“The Call on the Church”

Scripture: Titus 3:1-11

The Christian life is anything but easy - we are to center on that “In the world, but not of the world” thing. The world distracts and confuses us all the time, and almost without knowing it, we can revert to being imitators of the ways of earth, instead of imitators of Christ (Ephesians 4:31-5:2). But the two things we have going for us are these: 1) we have the Spirit of God to remind us, and to get us back on track, and 2) we have the forgiveness and righteousness that faith in Jesus Christ can bring to our lives. But that doesn’t mean we can stop trying to live the better life.

Our text today is a reminder of what a Christ-like life is all about. We can read about it, we can study it, we can remind each other about it, we can even think about it, but Paul’s advice to the Church is worthless unless we actually do something about it. Today’s text is being offered, not as a condemnation of anyone’s life or actions, but simply as a challenge to live the life that all of us is called to!

In Matthew 5:14-16, the Lord calls his Church to be “the light of the world”, just as he also is that light (John 8:12). This plea involves two things – first, we are to be a Christian example to the people of earth, and second, we are to expose their ways for the failure that they are. And the order that I placed these expectations in is intentional. Unless we live a Godly life to begin with, our revealing of the sin of earth will be laughed at – we will be seen as “the pot calling the kettle black”, so to speak. Our Christian witness must be both in the life we live, as well as in the words we speak.

Read Titus 3:1-3

Paul starts right out with obey the laws that you live under (Romans 13:1-7), as well as the Laws of God. This is reminiscent of Christ’s words when he told the Pharisees to “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.” (Mark 12:13-17). Of course, when there is a conflict between the things of God and the things of humanity, God’s way must always prevail.

But the apostle doesn’t end with this - he continues with even more. He says that we are to always be ready to do good. The implication is that the opportunities come suddenly, and it is so easy to miss them. But we must also be aware that God’s version of goodness is quite different from the world’s! In Matthew 6:1-4, we read that our good works must be kept strictly between the one receiving and the one who is giving. This is to keep us humble, and to keep from receiving the admiration and honor of others. We should also never expect to be repaid, for anything and in any way, for our gifts of goodness toward others (Luke 14:12-14).

Don’t slander – don’t lie about others, either intentionally or accidentally! Don’t gossip, don’t reveal confidences, and don’t talk about others, regardless of who they may be or what they may have done. And practice – all the time (!) – to keep confidences. Breaking a confidence that someone has asked us to keep is the quickest and surest way to tarnish your Christian witness and destroy a friendship!

Be peaceful, considerate, and humble toward everyone! Never put yourself above others, regardless of who they may be.

To do otherwise in any of these things, is to live in the way of earth. It is the way we used to be – dedicated to personal glory and honor. Seeking foolish pleasures, being disobedient to all authority, acting deceitfully toward others, as well as being deceived by them, enslaving others in sinfulness and becoming slaves to those same sinful ways.
Hateful, spiteful, envious of what others have – engrossed in worldly passions and possessions, going against everything that God is and calls us to be. We were in and of the world then, but can be that no longer.

Read Titus 3:4-8

And Paul lifts up the reasons that we have to, and must, change - that by faith in Jesus Christ, we have been saved from the consequences of the worldly life that we once lived, and we must now live for salvation. It wasn’t because we deserved it, it wasn’t because we earned it, it wasn’t because we are self-justified, it isn’t because we inherited salvation from our parents or other ancestors – it is because Jesus won our forgiveness at Calvary, and by faith in him and all that he has taught and done, we receive his gift of eternal life by divine grace, and by no other way in all creation.

Paul reminds us, and wants us to remind each other, of the power of God’s grace, so that we will continue to live the Godly life. That is what accountability is all about – to watch together for those good opportunities; to remain humble and considerate of others; to love the ways of God and to reject the ways of earth.
We need each other, nearly as much as we need Jesus, if we are to break the hold that sin has on our lives. We pray for each other, we encourage each other, we challenge each other, we hold each other accountable, and above all, we love each other. And we keep our conversations and confessions with each other private.

The Christian life can never be a solitary existence. It must be lived within community. The Church is an all-encompassing entity, and not only must we live within it, but the Church also lives within each of us.

Read Titus 3:9-11

Almost as an afterthought, Paul throws out a few more caveats for us to consider, and these are part of the negative interactions that we sometimes see happening within the Church! These attributes are most often seen within diverse thought and errant teaching. He defines them as “foolish” – usually because the extremely minor differences that we argue over (whether we see them as minor or not!) aren’t worth our time or effort! In Paul’s day, one of the predominate issues of discussion involved inclusion of Gentiles in the faith, and how closely they would have to comply with the law of Moses. Did they have to be circumcised? Did they have to submit to Jewish dietary laws? Did they have to convert to Judaism, and submit to Jewish authority?
Foolish, indeed! Shouldn’t faith in Jesus Christ and submission to his authority be enough?

But before we laugh at folks in the first century church, we need to remember that we have the same types of “silly” disagreements today. One of the ones I heard not too long ago was over the gift of tongues. One person said that the gift is still being given and proclaimed today, while the other side believed that it was only given to the first century Church and was no longer an active gift. The first believed that the gift of tongues was the only valid evidence of salvation, while the other believed that a public confession and surrender was the only proper witness.

Personally, I think an obvious and changed life is the best evidence – one that reflects Christ and all that he stands for, and I think that Paul is leaning that way in his letter to Titus. The change that is to occur is not only within our own personality and heart, but also in the ways we interact with others. And that interaction must be nearly as identical with those within the Church, as it is with those who have yet to come to Christ.

Be that changed person, and as others come to see the difference that Christ has made in your life (and there is no question that they will see it!), they, too may exchange their earthly robes for the far more glorious ones that Almighty God is holding out to them. And that is a change worth rejoicing over!