Here are some excerpts from a sermon I wrote for the Sunday of June 3:
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. (Titus 2:9-15,
NIV 1984)
Just a couple weeks ago, it was David’s* birthday. I
knew David for a number of years, and he was adopted by a family we knew in the
area. I had the opportunity to spend time with him regularly as he adjusted to
this new life, playing in our woods and treehouse, working on some of his
schoolwork, and playing games on our friends’ trampoline. Because he now
belonged to a new family, he had changed his first name, and also taken on our
friends’ last name.
But just changing his name wasn’t the ultimate goal of
adoption. Our friends wanted David to have a new life. He had been adopted into
a family that loved him, but unless he more and more accepted what it meant for
his life that he belonged to a new family, the name change wouldn’t have meant
much. And David did change, some. But he had profoundly deep hurts and other
issues. He ultimately in effect decided to go his own direction away from his
family, and not to live this new life that he had been given. It’s still so sad
to think of all that he never became even though he was offered such a gift by
being adopted as our friends’ own son.
This image of adoption may help us as we look through our
passage this morning.
A Teaching Grace
As we look back at Titus 2 verse 11, the first thing we
run across is that God’s grace has appeared. Everything else flows from grace.
And this grace brings salvation, ready to welcome all people who believe.
...
But one critique of grace is that it makes people lazy.
If we just have to receive it, why should it matter what kind of lives we live?
We’re set, so why worry about living a new kind of life?
But then we read that this grace “teaches us to say ‘No’
to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and
godly lives in this present age...”
God’s grace teaches us. It isn’t something we can receive
and yet remain the same. It puts claims on our life, just as being adopted into
a new family involves living in a new way ... We are saved, and now as God’s
children we are called to live as we were always meant to live in relation to
ourselves, others, and God. “self-controlled, upright, and godly lives...” So
this isn’t cheap grace; it has to change us. And in our relationship with
Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit, we are able to change.
...
His Very Own
And then comes my favorite part of the passage. We read,
“...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.” (emphasis added)
Jesus redeemed us from all that we had been defined by
before. And now all Christians—the Church—are a people who are His very own. We
belong to Jesus. The word used for the phrase “his very own” is only found here
in the New Testament. And it actually refers back to a couple places in the Old
Testament. The nation of Israel is described as God’s “treasured possession”
whom He has chosen, and this is explained as a motivation for why Israel is
called to live as they are. Like a parent chooses to adopt a particular child
as their own, God chose Israel even though they were small and insignificant.
And God chooses us, the Church. We had turned our backs on Him, but He chose us
as His very own.
When a child is adopted, it’s not just so they can have
the family’s last name. It’s so they can live a whole new life, growing up with
a new future. And the parents hope that their son or daughter will mature and
find a job that fits their gifts, and live a life that helps others and is
productive, “eager to do what is good.” Because we belong to God, we have a new
life to live.
Other Claims on Our Lives
Even as Christians, it is so easy to forget that we
belong to God. So much of our culture assumes that we belong to ourselves—it’s my
life to do what I want. American Express has the slogan, “Your life. Your card.
Your Choice.” Or the idea that I belong to my desires...think of Sprite’s
slogan “Obey your thirst.” Or that we ultimately belong to our family, or to
our country. But our confidence will always be betrayed by these things. The
only One to whom we ultimately belong, and who can ultimately keep us safe, is
God.
We all struggle at times with remembering and living this.
And for any who still haven’t accepted God’s gracious offer, He extends it to
all. God has a big family of adopted children, and there’s more than enough
room for anyone who believes.
...
Living As His Own
In this next week, I would encourage us to regularly ask
ourselves, “What does it mean for this moment, knowing that I belong to Jesus
Christ?”
Maybe we or someone we care about is struggling with sickness,
depression, or loss, even to the point of feeling like we can’t pray. But when
we ask ourselves this question, we are reminded that God ultimately takes care
of those who belong to Him, whether in life or death. And the Holy Spirit prays
for us even when we can’t. Isaiah 43 can also help remind us: “But now, this is
what the LORD says—he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel:
‘Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.”
...
Or maybe we are considering a lifestyle or a choice that
is destructive or apathetic towards God. Remembering that we belong to Him, and
in His strength, we are challenged to live the new life for which God has saved
us.
Maybe we are worried about taking risks or surrendering to
God in our personal lives or in our church...Remembering that we belong to God,
we know that our lives are invested in a place far more secure than even the
safest stocks. Knowing this, we can be free to give up our all to our God as
His witnesses.
And always, we remember that since we belong to God, our
lives have been completely redefined. We are redeemed and cleansed by Jesus
Christ to be His people, loving God and others, enthusiastic to do what is
good.
...
Final Words
As Christians, God adopts us as His very own, not because
of who we are or anything we’ve done, but because of His grace. Our life and
work flows out of this new identity. Reading again from the end of our passage,
Jesus “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.”
As we close, we have the opportunity to affirm our faith—how
we belong to God, and how we are empowered to live in this new identity. Let’s
read from the Heidelberg Catechism, question and answer one.
As believers in Jesus Christ, we are asked: “What is your
only comfort in life and in death?”
“That I am not my own,
but belong—
body and soul,
in life and in
death—
to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ.
He has fully
paid for all my sins with his precious blood,
and has set me
free from the tyranny of the devil.
He also
watches over me in such a way
that not a
hair can fall from my head
without the
will of my Father in heaven:
in fact, all things must work together for my
salvation.
Because I belong to him,
Christ, by his Holy Spirit,
assures me of eternal life
and makes me wholeheartedly willing and ready
from now on to live for him.” **
* (Not his real name)
** Ecumenical Creeds and Reformed Confessions (CRC Pubs, 1988)
** Ecumenical Creeds and Reformed Confessions (CRC Pubs, 1988)
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