The Basis of “Good Works”

Transcript

GRM 801
07/14/2002
The Basis of “Good Works”
Titus 3:1-11
Gil Rugh


I want to direct your attention to the book of Titus for our Bible study this evening, the book of Titus. We continue the theme that really, we were talking about this morning, the theme that is carried through our communion service. The book of Titus, written to a young man that we think of as a man like Timothy joined to Paul in ministry he is on a special mission from Paul, he’s been sent to Crete according to Titus chapter 1 verse 5, “I left you in Crete that you might set in order what remains and appoint elders in every city as I directed you.” He’s there as Paul’s representative. So, Paul felt that there were things that needed to be taken care of in the establishing of the church in Crete, getting it organized properly, proper leadership and so on. The theme of the book of Titus is “Good Works.” Paul is concerned that the children of God be manifesting the character of God in what they do.

As we saw in our study in Matthew chapter 7 where you enter the narrow gate and travel the narrow road, or you enter the wide gate and travel the broad road. The broad road ending in destruction, the narrow road ending in life. Both the entrance and the road traveled are inseparably joined together. At this junction that is often made between trusting in Christ and then living our lives is not a Biblical one. The Bible sees a real connection, as you would expect. Those who are born into God’s family have become the children of God. As those who have become partakers of the divine nature, we manifest the character of God. We live by faith, not only in the initial life we receive through faith in Christ, but in the ongoing conduct of our life we live by faith. We are people who are to be holy because our God is holy. We indeed travel a narrow road because we have entered a narrow gate. And as we saw that it’s different than Pharisaical narrowness, but there is a marked contrast between the people of God and the people of the world.

Crete was a worldly place, comprised of worldly people who had a poor reputation, even in the unbelieving world. It would present the danger that believers would become accustomed to a lower standard, and these are acceptable things. We are still better than they are, but the standard has gotten lower. Instead of measuring the standard, be ye holy for I am holy as God has instructed His people, we become satisfied with being better than those around us are. The standard is not the people around us and living a little above that level, the standard is the holiness of our God and manifesting His character.

So, after giving instructions about the appointing of elders he tells them why this is important, the issues of doctrine, proper teaching taking place. He opens chapter 2 by exhorting Titus to be teaching the things that are consistent and adorned properly, sound doctrine, that are fitting for sound doctrine. That has to do with the responsibility of both men and women, young and old, has to do with the responsibility of masters and slaves. Then he says in verse 11 of chapter 2, “For the grace of God has appeared bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age.” That our hope is fixed on the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Christ gave Himself for us, in verse 14, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify a people for Himself for His own possession. Those people would be zealous to do the work of God, zealous for good deeds. These things you are to speak and exhort and reprove with all authority, and don’t let anyone disregard you. Paul had to encourage these younger men to step up with boldness and sometimes people, as a way of avoiding their teaching, try to use their age or experience as a reason to disregard them. This is truth from God, so you declare it with authority, and you don’t allow them to disregard you.

As you come into chapter 3, he wants to tell them about their responsibility to unbelievers, particularly he tells them to be subject to rulers, to authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good deed. Their responsibility to governing authorities can be men of despicable character who do things that are not respectable, but believers are to maintain the proper attitude and respect toward unbelieving governing authorities. In fact, he’s going to go on to say toward unbelievers generally. That’s just reflected in the responsibility we have to the leaders. A reminder needed today. I sometimes cringe to hear things that believers who are in the public forum say about leaders, governmental officials and so on as though they should be held to Biblical standards. Here we’re told that we are to be obedient, we’re to be subject, we’re to be ready for every good deed. And that verse starts out with, remind them, as we have it in our Bible. That is a present imperative, that’s given as a command to Titus, you be constantly reminding them of their responsibility in this area of their behavior, and submission is a key area of that. That’s consistent with other areas in the Scripture that talk about the believer’s relationship to governmental authorities, Romans 13, I Peter 2 verses 13 and following, among other passages.

We ought to be good citizens. By good citizens we are submissive, we are respectful because they are governing authorities. It does not mean that we agree with their conduct, it does not mean that we agree with the way they conduct their lives morally or ethically. Paul wouldn’t have to tell Titus to remind the Cretan believers about this, if they had leaders that were respectable and so on.

He goes on in verse 2 after talking about they are to be ready for every good deed. They are to malign no one, malign no one. The word to malign is the word we get the word blaspheme from. When it’s used in a context relating to God it’s speaking against God, slandering God. The word means when related in human relationships to speak the slanderous way about someone, to speak evil of someone. Usually, it involves a bitter kind of spirit, you want to tear them down, slander them. We are to malign no one. So, the responsibility of the believers at Crete was not to attack the character of their governing leaders, to speak evil of them, to slander them. We constantly need to be reminded that believers are not called to reform unbelievers’ character and conduct. We are called to preach a message of regeneration, not reformation. So, malign no one.

Be uncontentious. The believer is a peaceable person. Now there are areas again as we have talked about in other contexts, and we have to compare Scripture with Scripture and put Scripture in its context. The context that we are talking about here of being submissive to governmental leaders, not slandering them, running them down, being bitter against them in our speech, not to be contentious. We are to be peaceable. But we are called to be soldiers, we are called to defend the faith, we are called to put on the armor of God. Again, when it comes to our relationship to unbelievers, everybody from the local mayor to the President of the country, we are not contentious. Recognize that they are in their position because of the will of God and the appointment of God. The powers that be are ordained of God. So, I have no reason to battle against them, disastrous that believers become identified more with political positions than theological positions. We become a right-wing voting block to be reckoned with. We are to be uncontentious. Political leaders ought not to find believers as their opponents and those they must do battle with.

Gentle, the idea of the word is yielding, gentle, kind. We carry the idea of a willingness to yield our rights. Again, we have rights as citizens, Paul had rights as a Roman citizen, he exercised them on occasion. But believers ought not to be noted for those who are always ready to go to war for our rights. We recognize we’re a fallible people, we live among fallible people, governmental leaders are going to make decisions that we cringe at, we don’t feel they’re good for our country, in the best interest of the people. But even costs us sometimes. That’s all right. We’re gentle, we’re yielding, we can give up our rights. These areas are not the battleground we have. We don’t do battle against flesh and blood; we do battle against principalities and powers and the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenlies. How can I become so small to think the battle is who is President or who sits on the Supreme Court, or who gets voted to Congress. These are matters I can exercise my rights as a citizen, but I can yield in these areas. Legislations pass that I don’t care for, that’s all right, believers are not going to be the ones,” you’ll have to deal with us.” When you come, if you go on this side of this political issue, you’re going to have to deal with the right-wing conservative Christian. No, no, no. They’re a gentle, yielding people. Trampled them, well they’re not here to do battle with you over your politics.

Showing every consideration. Again, a word that is similar in meaning to the words just used. Gentle, showing every consideration. The idea of gentleness, humility, courtesy, considerateness, meekness. It’s one of the fruits of the Spirit in Galatians 5:23. One suggested the translation showing perfect courtesy to all men. No harshness or arrogance on our part as believers, no position of superiority in that realm. You know sometimes believers get into problems on this because they don’t have their theology together in other places. And sometimes they think they are called to deal with our governmental leaders like the prophets did in Israel. But that was a different situation obviously, dealing with the people of God and the structure among the people of God and so on. We have certain responsibilities among believers. He’s going to get to some of that in a moment. We’re dealing now here with unbelievers, governmental leaders, and so on. We are to be the model of courtesy toward them, considerateness. One people that they should not have to worry about doing battle with over politics are Bible believing Christians, because they deal with perfect courtesy, they are yielding, they demonstrate a humility.

Now we are to be showing every consideration for all men. Back in chapter 1 verse 12 one of the Cretans own prophets said, the Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons. This testimony is true. And now we’re told to show every consideration for all men. You mean these liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons? You see some Christians on a crusade, they have politicians caught in a lie and boy Christians are leading the parade, that he’s unfit for office and blah, blah, blah, blah. What does that have to do with our role as believers? Study our theology then we put it in a closet and close the door and charge into our politics. If we could only get believers so stirred up over the gospel as we can get them stirred up over politics. We are to be zealous, but zealous for good deeds. In the context, we’re talking about here, zealous would characterize us in holiness as God’s people. And he’s describing some of that right here.

Why do we want to do this? Well, he’s going to give us two reasons why we have to do this. Number one, we were one time just like them. Miserable, wretched, disgusting sinners ourselves. Secondly, we’ve been saved by grace through faith. So, we realize that we didn’t change ourselves. We were once like them I know, but at least I cleaned up my act. No, you didn’t, not if you’re genuinely saved. The people who have cleaned up their act, so to speak, aren’t the people who are genuinely saved. They’re like the Pharisees who were proud of their cleaned-up act, but they weren’t saved. Those who are truly saved have been saved by the grace of God. Why would I be looking down my nose as though I were better than these that are enslaved to their lusts.

Look at verse 3, and you see a list of lusts here. In I Corinthians 6, Ephesians 4, other places describe believers in the same way. It’s easy for us to forget how wretched we were apart from the grace of God. There are a lot of these things I didn’t do, and granted, but in the condition of our heart were we any less on our way to hell, deservedly so, than the worst of sinners? Paul was the most moral of men, humanly speaking, as a Pharisee of the Pharisee, and yet he says I was the chiefest of sinners. Part of the problem comes, we become arrogant, proud, self-confident, self-assured and lose the proper perspective of humility and recognition that we are nothing, but sinners saved by grace.

Look at verse 3, for we also once were foolish ourselves. One time we didn’t have any understanding, we were without the ability to think. Remember Romans chapter 1? Unregenerate men darkened in their understanding. Here, without spiritual understanding, ignorant and incapable of understanding spiritual truth. We were once foolish ourselves. We looked and it’s like we just cannot put up with their stupidity any longer. There’s no excuse for that, and they are guilty, they are accountable before God. But just stop and think a minute, just who are you? Who am I? I mean I was one who was never foolish, spiritually ignorant, without knowledge? Oh, I was never like them. We were once foolish ourselves, disobedient. And we were disobedient to human authority, we were disobedient to divine authority. This is one of the titles the Bible gives to the unregenerate man. They are sons of disobedience; this is their nature and character. We don’t have time to go through the verses that I have listed here that identify the unbeliever as disobedient. That’s what we were. So, we look at political leaders, public figures as well as the unbeliever generally, and say how could they be so disobedient? How could they do that? Wait a minute. It is one thing to say that is wrong, that is sinful conduct, but I understand well how they could do it. You know what, I’m just like them. Apart from the grace of God I would still be doing that and maybe worse. Disobedient.

Deceived. We believe the lies of the world, the flesh and the devil. Characteristic of the unregenerate man. They live in the realm of deception; they are self-deceived and self-deluded. Furthermore, the god of this world has blinded the mind of the unbeliever so that he doesn’t see the gospel. You add to that the influence of the world and its allurements and glitter and enticements. You put it all together and we were there one time, we lived in the realm of deception. We were enslaved to various lusts and pleasures. There’s no doubt, the Bible says clearly, apart from the salvation work of Christ that sets us free, we are enslaved to sin. Why is it that some believers act like they just cannot believe that the unregenerate person would sin like they do? I mean you begin to wonder if people are really saved who do not understand these basic truths. They are like the Pharisees who run around like, oh, I thank you Lord that I am not like other men. That’s a mark of an unregenerate person who’s consumed with his own pride. You know, blessed are those who mourn, blessed are the poor in spirit. It’s those who come to see themselves wretched and lost, who mourn over their sin. They are in a place to enter into the blessedness of God’s salvation. Some of those parading around claiming to be Christians in their arrogance and self-righteousness know nothing of that. They just can’t understand how this person could have gotten involved in immorality like that, could have stolen like that, could have fill in the blank. No, we should be able to understand it very well, we are just like them. It’s what the Scripture says here, we were also once…… Oh, I didn’t do that particular sin. No, but I can understand well because I was enslaved to my sin. It had to be God’s gracious intervention in my life, or who knows what sins I would have gotten around to getting involved in. It wasn’t because of the goodness of my heart that I haven’t gotten involved yet. Again, we must make a distinction between the Pharisees as Jesus was doing, the kind of judgmentalism that was entailed in judge not lest you be judged those parades around in their so-called elevated position. Those who would not even consider indulging in such defiling things, and those who know what it is to be set free from the defilement and enslavement to sin. We once ourselves were enslaved to various lusts and pleasures. Jesus said in John 8:34, “he who sins is the slave of sin.”

Quite frankly, I’m not amazed that some of our prominent people get involved in the moral situations and immoral situations they do, the ethical and unethical things they get entailed in that. I have to say it’s the restraining work of God’s grace in the world today, and I’m amazed they’re not much worse than they are. Enslaved to sin and pleasures. So, I can see men would do things that would add to their pleasures. Enslaved. We were once like that.

Spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. Spending our life in malice, kakia. Sort of an ugly word, isn’t it? Good word. By its sound it sort of conveys that idea, kakia. The evilness, perversity, wickedness. Note what God says, “we also once.” Now Paul includes himself here, the man who was the Pharisee of the Pharisees, who would not have thought of indulging in some of those defiling things that the Pharisees so abhorred. Yet he includes himself, we also once were spending our life in malice and envy. Realize, he was no better, the wickedness and vileness of his heart was no different than the worst of the unbelievers. Envy. Envy and jealousy, driving factors in the life of the unbeliever.

Hateful denotes being odious, repulsive, disgusting to others. You know, the unbeliever can continue in that degradation to the point he even becomes disgusting to others. That keeps getting pushed further and further down. Certain sins now that are open and tolerated not too many years ago even unregenerate people found them repulsive. But you see now we find unbelievers are willing to step down further into the muck and mire and filth. So that’s fine, it’s just alternative lifestyles, and on it goes. The unbeliever has nothing to restrain him, ultimately. It’s just a matter of becoming adjusted and acclimated to a little more vileness, a little more vileness, hateful, hating one another. Hateful and hating one another two different words. Hateful, doing that which is odious, repulsive, disgusting. Hating one another means to detest, abhor. You know sinners don’t even like each other. You know they say there’s no honor among thieves. We ought to understand the devil is not in love with his children. You are of your father the devil; you partake of his character. He was a liar and a murderer and that’s what you are. But there is no love in the family of the devil, and unbelievers hate one another. You look at what they do to one another, how they treat one another.

Now you note, he’s saying this is what we were. He’s not saying this is what they are. It is what they are, but you understand what they are is what we were. So be careful about sliding into that pit of self-righteousness and that oh I just don’t like to be defiled by unbelievers. We don’t want to be defiled by unbelievers. Be careful here, though, you know the proper recognition of what we were. What we were is what they are.

Verse 4, “But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared” He saved us. Not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration, the renewing of the Holy Spirit whom He poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior. That being justified by His grace we might be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. You ought to have underlined if you don’t from previous times, we’ve looked at this passage. Look at verse 4, kindness, love, underline those or circle those words. Kindness, love. Down in verse 5, mercy, according to His mercy. Down in verse 7, grace. Kindness, love, mercy, grace. Like Paul must pile up these words to remind us of how God dealt with us. Where does arrogance and pride come into the picture? Where does thinking myself better than them, where does that Pharisaical attitude I thank you Lord that I am not a sinner like other men? I was never that vile, I was never that disgusting. If you were never any of these things, I find it hard that you have ever understood you needed to be saved. Exactly what were you saved from? Sounds like you didn’t need Christ to die for you if you were never any of these things. You were pretty good already. But that’s a Pharisee, that’s not a born-again Christian.

But, with the kindness of God our Savior, God’s kindness; these words are to pile up on one another. It’s His goodness, His generosity. One Greek commentator noted it means that spirit which is so kind that it is always ready and eager to give whatever gifts may be necessary. God, that one who was so generous in His goodness in dealing with us, His kindness, His love for mankind, love for those who, in verse 3, were foolish, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to lusts and pleasures. Spent their lives in malice and envy, were hateful and hating one another. They were liars, evil beasts and lazy gluttons, repulsive and disgusting and worthless. And God demonstrated His love for mankind. We get the word philanthropic from this word. The generosity of God in dealing with us. What was loveable in us? I mean, what is desirable? There’s nothing in us.

But there appeared the kindness of God and His love for mankind. It appeared when Jesus Christ came. Look back in verse 11 of chapter 2, for the grace of God has appeared bringing salvation to all men. That grace that was provided and manifested in the coming of Jesus Christ. The law came through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. He is the manifestation of God’s love and kindness and that appeared to bring salvation for us. He saved us, He saved us. We needed salvation. I mean look at what we were in verse 3. The wages of sin is death, and we were deserving of eternal hell. You know with the church losing its Biblical concept of sin, it has also lost its Biblical concept of hell. We just can’t imagine something as awful as hell. People being sentenced to hell for eternity. No sinner deserves that. You see what happens. We cease to see sin as awful as it is, so soon the penalty for sin would be too terrible. I mean you understand the road we’re on. Now we don’t need an eternal hell because no one would deserve that, which means the sin is not really as bad and as serious as God says. Pretty soon we’re going to back up to the fact, what? People can be saved apart from Christ because no one is that bad. And pretty soon we end up with general liberalism that everybody is going to heaven. And it starts with what? I don’t think we were that bad, we’re looking down our nose at those that we think oh they’re so much worse than we would have ever been. And we are beginning to distort what God says, and our evaluation is replacing His evaluation. And now the trouble begins.

He saved us, not based on deeds which we have done in righteousness. Period. I can’t even say well yeah, you’re right, I was like that, but I cleaned up my act. No, the Pharisees cleaned up their act if you looked at it humanly speaking. But they hadn’t cleaned up anything, they had whitewashed the outside of the tomb, according to Jesus in Matthew 23. They hadn’t cleaned up anything. Their heart was still deceitful and desperately wicked above all things, and so with us.

He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy. We’ve had kindness, we’ve had love, now we have mercy. He saved us, and it’s by His mercy. It’s by the washing of regeneration. What we’re going to emphasize through this section is salvation is completely God’s work, salvation is completely God’s work. There is no room for any pride or confidence of man. As we have shared, and I remind you again, God did not have His Son die for us because we were so valuable, does not demonstrate our worth, so to speak, because that nullifies mercy and grace and kindness because in dealing, He got something in the project. He overpaid, but at least He got something. It’s like you went and bought something, bring it home and your husband or wife says well you know you paid too much. But at least you got something. Sometimes we look at salvation like that. Well, God bought a treasure that just needed shined up, so He didn’t do too bad. In Romans 3 He says we were worthless, but He saved us.

According to His mercy by the washing of regeneration, making new by the Holy Spirit. Has nothing to do with baptism here. The washing is not the washing of water, the washing is the washing of regeneration, that symbolism of Scripture that we are washed clean. Come now and let us reason together says the Lord, though your sins be as scarlet. So, we are going to be washed from the scarlet crimsonness of our sin to be white as snow, pure. That’s the picture. We are washed by regeneration. Regeneration is being reborn. You are reborn. We become children of God by faith in Christ, we are born again by believing the Word of God, born again by the living and abiding Word of God, as Peter wrote. So, what happens? When you’re reborn you are washed, you are cleansed. Our songs, some of which we have sung this evening, picture we are washed. It pictures the cleansing from the defilement and guilt and penalty of sin that takes place when we place our faith in Jesus Christ. In I Corinthians chapter 6, why don’t you turn there quickly to see one other passage like this one, I Corinthians chapter 6. You know it’s a similar kind of emphasis, that’s why I want you to turn here. Verse 9, “Do you not know that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, covetous, drunkards, revilers, swindlers shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, sanctified, justified.” You were washed clean from the defilement of your sin. You were set apart by God and declared righteous. There’s the package of salvation. Washing clean from the defilement of sin, set you apart for God, and declare you righteous.

You come back to Titus. We’re washed in regeneration, we are made new by the Holy Spirit, we are made new by the Holy Spirit. II Corinthians 5:17 says what? If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation, a new creature. Back up a few pages to II Thessalonians, just before the letters of Paul to Timothy you have II Thessalonians chapter 2 verse 13. “But we should always give thanks to God for you brethren, beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation.” How? Through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth. What is entailed in our salvation? Our salvation is a package, it involves our cleansing, it involves that work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, so that we are made new by the Holy Spirit. We’ve been set apart by Him, we’ve believed in the truth.

That’s what Paul is talking about back in Titus. This Holy Spirit was poured out, back in Titus 3:6, upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior. That Holy Spirit being that active agent who works to identify us with Christ in His death, burial and resurrection. To make us new, set us apart for God. The Holy Spirit has been poured out upon us richly. We have Him in His fullness. God has given us the Holy Spirit in His completeness, not parceled out so we need more of the Holy Spirit. He’s been poured out upon us richly. So that being justified by His grace we might be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. Isn’t that amazing? We were washed clean from our sin; we were made new by the Holy Spirit. God’s not done; He’s made us heirs. We have the hope of eternal life. Heirs and joint heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, the glories that God has promised to those who love Him.


What’s he says in verse 8? This is a “trustworthy statement”, referring to what he has just talked about. This is something that you can trust for time and eternity. “Concerning these things, I want you to speak confidently so that those who have believed God may be careful to engage in good deeds.” Do the things, those who have believed in God ought to do the things I’ve been telling you. It’s not only in chapter 3 but through this letter. These things are good and profitable for men, “but shun foolish controversies, genealogies, strife, disputes about the law. They are unprofitable and worthless. Reject the factious man after a first and second warning, knowing such a man is perverted and is sinning and being self-condemned.” There are people who want to come in and they just want to debate on things. And you can never resolve it with them, they are in an endless circle, and they tie up and divide the church in their debates. Forget it. You reject the factious man after a first and second warning. You have nothing to do with him. The Word of God is our authority. People want to get involved in oh well then, we shouldn’t be debating doctrine, we want to sort through the Scripture and come to a clear understanding of Biblical truth. We’re not going to get involved in all those sidetracks. We will let the Word of God be the authority, and we’re not going to let the congregation be divided by factious men who inject their ideas contrary to the Word of God.

You see our salvation is complete, and it provides not only for our cleansing, for our being made new and brought into right relationship with God, but now to live a new life, to do the things that are pleasing to God. That means in our relation to unbelievers we have a sensitivity. Now we must share the truth with them that they are sinners and lost without hope, and there’s nothing they can do to clean up their lives to make themselves pleasing to God, because verse 5 says, “He saved us not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness.” And to hear some Christian leaders, they get into the political realm we think the solution to the problems is for politicians and other people to clean up their act, the Supreme Court to change the kind of decisions they make, and Congress to change the kind of laws they make, and this is what our country needs. And who needs God’s salvation? Let’s just reform the place. No, we need the washing of regeneration, and so we’re understanding the foolishness, the sinfulness, the disobedience that’s manifested by public figures as well as the general unbeliever. We understand that it’s not acceptable to God but understand it. I can identify with it in the sense I was just like that. So, I speak to them, not through a position of superiority, not as a better person. I speak to someone who has been there, but by the grace of God has been made new, to share with them that by that same grace, kindness, love and mercy they, too, can be saved. Oh, I’ve committed immorality, I know you’re disgusting. No, that’s not my attitude. That is sin, that’s just a manifestation of your real problem, you know. You could quit practicing immorality, but you wouldn’t have really dealt with the problem. The problem is not that you commit immorality, the problem is you are a sinner before God; and your immorality is just a manifestation of that. We get all caught up as though our President or our Congressman would be a wonderful man if he hadn’t had committed immorality. Now he’s so disgusting I can’t even watch him when he comes on TV. Makes me sick. Well, la-de-da. Pharisee of the Pharisees, we are. Thank you, Lord, that I am not a sinner like that guy. That was so disgusting to me I could hardly look at him. Now I need to come back and read Titus 3. Say, Lord, thank you for reminding me I am just like him, and he needs the same grace that I needed, and it wasn’t my works of righteousness, but it was your grace, and that’s the grace that we bring to a lost world. Let someone else work on the reformation of society, we bring the message of regeneration which changes the heart for time and eternity.

Let’s pray together. Thank you, Lord, for your grace. Thank you for a salvation that is so powerful that it washes clean the defilement and stain of sin and makes a person new in Christ. We are not what we used to be, but by your grace we have been born again. Lord, keep us from the ugliness of arrogant pride where we forget what we were, we become self-righteous in our eyes and think of ourselves as better than those who are lost without hope in the world. May this encourage us to bring in love the message of your grace to them. Thank you for saving us. In Christ’s name. Amen