BEFORE and AFTER!

We are all familiar with the “before and after” appeals of today’s mass advertising campaigns. There’s the portrait of the overweight before and then having used the product advertised, there’s the thin and trim after. There’s the before of gray hair, or wrinkled skin, and the youthful look after the product or procedure is applied. Growing up I was motivated by Charles Atlas and his before of the “98-pound weakling” to the after of an “Atlas physique” created by employing his method of bodybuilding.

The authors of the New Testament, in an eternally guaranteed, divinely empowered way, also portray for us a "before" and "after." But in their case the transformation they describe isn't physical. It isn't from weakness to strength, or from obesity to a slim and trim body, or from ugliness to beauty. The “after” has a name. It is called “SALVATION!”

In his letters, the Apostle Paul reminds believers frequently of the “before and after” impact of the gospel of God. Consider just one of those references in Romans 6:17-18, were we read: “But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin (that’s before)  have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness (that’s after).” (Read 1 Corinthians 6:9-11; Ephesians 2:1-8. Cols 3:7-8)

In our study today in Titus 3:1-8, Paul continues the basic thought of chapter 2, and that is that a full knowledge of salvation involves a “before and after” relationship to God and produces good works to show publicly some of the nature of our God. Any attempts to separate salvation and discipleship is to miss the full intention of God's redemptive plans.

Continuing the thought of 2:15, Paul urges Titus to remind the Cretans of their social obligations to the governing authorities and their neighbors. Then lest believers get a superiority attitude toward sinners and society, Paul reminds Titus, and all believers that we were in the same condition spiritually speaking. We were foolish and disobedient, but God's goodness and love appeared in order to save us.

BEFORE Coming to Saving Faith in Christ - 3:1-3

Titus and the believers in Crete are given some gracious reminders of what they were like “before coming to Christ” and what their “after coming to Christ” should look like out in public. Paul’s real concern is the church’s witness in a pagan world. Because our country is becoming more paganistic, these reminders are quite relevant for us. We live in a culture that exalts sin and despises God. There is an increasingly militant mood against those of us who hold to biblical absolutes and godly moral standards. How should we respond? Should we organize political parties to try to gain power over the opposition? Should we stage protests against the forces of evil in our community? While there is a legitimate place in a democratic republic to seek to pass laws that uphold biblical standards of morality, the truth is that without a work of grace on the hearts of the citizens that produces self-government under God’s government, it’s like putting a Band-Aid on the cancer.

What our perverted, sinful society needs is not bigger government, but God’s life, love and law that comes through the gospel, which alone can change human hearts. But, how do we gain a hearing for the gospel among people who mock God and His people? Paul’s answer is that we must live godly lives in this evil world. We must excel in good works that display God’s grace through us. The changed lives of believers will provide the platform for verbal witness that points other sinners to God’s grace in the gospel of Jesus Christ. But we need to keep being reminded of how God’s grace changed us.

So we have in 3:1-2, a very brief description of Christian behavior in public life. In relation to the authorities, we are to be conscientious citizens (submissive, obedient and cooperative), and in relation to everybody, irrespective of their race or religion, we are to be peacemakers, courteous, humble and gentle.

Paul now spells out the theological reason why we can expect Christians to have a social conscience and to behave responsibly in public life. The logic is seen in the pronouns: "Remind them to be conscientious and considerate citizens, because we were ourselves once anti-social, but he (God) saved and changed us.”

Thus, Paul says that we who have been changed by God’s grace should be gracious citizens and neighbors towards those who do not know Christ. Then Paul reminds us of what we used to be.

A. Remember that You Once Were Like the Ungodly People of the World – 3:3

“For we ourselves were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another.” 

“For” shows the logical connection between verses 2 and 3. It is easy to become angry and impatient with unbelievers who act as selfish, arrogant, little-god-players. But if we want to behave as godly people towards them (3:1-2), then we need to remember that before we met Christ, we acted in the same way that these people do (3:3). Unbelievers are living for themselves. That’s all that they know how to do. Before we met Christ, we lived for self. Note that Paul includes himself in this description (“we also”). We see that Paul lists seven characteristics of unbelievers in one short verse – Titus 3:3:

1. We once were foolish -3a - We were without spiritual wisdom or understanding. We did not know God, and so our foolish heart was darkened (Rom. 1:21). We vainly thought that we were wise, but we were fools. The reality is that if I am wrong about God, I'm wrong about the world, about humanity, about culture.
2. We once were disobedient. – 3b - We did not obey God, and we only obeyed the laws of our government when it was convenient or when we feared the consequences of getting caught. We were living for ourselves and whatever furthered our interests. We hated the thought of submission or obedience to any authority, including God.
3. We once were deceived – 3c - We did not understand spiritual truth and thus were led astray by Satan. We thought that we were wise to believe in evolution. We thought that we were sophisticated to throw off God’s standards of moral purity. We thought that we could find happiness and fulfillment through the lusts of the flesh or by accumulating material things. We thought that we could violate God’s law without any harmful consequences. But we were deceived!
4. We once were enslaved to various lusts and pleasures – 3d - Sin, like addictive drugs, always enslaves the one who dabbles with it. At first, it seems as if it will meet your needs. At first, it seems pleasurable. Sexual gratification feels good. Drugs make you feel good. Drinking dulls the pain of problems and pressures. Dishonest business practices may help you to get rich, and money can buy you all sorts of pleasures. But all of these sins enslave you and ultimately destroy you. The word of God tells us that if we live a life indulging in our passions where we are solely interested in our own pleasures, and we'll end up enslaved by our own passions and pleasures.

That's exactly what our society is telling us to do. They are insisting on sexual freedom. What they don't tell us is that if we go on engaging in what is euphemistically called sexual liberty, sexual freedom, alternate lifestyles, whatever terms you want to use, we will end up a slave to our own passions, because we'll be totally consumed by the desire to satisfy ourselves.

5. We once spent our lives in malice – 3e - Malice means ill will towards others. It stems from selfishness and wanting our own way, even if it means harming someone to get it. If you have to lie about a rival to get him fired, well, that’s life in the real world! If you have to cheat someone out of something to get what you want, well, it’s too bad, but that’s the business world! If you have to spread nasty rumors to make your enemy look bad, well it’s a dog-eat-dog world! That is malice!
6. We once spent our lives in envy – 3f – Envy, although often confused with jealousy and covetousness, is much more insidious and deadly. Envy is the feeling that someone else’s having something is to blame for the fact that you do not have it. The principal motive is thus not so much to take, but to destroy. The envier acts against the object of his envy, not to benefit himself, but to cut the other person down to his own level or below. Envy led the Pharisees to kill Jesus, because He was gaining more followers than they had (Mark 15:10). It is a deed of the flesh (Gal. 5:21; Mark 7:22).
7. We once were hateful and hating one another – 3g - Very few would admit that they are hateful, because we like to flatter ourselves as being loving people. But hatred is essentially self-centeredness and disregard for others’ feelings and needs. If someone hurts me and I respond by thinking or saying, “He can just drop dead or go to hell, for all that I care,” that is hatred. If I say, “I don’t ever want to talk to that person again,” that is hatred. So even if it doesn’t take the outward form of trying to hurt or kill someone, we all were marked by hatred before we came to Christ, because we all lived for ourselves and were indifferent towards others, unless they could meet our needs.

Maybe you’re thinking, “Well, I was never like this terrible description in verse 3! I was a basically good person, even before I became a Christian.” It is true that not everyone displays all these characteristics to the worst degree. But, if you know your own heart as God sees it, every one of these sins was lurking just below the surface. The truth is, on the heart level we all have violated every one of the Ten Commandments. As Jesus said (Matt. 5:21-30), anger is murder in God’s sight, and lust is adultery. We all have stolen, lied, and coveted. We all have practiced hypocrisy, trying to impress others that we are better than we know we are.

Why is verse 3 in our text? It is there because Paul knows that in order for us to act with love and good deeds towards unbelievers who mistreat us, malign us, and falsely accuse us, we need to remember that we used to be just like they are. We’re made of the same stuff! We would still be acting like that, except for one glorious truth:

AFTER God’s Undeserved Kindness and Mercy Saved Us - 3:4-7

3:4, “BUT when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared,” This is the greatest “BUT” in the Bible!

B. God’s Work - After showing who we once were, Paul then reveals what God in his grace has done for us. Before being saved, we were dead, doomed, and depraved, "But God," says Ephesians 2:4. At one time in our lives, we were a spiritual corpse, controlled by our self, Satan, and society – guilty of treason against God and condemned with no hope, no future, "But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love... appeared," says Titus 3:4.

This is the third time “appearing” occurs in Titus! We see the grace of God appeared in 2:11, the glory of God appeared in 2:13, and now the goodness of God appears in 3:4. This goodness, this love and kindness, has its source in God our Savior. The theme of Christ as our "Savior" appears here for the fifth time of six occurrences in Titus. "The kindness of God and His love" have as their object mankind - sinners in need of a Savior.

John Stott was right when he said, “The whole sentence (3:4-7) hinges upon the main verb “he saved us” (v5). It is perhaps the fullest statement of salvation in the New Testament.”

Stott went on to say, “Christianity is essentially a religion of salvation. To prove this, it is enough to quote two biblical assertions: “the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world” and “the Son of man came to seek and to save what was lost.”

“So we must come to terms with the concept of “salvation”, and one of the best ways is to study verses 3-8 of Titus 3. For here Paul isolates six ingredients of salvation - its need (why it is necessary), its source (where it originates), its ground (what it rests on), its means (how it comes to us), its goal (what it leads to) and its evidence (how it proves itself).

Our need of salvation is our sin, guilt and slavery; its source is God's gracious loving-kindness; its ground is not our merit but God's mercy in the cross; its means is the regenerating and renewing work of the Holy Spirit, not caused by but signified in baptism; its goal is our final inheritance of eternal life; and its evidence is our diligent practice of good works.

Here is the greatest verse in the Bible on the doctrine of regeneration. Paul begins by first telling how regeneration did not happen, countering the false thinking that has plagued humanity for all of our existence. His words could not be clearer: "He saved us - not by works of righteousness that we had done." Salvation is not earned. Regeneration is not something you can work up. You were dead, spiritually, separated from God. Any good you had done was "like filthy rags" in the eyes of a holy God (Isa 64:6 NKJV). On your best day you had nothing to give God, and if you have never realized that, then you have never been saved.

"But" Titus 3:4-5 says, "he saved us... according to His mercy." He delivered us from sin and its slavery, rescued us from death, hell, and the grave. Why? Kindness, love, mercy. What? Saved us. How? Washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit.

Regeneration consists negatively of removal of filth and positively of a renewing, both brought about by the Holy Spirit. Regeneration washes us, makes us clean through the new birth. The imagery of washing is only pictured, not caused, by baptism, for it is the Holy Spirit who is washing us, not externally but internally. The picture looks back to Ezekiel 36:25-27, where the prophet writes: I will also sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. I will place My Spirit within you and cause you to follow My statutes and carefully observe My ordinances.

When Paul says in verse 5 that God “saved us . . . by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit,” he means roughly the same thing: The promises of the new covenant have arrived. The beginning of the kingdom of God is here. The final universal “regeneration” has begun. And your new birth is a cleansing from all the sin that you have ever committed; and it is the creation of a new nature by the Holy Spirit.

God is generous when He gives us His Spirit. Verse 6 says, "He poured out this Spirit on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior." Paul is probably referring back to Pentecost and the coming of the Spirit in Acts 2. However, what God did then for the believers gathered in the upper room, He now does for every believer in and through regeneration. His Spirit comes to be with us and in us abundantly.

Then Paul shows us some more of the “after” effects of “he saved us” by taking us, as it where, into God’s Supreme Courtroom of the Universe, and reveals that positionally we have gotten the verdict already – we are Justified!

However, we must understand that justification is emphatically not the result, still less the object, of our regeneration. These two works of God are rather parallel and concurrent. Salvation includes both. Justification means that God declares us righteous through the sin-bearing death of his Son; regeneration means that he makes us righteous through the indwelling power of his Spirit. So we must never confuse justification and regeneration, our new status and our new birth. Nor should we ever attempt to separate them. For God always does both together.

God’s goodness or kindness moved Him to save us (v. 4). His love moved Him to save us (v. 4). His mercy moved Him to save us (v. 5). His grace moved Him to save us (v. 7).

Having saved us, regenerated us, renewed us, and justified us, He now comforts us with a word about our future. We are "heirs with the hope of eternal life." This is a reality now, though it is not yet our full possession. There is no question that this inheritance will be received. As a work of our triune God, the Father (v. 4-5), the Son (v. 6), and the Holy Spirit (v. 5), it is a signed, sealed, and settled issue.

B. Good Works – 3:8 - The dominant theme in Titus is good works, i.e. exemplary Christian behavior, and that for the sake of outsiders and "in contrast to the false teachers” (Titus 1:16).Good works publicly performed is the recurring theme of the entire letter. The expression "good works” (kala erga) occurs fourteen times in the Pastoral Epistles. Paul seems to emphasize five points. First, the very purpose of Christ's death was to purify for himself a people who would be enthusiastic for good works (Tit. 2:14). Secondly, although good works can never be the basis of salvation (Tit. 2:5; 2 Tim. 1:9), they are its essential evidence (Tit. 3:8,14). Thirdly, it is therefore to be expected that all Christians will be "equipped" and ready to do good works, women seeking this special adornment and rich people accepting this special responsibility. Fourthly, since pastoral oversight is itself a good work, all Christian leaders should be conspicuous for the good works they do. Widows should not be registered unless they have a reputation for good works, and every pastor should be a model of good works (Tit. 2:7). All this is in contrast to the false teachers who "claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him" (Tit. 1:16). Fifthly, it is above all by good works that the gospel is adorned and so commended to outsiders (Tit. 2:9-10).

We should live godly lives and be “careful to maintain good works” (Titus 3:8). The only evidence the unsaved world has that we belong to God is our godly lives. “Good works” do not necessarily mean religious works or church work. It is fine to work at church, sing in the choir, and hold an office; but it is also good to serve our unsaved neighbors, to be helpful in the community, and to have a reputation for assisting those in need. Babysitting to relieve a stressed young mother is just as much a spiritual work as passing out a gospel tract. The best way a local church has to witness to the lost is through the sacrificial service of its members.

Somewhere around the middle of the Third Century, there was a devastating epidemic, described by Bishop Cyprian of Carthage, with symptoms like fever, diarrhea, and blindness. Mortality rates were high; in some cities, as much as 5,000 people died daily. Most people - especially the wealthy - fled the cities to escape infection. Even family members often abandoned their sick relatives.

But unlike others, Christians stayed to care for the sick, even at great personal risk. They nursed the weak, offered food and water, and comforted the dying - to people who were in most instances not believers. Many Christians themselves died while serving others, but their selfless acts astonished the pagan world.

Historians like Rodney Stark, in his book “The Rise of Christianity” argue that “good works” was such a powerful and compassionate witness that it was one of the key reasons Christianity grew so rapidly in the Roman Empire.

My BEFORE story was characterized by darkness, enmity, rebellion and unbelief. BUT my AFTER is a different story. The "after" is a description of the progressive, incremental growth in grace and love and knowledge. It is a chapter not of enmity but peace, not of unbelief but trust, not of despair but hope, not of darkness but the light of the knowledge of the glory of God revealed in the face of Jesus Christ (2 Cor. 4:6).

Glory to God for including me in his BEFORE and AFTER SALVATION!