The Unity of the Gospel

INTRODUCTION

We live in a world of division.

We’ll debate anything!

Food:

Pineapple on pizza

How do you eat a kit kat? Break it or bite it?

Crunchy vs. Creamy PB

Household:

TP over or under?

When is the milk carton empty? When it’s completely gone, or when there’s a couple of sips left?

Technology

Apple vs. Android

We divide over more serious things

Sports

Politics

Social Issues

Unfortunately, division even makes its way into the church

Decor

Food/drinks in the sanctuary

Church had 1 Cor. 11:22 posted outside their sanctuary. Massively out of context.

Divide over more serious things…

Worship style

Doctrine (sometimes necessary)

Point being, we live in a world that’s filled with division.

However, when we look at Titus, Paul’s telling us that in a world of division, the gospel brings unity.

As Christians, disciples in the making, we’re to be pursuing unity — especially within the church.

CONTEXT

Won’t go in depth here…

Theme of the book: The Gospel Produces Godliness

In particular, we’re going to see that the gospel should be creating/producing a heart of reconciliation within us — a heart that pursues unity with the rest of the body.

READ: Titus 3:1-11

PRAY

Titus 3, Paul points us to the unity of the gospel.

TENSION

Unity of the gospel… Familiar tension of the Bible of already/not yet.

In one sense, it’s already accomplished, but also still to come.

Ex.: Christ’s victory.

ALREADY: Won victory over sin and death through his resurrection.

NOT YET: Coming back as a triumphant king to defeat the Enemy once and for all, and bring us to live with him for the rest of eternity.

In this instance, there’s the already/not yet tension of unity brought by the gospel.

Ephesians 2 tells us that we’ve already been united together through Christ. We’ve been brought into one body — there’s unity that’s already been accomplished through the blood of Jesus.

We are already one in Christ.

HOWEVER, there’s also the not yet. We’re already united in Christ, yet we’re still called to pursue Unity as believers.

In other words, we’ve been made one family in Christ. Now the task is to keep that family together and functioning.

We’re to pursue unity.

Just like the gospel has already united us as believers, the gospel is also the basis of the unity we’re pursuing.

The gospel doesn’t just create unity through a one-time transaction. The gospel creates unity in our daily lives.

1. The Gospel creates unity through MEMORY.

Section prior, and following – do all these things.

How are they supposed to do that?

v. 3 – Paul reminds the readers of who they used to be.

“It wasn’t that long ago that you were just like them!”

You were:

Foolish – didn’t understand. The light hadn’t come on.

Disobedient – weren’t following God.

Deceived – believing the lies of Satan.

Satan always works through lies and half truths. When we sin, ultimately we’re believing the lie of Satan that in that moment, whatever we’re about to do will give us more joy/fulfillment than following God’s Word.

Enslaved

We couldn’t escape it. We were bound to serving our own desires.

Living in Malice

Lit: Wickedness.

Envy — we were never content/fulfilled.

Hateful

Detesting one another — lived in a constant state of division.

That’s who we used to be!

Paul calls the Cretan believers to remember that they used to live just like the rest of the world.

It can be easy for us to fall into the trap of spiritual superiority.

“I can’t believer they did that.”

“Well I would never act like them.”

Paul’s reminding us that we were part of that world not that long ago.

We talked/acted the same way.

John Bradford, mid-16th century, saw a group of prisoners being led to their execution. In that moment, he coined a phrase we still use — “There but for the grace of God go I.”

See, Paul calls us to remember who we were before Christ in order to remind us to be gracious with others..

To Remind us to have grace with others.

It’s easier to be gracious when you understand a person’s situation.

When you can empathize with what they’re going through.

Ex: New/Expecting Parents

There’s times that I see a young couple that’s expecting their first child.

Dad’s proud and giddy, mom’s glowing, they’re getting the house perfect and the nursery just right.

And I see them and think, just wait.

They come home from the hospital, and then life starts again.

They’re exhausted, up all hours of the night.

Mom’s not glowing anymore, she’s got bags under her eyes.

It’s easy in that moment to sort of grin and say “I told you so.”

But then I remember what it was like when we brought Thomas home from the hospital.

How it was just Lauren and me, having to figure all of this out.

I remember what it was like to be exhausted and then somebody hits you with “Just sleep when the baby sleeps!”

I remember how the little bottle pieces in the sink seemed to never end.

All of a sudden, it’s easier for me to be gracious — and maybe bring over a casserole or offer to wash some dishes.

Paul tells us to remember who we were before Christ. Why? Because it’s easier to give grace when we remember how much we needed it ourselves.

Luke 7 — Jesus goes to eat at Simon the Pharisee’s house.

While he’s there, a sinful woman comes and and cleans his feet with her tears, wiping them with her hair.

Then she anoints them with an expensive oil.

The Pharisee is indignant that Jesus is allowing this woman to touch him.

So Jesus tells a parable about a money lender.

One person owed him $22k, and another person owed him $2200.

The money lender forgives the debt of both men — wipes the slate clean, marks it as paid in full.

Jesus asks the question, which one will be more grateful — who in turn will love the money lender more?

Simon the Pharisee says, the one who owed more.

Jesus says, that’s right.

Luke 7:44–47 ESV

44 Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. 46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. 47 Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.”

It’s so much easier for us to be gracious — to love others and point them to Jesus — when we remember just how much we need grace ourselves.

The gospel creates unity when we remember who we were, because it allows us to extend the same grace that’s been so freely extended to us.

2. The Gospel creates unity through IDENTITY.

v. 4-7

Paul tells us that through the blood of Jesus we’ve been remade.

That identity that we just worked so hard to remember? That’s not who we are anymore!

We don’t have to live that way anymore.

Notice a few things about this new identity…

Identity is not from us (v.5)

HE saved us.

Paul reminds us that our salvation is solely dependent on the grace of God.

In case you missed it, he reiterates it…

Not by works done by us…

Our salvation has nothing do with who WE are, but rather who HE is. It has nothing to do with what WE’VE done, but everything to do with what HE’S done.

Identity is completely new (v.5)

There should be nothing left of the old self.

Watch the language he uses…

Washing of regeneration

Regeneration = New Birth/Born Again

Newborn’s first bath. They don’t come out cute — but then they get that first bath, and suddenly they look like a baby.

When Christ saves us — when we’re born again — he WASHES us clean.

He gets rid of all the gunk/crud of the old self and makes us a completely new creation.

Identity is full of the HS (v. 5-6)

God poured out his Spirit ABUNDANTLY through Jesus.

He didn’t hold any of it back!

As believers, God calls us to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

The good news? It’s available — he’s poured it out in abundance. There’s no shortage of it.

Identity is that of an heir (v. 7)

In Christ, we’ve been made heirs of the kingdom of God.

We’ve been adopted by God.

Shared before, I was adopted as a baby.

When Bill and Vicky Wright adopted me, I became a member of the Wright family.

In Jesus Christ, we’ve been made heirs. We had no birthright to the inheritance of God, and yet in his grace we’ve been adopted as sons and daughters, and written into the family will.

SUMMARY: The gospel changes everything about who we are.

We like to slip back into that old self.

Eph. 4 — TAKE OFF the old self, and PUT ON the new self.

We try to put the new self on over top of the old self.

REALITY: When you come to Jesus to be forgiven and made clean, there’s not a single part of your life that the gospel won’t affect if you let it.

The gospel is the foundation for unity because through it, we’re given a new identity — one we share with all other believers.

3. The Gospel creates unity through

v. 8-11

The gospel creates unity because we’ve all been given the same task — we’re working toward the same goal.

v. 8 — devote themseves to good works

He lists some in v. 1-3, and will go on to list more in the final paragraphs of the letter.

Ultimately, Jesus tells us in Matthew 5 that we’re to be salt and light — salt of the earth, light of the world.

Here’s the thing about salt and light — they’re proactive, not reactive.

They chagne their environement, rather than the other way around.

When you add salt to your food, it gets salty.

If add salt to a piece of chicken, the chicken gets salty. The salt doesn’t taste like chicken.

If you turn on a flashlight in a dark room, the room lights up — the flashlight doesn’t get darker.

We’re called to impact the world around us — not be impacted by the world.

If w’re focused on the same mission, we shouldn’t have time for anything else. But, because we’re human, Paul goes on to tell us how we’re to maintain unity in the mission.

AVOID:

Foolish debates (Controversy)

Don’t get involved in silly arguments that don’t matter.

Keyboard warriors. Arguments on social media — no one is going to change their mind/win. Just engaging in a foolish debate.

Danger: People think they’re bringing spiritual insight to an argument that was foolish to begin with.

Twist Scripture, fall into the trap of spiritual superiority.

Quarrels

This is what foolish debates turn into.

Quarreling seeks to wound. It’s looking for opportunities to inflict pain/damage.

It chooses sides.

There are no sides. We are one body in Christ.

There’s no your side/my side, their side/our side.

There’s only we/us. We’re united to one body through the gospel of Jesus Christ.

No sane person attempts to harm their own body.

Seeking to wound the other side is like sticking a knife in your own leg.

There’s no our way. There’s only God’s way, and a united body that must follow it.

Paul says AVOID quarreling.

Genealogies

How long you’ve been somewhere

Who your family is

Disputes about the law

Jewish law.

They were adding to the gospel.

Paul says these things are unprofitable and worthless. Don’t go anywhere near them.

They distract from the mission.

When someone does engage in them, Paul has strong words for that person….

v. 10-11

REJECT them. Get them out.

Divisive person — they’ve shown who they truly are. They have a character of divisiveness.

We make excuses.

“He’s always been like that,” “That’s just so-and-so.”

If they’ve always been like that, there’s a good chance they’re lost.

There’s no evidence of transformation.

That’s old self stuff — we’re called to take that off and put on the new self!

Bible says we can be identified by the fruit of our lives.

If they’re producing the fruit of bitterness and division, what’s that say about what’s happening internally?

Why does Paul take such a hard line here?

A congregation can’t survive a person who is divisive by nature.

Family — one person that everyone tenses up when they walk in the room.

Walk on eggshells around them.

They’re looking for the opportunity to pick a fight.

You can have a harmonious family, and one person can ruin the picture.

You can have a harmonious church, and one person can ruin the picture.

They’re like a cancer. They can’t be allowed to stay and fester.

Navy Seals — graph of performance and trust/integrity.

They’ll choose a candidate with low performance but high trust over a top performer.

A divisive person will tear their team apart.

Paul tells us there’s unity in the mission. We’re all working toward the same goal. Why avoid these things? Why reject a divisive person?

Because the mission is too critical to be compromised.

CONCLUSION

God’s heart is reconciliation.

So much so that he sent Jesus.

Maybe this morning you’re looking at Titus 3 and you see that list that Paul gives of what our lives look like before Christ, and you think man, that sounds alot like my life.

You don’t have to stay there!

The gospel changes everything.

Jesus is offering you a whole new identity — a fresh start, clean slate — adoption into his family.

Christian, but you’ve decided to put the old self back on for a while.

You’ve been made new, but you’re not living like it.

You’re living like you did before Christ — maybe you’re hearing this and even realizing that you’ve been an agent of division. You’ve sought to wound others in a foolish quarrel.

There’s beauty in repentance.

You’re a Christian, but you’ve been apathetic.

You’re not engaged in the mission we’re called to.

Today’s the day to jump in.

Ask the Lord to reignite the fire you once had.