What’s your “why”? > Titus 2:11-15
2:11 Paul has given Titus some teachings which will really challenge the Christians in Crete – and us! What reasons are there for embracing the hard life of being a disciple? Paul starts with what Christ has already done: brought salvation.
2:12 In the present, we are being trained for faithfulness.
2:13 In the future, we shall enjoy the return of our King.
2:14 That King has given us an identity that can never be shaken, taken, or broken. He gives our lives purpose and meaning.
2:15 This crucial reality is what Titus must now teach.
Emphasis: God’s grace in salvation leads to a specific kind of living as we await Christ’s return.
Context: We read earlier in the chapter about how each group in the church is to respond to God’s authority. Now we see what our motivation should be – we see the “why.”
Theme: A redeemed, purified, zealous Christian life is what we are called to based upon what Jesus has already done and will bring to completion. Our lives example His grace.
Gospel: This kind of living is a response to Christ – He has redeemed us through His sacrifice, His work as our High Priest purifies us, and His return is what must drive us.
Applications: We are saved by grace and not by works – and that same grace is what drives us to respond to God’s past, present, and future mercy through our very lives. Faithful living matters, because it is a real-life example pointing each other and the world around us to the Good News – and it is how we respond to God’s goodness given to all who believe.
