Saving Our Former Selves
Sunday, November 16th, 2025
Christ Covenant Church – Centralia, WA
Titus 3:1–8
Prayer
Lord God Almighty, our heart and our flesh cries out for You the living God. And so flood our souls now with a fresh awareness of Your mercy. Grant that in hearing Your Word preached we may taste and know the sweetness of salvation, the salvation You have wrought for us in Christ, for the glory of the Trinity, One God Forever, Amen.
Introduction
We’ve made it to chapter 3 in Paul’s letter to Titus and we are on the home stretch now towards finishing this little book together. Now, do you remember what the major theme of this book has been? Early on we said that Titus is all about the marriage between sound doctrine and sound living, between right belief and right action.
- While many people try to divide and divorce truth from reality, faith from practice, a Christian must not separate what God has joined together. Yes, we can distinguish the truth in our heads from the actions of our hands, but what God wants for you is a life that is united in one single purpose.
- As it says in Psalm 86:11, Unite my heart to fear Thy name.
- And in 1 Timothy 1:5 it says, Now the end/goal/purpose of the commandment is charity [love] out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned.
- So unless you are loving God with singleness of heart, and loving one another for God’s sake, you have not yet internalized the faith that you profess. Paul says in Galatians 5:6 that, “the only faith that counts for anything, is the faith that works by love.”
- And so for the first two chapters of this book, Paul has been showing us HOW faith works by love in all the different arenas of our life.
- In chapter 1 we saw how faith works by love in the Church and its government. We had multiple sermons on Presbyterianism and the qualifications to be a presbyter/bishop.
- And then in chapter 2 we saw how faith works by love in the Home, in our household relationships. We had sermons for old men, old women, young women, young men, and servants.
- And now here in Titus chapter 3, Paul teaches us how faith works by love in the Wider World outside, especially in our relationship with the civil government, and unbelievers who we may not like.
- And so I have titled this sermon, “Saving Our Former Selves,” because as we will see in these verses before us, the way we live in this world toward unbelievers can either be a stumbling block to them ever coming to Christ, or our lives can be the means by which God brings them into the fold. So with that in mind let me give you the outline of our text.
Outline of the Text
This morning our focus will just be on verses 1-3, and then next week we will take up verses 4-8.
- In verse 1, God tells us how to live under civil government.
- In verse 2, we are told how to live with people who are evil.
- In verse 3, we are given the reason why for our living graciously towards all.
Verse 1 – How do you live under civil government?
1Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to be ready to every good work,
- First observe that Paul charges Titus to “put them in mind.” That is,remind the church in Crete of everything I am about to say. They’ve been told this before and they need to hear it again.
- Why? Because we are forgetful creatures. We are those people who can walk through the Red Sea on dry ground, eat miracle food from heaven, drink miracle water from a rock, and then five minutes later say we want to go back to Egypt, “O how slavery would be so much better than this.”
- Of such sinful nostalgia Ecclesiastes 7:10 warns us saying, Do not say, “Why were the former days better than these?” For you do not inquire wisely concerning this.
- And so God warns us of both 1) forgetting His gracious actions and commandments, and 2) also ofcommitting the “grass is greener” fallacy.
- Sure, maybe some things were better back then (leaks and onions and Egyptian vegetables), but many things were probably worse (making bricks without straw seven days a week).
- Our memories are highly selective and often unreliable. Jeremiah 17:9 says, The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? And Psalm 19:12 says, Who can understand his errors? Cleanse thou me from secret faults.
- And so really the only safe path to take given our fallen and finite state, is to remember God, to keep His word constantly before our eyes, and then to be faithful to that Word in the here and now (the present!).
- The Babylonian King Belshazzar was rebuked by Daniel for his pride and forgetfulness. And so after Daniel re-tells to him the story of his father Nebuchadnezzar’s conversion, he says to Belshazzar, the God who holds your breath in His hand and owns all your ways you have not glorified! And it was that very night, that Belshazzar, king of the Chaldeans was slain (Daniel 5:30).
- It says likewise in Psalm 9:17, The wicked shall be turned into hell, And all the nations that forget God.
- And so we must not forget the God who is the very life of our soul. We must not forget the way He has told us to live, in the church, in our marriages, in our parenting, and in the world.
- And so Paul says here in verse 1,put them in mind, remind the church, and then he repeats himself again in verse 8 saying, these things I want you to affirm constantly.
- So what is Paul doing in this this section of Titus? He’s putting everything in “bold letters.” This is important to remember.
- Now there are three reminders here in verse 1 that Paul says need to be constantly affirmed, and they are:
- 1) Be subject to principalities and powers,
- 3) Be ready to every good work
- So unlike the Jews, who had a history of stirring up rebellions against the government, Rome (or whoever was over them), and unlike the Cretans, who themselves had a history of insurrections, seditions, and murders under the Roman yoke, Christians are to be good subjects of whatever civil powers they find themselves under. This means obeying their lawful commands, and only ever refusing to submit when they command us to sin.
- Practically, this means first acknowledging what Romans 13:1 declares to be true, that there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Meaning, God is sovereign over every square inch of this earth, there is no power outside of Him, and all powers in heaven and earth are subject to Him. And this includes evil rulers, pagan emperors, and reprobate Pharaohs.
- As Jesus said to Pilate’s face in John 19:11, You could have no power at all against Me unless it had been given you from above.
- This was true in the New Testament and Old Testament alike, as Daniel declares in Daniel 2:21 saying,God changes the times and the seasons; He removes kings and raises up kings.
- And so obeying and submitting to our civil powers, begins with acknowledging the Sovereign who rules over them, and to whom they (and we) must give an account. And because the government’s authority is derivative, delegated, and limited by God’s law, Christians can live in subjection and obedience to them, knowing that our obedience is ultimately to Christ.
- And so when people try to deny the authority of the civil government, what they end up denying in practice is the sovereignty of the God who placed them there.
- Who was it that allowed Babylon to rise and to fall? God.
- Who was it who allowed Egypt to oppress and enslave the Israelites? God.
- Who is it who holds the past, present, and future of our nation in His hands? It is God.
- It says in Proverbs 21:1, The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of water: He turneth it whithersoever he will.
- This truth should be of great comfort to us, regardless of who is presently in office. If God could turn the most powerful man on earth into a beast (as he did with Nebuchadnezzar), if God could convert pagan idolaters and turn them into guardians of His people (as Daniel’s visions relay), then of course God can change the hearts of our leaders. God can make them to serve Him in holiness and fear as Psalm 2 commands.
- Summary: The biblical view of civil government is not that it is a necessary evil, but rather that it is a necessary good to restrain evil. This is why in Romans 13:2, Paul goes on to say, Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves.
- So while there are no perfect or sinless earthly authorities or governments, there are also no perfect and sinless fathers, husbands, or masters. And yet what does God still command in His Word?
- That children submit to and obey their imperfect and sinful parents.
- That wives submit to and obey their imperfect and sinful husbands.
- That servant submit to and obey their imperfect and sinful masters.
- And that Christians submit to and obey the imperfect and sinful civil government.
- Whatever complaints we may have about our national, state, and local leaders, similar complaints and more could be lobbed at Caesar, Rome, and the Cretan mayor. It was under Rome after all that the only sinless and perfect man to ever walk the earth was unjustly executed (He was crucified under Pontius Pilate). And yet still God tells His people immediately after that, to still obey and submit to those civil authorities.
- Now we need to remember in all of this the goal of our submission.
- It is as 1 Timothy 2:2 says, So that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.
- In other words, we want peaceful conditions for gospel work. We want time and space for the leaven of the truth to work through the loaf of society.
- It says in 1 Peter 2:13-17, Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men—as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God. Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.
- So does your attitude and conduct towards the unbelieving civil government reflect this conviction? That God is ruler over them, that God can change them in an instant, and that the powers that be are only there because God has permitted them to be there. Moreover, when they are evil it is for our chastisement and discipline.
- Calvin says that, “a wicked prince is the Lord’s scourge to punish the sins of the people, let us remember, that it happens through our fault that this excellent blessing of God [referring to civil government] is turned into a curse.” A wicked people deserves wicked rulers, and we are not a God-fearing land anymore.
- So do you pray for your government more than you complain about them? Because God is not mocked, a land will reap what it sows. And so the church must intercede and pray for men like Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to be elevated to high station.
- We ourselves should desire to become excellent in our work, doing good works, so that Proverbs 22:29 comes to pass which says, Seest thou a man diligent in his business? He shall stand before kings.
- Men like Daniel and Joseph were excellent at their work, godly, wise, and virtuous, and because of this God elevated them to high station and influence.
- So in verse 1 Paul says, Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to be ready to every good work. And then in verse 2, he describes what our words and actions should be towards the civil magistrate, and everyone else.
Verse 2 – How do you live amongst people you may not like?
[Put them in mind] To speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men.
- Here we have two prohibitions followed by two exhortations, and they are all universal, meaning they apply to all people at all times in all places.
- That means this includes what you say in your text messages, emails, group chats, and on social media. Wherever you communicate with others, these four rules apply.
- The two prohibitions are:
- 1) Speak evil of no man, that is, don’t slander, don’t gossip, don’t lie, don’t intend to harm anyone with your words to them, or about them.
- 2) Be no brawlers, that is, don’t be quarrelsome and argumentative. Don’t be combative with people who think differently than you. Don’t be that contrarian who always has to have the last word and does not know when to keep silent.
- Against such people it says Proverbs 29:11, A fool uttereth all his mind: But a wise man keepeth it in till afterwards.
- And in Proverbs 18:6-7 it says, A fool’s lips enter into contention, And his mouth calleth for blows. A fool’s mouth is his destruction, And his lips are the snare of his soul.
- So unlike the fool who fights and runs his mouth, what should a wise Christian be?
- Here we have the two positive exhortations:
- 1) Be gentle, that is, be moderate and mild in all your words and conduct.
- 2) Show all meekness unto all men.
- What is meekness? Meekness is that virtue that moderates/curbs anger so that you can judge justly what is due to another. Anger is that passion that can obscure our reason, and so we need meekness in order to be just and fair.
- This is why in Galatians 6:1, Paul says Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted.
- So observe again there are no exceptions to who we must be gentle with and meek towards. Exactly how that gentleness and meekness should be manifest will differ depending on the circumstances (who the person is, what their crimes are, etc.), but as always Jesus is our example, and Jesus says in Matthew 11:29, I am meek and lowly in heart, and then that same gentle Jesus later pronounced woes on the Pharisees and overturned the tables of the moneychangers, and all while remaining meek and lowly.
- So zeal is not contrary to gentleness. Strength is not opposed to meekness. The scribes and Pharisees deserved more chastisement than they got from Christ. Jesus was being merciful in his justice, denouncing them only insofar as was good for them and to those around them.
- Jesus says in Matthew 5:5, Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth,
- And Paul says in 2 Timothy 2:24-26, the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.
- So note the goal and purpose of our meekness, it is so that people will stop opposing themselves and the God we love. It says in Proverbs 15:1, A soft answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger. And so we want to maintain meekness and gentleness because we are representing a God who is meek and gentle.
- Now all of us could stand to grow in this area. We all have someone (or many people) in our lives who we find it hard to be gentle and meek towards.
- Maybe it’s your spouse, or your children, maybe it’s a coworker or a friend. Maybe it’s your in-laws or a relative that you just struggle to get on with.
- Whatever the case, how do you become more gentle and meek towards those people.
- Paul gives us the answer, starting in verse 3, and continuing through verse 8. So as we conclude we will just consider the first part of Paul’s answer, which could be summarized as, remember your own weakness.
Verse 3 – Why are we gentle and meek towards others?
3For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another.
- Look at the person you used to be. Look at the person you still are today (even with God’s grace, look at how much sin still remains in you!).And now imagine for moment, your life apart from Christ. Imagine who you would be, where you would be, what your life would be like if you never met Jesus.
- Many of us would be dead, divorced, homeless, strung-out drugs, alienated from our families and friends, drowning in misery with no way out.
- Some of us would be extremely wealthy, rich and powerful, and enjoying the spoils of worldly success. Some of us would think we had “made it,” gained the world, only to lose our soul.
- Paul says we also, we ourselves (speaking from his experience), used to be estranged from God, breathing out threats and murder, deceiving ourselves, numbing our minds and bodies, trying to get rid of that hollowness we feel, the anger, the shame and the stain on our soul.
- Who would you be apart from Jesus? A child of the devil, believing and spreading his lies.
- That thought of you are apart from Jesus, should both terrify you and make you far more compassionate and patient with others.
- This is what will make you more gentle and mild: Having a sober estimation of yourself, your former life, and God’s gentleness and mildness towards you (then and now). If we forget that, we are the man in Jesus’ parable who was forgiven an insurmountable and unpayable debt, only to turn around and demand that everyone give us our due.
Conclusion
In Luke 7 Jesus is dining with Simon the Pharisee, and a woman comes in and starts to wash his feet with her tears. Simon in his mind looks down on this woman, this capital S “Sinner.” And Jesus says to Simon: “There was a certain creditor who had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. And when they had nothing with which to repay, he freely forgave them both. Tell Me, therefore, which of them will love him more?” Simon answered and said, “I suppose the one whom he forgave more.” And He said to him, “You have rightly judged.” Then He turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has washed My feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head. You gave Me no kiss, but this woman has not ceased to kiss My feet since the time I came in. You did not anoint My head with oil, but this woman has anointed My feet with fragrant oil. Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little.” Then He said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”
- Do you know how much God loves you? Do you see just how much God has forgiven you, “your sins which are many!”? Because Jesus says, to that extent, is how much you will love God in return, and from that love for God, also love those fellow sinners you may not like.
- So behold the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, who took away your sins. Behold the spotless lamb, meek and mild, silent before his shearers. This is the God who came down to die for you, and so will you not love Him and obey Him in return?
- IN the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen.
