The Heart Attitude of a Person Devoted to Good Works
Notes
Transcript
Have you ever heard the sentiment that goes something like this-”I don’t want to become too serious a Christian because then I will have to change my life so much that I won’t have any fun anymore.” Have you ever heard that? Have you ever thought that? I can remember in high school one of my class mates saying to me, “You better have fun now because once we get to heaven its going to be one long boring church service.” I want to make it clear to you know that nothing could be further from the truth- God’s Word says it has even entered into our imagination the things that God has prepared for us.
I also want to make it clear that if you will here and now become a Christian devoted to good works, that there is no better way of living your life. I am just starting to experience that truth in its deeper sense. For example, because of my study through this book- the book of Titus- God had laid it on my heart to try to be a blessing to churches without pastors. But, I had no idea how I was going to do that. I kept praying about it, and I sent some emails and made some inquiries- but without any traction. Then, one day God brought a believer to my door (long story short) he was part of a likeminded church- that happened to be without a pastor- and he happened to be in the leadership of that church and we got to talk for over an hour about how our churches might become involved in interdependent ministry. It was incredible. And I can remember walking home after that conversation just totally blown away by how God worked and answered prayer, and I had the biggest smile on my face and my heart was fit to bursting and I can remember telling God- “OK God, how else can I obey you?” That was incredible- I just wanted to keep being obedient to God and His Word. I wanted to keep obeying! I wanted to keep being transformed! I wanted to keep being devoted to good works!
Friends, I don’t want to loose that mentality. I want to wake up every day and say, “OK God how can I obey you today?” And I want you all to have that mentality as well- I want all of us in this church to become people who are carefully devoting themselves to good works. How do we do it?
This morning I want to talk about something very important- I want us to focus on our hearts. Specifically, the attitudes of our hearts. Here is my question, what does the heart attitude of person who is carefully devoting themselves to good works look like? (Because our actions start in our hearts- and if our hearts are not right- then nothing else will be) So, I want us to focus on our hearts. And this question comes right out of Titus 3:8 (by the way I think this verse is the key verse for the entire letter of Titus)
8 This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men.
8 Πιστὸς ὁ λόγος·*
This is a faithful saying,
καὶ περὶ τούτων βούλομαί σε διαβεβαιοῦσθαι,*
and concerning these things I want you to affirm constantly,
ἵνα φροντίζωσιν
so that they might direct their attention and thought to (meditate, concentrate, to ponder, to let’s one’s mind dwell on, to keep thinking about, to fix one’s attention on)
καλῶν ἔργων προΐστασθαι
being preeminent (devoting themselves) in good works
οἱ πεπιστευκότες θεῷ·
the one’s who have believed in God;
ταῦτά ἐστιν ⸆ καλὰ καὶ ὠφέλιμα τοῖς ἀνθρώποις.*
these things are good and profitable for all people.
This morning we are going to ponder being preeminent in good works. We are going to let our minds dwell on what the heart attitude of a believer looks like who is carefully devoting themselves to good works.
Last week- we looked at becoming a useful and beneficial church. And we said what our community needed most was our church, our people to be people who were zealous for good works. And the only way we become that kind of a church is because of grace- we must be saved by grace, trained by grace, and we must be steadfast by grace.
This week we are going to zero in even closer and look at what the heart attitude of a person who is saturated by grace looks like?
Because we cannot become a people who constantly devote ourselves to good works without a proper heart.
Paul was teaching the believers in Crete that they must have the right heart attitude in order to become a people who are always devoted to good works.
We must have the proper heart attitude if we are going to be a people who are constantly devoted to good works.
What kind of heart attitude is necessary?
I think Paul gives us two different heart attitudes that produce people who are devoted to good works.
I. We must have the heart attitude of joyful submission (2:14a)
I. We must have the heart attitude of joyful submission (2:14a)
If you want to become a person who wakes up in the morning and says, “OK God, how can I obey you today?” You must have a heart that is joyfully submissive! And I want us to ponder this from v. 14- And I think we clearly see this heart attitude expressed in our identity in Christ. The rest of the letter 2:14-3:15 Paul continually flip flops back and forth from identity to commands- identity to commands. This is who you are in Christ and if you will just live out your identity in Christ it will produce the right kind of actions in your life. So Paul marvels at our identity in Christ, and then he says so now here is how you live that identity out in your community. And before he goes very far with commands he switches back to our identity. Obey the commands because of who you are in Christ, and here is so more commands, but don’t forget about what Christ has done for you!
And what I want to do this morning is slow down and meditate, ponder, let our minds dwell on our identity in Christ. Because, our identity is what creates the right kind of heart attitude. And if your heart is not right- guess what? You life will not be right. So what about our identity in v. 14 causes us to have a heart attitude of joyful submission?
14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.
Now- the first part of your identity in Christ is that Jesus gave Himself for us why? That he might redeem us from all iniquity.
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.
Iniquity- ἀνομία- the state or condition of being disposed to what is lawless / the state of being or behaving in open defiance to the law.
This is an important word because this word is at the heart of our sin nature- it is at the heart of sin itself. And we have to understand why Jesus gave himself for us- he gave himself to redeem us from all lawlessness. What does that mean?
4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.
Now, you probably have this verse memorized and you probably have used this verse in witnessing to someone. We use this verse in our kid’s clubs all the time. It is the verse we turn to to define exactly what sin is. And, I think I have been interpreting this verse wrong my whole life.
Sin is the transgression of the law. How do we interpret this verse? What law do we usually immediately go to? The Mosaic law right- or more specifically the 10 commandments. And we will give people some of the 10 commandments. Have you ever told a lie? Have you ever taken God’s name in vain? Have you ever coveted something in your life before? Well, then you are a sinner because sin is the transgression of the law. Sin is when we break the OT law. But, what is the problem with that definition? We are no longer under the law! Did any of you have bacon with your eggs this morning? Well, you are a bunch a sinners because you transgressed the law. Right? That just doesn’t make sense to me.
What I John 3:4 is actually saying about sin is deeper that most of us realize.
4 Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness.
The idea is not that sin is the transgression of the Mosaic law, the idea is that sin is lawlessness. At the heart of sin- what fundamentally makes up and defines sin- all sin- is the heart attitude of lawlessness.
There is nothing new under the sun right? This is the heart attitude of the first sin ever committed.
13 You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; above the stars of God I will set my throne on high; I will sit on the mount of assembly in the far reaches of the north;
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’
This is Lucifer- this is the original sin. And what was the devil’s heart attitude? I will make myself like the Most High. This is an attitude of lawlessness. I don’t want to be under anyone’s rule, I don’t want to be subject to anyone’s law. I want to be my own ruler. I want to be my own god. This is the heart of the sin nature. Every sin comes out of a heart of lawlessness.
5 For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
So if you want to be a person who is constantly devoted to good works, then you must embrace your identity in Christ in order to have a proper heart. And what is you identity in 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.
You have been redeemed from all lawlessness. Jesus paid for your life so that you would be free from the sin-centered heart attitude of lawlessness. The essence of the sin nature is lawless rebellion against God, and unless God by his grace intervened we would still be enemies of God our whole lives never wanting to place ourselves underneath God’s rule. But, Jesus Christ shed His blood so that we might be redeemed- bought out of the slave market or sin- rescued from our constant rebellion and lawlessness.
And Jesus gave himself to purify for himself a people for his own possession (a peculiar people- chosen or special)
Do you realize that? Jesus wants to own you? If you are in Christ you are the possession of Jesus. Now, that is not a popular statement in our culture. For me to say that all Christians are the possession of Jesus Christ- that idea- of being someone else’s possession- that really rubs a lot of people the wrong way. I just gave any SJW’s that hear this an aneurysm. For most people to suggest that you should allow yourself to become someone else’s possession is the road to total melt down.
Even this morning there is a percentage of you that when I tell you you are the possession of Jesus- that He owns you- you either smiled and whole hearted-ly agreed with me. Or, you recoiled at the thought. Why might someone recoil at the thought of being owned by Jesus? That is the very essence of the sin nature! Sin is lawlessness. We naturally do not want to be ruled. We want to be our own gods.
But, your identity in Jesus is that you have been redeemed from lawlessness and purified for Jesus Christ- a people for his own possession.
Some of you might be asking- how does that though not bother you?
18 knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold,
19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.
15 and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.
7 So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.
15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”
16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,
17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.
1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
So for it bothering me that I am a possession of Jesus Christ- I am delighted! Praise God- I belong to Jesus. He redeemed me, he rescued me from my lawless rebellion and purified me for His own possession! Hallelujah! He bought me with His blood, and I am a child of God, which means I am a co-heir with Christ- because Jesus owns me- God is going to let me inherit the universe. And God doesn’t force my submission, I gladly offer myself as a living sacrifice for His sake.
This is the heart attitude of one who is carefully devoted to God works. The one who wakes up in the morning and says, “God how else can I obey you today?” There is nothing I would rather do than be careful to do good works today- the heart attitude of someone like that is joyful submission.
34 Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work.
38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me.
What kind of heart attitude is necessary to become people who are careful to devote themselves to good works?
We must have the heart attitude of joyful submission
II. We must have the heart attitude of eager obedience (v. 14b)
II. We must have the heart attitude of eager obedience (v. 14b)
14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.
Who are you in Christ- you have been redeemed from all lawlessness, purified as a people for His own possession, and you have been purified so that you might be zealous of good works.
As a possession of Jesus, he died so that you might be purified so as to become zealous of good works. That is who you are.
Zealous- one who is earnestly committed to a side or a cause- an enthusiast
So we are to be enthusiastic for good works or we are to be eager to do good works. There needs to be in our hearts an attitude of, “I just can’t wait to obey the imperative of Scripture.” “I just can’t wait to obey God!” We should be enthusiasts of good works.
I am an enthusiast of bike riding. The other day I got out on my first ride outdoors on my road bike. And there was a lot of things I had to do to get my bike ready to ride outside. During the winter I ride inside on a smart trainer. So when I transition to outdoor riding I have to change the wheel and I have to change the axle. I have to align the de-railer and lube the chain, check the air pressure and the brakes- it takes some time. But, I was so excited to ride my bike outside. It was finally sunny and somewhat warm, and even though I had other things to do- I put all of that aside and concentrated on just getting out on my bike. I was eager to ride my bike. I was enthusiastic to ride outdoors.
Folks, that is the kid of heart attitude we must have. We must have the heart attitude of eager obedience. I just can’t wait to obey and there is nothing that is going to stop me from being obedient to the commands of Scripture.
So, you are telling me that God wants me to be a submissive and obedient person? That doesn’t sound very appealing. How can you delight your heart in being eagerly obedient. That doesn’t make sense.
8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.
9 As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love.
10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love.
11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.
12 “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.
13 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.
14 You are my friends if you do what I command you.
15 No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.
16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.
17 These things I command you, so that you will love one another.
Joy may be full- Nate and the video switcher, me answered prayer, church becoming a disciple-making church
We must have the proper heart attitude if we are going to be a people who are constantly devoted to good works.
What kind of heart attitude is necessary?
Joyful submission-
Eager Obedience-