Good Works and the Gospel, Part 3

Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people. For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people.--Titus 3:1-8 (ESV)

Titus 3 opens with a list of ethical commands. Paul sums this up in the phrase "devote themselves to good works." But why should we do this? What motivation does Paul give for doing good works? In the last two posts, we saw that good works are not our means of salvation nor even the means of deserving salvation. So, why should we do them?

The answer is: the Gospel. The very truth which says good works can't save us also drives us to good works. Titus 2:11-14 says, "For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 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."

How does the Gospel bring about good works? By giving us a reason to love God. 1 John 4:19 says, "We love because He first loved us." I for one cannot meditate on the Cross and on Jesus' sacrifice for my sin without being emotionally affected. This affection drives me to hate sin and love good works. I can't help but think, "I owe Jesus. I want to do His commands. I want to be His servant because He has saved me with such grace." Romans 8:12 says, "So then, brothers, we are debtors." Doing good works is paying God back. Though we can never truly pay Him back, we love to do good works because it brings glory to Him who loved us.

So, though our good works are not effective in our salvation, they are the result of our salvation and our offering to the God whom we love for His salvation.

Good Works and the Gospel, Part 2

But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.--Titus 3:4-7 (ESV)

We are saved through washing, not through works.

In Titus 3:4-7, Paul tells the story of the Gospel. God showed His kindness and goodness, He washed us with His Spirit, and He justified us--so that we might have eternal life. Note one thing, though. He didn't save us through good works. The Gospel is not, "God gives us power to do good works and through his sanctifying grace, we are saved." In fact, Paul doesn't even use the word works at all in this passage. Instead, he uses words like "washing" and "regeneration" and "renewal."

The most interesting word here (I think) is regeneration. It comes from the Latin regenerare, meaning "create again." When we are saved, God re-creates us. God does not create evil beings. Therefore, regenerated people are not guilty. When Paul says we're washed with regeneration and renewal, it means we are like Adam and Eve before they sinned. We are sinless, pure, innocent.

So, good works are not the means of salvation of the Gospel story.

Good Works and the Gospel, Part 1

For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy--Titus 3:3-5a (ESV)

I. We do not save ourselves by our good works.

In Titus 3, Paul paints an almost hopeless picture of the unsaved sinner. His description applies to all of us. If youe a Christian like myself, it's a description of who we were and who we would be without God's salvation. If you're not a Christian, it describes you. Without God's grace, all we have is unrighteousness. Because of this, we deserve God's wrath for our sin. We need salvation.

The Gospel is the story of that salvation. "God our Savior appeared" and "He saved us." Listen to that again: He saved us. We aren't saved by ourselves or by our good works, but by God. So, the Gospel has no place for good works being our means of salvation.

II. God does not save us because of our goodness.

After convincing us that God saves us, not our works, Paul moves to God's motive for saving us. He answers the question, "Did He save us because he saw something good in us?" Absolutely not, Paul answers. "He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy." God was not moved by our goodness to love us; He loved us while we were still evil. Romans 5:6 says "For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly." God is not enticed to save us by our works. He sees our righteousness as the "polluted garments" that they are. (Is. 64:6)

We have nothing at all to do with our salvation. The only thing we bring to the Gospel is our sin.

Good Works and the Gospel

For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people.--Titus 3:3-8 (ESV)

How do good works and the Gospel relate?

In the next few posts, I'm going to try to answer this question from this passage in Titus 3. Here's my tentative series outline:

1) We are not able to save ourselves with good works.
2) God does not save us through good works but through regeneration.
3) Our regeneration produces good works.