Saved… 

Part 14 – To live a good life    

Since both steps in making us holy are our Saviour’s doing, is there any part we play in our being holy?  

No, there is no part we play. That job was given to Jesus. “HE saved us,” Titus 3:4-5. He’s the one “purifying” us (Titus 2:14). It is totally the “grace of God (therefore) that brings salvation,” Titus 2:11. And totally “NOT because of anything we’ve done.” It’s purely “because of his mercy,” Titus 3:5.

But what is the purpose of Jesus making us holy, in both redeeming us by his death and renewing us into people like himself through the Holy Spirit? Does the book of Titus cover that too? 

Yes, Titus 1:16, which speaks of people who “claim they know God, but by their actions they deny him,” which, unfortunately, makes then “unfit for doing anything good.” They’re basically worthless, no good at all.  

But the reason Jesus “gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify himself a people that are his very own,” Titus 2:14, is that we’d be “eager to do what is good.” The purpose for Jesus making us holy, therefore, is to enable us to become really good people. And it’s not out of some weird obligation or fear or feeling of superiority that we’re good. Instead, we find ourselves “eager to do good.” We can’t help it. 

And it’s wonderful. It makes “older men,” Titus 2:2, into wise, cool and calm, patient people, that makes them thoroughly worthy of respect. And “older women,” verses 3-5, just love making home a real home, so that young girls growing up see what’s possible and how wonderfully it all works. And “young men” too, verses 6-8, learn from their elders the value of self-control in speech and action, enabling them to keep their heads while all about them are losing theirs. 

Why? So that no matter how young or old we are, or what situations we find ourselves in, the good we do is so noticeably and obviously good “that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us,” verse 8. And what they see in us “makes the teaching about God our Saviour attractive,” verse 10…(continues tomorrow)