Introduction

There are very few more exciting events in the life of a church than baptisms. It’s a wonderful blessing to rejoice over the new life God gives in Christ and to see people publicly declare their commitment to follow Christ. So, I’d like to consider a familiar text which beautifully articulates the gospel we visualize in baptism. I’d like to read vv. 1–7 for context, but I’m only going to cover vv. 3–7 (read).

There’s no question that religious people are often incredibly arrogant. The Pharisees of Jesus’ day are exhibit #1. They loved to look down their noses at other people. They aren’t alone. We’ve all met people who use their religion to despise others.

But ironically, I can’t think of any vices more antithetical to true gospel Christianity than pride because the gospel demands a big view of sin and an even bigger reliance on grace and mercy. There is no room for pride at the foot of the cross.

Titus 3:1–7 challenge us that this perspective must shape how I view the outside world. Specifically, v. 1 commands us to obey government authorities, and v. 2 commands us to treat all people with integrity and grace. These things are not easy when rulers are corrupt, greedy, and oppressive, and when many unbelievers are selfish, pigheaded jerks who treat us badly.

I can see how Titus’s Cretan congregation would be tempted to bitterly snarl at this corruption and then use it as justification to despise sinners and treat them poorly. Therefore, Paul brings them back to the foot of the cross to say that we have no right to despise unbelievers or treat them poorly because we are no better than they are. We are what we are only by God’s grace.

In the process, Paul gives us one of the clearest, best explanations of the gospel in the NT. He powerfully reminds us that we are great sinners who serve an even greater Savior. Paul makes this point by first reminding us in v. 3 of…

I.  Our Natural Condition (v. 3)

This verse is not good news. I’ve never seen a Hallmark card that says, “Happy Birthday you are a foolish, disobedient, deceived sinner.” No one naturally likes to think of himself this way.

But Christians understand that v. 3 is essential to the gospel. You can’t appreciate the cross or the symbolism of baptism without a strong doctrine of depravity and sin. So maturing Christians do not ignore their depravity; instead, they cultivate an ever-increasing awareness of our natural corruption that drives them to an ever-increasing appreciation of God’s love. Therefore, it’s good for us to dwell on this verse. 

First, before Christ, I was “foolish,” and similarly, I was “deceived.” “The god of this world (i.e., Satan) has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God” (2 Cor 4:4).

This is humbling because we all like to believe we are objective thinkers and that we have a good sense of reality and truth. But God says we are all naturally deceived fools because Satan has blinded our eyes. That’s what I am apart from God’s grace.

Then v. 3 adds that I was “disobedient.” Everyone will admit that they disobey some of the time, but God says disobedience is not out of character; it was my character. We are not merely victims of our environment who occasionally do bad things. We were born in rebellion against God. We deny his authority, and we refuse to repent of our sin and be saved.

Next, we are “enslaved to various lusts and pleasures.” The unbeliever wants to believe he his sin serves him, but God says he serves sin. Yes, his sin often brings temporary pleasure, but it never satisfies, and it quickly begins to control us. The old saying is true, “Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay.” That’s where the unbeliever lives.

Then the final four descriptions concern the unbeliever’s failure to truly love his neighbor. First, he is plagued with “malice and envy.” Our society talks a lot about love, but it practices malice far more. And instead of rejoicing over people’s blessings, we often envy them and rejoice in their suffering.

Yes, no one feels malice and envy toward all people, but malice and envy dominate society because they are deeply imbedded in the hearts of sinners.

They result in the final two descriptions, “hateful” and “hating one another.” The hippies have been trying to eradicate hatred for 60 years, but Americans have only grown ruder and more caustic. It’s because hate is essential to the sin nature. Therefore, society will always ripe be with mutual hatred.

So, that’s what we are apart from Christ. Therefore Christian, don’t use v. 3 as an excuse to gripe and complain about how bad the world is; instead, use it to reflect on yourself. This is what you were when God found you. He didn’t love you because you were innocent and attractive. Instead, he loved you in your sin, and he rescued you from a horrible state.

Don’t ever lose this perspective. It is essential context for understanding your relationship to God and for relating to the world. Whenever I see vile depravity, I must humbly remember that it would be me but for God’s grace.

And if you have not received Christ, understand that v. 3 describes you. You might say, “No way. I’m a good person.” But if you are honest with yourself, and you see yourself compared to God, you know v. 3 is true. You are a sinner. I know that’s not pleasant to hear, but the only way you can fully appreciate the salvation God provides is to come to grips with v. 3. You must accept the bad news to appreciate the good news. And thankfully, the rest of this passage has some great news. Notice in vv. 4–5…

II.  God’s Generous Mercy (vv. 4–5a)

In the Greek, vv. 4–7 are one long, complicated sentence, but the whole sentence is built around the central fact that “God our Savior…saved us.” Specifically, God the Father determined not to leave us enslaved to our sin and destined to face God’s judgment. Instead, he provided a way for us to be saved (i.e., rescued, delivered) from both the penalty and the power of sin.

And vv. 4–5a emphasize the fact that this salvation was not based on my  loveliness; instead, it is entirely the fruit of God’s generous mercy. Notice first, that God’s generous mercy is…

The Motive for Salvation: We all like to think of ourselves as loveable people and that’s not entirely false. You are made in the image of God and because of God’s common grace none of us are as bad as we could be. There is something good and loveable in all people.

But our text is clear that whatever good resides in us, it is far from enough to compel God to love us sacrificially. The malignancy of v. 3 overwhelms any good in the heart of sinners.

Therefore, the “but” that begins v. 4 is incredibly important. Verse 3 says I am depraved and unlovable, but “the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared.” Praise God that he is not a heartless judge blindly meeting out justice. Our God is kind.

And he loves sinners. The Greek term for love in v. 4 is philanthropia. We get our word philanthropy from it. A philanthropist is someone who generously uses his wealth to provide for others. Our God is very rich, and his love compels him to generously act for our salvation.

Therefore, if we look at the manger or the cross, and our primary response is, “I must be really special for God to do that for me,” we have completely missed the boat. God did not primarily love the world because of my character but because of his. He did not love us because we are so special but because he is so generous.

The old hymn says, “I stand amazed in the presence of Jesus the Nazarene and wonder how He could love me, a sinner, condemned, unclean. How marvelous! How wonderful! And my song shall every be! How marvelous! How wonderful! Is my Savior’s love for me.” Praise God this his generous mercy motivated him to provide salvation. Then notice in v. 5 that God’s generous mercy is also…

The Basis for Salvation: When v. 4 says that God’s kindness “appeared,” and v. 5 says “he saved us,” Paul is referring to the Father’s decree to send Jesus into the world to live a perfect life, to die as an atoning sacrifice, and to rise in victory. This is what God did based on his incredible love.

And v. 5a especially emphasizes the fact that that this work of Christ is the basis of our salvation. Paul makes this point with a very important contrast. We are not saved “on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness.” Instead, God saves “according to His mercy.” We know from other passages in Scripture that God provided this mercy through the death and resurrection of Christ. It’s absolutely mercy, but it’s not a baseless mercy. Christ paid the penalty for sin so that God could be just but also merciful.

And the contrast in v. 5 is essential for understanding the nature of this mercy and how it is applied to us. Afterall, most people will admit that they need some level of mercy. They know that they sin, and that they don’t fully measure up to God’s holiness. But they also want to take a little credit for their salvation. They want salvation to be a team effort where they deserve much of God’s favor and then God makes up the difference.

But that’s not what God says. He says our righteous deeds contribute nothing to our salvation; we are saved solely through the mercy of God provided in Christ. There is nothing I can add to what Jesus already did; therefore, I can’t take any credit for my salvation. I am wholly and completely a debtor to God’s mercy.

Therefore, I don’t have any right to boast about my salvation or to hold up my new life in Christ as a point of superiority over the unbeliever. I’m no better than anyone else. I was just a disobedient fool, enslaved to sin and malice when God generously reached out and saved me.

Praise God for that generous mercy. “How marvelous! How wonderful! Is my Savior’s love for me.” All of this should stir me to great humility. I am a great sinner, but Christ is a great Savior.

Maybe you need to receive this salvation. Maybe for the first time you are coming to grips with the depth of your sin. It’s not a great feeling, but the only way you will fully cast yourself on Christ is to first come to the end of yourself. You can be saved today if you will repent of your sin and put your faith in the mercy of God that is available in Christ. Please receive Christ today. God is fully of mercy, and he is ready to shower you with it if you will come to him for mercy today. So, praise God for his generous mercy. Then notice in vv. 5b–7…

III.  God’s Powerful Grace (vv. 5b–7)

The remainder of the passage lays out 5 blessings that come to us Jesus’ death on the cross is applied to us by faith. First…

God removes my sin. Verse 5 says that when God saves us, he “washes” away our sin. Baptism symbolizes this fact. “John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And all the country of Judea was going out to him, and all the people of Jerusalem; and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins” (Mark 1:4–5).

John’s baptism illustrated God’s forgiveness through repentance. We are all dirty with sin, but when God forgives, he washes it all away. As a result, I am no longer soiled with sin; instead, I am perfectly clean without any trace of pollution. What a marvelous gift of God that he washes away our sin. The 2nd blessing is…

God renews my heart. There are 4 major concepts at the end of v. 5, “washing,” “regeneration,” “renewal,” and “the Holy Spirit.” There are a few ways we could see the relationship among them, but the best view is that washing results in regeneration and renewal both of which are the work of the Holy Spirit.

So, regeneration and renewal are similar works of the Spirit that happen at conversion. And in this verse, they turn the focus from the removal of guilt through forgiveness to the fact that God also changes my heart. The idea is almost identical to 2 Corinthians 5:17, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”

Verse 3 already assumed that salvation changes everything about me. It doesn’t merely say that I’ve been forgiven for being foolish, disobedient, etc.; rather, it assumes that I am no longer defined by these things. This is regeneration changes my character. I’m not the same person I was.

Baptism also symbolizes this incredible miracle. “Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life” (Rom 6:4).

When we are united with Christ in salvation, and we are “buried in the likeness of his death.” We leave the old way of life in the grave with Jesus. And we are “raised to walk in newness of life.” Praise God that the Holy Spirit rescues us from the life of v. 3. I am alive in Christ. The 3rd blessing is…

God indwells me (v. 6). Some people like to claim that the Trinity was an invention of the 4th century, but notice the Trinitarian doctrine of this verse. God the Father poured out the Holy Spirit through Jesus Christ. Paul believed in the Trinity.

That said, v. 6 teaches that I am not merely a new creature; I have the Holy Spirit always with me, convicting me of sin, strengthening my faith, and empowering my obedience. The Holy Spirit is a wonderful blessing of salvation. The 4th blessing is…

God justifies me. Verse 7 says we are, “justified by his grace.” Justification is God legal declaration based on Christ’s atoning work. He credits Christ’s righteousness to us and declares us not guilty even though on a practical level, we are still sinners.

Justification is essential to our salvation because it is our only hope of escaping God’s judgment. Without it, we all are doomed to endure God’s wrath in hell. But because God is generously merciful, he saved me by justifying me by his grace.

And Romans 1:16–17, Galatians 2:16, etc., all teach that this incredible blessing is available simply through faith. I don’t earn justification; I simply receive it by trusting in the finished work of Christ. The 5th blessing is…

God provides an inheritance (v. 7b). All who are in Christ experience the blessings of the gospel every day. We are forgiven, regenerated, indwelt, and justified, along with many other things. But all of it is only a foretaste of the wonderful blessings that await us in heaven. Our full inheritance will be truly incredible.

Conclusion

In conclusion, this passage describes the incredible wonder of God’s merciful salvation in Christ. In light of it all, my basic challenge for all of us is that we must humbly bow at the foot of the cross. I say humbly because I don’t deserve any of it. Apart from Christ, I’m wicked sinner deserving wrath. But in the cross, God displayed incredible mercy, and he saved me from the power and consequences of sin. So, every day, I must humbly bow in wonder at what Christ did for me.

If you’ve never received this salvation, please bow at the foot of the cross for the first time. You don’t have to face the judgment of God or live under sin’s domination. If you repent of your sin, you can be saved. Your sins can be washed away, and you can look forward to a wonderful inheritance in God’s presence. Please be saved today.