractive. A godly life makes the gospel attractive. And then we come to verses 11 through 14.

And it's our text for this morning. It's an outburst of Paul's heart. Showing us what motivated him to live a godly life.

And therefore, what is to motivate all of us to greater godly living. We have four verses and four points this morning. And they're all about God's grace.

The first thing that Paul says to us is that God's grace brings salvation. You see that in verse 11? God's grace brings salvation.

For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. I wonder, brothers and sisters, some of you have walked with the Lord many, many years.

Are you still amazed that the grace of God brought salvation to you? Or have you heard it so long that something of its amazement has worn off?

And if you're honest, you would have to say, though I can sing the song Amazing Grace, I've lost much of the real wonder of it.

It's no small work of the Christian life to remain amazed at the grace of God. The vitality of your spiritual health depends on this.

And that's where Paul starts with us. The grace of God that brings salvation. Now, William Hendrickson defines God's grace as his active favor giving the greatest gift to those deserving the greatest punishment.

It's God's active favor that gives the greatest gift to those who deserve the greatest punishment. And amazement at God's grace is only possible if we are willing to face the bad news about ourselves.

Because our sins against God, all of us deserve the greatest punishment. Indeed, God's wrath forever in hell.

You know, God didn't owe us salvation when we turned our back on him and rebelled. He didn't owe us a second chance. He does owe us damnation.

That's the only thing he owes us. He didn't bring salvation to the fallen angels when they rebelled against heaven. But he reserves them for eternal punishments.

And so he didn't have to bring salvation to us, mortal men, when we rebelled against heaven. He would have been just. He would have been fair. He would have been right to have just left us with our choice.

You don't want to live without me. You don't want to live with me. You want to go your own way. Then you will not have me for all eternity. You will not know my kindness and my love, but my wrath.

And if we got what we deserved, and I say this of me and every one of us here, we would be weeping and wailing and gnashing our teeth forever and ever and ever.

Now those are the words of Jesus. The one we just sang about with wonderful love for his people. And he loves us enough to warn us about our predicament, our problem.

Our greatest problem in life is that we, because of our sin against God, are going our own way, deserve eternal punishments. The greatest gift for those deserving the greatest punishment.

That's the good news, that God brings salvation to those deserving damnation. That he rescues sinners from hell and brings them to heaven.

That he rescues them from God's curse and he brings them to God's blessing. From God's wrath to God's unending favor. From being separated from God to being with God as his own loved ones forever.

Be amazed, O my soul. Stand in awe of the grace of God that has brought you salvation. This is a wonder that I should be a Christian.

A child of God. Now notice this salvation is all of grace. It's something that God's grace brings. The hands that bring it, if we could speak of it, are God's grace.

Indeed, if salvation is to come to guilty sinners, God's grace must bring it. Because we forfeited all claims to his favor. So if there's no grace, there's no salvation.

But God's grace has brought salvation. He says the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men.

When did it appear? It appeared when Jesus, the Savior, appeared. God, the second person of the eternal Godhead, became a man. And the grace of God bringing salvation appeared.

When he appeared. And when he lived a perfect life. And when he taught. And when he died on the cross and rose again. The grace of God appeared. And it appeared to all men.

It appeared to all men. Jesus' appearance bringing salvation was done in the sight of all men. It was not. He was no secret savior. These things were not done in a corner.

The apostle can say about his great work of salvation. He appeared openly with salvation. To offer to all. To all men. To any who would repent and believe.

It's not something just for the Jews. It's for Jews and Gentiles. For all nations. It's for us. None are excluded except those who exclude themselves. And refuse to come to him.

Where would we be but for the grace of God. That brought salvation to us. Amazing grace. How sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. That's where Paul begins.

And it's where he'll end. And it's where he worships. And where he stands in awe. And it's where he is motivated to live a godly life.

So we must never stray far from this wonder. This wonder that God's grace brought salvation to us. The second truth.

Is that God's grace teaches us to live godly lives. God's grace teaches us to live godly lives. And this is the key note of the book of Titus.

Godly living. And we learn that God's grace teaches us. To live godly lives. Look at verse 12. It. It. Still speaking of the grace of God.

That brings salvation. It. Teaches us to say no to ungodliness and worldly passions. And to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in this present age.

I want you to notice verse 12. That it is the same grace that saves. That also teaches those it saves. There's an inseparable connection.

The grace of God that brings salvation. Is the same grace that teaches those who are saved by that grace.

The grace of God teaches us, he says. And Paul says us. He's including himself then, isn't he? Great apostle that he is. He's saying, how is it that I have learned to live a godly life?

The grace of God teaches us. Me included. He's included. Wherever the grace of God brings salvation, it also, it always teaches. A godly life.

The lessons it teaches are put into two categories. First stated negatively, then stated positively. Teach. The grace of God teaches us what not to do. And it teaches us what we are to do.

What we're to shun and what we're to pursue. And so we have it stated, first of all, in the negative. The grace of God teaches us to say no to ungodliness and worldly passions.

Now, ungodliness is godlessness. It's being content just to live without God. And so you don't need to be a bank robber, a carouser, a drunk.

You don't need to be one that society looks down upon. You just need to live your life without God. Ungodliness.

In all their thoughts, there was no room for God. That's the description of the ungodly in Psalm 10 and verse 4. To live ignoring God. To go about my day neglecting God.

Disregarding him. Treating him as unworthy of being anything important in my life. Not worthy of my love and my trust and obedience.

My worship and my service. Ungodliness. And it's so easy for the sinner to live without God.

Because he has a mind that hates God and his laws. And a will that refuses to obey his commands. And his eyes are blind to the glory and the wonder of God. So it's easy to ignore him.

He sees nothing in him that he should desire him. His heart's affections are set on earthly things. The things that he can see. So it's very easy to just live without God in his life.

But the grace of God that brings salvation teaches us to say no to that kind of living. Ungodliness.

It teaches us to refuse to live life without him. And to say no not only to ungodliness but to worldly passions. The lust of the flesh.

The lust of the eyes. And the pride of life. To say no to those desires of the flesh. To the desires of the eyes. Living for things we see. Living for pleasure and for possessions.

Taking pride in what you are and have. These are worldly passions. Passions that mark the worldling. But the grace of God teaches us to say no to them.

To say no. The word here is to renounce. To renounce the old way of life. That old way of me at the center and God way out at the fringes if he's anywhere.

To say no is to make a decisive break with that kind of living. It's the end of life without God. We say no to it all. We deny it. We disown it. The same word used here is the same root word that's used of what Peter did to our Lord three times.

He denied him. He disowned him. Someone there said well you're one of them. You were with him. You're one of his disciples. I don't know the man.

He denies any connection with him. I have nothing to do with that man. He's a stranger to me. And that's what the grace of God enables us to do.

To ungodliness and worldly passions. To say that's the old man. I don't even know him anymore. I don't go there.

I renounce that. I have nothing to do with that kind of life anymore. The grace of God teaches a man and woman and boy or girl to do that.

To say no to it all. And though it's a once for all decisive break with the past that happens when a man is born again.

It goes on throughout the Christian life. The powerful grace of God teaches us to say no and to keep saying no. To temptations of all kinds of passions and pleasures of sin.

And his grace teaches me to say no to the very thing that once defined me. Notice God doesn't say no for us.

He teaches us to say no. That's even more impressive. That that could come from me. That such living water should come from this polluted fountain where I would renounce.

such sinful pleasures. Me, ungodly me, enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures me. His grace teaches me to say no.

So dear sinner friend, here is the answer for your greatest need. God's grace that brings salvation will teach a person to say no to their old life.

To say no to sins that enslave you. He has grace to teach you to say no to all that has owned you and defined you and kept you from God and what is real life in his son.

The apostle Paul himself had experienced it. And so he goes on. He says it's not only teaching us the grace of God, not only teaches us to say no to these things, but it also teaches us to say yes to these other things.

And they're listed here at the end of verse 12. To say no to ungodliness and worldly passions. And to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives.

Here's the positive lessons that God's grace teaches us. You see, the Christian life is more than just a list of negatives. It can never be defined only by what we do not do.

I'm a Christian because I don't do this, this, and this. That can never be more than half of the Christian life. And you don't even have to be a Christian to say I don't do these things.

No, the Christian life can't be defined only by what we don't do. It is partially defined by that. But it's also the things that we do do. That's where this passage takes us next.

We say no to these things, but we say yes to these things. For everything we say no to, there's something to say yes to. For everything we put off, there's something to put on.

Everything to flee, there's something else to pursue. Indeed, for every sin that we reject and renounce and say no to, there's a Christ-like virtue to say yes to and to embrace and to replace it.

So instead of speaking lies, we say no to that. We speak the truth in love. Instead of stealing from others, we work with our own hands so that we will have something to give to others.

Putting off, putting on. God's grace does not just teach us to quit doing things and leave a vacuum for other things just to suck in and fill.

No, where sin once reigned, grace teaches us to replace it with godly characteristics. Three of them are listed here, defining this life that God's grace teaches us.

First is self-controlled. It teaches us a self-controlled life. Now, this is self-mastery over our desires and our appetites.

You know, just because we have a desire does not legitimize it. It does not mean that we ought to give expression to it, that we ought to let it go hog wild. No, we are to be self-controlled.

We're to master our desires and our appetites. We don't just lay the reins on the neck of our desires and let them go wherever they want.

This is what he's saying. No, the grace of God teaches us a self-controlled life where we bridle our desires. We put a bridle on them and we make sure that they only run in the path of God's commands.

That's the self-controlled life that the grace of God teaches us. And so you have these first ten verses in Titus 2 with all the specific examples of godly living to all the different groups in the congregation in that church.

Old, young, men, women, and so on. Do you know the instruction that's repeated in each one of those? It's self-control. If you're an old man, you need self-control.

If you're a young man, you need self-control. If you're an older woman, a younger woman, you need self-control. And that's one of the marks of godly living for those who have received the salvation that comes from God.

So whoever you are, whatever your gender, your age, you need self-control. Over your mouth, what it eats, what it drinks, what it speaks. Over your eyes, what you look at.

Your ears, what you listen to. Your hands, what you do with them. You need self-control over your mind. And those bitter thoughts that keep nagging at you.

And those angry thoughts. You need self-control over your feelings. Is that not the plague of our day? That there's no self-control over feelings and people are controlled by their feelings.

No, that's what the grace of God teaches us. The self-control over our feelings of envy and hatred and revenge and laziness. Over both good and bad desires.

We need self-control over bad desires. We need to just reject them outright, don't we? I don't know you. Go somewhere else. You have no room in my life.

We just reject bad desires. But we need self-control over good desires. Lest they become immoderate. And we give to them what we should give to God and to neighbor.

Self-control. God knows our need of it. And so that's the very thing that his grace teaches us. It teaches us to live a self-controlled life.

I'm glad God knows what I need. And I'm glad that he has an answer for it. If all he says is, John, live a self-controlled life, I'd be, of all men, most miserable.

But he says, John, I've got grace to teach you to live a self-controlled life. It's a fruit of the Holy Spirit.

It's an evidence of God living in the person. What does the ninefold fruit of the Spirit end with? Self-control. For the grace of God that brings salvation teaches us to live self-controlled.

Secondly, it teaches us to live an upright life. Now, to be upright means to be righteous. Upright. You see right and righteous.

You see that word. That's what it means to live an upright life. To live a righteous life. A life that is right in the eyes of God. It's according to his moral character and commandments.

The two greatest of which are to love God with all your heart and soul and mind and strength. And to love your neighbor like you love yourself.

That's an upright life. God takes people who are curved in on themselves. And so curved in on themselves that they don't have time for God.

And they don't have time for serving others. They love themselves and they serve themselves. And God says, I have grace for self-servers.

For selfish people. And he turns us inside out. And he teaches us to live for God and to live for others. That's an upright life.

And the grace of God that brings salvation also teaches us, lastly, to live a godly life. That's a life with God in the center. Not out in the outskirts.

If anywhere in our universe. God at the center. A godly life. A God-saturated life where everything is done to please him.

He's the hub. And we do everything to please him. It's a devoted life. A life of unshared priority that is given to him over everything else.

Where God is depended on. He is trusted. He's loved and worshipped and served and revered and enjoyed. How would you like to sign up for a school?

A class at school. The class is called self-control. And to know that just to be under that professor. That teacher. I'm going to come out of there with self-control.

Or to sign up for a class of an upright life. And to know that just coming under the teaching of that professor. I will come out upright. Or a godly life.

And being under that teacher. I will come out godly. That's what we have here. God's grace teaches us as no one else can.

You know what men can do? Men can deliver information. Like Andy delivers packages to your door. They can bring it and set it at the ear gate of your heart.

And there it sits. And then we've got to walk away and see what you will do with it. I can't get through the door. I just set the package there on the porch.

I bring truth. I try to teach it to you. And all my teaching is just to set it on the porch. Well, that's not God.

What God is able to do is to take truth. And to go right through the ear gate. And open up a heart. And to bring that truth right into the inward parts. Where that truth starts to change the way that you think.

And live. And desire. And feel. And so you actually learn to live a self-controlled upright godly life. Why? Because the grace of God teaches us that.

And God can teach like no man can teach. God has access to our very control center of our being. Our heart. He works in us.

That's the language of the Bible. He works in us. Both to will and to do. Of what pleases him. His grace actually teaches us to live a new life in Christ.

Radically different from the old life we once lived for self and sin. I wonder if the grace of God is teaching you. Don't deceive yourselves.

Don't be among those in Titus' day and in our day. Claim to know God but in actions deny him. Is the grace of God teaching you to say no to ungodliness and worldly passions.

And to live self-controlled upright and godly lives. And notice that's what happens wherever God brings salvation.

He teaches this godly life. And where? In this present age. That's how the verse ends. In this present age. And what's this present age like? What was it like in Titus' day?

What is it like? It's an ungodly age. It's people living without God. And he will teach you to walk with God in a world that doesn't walk with God.

He'll teach you to live a godly life in an ungodly age. That's what the grace of God teaches us. Well, that's the second truth.

God's grace brings salvation. God's grace teaches us to live godly lives. Thirdly, God's grace keeps us waiting for Christ's return.

Verse 13. While we wait for the blessed hope, the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. Now, here's two further incentives to living godly lives.

The first is Christ is coming. Notice he calls it the blessed hope. The happy hope. Why would he call it that?

Because it will bring perfect blessedness forever when Christ comes. It will bring a happiness that's unmixed with sorrow, that's uninterrupted with grief, that endures forever.

Such bliss awaiting us that just thinking about it and eagerly expecting it, which is what hope does, what waiting does, causes us happiness. It's a happy hope.

It's a blessed hope because of the blessedness that is to be ours when we see Jesus Christ. Christ, we're going to see the king of kings in his glory.

We're going to be made like him. Sin is going to be forever obliterated from our hearts and minds and lives. And we're going to live with him forever in a new heavens and a new earth where there is only righteousness.

That's what we're waiting for. Him. Our great God and Savior. Jesus Christ. His glorious appearing, it's called, isn't it?

Because the first time he came, his glory was veiled, wasn't it? And he came in humility. And he came in obscurity. But when he comes the second time, he's coming in glory.

And he's going to appear in glory. And everyone will see who he is. The great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. He's God. He's the Savior. He's the one who saves us.

He's the one who teaches us by his grace to live a godly life. And so we're waiting for him. And it's as we wait. You see that?

As we wait for his glorious appearing. It's as we wait that we are being taught to live this godly life. Because thoughts of his sure return.

To judge the world. To reward all men according to their works. Thoughts of his return motivate us to live godly lives. It keeps before us the sanctifying truth that this life is the test.

This life is the short period of sowing seeds. And it's followed by an eternity of reaping when Jesus returns. And that is an incentive to holy living.

It's as we wait for his glorious appearing. That we are being taught to live holy lives. Peter saw it as well. The connection between Christ's return and godly living.

And so speaking of Christ's coming in judgment. He says, since everything will be destroyed in this way. What kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives. As you look forward to the day of God.

Since you're looking forward to this. Make every effort to be found spotless. Blameless and at peace with him. John sees the same connection. Between this blessed hope of Jesus return.

And holy living. He says, whoever has this hope. Purifies himself even as he is pure. Jonathan Edwards felt this same holy pressure upon his heart and mind.

And he resolved never to do anything which I would be afraid to do. If I expected it would not be above an hour before I should hear the last trump. Would I do this if I was to hear the Lord's blast on the trumpet and return in glory?

Would I want to be found doing this at his coming? Would I want to look into his eyes doing that? You see, there's a sanctifying effect. While we wait for the glorious appearing of Jesus Christ.

It's a sanctifying truth. And God's grace keeps us waiting for the return of Christ. And uses that blessed hope to teach us to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives.

Live now as you'll wish you had then when you look on him face to face. We simply don't live right when we are forgetful that Jesus is coming.

And lastly, God's grace never lets us get over Calvary. Verse 14, still speaking of Jesus Christ, our great God and Savior, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.

Here's another incentive. Motivation to live godly lives. This is how God's grace teaches us. It's all about Jesus giving himself for us.

Now that's an obvious reference to the cross of Jesus Christ. Where Jesus stood in for us as our substitute. He himself bore our sins in his body to the tree.

And when he stood in for us, he received what we had coming. In my place condemned, he stood. And so he's damned that I might be forgiven.

And he's punished that I might have peace with God. And he's abandoned by his Father that I might never be. And he's cursed that I might be blessed.

And he's wounded that I might be healed. And he's dying that I might not perish but have everlasting life. Christ for me. And all so willingly.

He gave himself for us. Yes, the Father gave his Son. But the Son also gave himself for us, verse 14 says. Do you know that Jesus went more willingly to the cross than you went to church?

He went more willingly to the cross for us than we go to church for him. He gave himself for us. For the joy set before him of bringing us to God.

And why did he die in my place? Why did he give himself? What was the purpose that his death accomplished? It's the same two things that the grace of God teaches us. Stated negatively first, then positively.

He gave himself for us first to redeem us from all wickedness. All that ungodliness. All that sin. All those worldly passions. He gave himself to redeem us and make us his own.

And to set us free from that old way of living. That wicked way of living without God. But also to enable us to start a new life.

And here it's stated positively. To redeem us from all wickedness. And now positively to purify for himself a people who are his very own eager to do what is good.

Who will be saved and purified from what's evil and become eager to do what is good. That's why Jesus died for you. Yes, he died to save you from hell. But he died to make you eager to do what is good.

Do you see that in verse 14? It's not my teaching. It's the verse. Verse 14. He gave himself for us to have a people who are his very own.

Who are marked by zeal. Zeal to do what is good. Zeal to do what is good.

A special people to God who are hissing hot. After the good. After holiness. After obedience to God. After serving others.

He died to have a people who are not reluctantly dragging their feet to do what's right. He died to have a people who are hissing hot to do what's right.

Eager. Amen. So the grace of God teaches us the very thing that the cross of Christ purchases.

The cross of Christ purchased for us. Freedom from wickedness. And a new heart. To be zealous for good.

From time to time I'm asked to fill out a recommendation form for somebody applying to school. Or scholarship. A grant. Or a job.

And these forms often have a rating scale after certain character qualities are listed. Invariably they'll want to know about their initiative.

Their zeal. And I can pick then from the following scale and check off the box. From the lesser to the greater initiative. Does assigned tasks.

In other words he does what he's asked to do. Seeks additional work. That's a notch up. And best of all consistently goes beyond what is required.

Now if your spiritual life was being rated. Where would you put the check mark? Does assigned tasks. Seeks additional work.

Seeks. Consistently goes beyond what is required. Jesus died to have a people who are zealous. Eager beavers to do what is good.

Who are not mediocre. Satisfied with mediocrity. Who are not content with asking. What's the bare minimum you got to put in here? To be a follower of Jesus.

No. He died to have a people who said. What more can I do for the one who died for me? I want to live for him. Who died for me. What more can I do?

How can I do good. To others. How can I love God. And love my neighbor. As myself. And folks.

That's. What the grace of God teaches us. To be eager. To do what is good.

I wonder. Is there not enough in Christ giving himself for you to stir you. To be eager. To live for him.

This passage keeps good works on the right side of the cross. You know what I mean by that? Keeps good works on the right side of the cross. When you do good works on the bottom side of the cross.

In order to make yourself good enough for God. That's legalism. And God never saved anyone. However many good deeds they did. When they thought that by doing these good things.

I can win salvation from God. I can pile up enough merit. I can have my good deeds outweigh my bad deeds. And God will receive me into heaven. That's on the wrong side of the cross.

If you're trying to do good works without being saved. They're getting you further behind. They're not getting you closer to heaven. But once God's grace brings salvation.

And we come and we embrace Jesus. And receive salvation as the free gift that it is. Not an accomplishment of our good deeds. But a free gift given.

And we trust in him alone to save us. Well then. That same grace that brought us salvation. Makes us zealous. To do good works. And now we're not satisfied.

To not be doing something good. For our Savior. God never saved anybody.

Who tried to get to heaven. By their good deeds. But when the kindness and love of God. Our Savior appeared. He saved us. Chapter 3 will tell us. Not by good things that we had done.

But by his mercy. So we've got to turn from the pile. To the pile of our bad works. And the pile of our good works. And come and trust in Jesus. And to the extent that we are trusting in anything we have done to be saved.

To that extent. We are not trusting Jesus alone. Oh but having trusted Jesus alone. And having been saved by grace alone.

We are then made by his grace. He's eager to do what is good. Not to save us. Because we're saved by grace already.

But now to demonstrate our love for him. Lord what would you have me to do? You know sometimes we hear testimonies of people.

Who've been converted and trusted in Christ to save them. And I'm going to close with this. But for so long they refused to come to Christ. Because they saw in the scripture what God requires.

And they said I could never live the life required. Maybe that's you. Maybe that's what's been keeping you from coming to Christ.

And being saved by him. You're afraid that if I take that step of faith in taking Christ. I couldn't live up to what it means to be a Christian. Well you know you're absolutely right.

You can't. It takes Christ to live the Christian life. It takes supernatural energy from God. Called grace.

To live the Christian life. But can you not see that that's not a reason to stay away from him. But that's a huge reason to come to him.

Because when the grace of God brings salvation freely to you in Christ. It also teaches you. It brings grace to teach you. To live the Christian life.

To say no to ungodliness and worldly passions. And to live self-controlled upright and godly lives. Yes because only Jesus could keep the commandments.

Only he could do what's required to get into heaven. And he's willing for anybody who comes with empty hands and trusts in him. He's willing to put all of his righteous merit onto our account in heaven.

And to take our sins upon him. And that's not all he does. He also gives grace. To enable you. To live a godly life.

His grace will teach you. So don't stay away. Don't stay away because you could never live the Christian life. Own it.

Acknowledge it. And come to Jesus. And trust in his full obedience. And his teaching grace. To both give you a new record in heaven. And a new heart on earth.

Let's pray. Father we thank you for this little epistle of Paul to Titus.

Where we see his heart overflowing with amazement at the grace of God. And we confess that our amazement is often weak.

And we've grown accustomed to the grace that brings salvation. Forgive us for ever taking for granted such a great gift. And please teach us again to stand amazed in the presence of Jesus the Nazarene.

And wonder how he could love me. A sinner condemned unclean. Teach us to stand amazed that he would bring salvation to the likes of us.

And change our eternal address from hell to heaven. From being away from the Lord's presence to being with him. Amazed that that same grace should teach us who are so self-centered.

To love God and to love our neighbor. And to reject sin and to live godly lives. Oh thank you that your grace applies what your law commands.

Teach us to trust in you then. And to trust in you fully. And send us on our way then. Motivated by grace. To be eager to do what is good. For your own glory we pray.

Amen. Amen. The back of your grace hymns. The last song. Oh how the grace of God amazes me. Even as we sing it. May it be with a prayer.

That God would amaze us more and more. Let's stand as we sing. In your grace hymns. Oh how the grace of God amazes me. Number 33. Number 33. Number 33.