Titus 3:3-5 • V. 3. “For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. • V. 4. “But after that the kindness and love of God our Savior toward man appeared. • V. 5. “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost.
Titus 3:6-7 • V. 6. “Which He shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior. • V. 7. “That being justified by His grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
Side One:What We Were, Titus 3:3. • Foolish. (Anoetos) “not understanding, unwise, without understanding,” Weust. • Because of a lack of information. Eph. 3:3-4. • Like those described in Romans 1:21-22! • Disobedient (apeithes), “obstinacy, obstinate rejection of the will of God (Vine) • Ephesians 2:2; 5:6; Colossians 3:6 • Deceived (planao), seduced, or led astray. • Matthew 24:4-5,11; I John 3:7 • Or self-deceived! Galatians 6:7; Ephesians 4:17-18.
What We Were (continued) • Serving Divers’ lusts and pleasures.” • “Enslaved to various lusts and pleasures (NASB) • John 8:34; Romans 6:16. • “Living in malice and envy.” • “Malice,” (kakia) “ill will, desire to injure.” Thayer. • Envy, “feeling of displeasure produced by witnessing the advantage…of others.” Matt. 27:18 • “Hateful and hating one another.” • “hateful” (stugetos), “hated, destable,” Weust. • “hating one another” (active sense and natural result of being “hateful,”) Wesut.
Side Two –What We Are, Titus 3:5,7. • “Saved” (sozo) “Deliverance from danger…” Vine. • From the bondage of sin, Matt. 1:21; Heb. 7:25; James 1:21; I Peter 3:21. • “Justified by his grace.” • (Dikaioo) “to show to be right or righteous…the legal and formal acquittal from guilt by God..” • Biblically, one is justified: • By the grace of God, Titus 3:7. • By faith, Romans 5:1. • By the blood of Christ, Romans 5:9. • By works, James 2:24.
What We Are (Continued) • “Made heirs,” Titus 3:7. • Kleronomos (Gk), “one who obtains a lot or portion, especially of an inheritance,” Vine. • Romans 8:16-17; I Peter 1:4. • Have “the Hope of Eternal life,” Titus 3:7. • Elpis (Gk), “favorable and confident expectation; it has to do with the unseen and the future.” Rom.8:24 • Christians live in hope of: • Eternal life, Titus 1:2; 3:7 • Salvation, I Thessalonians 5:8. • Of the glory of God, Romans 5:2. cf. Hebrews 6:18-19.
The Process Which Made this PossibleViewed Negatively: • “Not by works of righteousness which we have done…” Titus 3:5. • Apart from the works of faith we cannot be saved, James 2:24. However, we are not saved because we have done enough good works to merit salvation! • “When we were without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly,” Romans 5:6. That includes us!
Positively, He Saved us “By” (dia) “by means of” • “By the washing of Regeneration,” Tit 3:5. • The “old man” of sin must be replaced by a new self. This involves “the washing of regeneration,” or the “washing” by which one is regenerated, or born again. John 3:3-5. • This includes baptism, Romans 6:1-6; 6:17-18.
Positively, He Saved UsBy“the Renewing of the Holy Spirit” • Renewing (anakainos), “to make new.” • People who are scripturally baptized must walk in “newness of life,” Rom. 6:4. • “Renewing” and “Regeneration” are similar concepts. “Regeneration” occurs when one is baptized, John 3:5. “Renewing” is an on-going process, which begins when one obeys the gospel, but involves continually renewing the “mind,” Rom. 12:2 by feeding upon the word which was revealed by the Holy Spirit, and results in proper character development.
The Divine MotivationsWhich Made our Salvation Possible: • “The Kindness and love of God,” Tit. 3:4. • In contrast to our being “hateful and hating one another,” Tit. 3:3; Eph. 2:7. “God is love,” I John 4:8. • God’s “Mercy,” Titus 3:5. • From eleos (Gk), “the outward manifestation of pity • God is “rich in mercy,” Ephesians 2:4! • “His Grace,” Titus 3:7. • “Charis” (charis), “that kindness by which God bestows favors upon the ill-deserving and grants to sinners the pardon of their offences… • “By Grace… through faith,” Ephesians 2:8. God’s active grace and man’s obedient faith.
Conclusion: • Titus 3:3 describes, in part or whole, every “alien sinner.” • Titus 3:5,7 set forth the amazing results of becoming a child of God. One is saved, justified, he lives in hope of eternal life. • In view of what happen when one becomes a Christian, why would anyone hesitate to become a Christian??? • Could it be they don’t “see” themselves asthey really are; they don’t sense their own lostness??
