Titus 2:11-15 - God gave Himself

This year has been a cleansing year for us.

Hilary spent a quarter of this year in one-room living spaces in the hospital, so when she came home to our two story house, she said, “we have entirely too much stuff.”

The questions started coming for Christmas, “What do you want?”

A dumpster. We don’t need more stuff to kick around our house.

I am a terrible gift giver.

I’ve been giving my wife the same gift since her birthday in 2023.

I’m especially not good as giving gifts at a particular time of the year.

What could they want/need?

This is the question we’re all trying to answer.

What is something memorable for this particular person, that will be the absolute best gift?

God is the giver of good gifts.

James 1:17 “17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.”

What is the best gift that God could give humanity that would induce our absolute awe and worship of Him?

The only gift God could give us that would surpass all other gifts, would be Himself.

Big Idea: God gave Himself in Christ

Stand to read

Titus 2:11–15 ESV

11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, 12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, 13 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works. 15 Declare these things; exhort and rebuke with all authority. Let no one disregard you.

Leader: This is God’s Word.

Everyone: Thanks be to God.

This is a clear understanding of the gospel.

He’s explaining to them what is necessary for us to know for salvation.

Titus 2:11 ESV

11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people,

SCREEN: Summary: “Grace” is God’s saving act given to sinners who believe in Christ.

The entire point of Christmas is to celebrate the incarnation of Jesus.

When we gather with family, sing Christmas carols, the entire point is that the eternal second Person of the Trinity, the Son of God became man to bring us God’s grace.

Christmas is the celebration that the grace of God has appeared.

Our problem is that so often we don’t receive this gift.

Variety of reasons.

Self-worth

I don’t deserve God’s grace.

Unwillingness to change.

I don’t want to go to hell, but I also won’t give you my life as Lord.

The entire point of Christmas is that God has given us the greatest gift: Himself.

Gospel presentation

Jesus came bringing our salvation.

Jesus accomplished our salvation by

becoming man, dying on the cross, and raising to life.

Jesus laid down His life so that you and I could be forgiven and made right with God.

When you put your trust in Jesus for salvation, you are declared right with God and are justified!

Everyone say, “justified”

That means that we are accepted by God.

At one time, we were not acceptable to God because of sin.

Some of you are still not acceptable to God.

But the grace of God appeared! Although we were guilty and dead in sins, Jesus died so that we could be accepted by God.

If you’re not a Christian, you can become a Christian and be accepted by God by trusting in Jesus!

The Son of God gave Himself so that you can have new life!

Transition

When we’ve been given new life, that comes with a new way to live.

Church, what everyone needs to know is

God gave Himself to give us a way to live

When you put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ, you can have a new life, which means that we must be changed.

We cannot encounter the salvation of God and remain the same as we used to.

Are you expected to be perfect? No.

We are expected to be obedient.

Brian Bowman told me I need to eat better/exercise

“I don’t have time/so much going on.”

Send Network had released a book about pastors and health.

“Eh, I don’t have time. I’ve got too much going on.”

It took a doctor telling me that I need to get it together before I actually changed.

I started caring about what I was eating, I started doing jiu jitsu, I started drinking water.

You can’t keep doing the same thing your doing and expect to it to change.

Paul is not going to call us to perfect, but he’s going to call us in a new direction.

You don’t have to be perfect, but you have to be going different way.

Titus 2:12–13 ESV

12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, 13 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,

Training us

When we are changed by Jesus, He leads us to take the next step in living lives marks by ongoing repentance, faith, and change.

These things are not how you become a Christian—We live this way because we are Christians.

This is the Christian life.

God’s grace causes a negative and positive effect.

Negative: To renounce ungodliness and worldly passions (v. 12a)

Repentance means to turn away from evil/renounce sinful and ungodly things.

The things that rob of affections for Jesus.

I have a really hard time when I get hooked on a tv show/long form story.

I get distracted by morally neutral things that don’t stir up my love for Jesus.

Not only do we cut out negative things, God’s grace enables us to pursue positive things.

Positive: To live self controlled/upright/godly in the present age (v. 12b)

God’s grace allows us to live with divine norms.

We live as God’s people now because God’s Kingdom is here now.

As we wait (v. 13)

We can endure the trials and sufferings of this world because of “our blessed hope.”

This hope isn’t just wishful thinking or optimism that the world will get better.

We live with the confident expectation that God will do what He promised.

We sit in a moment in history where we anticipate the return of Jesus, where He will make all things new.

Turn to your neighbor “Jesus is going to come back.”

When Jesus returns, we will be raised with Him!

When He returns we will see the glory of the Son of God, Jesus Christ!

Transition

But what do we do in the meantime? **Bring tone back down to a 3-4**

The world is not what it will be when Jesus comes back, but God’s grace has this transformative effect on sinners before He comes.

Grace does not produce perfection, but it does enable us to live godly lives, in worship as we wait because Jesus “gave Himself for us to redeem us…” (v. 14)

Titus 2:14 ESV

14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

Jesus laid down His life with the intention to make us a people zealous for good works (v. 14)

He died to redeem us and to purify us “for Himself.”

The Church is Christ’s special people who are marked by being “zealous for good works.”

Church,

God gave Himself to give us we have a new purpose

This passage shows us that God’s grace is the foundation for godly living today.

When we trust in Jesus’s dead on the cross and His resurrection, we have hope for His future return.

That impacts how we live today.

This type of grace changes people lives.

We are addicted to life-change.

We want to see more people come to know this grace.

We want this church to grow and more people come to know Jesus and grow in their faith.

What do we need to do to ensure this happens?

What is our new purpose?

Titus 2:15 ESV

15 Declare these things; exhort and rebuke with all authority. Let no one disregard you.

We’re going to proclaim this grace has come to the world. Starting with those we love.

God has given us the greatest gift in the world.

Jesus gave Himself up and rose again so that we can be set free, changed, and given a real life.

There is not a person you know that doesn’t need to hear the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Paul tells Titus to preach these things faithfully to God’s people.

Titus’s job is to teach people sound theology that results in gospel-centered lives.

What we believe influences how we live, and how we live demonstrates what we believe.

Christians who say they believe the gospel of Jesus Christ must live in such a way that people can tell they actually believe the gospel.

This means that we live like the kingdom is here now and we’re going to help people take the next step toward Jesus.

Take the Next Step

Receive God’s gift—Himself.

How will you receive God?

Will you reject Him?

Will you surrender your life to His grace and acknowledge Him as Lord of your life?

What do you need to repent of?

What do you need to change?

What are you going to step into?

Give someone God’s news.