 They were in Titus chapter 3. Let me begin reading at verse 1 in Titus chapter 3. I'll read verses 1 through 7 and we'll get into our study. Titus chapter 3 beginning at verse 1, reading to verse 7. Paul writes, remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men. For we ourselves were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy, he saved us through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit whom he poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior that having been justified by his grace, we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. And so let me review a few things and develop a context and an introduction here to the study that we'll be looking at in chapter 3. Remember in chapter 2, Paul had given instructions to Titus concerning how believers are to live. And so he wrote to the older men, to the older women. He wrote instructions to the younger women, the younger men, and he wrote instructions to slaves. He also had written to Titus and instructed him that he was to live as an example to the churches. Remember in chapter 2, verse 7 and 8, I'll read it to you. He had said, in all things, showing yourself to be a pattern of good works. In doctrine showing integrity, reverence, incorruptibility, sound speech that cannot be condemned, that one who is an opponent may be ashamed, having nothing evil to say of you. And so he was to be a pattern of good works. That was so that people would be able to see what faith looks like. It was to be an example of what, of faith in action. As a pastor, as a pastor-teacher, he was to be an example of what was called good works. The word good there speaks of that which is excellent or righteous. His life, in other words, was to be a true pattern of what he was preaching and what he was teaching. It was to be such a pattern that people were to follow him. Again, it reminds me of Paul writing in 1 Corinthians, chapter 11, verse 1, where he had said, imitate me just as I also imitate Christ. Also in Philippians 3, verse 17, how he had said, join one another in following my example, brothers, and carefully observe those who walk according to the pattern we set for you. So faith is modeled. Faith is not something that is simply expounded upon or spoken of. Faith is modeled. And Titus was to be an example. He had already given instructions to the older men, to the older women, younger women, younger men, slaves. He had given instructions. But he says to Titus, you need to set the pattern. You need to be the template. You're to be an example in doctrinal integrity, because the false teachers that were entering in were bringing in bad doctrine. And therefore, in contrast to the false doctrine that has been spread in the church, your doctrine is to be true. And the purity of your doctrine is going to be demonstrated by the purity of your life. So your life is to evidence reverence, revealing a life that honors God, a life that is dignified. Now that word dignified in earlier days, when I thought of dignified, I didn't really have a good grasp of it. I thought the word dignified kind of was like being stuffy. I don't know another way to put it. I thought of it as being kind of, you know, never laughing, having no sense of humor. But that's not what the word dignified actually means. Dignified speaks of knowing the difference between things that matter and the things that don't. A person who is dignified knows what is trivial and what's important. And so sometimes we can get caught up with the things that are trivial. So Titus, be an example of somebody who knows what is important. Because when you become that example, the churches that you're ministering in, the elders that you're influencing can see your example and understand how a man of God is to live. He's to be sound in speech. When he speaks of being sound in speech, it refers to the way that he speaks in normal conversation. It's not simply referring to his doctrine when he's teaching, but it's how he speaks when he's not teaching. It's the things that he's saying. So be sound in speech. The word sound is a word that can also be translated healthy. The words that you speak ought to be life-giving words, in other words. So guard your speech. Be careful that what you say is appropriate and be careful that what you say, Titus, because people are watching you. Be careful that they're edifying. In Ephesians 4 verse 29, Paul said it like this. He said, No foul language should come from your mouth, but only what is good for building up someone in need so that it gives grace to those who hear. There was a trend going. Perhaps some of you might have been witness to it, seen it, heard it yourself. It was a while back. I don't know if it's continuing today, but it certainly was a while back where the pastors thought it was kind of connecting with people to swear from the pulpit. So they were using profanity. That occurred here on a couple of occasions. Somebody used profanity in my pulpit, and I spoke to them afterwards. It's been a few years. I won't mention names, John. I won't mention names. Yeah, I won't mention names. But I had a talk with that, with a brother, and I asked him, I said, you need to remember that the pulpit has been called the holy table, and that when the word is spoken from that, it ought to be words that are sanctified, those words that are edifying, because it isn't proper to use improper language. And so I've seen that firsthand, and sometimes people have thought that in using a particular way of speaking that they're connecting with people, but I discovered a long time ago, and Paul's words have applied for all these years. I discovered a long time ago that the word that we speak ought to be edifying to the hearer, and that's what Paul is saying to Titus here, that the words that are spoken, not simply from his teachings, but from his way of life, ought to be bringing edification to those who are hearing what he says, and that is the way of speaking, that would be the mark of a truly godly man. Now the reason for these high standards held by all of those mentioned is really practical. It may cause opponents to be ashamed because they make untrue accusations, and a person who's making an accusation should be embarrassed because he knows that what he is saying isn't true, and these are the kinds of lives that impact the world that we live in. We're living in a lost, a fallen world that is rejecting its moral foundations. As I was preparing this Bible study, I thought that I would develop an introduction that leads into the practical teaching in Chapter 3 by bringing this out, saying something we all already know. We're living in a lost and fallen world. We're living in a nation that has rapidly rejected its moral foundations. The question is asked in Psalm 11 verse 3, if the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do? Well our own nation has rapidly forgotten its moral underpinnings. The masks that people wear because of COVID aren't the only masks that Americans wear. Many Americans wear a different kind of mask. Many Americans wear what we would call a religious mask. Religious masks are worn underneath it all. It's really anti-Christian beliefs. We see this and I'm not going to go too far into this, but it does lend itself to our introduction. We see this in the passing of laws and the decisions that have been made by our judicial system. An example is found in what has happened since Prop 47 had been passed. It reclassified certain theft and drug possession offenses as misdemeanors and those who were sentenced prior to its passing could actually petition for resentencing and the law made some nonviolent property crimes where the value does not exceed $950 into misdemeanors and in the last 11 months more than 4300 state prisoners have been released because stealing less than $950 worth of goods is a misdemeanor, theft is risen. At one time stealing was understood to be wrong by the majority of society, but our new law undermines this moral and cultural understanding. I remember, and yes, this is ancient history, but it's true, it's part of my life, that when my father would send me to the store on Sunday mornings, we lived only about 300 yards from a convenient store. It was right at the corner so my dad would give me a quarter. That tells you how long ago this was for the Sunday paper and I would go to this particular store just straight up the street. I'd take the quarter and I would lift up a stack of newspapers because they'd be stacks outside. They weren't inside of any kind of locked devices. They were set outside and I would lift up the newspapers and I would drop my quarter on a pile of quarters and I'd take the paper and go home. You didn't think about just taking those quarters and stealing them. Imagine doing something like that today. You can't obviously do that. You could leave your bicycle out at night in the front yard and it would be safe. You could sleep with the window open and nobody was climbing in. There were so many things that were so different than it is today. The moral underpinnings of this nation have been rotting away for a number of years to the point where the nation that I live in now is almost unrecognizable in comparison to the nation that I grew up in. We've seen this moral demise occurring for quite some time. We know that the new laws that are being passed undermine moral and cultural understanding. Here we need to remember that in the United States there was actually a revival that occurred in the late 60s and early 70s. It may be interesting to some of you who are young and all that initially this Jesus movement revival was actually accepted by the people in the nation. It was not initially responded to with a lot of negativity. It wasn't because we lived in a nation that in many ways hadn't rejected its moral underpinnings yet. We had gone through the crazy 60s and all but when the Jesus movement came there were people who were actually relieved to see that because the youth were actually changing and the nation was once again becoming a better place to live. But what happened is laws were passed legalizing sins that Christians had been opposing for centuries because at first this revival was accepted but later it was met with hostility. Even recently the legalization of marijuana the decisions that are favorite homosexuality these things have been enacted and general acceptable conduct in society has been degraded profanity and crudeness is not only accepted but it's actually defended. Immorality and teen pregnancy venereal diseases living together is on the increase and it seems that justice has been turned upside down. Calvary Chapel San Jose has been fined $3.8 million because they have conducted church services but congressmen who have slept with the Chinese spy or a president's son selling influence there's no major news outlet willing to call it out. That's the society that we're living in and that has caused many Christians to become angry and many Christians are frustrated. One commentator said this. Many well-meaning Christian leaders have decided it is time to stand up for their rights and have declared war on the prevailing non-Christian culture. They have become hostile to unbelievers the very ones God has called them to love and reach with the gospel. Believers are to be aware that we are not called to make superficial Christian America. John MacArthur said when Christians become political sinners become the enemy instead of the mission field. Now remember in Paul's day there was no cultural Christianity. The world that Paul lived in was filled with sin. It was filled with idolatry, prostitution, slavery, homosexuality and Paul didn't instruct believers to protest. He instructed believers to preach and to live a powerful message and he combated the corruption of Cretan society by instructing Titus to remind the church. Remind them of what they've heard. Remind them of what they have believed because in reminding them of what the gospel has done it will save them from becoming bitterness. What is it that they heard and what is it that they believed? Well Titus 2.14 tells us that Jesus gave himself for us and that's the overwhelming testimony of Scripture. Jesus repeatedly stated that he would voluntarily lay down his life for us and such a thought in this modern world is difficult to comprehend. I read a comment made by a 23-year-old man, his name is Scott, and he said I think it's mighty arrogant for us to assume that if an ultimate being exists and did create the universe that they did it for us. What in the world could we possibly offer a God with this power? Why would he be so concerned with a race of gnats as ourselves? Well that's a great question isn't it? We do not assume that an ultimate being exists. We know that he does. And we also know that he created the universe but it wasn't created for us. It was created for himself. In Revelation 411 it says you are worthy oh Lord to receive glory and honor and power for you have created all things and for your pleasure they are and were created. Proverbs 16 verse 4 says the Lord has made all things for himself. So the reason that he's concerned with this race of gnats is because he loves us. That in and of itself I believe is amazing. In 1 John 4 9 and 10 it says in this was manifested the love of God toward us because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world that we might live through him here in his love. Not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Not that we loved him but that he loved us. That's amazing and out of love for us God sent his Son Jesus to give himself a sacrifice for our sins. In John 10 17 and 18 he said my father loves me because I lay down my life that I may take it again. No one takes it from me. I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down and I have power to take it again and this command I've received from my father. He died in demonstrating his love for us but he also died to satisfy the justice of God. In Romans 3 25 and 26 it reads God sent forth Jesus as a propitiation by his blood through faith to demonstrate his righteousness because in his forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed to demonstrate at the present time his righteousness that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. When it speaks of God setting forth Jesus as a propitiation the word propitiation is a word that speaks about settling his anger. God has anger. Jesus has settled it for him. Jesus satisfied his righteous anger so he sent his his son Christ to die on a cross to one demonstrate his love for us but to also satisfy his justice. So when Jesus died on the cross he redeemed us by his blood. He cleansed us from sin. Ephesians 1 7 says in him we have redemption through his blood the forgiveness of sins in accordance with the riches of God's grace and the result God now has his own special people zealous he said for good works. In Ephesians 2 10 we are God's workmanship created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God prepared in advance for us to do and so Paul has been commanding Titus to speak these things to exercise pastoral authority. What is he to do? Well he's to remind them in verse 1 remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities to obey to be ready for every good work. What is he to do? Remind them. People today are not necessarily opposed to all authority but approach authority very cautiously. Even as I mentioned a moment ago politically it's difficult to find politicians who truly do have integrity but the Christian message will be ineffective if it's not lived out and so we teach proper submission by our examples. In Romans 13 verse 2 it says rulers are not a terror to good works but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Well do what is good and you'll have praise from the same. In Matthew 22 21 render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's and to God the things that are God's and so we are to yield to authority therefore verse 1 remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities and to obey. Here's the exception and we're all looking for that aren't we? What is the exception? The exception to such a command is a simple one. We do not obey when we're commanded to do something against the commands of God. We don't obey. In Acts 4 19 and 20 when commanded to stop preaching the apostles said whether it is right in the side of God to listen to you more than God you judge for we cannot but speak the things which we've seen and heard. In Acts 5 29 they said we ought to obey God rather than men so when the government imposes its rules on the believer to circumvent the obvious word of God that's when we have a right even an obligation to reject that because we have a higher authority that we answer to than a president a governor a mayor or whatever and so that is an exception and so it's not that we should be looking for these opportunities to to oppose it simply means that we need to be aware that when it begins to go against the commands of God then we will obey God rather than men and we don't have to do it in a way that is belligerent we don't have to do it in a way that seems to be like we're picking a fight we simply do it because we'll we'll obey God rather than men we're going to meet and so when everything everything was shut down and and we followed we followed the the rules because we didn't know what was going on with this with this virus and all I'm certainly as a pastor not going to put any of you in danger I'm not going to place you in a position where you may get get a virus that and and I'm the one who put you in that position and so what we did is we decided to follow what we were told you all know that those of you were a part of this church you know that and we did for a while and then one day I came out here and I was in the parking lot I was coming every Sunday this church was still open you just didn't know it and so my wife Marie and I John some of the guys were out in this parking lot every Sunday even from the day that we said we're closing down church services we're still there and people started rolling in and I started talking to them and I had wonderful time we had wonderful times ministering to people my secretaries were coming and they were bringing Marie and me coffee and donuts and we're just having a great time in the campus you know and anybody who showed up we minister to them and we had chances to pray with and minister to people in a very special way and then but I'm not saying anything because I'm not thumbing my nose and saying look at me I just wanted to minister to anybody who needed ministry that's what I'm called to do that's what I'm going to do and that's what we did but then people found out and a parade shows up and we had a parade of all these cars that came through here those who knew they came rolling through and they're honking horns and they have signs we love you John and things like that and it looked like you're handwriting now that I think about it and you know we we were touched by that and so Marie and I we walked up to the people and hey it's nice and they started parking and now the parking lot has started to have a number of cars and I'm looking at them and it was hot remember it was hot and this room was open so I said let's just go into the chapel and we did and Jared I said go get your guitar and Jared went and got his guitar and he started leading in worship and people were scattered around we weren't saying sit next to each other they scattered around I gave a devotion and it was it was a it was a blessing and what are you going to do next week pastor I go to this church next week more show up next week we're inside the main sanctuary no I'm not putting it on Facebook look at me you know see what a brave man I'm rebelling I'm I'm just a shepherd who wants to take care of my sheep and if my sheep show up I'm going to feed my sheep that's how it works that that's how it works and so no we didn't aggressively want to combat no I didn't want to send a message to to governor Newsom he was too busy at the French laundry to care anyway we didn't want to do that so no I I I I believe what Paul is saying is absolutely right subject to rulers and authorities to obey and we did and we still do but when it comes to obeying we ought to obey God rather than men and the first thing God said is not good it is not good that the man should be alone God created us for fellowship and to tell us to not have it is to violate what God commanded and that's why we went that direction that's why we do those kinds of things as a younger pastor I had the opportunity to go to China and China at that time we're talking about a number of years ago now China was very close to Christianity the churches had to be registered with the government they didn't have Bibles and so a friend of ours had had set up something to bring Bibles into China and and we did that we brought suitcases of Bibles took a team in and I still remember going through the line entering into Beijing and bringing in these Bibles and we put them down and it was done in such a way that those who were there to get the Bibles were able to take the Bibles I still remember some people standing over one of the suitcases that was filled with Bibles a couple of the couriers were going to pick them up and deliver them to house churches I still remember seeing them with their hands folded in front of them looking down at the Bibles weeping they knew what was inside of those suitcases they knew it was God's word and they wept over it because we Americans have so many Bibles I have one in my pocket I carry one we have them all over the place they don't have any what they were doing was cutting out pages of the Bible and giving these pages to members of the church and they would tell the members of the church to hold on to this because I'm teaching through this book here so I want you to have this chapter here and that's what they do and then they would collect those things together when they were having church services I met a man his code name I can say now it's been so many years I'm certain he's with Jesus now he's an older man then but his name to me was Panda and I met him in a park in Beijing and while I was there he came I sat down on a park bench it was like 11 at night 10 11 at night empty park in Beijing but there's so many people who are spying on you so I sat on a bench and he came from out of the darkness came and sat next to me and began to share with me his testimony just looking forward and I was looking forward when he was saying I had seven children and when the revolution came because I'm a pastor they arrested me he said and they put me in jail they kept me there for 20 plus years because I'm a preacher of the gospel he said when I got out all of my children who were babies young had grown up into adulthood out of the sick out of the seven children that God blessed me with because he was unusual you only have one child in China but he had several he said out of the seven children I had six of them are followers of Jesus but the communist party has taken the soul of my youngest and I'm there listening and I'm thinking to myself we Christians we Christians have it so easy in comparison that kind of government may very well fall upon us if we're not careful now and so yes we do obey the government indeed we do Christians ought to be the most loyal and best citizens in the nation but the only time that I will refuse is when the command is to disobey God we ought to obey God rather than men and so he says remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities and to obey to be ready for every good work when he says be ready for every good work be ready to do good to the people around us including the sinful as God gives us opportunity no matter how hostile they may be we should be ready to lovingly care for them is what are you saying in Galatians 6 verse 10 it says therefore as as we have opportunity let us do good to all especially to those who are of the household of faith as we have opportunity let us do good to all and so he's speaking about our conduct living in a lost world and he says to do good in verse two he says to speak evil of no one to be peaceful and gentle and showing all humility to all men so this would speak of how we treat our neighbors and our neighbors includes everybody including the politicians that we may not really appreciate he said speak evil of no one when it says evil speaking evil that means don't use abusive language don't don't be insulting and he says be peaceable it means be ready to yield personal advantage for the sake of peace when he says be gentle that speaks of showing what would be called the mildness of spirit and behavior it's a kindness in action he says show humility in other words pride and arrogance are to be forsaken it's a very unattractive attitude of the heart so have a humble spirit but why should we do that pa why would that be important why should we speak evil of no one or be peaceful or gentle why should we show all humility to all men well he says in verse three well for we ourselves were also once foolish disobedient deceived serving various lusts and pleasures living in malice and and be hateful and and hating one another why because we were that way too we ourselves were once foolish so we should understand we should sympathize because they are as what we once were that's why they they they um they the ones who are being written to they they no longer are that way they're no longer foolish and disobedience we no longer are foolish and disobedient why because we've given our hearts to christ and so change he said your life needs to change instead of speaking evil of all politicians and news broadcasters and it would be easy entertainers and educators we should remember what we also once were doesn't that help it helps me yeah it helps me oh i you you those of you who go to this church know i get frustrated sometimes and you'll hear it and i really violate i guess when i'm not being kind and gentle sometimes sometimes i get frustrated too but i i i really need to remember who who i was and what i was because you know when i do it makes me more gracious to other people because i was like that too i've i've been that way too and i've tried to die to that and i've tried to grow in the things of the lord and so i need to remember what i once was and and again to remember that that's a mission field um those are the lost people they're living in a lost world and so we need to sympathize with them we once where he says in verse three we once were foolish when he uses the word foolish that speaks of having a a complete lack of understanding it means being completely uninformed concerning god and and the ways of god we had no understanding of this we were disobedient uh we at one time also rebelled against the authority of god we couldn't even obey the least law that would restrict us and we say well i'm you know i'm i'm pretty much i'm lawful abiding and i say you you probably are except at stop signs right have you noticed that stop signs are now suggestions have you noticed that in my neighborhood i i i'm looking constantly see who's going to blow through the stop sign constantly because there's suggestions to a lot of people they just roll right through it constantly so you know we we say yeah we we we we are obedient i'd say by and large we are but not completely now at least i've noticed that that is true with me we'd been deceived in other words we believe many things while simultaneously rejecting what god has said when it says we were deceived that reminds me Jeremiah 17 verse 9 the heart is deceitful above all things desperately wicked who can know it we had heard things we wanted to believe and we were hoodwinked we were deceived we we went in the wrong direction he said we once verse 3 serve various lust when he uses the word lust that speaks of evil passion he's saying evil passion ruled our lives constantly we lived in that evil passion we lived in malice malice isn't is a strong word it's a it's a desire to harm others to see others suffer it's this attitude of extreme it's been called extreme ill will another word that has been used for despite you just want to see somebody suffer and that that's that's malice envy is resentment envy is a desire for the possessions and qualities that someone else possesses hateful that speaks of being disgusting being offensive filled with hate you hate anyone who stands in your way to get what you want he said hating one another well hating one another is how a lot of crimes including murder and even divorces and things of that nature can occur it speaks of a violence against somebody else that's how violence occurs he says that's what you were don't forget that Titus said and remind the church that it's through the grace of god you've been saved because this was the way you once were but verse four when the kindness and the love of god our savior appeared savior toward man appeared not by works of righteousness which we've done but according to his mercy he saved us through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the holy spirit whom he poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our savior that having been justified by his grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life God through his kindness and his love saved us and he did it by sending Jesus it wasn't works notice of righteousness because our works of righteousness are completely insufficient Isaiah 64 verse 6 says it like this all of us have become like one who is unclean and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags we all shrivel up like a leaf and like the wind our sins sweep us away when he speaks of us having our righteous acts are like filthy rags the filthy rag would be the cloth that a leper who had an oozing wound on his arm they would wrap it with these cloths and the oozing of the leprosy the oozing of the skin that was erupting because of all of the pustules and all that that rag that the leper would wear would get filthy through the dust and grime in life and he said you think you're righteous Isaiah saying we are our righteousness is like filthy rags compared to the incredible brilliant splendor and holiness of God and you need to understand that so it's not by works of righteousness which we've done and what is it that motivated God to send his son Jesus for us his love his his justice well it was his mercy in Psalm 51 verse 1 it reads have mercy on me oh God according to your unfailing love according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions he did this in his mercy now what was the means employed he says through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit the washing of regeneration is literally through the new birth the new birth regeneration is what it means when we Christians refer to being born again you're born of the flesh and Jesus said that which is born of the flesh is flesh but you're also born of the Spirit and the way that you're born of the Spirit is when you confess your sins before God and you repent of them and you ask God for his forgiveness and then by faith you receive the gift of eternal life and when that happens you are now regenerated you are now born again before you were dead in trespasses and sins Paul says you had no spiritual life in you that's why when Jesus was speaking to that man Nicodemus when Nick came to him at night and when Nicodemus spoke to him Jesus said to him a man must be born again to see and to enter into the kingdom of heaven how is that possible shall a man re-enter his mother's womb and be born a second time now at first the first time I read that when Nicodemus said that I thought what a what a ridiculous question I mean you and Jesus even says you be in a teacher you're a teacher of Israel the teacher of Israel you don't know these things well I was sharing with the guy when I was in the army I say his name was rich and I said to rich I said rich you need to be born again and I'm sitting there and he looks at me and he says what do you mean am I supposed to enter into my mother's womb and be born again oh thank you I said you know rich that's so funny let me show you what scripture says and I opened to John 3 and I read the story of Nicodemus to him I said you just asked a question that a man named Nicodemus 2000 years ago asked how can a man be born again how can I have a new nature I am the sum total of all the days that I have lived how can I have a brand new life and Jesus said you need to be born again you need to be born from above and this is what Paul is speaking of when he speaks concerning the the regeneration that's the new birth we're born again Psalm 51 verse 10 creating me a clean heart oh God renew a steadfast spirit within me Ephesians 526 speaks of the washing of water by the word so when God's word is proclaimed and we by faith hear what he says and we apply it to ourselves we are regenerated we are born again and we are washed in regeneration but notice also he says the renewing of the Holy Spirit the renewing of the Holy Spirit if any man being Christ is the new creation old things are passed away behold all things are become new we are made brand new and his Holy Spirit now dwells within us we become what Paul called in 1st Corinthians 316 the temple of the Spirit of God and the Spirit of God himself dwells in us see I think one of the things people have forgotten in our day is the fact that you need to be born again there are many people professing to be Christian who believe they are because they attend church services or have received certain rituals and they believe themselves to be Christians and they'll speak of themselves in that way and when I was before I was saved before I was born again I thought that way I thought that being a Christian was by observing certain things and therefore I had been baptized and all and therefore I must be a Christian you know I'm not a Buddhist I'm not a Muslim I'm I'm not of some other faith I I must be a Christian and then I heard the gospel and that's when I heard the the evangelist most clearly and he said no you need to confess your sins you need to forsake them you need to turn to God you need to ask Christ to come into your life you need to become the the temple of the Spirit of God you need to be born again and that's when it hit me all this time I thought I was a Christian because I did certain things but I wasn't a Christian because I wasn't a certain thing I wasn't a believer in Jesus Christ I was a practitioner on occasion of a religious tradition and so Paul is reminding him of this this is this is what makes you different and Titus this is what you need to present you need to remember it's the wash and regeneration and the renewing of the Holy Spirit in Isaiah 44 verse 3 we read I will pour out water on the thirsty and streams on the dry ground I will pour out my spirit on your offspring my blessing on your descendants Jesus in John 7 38 said he who believes in me as the scripture has said out of his heart will flow rivers of living water he has lavished upon us his Holy Spirit so when you got saved you became God's temple if there's anything that I as a pastor want to encourage us to remember it's that without the power of the Holy Spirit you're going to live frustrated lives you're going to find yourself stumbling into the same sin over and over again and you're going to start getting to the point where you say what a wretch who's going to save me from this body of death how come I can't have victory what well the answer is you can have victory but sometimes what we do is we rely on our own strength we rely on our own efforts and and I came to realize and I realize it often it's not final reality with me it's something I revisit that without him I can do nothing and so I ask God quite often refresh me in your spirit empower me by your spirit I want to walk in your spirit strengthen me in your spirit Lord may your spiritual gifts work through me may the fruit of your spirit be in my life so that I don't counterfeit have an appearance and of being a believer and someone who loves you but in fact my my mouth may say things of you but my heart is really far from you and see that's the difference between being religious and being right with God and so as to the working of the Holy Spirit that he's poured out on us notice verse 7 he says having been justified by his grace he said we become heirs heirs according to the hope of eternal life God's grace is the means by which God saved us and it's the means by which he has justified us as as declared as not guilty we didn't do anything Paul is saying and he's reminding him he didn't do anything you don't do something to deserve his mercy God has poured it out on you he has done it even though you didn't deserve it and now he says we are his heirs or his family we receive our inheritance from him because he's our father and through regeneration we've become partakers of this very life and we are his children and we can live abundantly because his spirits within us and he has regenerated us and in John 10 verse 10 Jesus has said the thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy I have come that they may have life and have it to the full that's what Jesus promised us a fullness of life not just existence but a fullness of life you know we'll close with one last thought one of the things that this that the devil our enemy does is he tries to convince us that what he has for us is much better than what God has for us he really does you know I hey I don't know about you in my own testimony very briefly I get saved and before you know it things that I had wanted to have before seem to be offered to be now and I begin to think how come these things are now being made available it's because the enemy offers you he offers you what you think you want because it can disguise it enough for you to think it is what you want so but God I want I want love I want to love someone and God brings somebody rather the enemy allows somebody to come around that that you become attracted to when in fact this is a person who isn't going to take you closer to the Lord this is a person who's going to take you away from God but here you are thinking oh God gave me this person there are things that he does the enemy does their counterfeits of what God wants to really give to you and and it takes it takes it takes prayer it takes a growth in the word it takes an awareness of of the value of fellowship it it takes a you know a teacher who can help you it takes so many things but if you go the right path if you if you move in the right direction if you surround yourself with people who love the Lord and and those who have been walking with Christ longer than you have and and you're open and you share with them and say you know I was just given an opportunity to do this and I'm just wondering what do you think you'd be surprised how many of your friends will say nope nope that's the enemy and he's gonna he's trying to rip you off man well you know I you know I he's praying and I ask God to give me a girlfriend and and this girl she's hot I've been wanting this girl yeah but is she a believer I'll bring her to Christ I'll bring her to church we'll go to dates well we'll date we'll go to church no if I stand on the edge of this platform here it's easier for you to pull me down than for me to pull you up and that's what's going to happen oh no God I can tell you stories I'm going to stop because I can but I can tell you stories of people that I've ministered to who have been pulled down because they thought that what they were being offered was what they were praying for that's why you need to stay in the word that's why you need to stay in prayer that's why you need to know who you are and you need to know what the Lord has done for you why because if you want to impact a world that is rejecting God you're not going to impact that world by being just like it there's something different about you and that's why Paul said that older men you should be this way older women you should be this way younger women you should be this way younger men you should be this way in slaves you should be this way but Titus this is how you should be why because you're living in a lost world and the things that are in the world are the things that are tempting you be aware of those things instruct people in these things hold fast to the things of God why because God has given to you the kingdom and I promise you when you're in heaven you're not going to waste even a second wishing you had things you left behind on earth I promise you that everything before you is beautiful that's why father we ask that you would work in our hearts