A Study of the Book of Titus
Sermon # 3
“The Grace of God”
Titus 2:11-15
Paul has been instructing his son in the
faith, Titus on the type of conduct that is fitting for those who profess to have a
relationship with Christ. In verses 11-15 we find an explanation for the ethical
instructions given in verses 1-10. In verses 11-14 (which are a single sentence in the
Greek text) he is going to focus on God’s grace and its effect on believers.
“For the grace of God that brings
salvation has appeared to all men, (12) teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly
lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, (13)looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of
our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, (14) who gave Himself for us, that He
might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous
for good works. (15) Speak these things, exhort, and
rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise you.” (NKJV)
Charles Ryrie in his book “So Great a Salvation” delineates
grace in this way. “First,
grace is unmerited favor. As a concise
definition of grace, this serves well. More elaborate definitions have their place; but
simply stated, grace is unmerited favor. It is undeserved on the part of the recipient. It
is unearned and unearnable….
Second, grace is not cheap. Grace is expensive. It is free to
the recipient but costly to the donor. The only way one may say that grace is not very
costly is if the particular benefit costs the donor very little. … But to use the
word cheap in the same breath with the grace of God in salvation seems almost blasphemous.
It cost our Lord Jesus His life. Some may insult grace, reject it, trample on it, or
disgrace it, but that does not lower its infinite value.
Third, it is not easy to believe someone who offers grace….
From day one we were reared in a merit system, in which acceptance is based on
performance. “Do this and you will be
rewarded. Fail to do this and you will be punished.” This kind of merit system
permeates all of life and most religion. It is not easy to believe someone who says that
he or she will do something good for us that we do not deserve.
Human works are like termites in
God’s structure of grace. They start small, but if unchecked, they can bring down the
entire structure. And what are such works? Anything I can do to gain any amount of merit,
little or much. Water baptism could be one such work if I view it not as an important or
even necessary result of being saved, but as a requisite to be saved. It is a work even if
I insist that it is God who gives me the desire to want to be baptized that I might be
saved…
Fourth, grace that is received changes one’s life and behavior.
…. The
Gospel is the good news of the grace of God to give forgiveness and eternal life. Let’s
keep that Gospel so full of grace that there is no room for anything else to be added to
dilute or pollute the true grace of God.” [Charles C. Ryrie, So Great Salvation, (USA: Victor Books, a
Division of Scripture Press, 1989), pp. 15-18]
Grace is a difficult, perhaps impossible,
concept to completely understand. “When a person works an
eight-hour day and receives a fair day’s pay for his time; that is a wage. When a person competes with an
opponent and receives a trophy for his performance; that is a prize. When a person receives appropriate
recognition for his long service or high achievements; that is an award. But when a person is not capable of
earning a wage, can win no prize, and deserves no award—yet receives such a gift
anyway—that is a good picture of God’s unmerited favor. This is what we mean
when we talk about the grace of God.” [G.W. Knight. Clip-Art Features for Church Newsletters.
p. 53 -www.bible.org/illus/grace]
Paul underscores the truth that our
redemption is unearned and expands on its implications by stating that this grace has
“appeared” (v. 11)
Grace’s
Glorious Appearance (v. 11)
Verse eleven
states, “For the grace of God that brings
salvation has appeared to all men.” It may at first seem strange to us to speak
of grace as “appearing”
but this is a clear reference to the birth of Christ. This declares that Christ
is the grace of God personified and the epitome of God’s grace. The word phrase “has appeared”
(epephane) is the word from which we get our “epiphany” which means “sudden appearance”
In this short paragraph (vv. 11-14) we are
given the beginning of the period of Grace and the terminus of the period of Grace. The
first coming of Christ, “has appeared” (v. 11),
his “Epiphany
of Grace” is the beginning of the Age of Grace and the Second Coming
of Christ, “glorious appearing” (v. 13) his
“Epiphany
of Glory” will terminate the age of grace!
There can be little doubt that Paul's
reference is a figurative allusion to the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ, when "the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His
glory, the glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth…. (16) … of His fulness we have all received
and grace upon grace,” (John 1:14, 16) (literally it is grace
"piled upon" grace, like waves continually lapping ashore, emphasizing the
superabundance of grace that has been displayed by God in and through Christ toward
mankind, in this context especially referring to believers - in other words there is no
"fuel shortage"!)
Grace’s
Continual Teaching (vv. 11-12)
“For
the grace of God that
brings salvation has appeared to all men.”
When Paul says this
salvation “has appeared
to all men” it is a proclamation of the universal scope of salvation for all who would
respond to the grace of God is faith.
In verse twelve
Paul begins to tell the believer that grace teaches that Christians live differently. “Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should
live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age.” The “teaching”
here is in the present tense stressing the ever present work of the training of grace.
This training work of grace has two aspects; a negative
“… denying ungodliness and worldly lusts” and a positive “we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age.”
John MacArthur remarks that "to deny carries the idea of a conscious, purposeful action of the
will. It means to say "no". It is to confess and consciously turn away from that
which is sinful and destructive and to move toward that which is good and godly. It
includes the commitment a believer makes when he first acknowledges his sin and receives
Christ as Savior and Lord as well as the countless other decisions he makes to deny and
forsake the ungodliness and worldly desires that continue to find their way back into his
life." [John McArthur. The McArthur New Testament
Commentary –Titus. (Chicago: Moody Press, 1996) p. 114]
Kent Hughes remarks “the Bible requires that Christian now – in this place,
culture and time – answer to God regarding whether their entertainments, habits, and
appetites exhibit a true commitment to say ‘no’ to ungodliness and worldly
passions and ‘yes’ to ‘self controlled, upright and godly living.’
” [R Kent Hughes
& Bryan Chapell. 1 & 2 Timothy and Titus. (Wheaton, Ill: Crossway Books,
2000) p. 342]
This contrasting negative and positive
emphasis found in verse twelve is in keeping with what Paul says in other places.
Romans 6:5-14 (putting to death and bringing to new life)
Ephesians 4:22-32
-Col. 3: 8-14 (putting off and putting on)
Gal. 5:16-26
(the works of the flesh vs. the fruit of the spirit)
The goal of God’s
curriculum in the school of grace is living.
The life of a follower of Christ is not just
"saying no" to the "bad" but saying "yes" to the
"best", and this is made possible only by being empowered by the Holy Spirit.
Grace’s
Motivational Completion (v. 13) “looking for the blessed hope and
glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ”
One motivation for grace-trained conduct is
an eager expectation of the second coming of Christ. As we mentioned earlier the first
coming of Christ, (v. 11), was the “Epiphany of Grace” and the Second
Coming of Christ, (v. 13) was his “Epiphany of Glory.”
This expectation is our “blessed
hope”. The word “looking” in this verse means “to expect, look for, wait for.” This is
suggestive of an atmosphere of expectancy in which there is a readiness to welcome the person looked for and expected.
One of these days He is going to split the skies and bring to fulfillment all our hopes
and dreams concerning eternity.
But as we wait our
expectation of his return should affect the way we live our lives. In 1 John 3:3 we
read, “And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies
himself, just as He is pure.” In 2 Pet 3:10-12 Peter wrote, “But the day of the Lord will come as a
thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a
great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works
that are in it will be burned up. (11) Therefore, since all these things
will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness,
(12) looking for and hastening the
coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and
the elements will melt
with fervent heat”
What is the “blessed hope”
Paul uses the Greek word (makarious) which is here translated as “blessed” and this word conveys a sense of happiness or joy. Literally, Paul is saying that the
hope of Christ’s return should make us happy or joyful.
John Piper says, “I
think it would be fair to say on the basis of these four verses (vv. ll-l4) that the
incentive and power to live a Christian life pleasing to God comes from two directions as
it were: it comes from looking back with gratitude to the grace of God that appeared in
Jesus Christ at his first coming when he purchased our redemption; and it comes from
looking forward with hope to the glory of God that will appear at the second coming when
he completes our redemption.”
[John Piper. Our Hope: The
Appearing of Christ. Sermon on Titus 2:11-13.
www.desiringgod.org/library/sermons/86/051886.html]
Grace’s
Redemptive Plan (v. 14)
“who
gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous
for good works.”
This verse has a lot to tell us about God’s
redemptive plan. First, We are told that He “gave himself
for us” which stresses the voluntary
nature of his sacrifice. Secondly,
We are reminded
that He “gave himself for us” that is as
our substitute. Third,
we also told He “gave himself
for us that He might redeem us.” Grace is being given not what we deserve but what
we need!
The two renowned
preachers, Charles Spurgeon and Joseph Parker, both occupied pulpits in London during the
19th century. On one occasion, Parker commented about the poor condition of children
admitted to Spurgeon’s orphanage. It was reported to Spurgeon, however, that Parker
had criticized the orphanage itself. Being a man of fiery temperament, Spurgeon blasted
Parker from his pulpit. That attack, printed in the newspaper, became the talk of the
town. Londoners flocked to Parker’s church the next Sunday to hear his rebuttal.
“I understand Dr. Spurgeon is not in his pulpit today, and this is the Sunday they
use to take an offering for the orphanage,” Parker said. “I suggest we
take a love offering here for the orphanage.” The crowd was delighted; ushers had
to empty the collection plates three times. Later that week, there was a knock at Parker’s
study. It was Spurgeon. “You know, Parker, you have practiced grace on me,”
he said. “You have given me not what I deserved; you have given me what I needed.”
“A missionary in West
Africa was trying to convey the meaning of the word redeem in the Bambara language. So he
asked his African assistant to express it in his native tongue. "We say," the
assistant replied, "that God took our heads out." "But how does that
explain redemption?" the perplexed missionary asked. The man told him that many years
ago some of his ancestors had been captured by slave-traders, chained together, and driven
to the seacoast. Each of the prisoners had a heavy iron collar around his neck. As the
slaves passed through a village, a chief might notice a friend of his among the captives
and offer to pay the slave-traders in gold, ivory, silver, or brass. The prisoner would be
redeemed by the payment. His head then would be taken out of his iron collar. What an
unusual and graphic illustration of the word redeem! Let Him take your head out of the
enslaving collar of sin and set you free. Christ was lifted up on the cross that we might
be lifted out of our sin.” [Precept
Ministries. Titus Verse by Verse.- www.
preceptaustin.org/titus_213-15.htm]
This teaching on the grace of God culminates
in the verse fifteen with Titus being given three duties. “Speak (imperative) these things, ??exhort (imperative), and rebuke (imperative) with all authority. Let no one
despise you.” The three
duties are given in the three imperatives, “speak, exhort and rebuke” and are a
reminder to Titus and all who lead and teach in the church. The word translated “speak” is
a word that is means to teach or
communication in general.
Literally it is He is
to “keep on teaching” that is keep on proclaim sound doctrine. He is to “Keep
on exhorting” that is to keep on encouraging people to do right by saying it over and
over. And he is to “keep on rebuking” (reproving) which describes an admonishing
in such a way that the one reproved is convicted of his/her sins and is compelled to admit
the error of their ways.
Conclusion
J. Vernon McGee explains this promise of
grace this way "I have said this again and again: God is
overloaded with grace. You and I just don’t know how gracious He is. He has an
abundance of grace. Grace has been defined as unmerited favor, but I call it love in
action. God didn’t save us by love. He gave His Son, and it is by His grace that we
are saved. He has so much of it. You may say, “Oh, I am so wrong on the inside, so
sinful.” Go to Him and tell Him you are wrong on the inside, and ask Him for grace to
overcome it. He will give you grace. He is the living Christ, interceding at God’s
right hand for you. Now some may doubt the surplus of His grace. May I say to you, all the
medicine in the world cannot cure the sick; the remedy must be taken. Likewise, God has
the grace, my friend; lay hold of it! It is possible for a man to die of thirst with a
pure spring of water right before him. He has to drink of it; he has to appropriate it
before it can save his life. You don’t blame soap and water for the fact that there
are dirty people in the world, do you? There is plenty of soap and water to clean you up,
my friend. “God resists the proud, but gives grace unto the humble.” This is the
kind of container that the grace of God must be carried in; it must be carried in an
humble individual." [J. Vernon
McGee. Thru The Bible Commentary. Vol. 5, (Nashville: Thomas Nelson) pp. 661-662]