Titus 3:3-8

“At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. 4 But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. 8 This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.”

It’s here that Paul reveals the:

• Kindness of the King – Some of us only view God as angry and judgmental and therefore want to avoid Him. But Christ is kind

• Lavish Love – God not only feels love toward you but He focused His love on you through sending His Son as the substitute sacrifice to die for your sin. When you are struggling to see and feel God’s love hold onto the promise of Zephaniah 3:17: “The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.”

• Magnificent Mercy – Verse 5 is an excellent verse to remember when someone says that they are trying to get to heaven by their own efforts: “He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.” We need mercy because as we learned in verse 3, we are in a miserable condition. Instead of moving toward God, we are actually moving away from Him.

• Greatness of Grace – Grace is God’s unmerited favor that pardons us from our guilt. You and I don’t deserve to be forgiven but grace grants us freedom. You see the bible reveals that we are far worse off than we ever thought, and yet far more loved than we ever dreamed. Grace teaches us that God does for others what we would never do for them. We would save the not-so-bad. God starts with the scum and then works downward from there. Grace is a gift that costs everything to the giver and nothing to the receiver. It is given to those who don’t deserve it, barely recognize it, and hardly appreciate it. What about you, are you grateful for grace? In the end grace means that no one is too big a sinner to be saved. Do you have some things in your background that you would be ashamed to talk about in public? Fear not. God knows all about it, and His grace is greater than your sin. Grace also means that some people may be too good to be saved. That is, they may have such a high opinion of themselves that they think they don’t need God’s grace. God’s grace cannot help you until you recognize that you need to receive it.