By His Grace, For His Glory Titus 2: Rev. Min J. Chung (New Years Eve Service, December 31, 2016)

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1 By His Grace, For His Glory Titus 2: Rev. Min J. Chung (New Years Eve Service, December 31, 2016) Titus 2: For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, 12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, 13 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and 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. INTRODUCTION Video of 2016 from a British perspective The reason why I show this is because all these things happened in We don t reflect on what happens during the year and we miss so many things. I guarantee so many things will happen, possibly more, in We need to prepare for what s ahead. So many new things will happen personally, nationally, worldwide. We should reflect on the past year and prepare to face the next year that s coming. First of all- explanation. We need to look at the big picture of what the Christian life is. What is Christian life? Secondly-implication. How should we live the Christian life? Then thirdlyapplication. How should we face the New Year? I. Explanation- What is the Christian life? [11, 13] A. Jesus is the framework for the Christian life- appearing/ epiphany [11, 13] In verses 11 and 13 the word appearing or appeared is important. The Greek word for that is epiphany- he appeared. Titus 2:11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, It begins this passage with that. And then towards the end in verse 13 Two words- appeared and appearing happens. Both having the same root wordepiphany. It talks about the two appearings of Jesus Christ. That becomes the framework of our lives. The noun epiphania means the visible appearance of something or someone invisible. A coming into view what has been previously concealed. Apart from the one literal use of epiphania, the word occurs in the New Testament four times concerning Christ s 1 st coming and 6 times concerning his 2 nd coming. Here, the word is used as both the 1 st and 2 nd comings of Christ. These appearing s become the framework by which we live the Christian life.

2 The 1 st coming of Jesus Christ happened 2000 years ago. So how were the people in the Old Testament saved since they didn t know about Jesus? Because, even from Genesis, all the content of the Old Testament is talking about the Messiah- someone that is coming to save. So, the Old Testament people were saved by faith in this Jesus who was to come. For us, we haven t seen Jesus either but we are saved through faith in Christ who did come. And both Old and New Testament people look to Jesus who is to come again. So even then, for any believer in Jesus Christ both in the Old and New Testament, the framework is the 1 st and 2 nd coming of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the greatest epiphany in our lives-the greatest discovery; greatest truth; greatest person; greatest knowledge in our lives as Christians. So, daily we need to see more of Jesus Christ. He is the framework for the Christian life. B. Jesus is the strength and the goal in Christian life- the grace of God for His glory [11, 13] The phrase associated with the first appeared is for the grace of God has appeared. Titus 2:11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, Verse 11 is talking about the 1 st coming of Christ. Verse 13 is talking about the 2 nd coming of Christ. The appearing. It s the same word, but the phrase that is associated with the 2 nd coming is not the grace of God but the glory of God. The framework of Christian life is the grace of God and the glory of God. The grace of God is the beginning of Christian life and continued strength of Christian life. The glory of God is the continual goal, what we look forward to in our Christian life. Christian life is between the grace and the glory of God. We are born again because of the grace of God in Christ s death and resurrection. Old Testament people look forward to the cross. New Testament people look backward to it and look forward to His coming. He also grows us as we think of the grace of God. As we fail, we go to the cross again and again. As I always say, the lowest place we can fall is the rock solid foundation of Jesus Christ. I fall on the rock. I go to the cross. He washes me. I begin again, by the grace of God. And I head forward, to the glory of God. That s how he grows us. When He returns, the New Testament says we will see and participate in the fullness of His glory. Jesus Christ is the one who appeared briefly on the stage of history and disappeared and will one day reappear. He appeared in grace and He will reappear in glory. The word appear, epiphany, is used in classical Greek literature for the dawn or daybreak as there is complete darkness and the Sun starts to rise, allowing everything to be seen. That s the word. When Jesus Christ appeared to the darkness, everything in the dark started to be seen. Everything became spiritually, Biblically logical. Not human or

3 worldly logic but biblical logic. Everything made sense when we discovered Jesus Christ. Riding on this idea, Canon Aitken suggested the two comings of Christ like this, two windows in the school of grace. Through the Western window a solemn light streams from Mount Calvary. And through the Eastern window shines the Sun rising, the herald of a bright day. Thus the school of grace is well lighted and we cannot afford to do without the light of either the West or East. Behind us we see the grace of God and ahead of us, we look forward to the glory of Jesus Christ. When we fall we fall on the grace of Jesus Christ but we keep following Jesus towards the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. That is Christian life. II. Implications- How should we live the Christian life? [12] Three things in between the framework of the 1 st and 2 nd coming of Christ, this is how we ought to live. A. Renouncing Grace is both the absence of God s punishment and the unmerited presence of God s power in your life to sanctify you. The word renounce has several definitions. Renouncing means saying no. In our daily lives, we must refuse to consent to wrong things- I will not do this if it hinders me from seeing the glory of God. It means to deny. Just like Jesus said- deny yourself, carry the cross and follow me. Deny yourselfno, carry the cross- yes, follow Christ- WOW. That s Christian life. No, Yes, WOW. Renouncing means that first part- no, deny. It also means to disclaim association with. Renounce your association with whatever hinders you from receiving the grace of God or seeing the glory of God, even with neutral things, which can hinder us. Renounce means to refuse to pay attention to- don t think about it. If you keep sinning in your addiction, don t think about that addiction. Get away from those things and think about other things. When you think about things, it stimulates our desires. Learn how to think about something else. Renouncing is saying no to anything within us that is associated with the operation of our sin nature, which takes us away from the grace of God and from living for the glory of God. It says in verse 12 that there are two things to renounce. First is ungodliness. Renounce The second thing is worldly passion. Here, it s talking about the sinful system of the world that is in opposition to God. Any desire or passion that is selfish hinders us from glorifying God- you need to deny those kinds of desires. Ungodliness is more vertical and worldly passions are more horizontal. We need to renounce these things to receive His grace and live for His glory. Titus 2:12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live selfcontrolled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, B. Living We have to say no and we have to say yes. We have to fill the void created from saying no with living. Renouncing and living. Sometimes people try to overcome their sin by only saying no, but you need to say yes- you need to replace it with good things.

4 Titus 2:12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live selfcontrolled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, Other places in the Bible, the word live may just mean to physically be alive. But in verse 12, the word live is used in a transcendent sense- to live a sanctified life as a child of God. So you have two choices of life- just live, or live purposefully. Live by the grace of God for the glory of God. We must live in such a way worthy of His calling and His grace. In order for us to live for His glory, there are some things we must do. Live self controlled- saying no to your heart. Also, we should live uprightly- righteously in relationships with other people. We should be people of integrity. We keep our word so that when people see us, they see Christ through our lives. We should be godly- godlike as opposed to ungodliness. This verse is talking about an eager waiting- like you re really hungry and steak is coming, but it hasn t come just yet. Much more in the Bible, the waiting is like waiting for your wedding day. People become very diligent as their wedding day approaches. Jesus Christ is our groom, we are the bride as the church of Jesus Christ, in love with Him. We are preparing for His return, purifying ourselves, desiring for His return, growing to understand Him, knowing and loving Him more. This waiting is that kind of eager waiting. Live purposefully, glorifying God as our goal. Self-controlled, upright in our relationships with other people. Godly in picturing Him. Waiting for His return. This is living. C. Training Titus 2:12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live selfcontrolled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, We are training to renounce (saying no), to live (saying yes), and to wait for the glory of God. This doesn t just happen once in a while, but must be habitual- it must become a lifestyle, so we can teach others how to do it. Training is to educate; to provide instruction for informed and responsible living, and to assist in the development of a person, so that they can make appropriate choices and practice discipline. We are to be in the school of grace and also we are to be in the family of grace. We train ourselves to deny ourselves- say no, follow Christ- say yes, and finally to say WOW to Jesus Christ. To worship Him, to honor Him, and long for Him. We need to train ourselves so that we can train others. Be trained so that a student will become a teacher and a child can

5 become a parent. Sometimes we can grow older but we are still like a spiritual child. But we need to be trained in order to teach others to follow Christ. In C. S Lewis Narnia, Lion and Lucy are having a conversation. Lucy is a little girl and she goes, Wow, you re getting bigger. - as if he s getting bigger. But the Lion says, No, I m not getting bigger but every year you get older, I will look bigger. As you mature, you ll discover that he is much greater than you thought he was when you were younger. You know you re growing when God becomes bigger to you. So you become less fearful in your life, you worry less because the grace of this great, awesome, omniscient, omnipotent, all-sovereign God is behind you and His glory is ahead of you and He is walking with you by His Spirit. What else is there to fear in our lives? That s what Christian life is. III. Applications- How should we face the New Year? When I was younger and would study the Word, every time I finished a chapter, I thought, I ll read a little bit more. Just a little bit more. So I can move forward. So I would not stop, when I wanted to quit, I would go on a little bit more. Also when the chapter was over, I wouldn t take a break, I would read a little bit more to the next chapter so when I got interested, then I would quit. So what happens is when I come back, I am already in the framework of reading to keep on reading faster. I think those are some good principles that you can apply in life. When you want to quit, just go a little further so you can develop your character. You are using the hardships and difficulties to grow. And also whenever you finish a chapter in your life, don t quit there. Make sure you prepare yourself in such a way where you d be motivated to come back and face the new phase of life. Don t just pass this past year- think about it, meditate on it, use it to grow, so that we ll be motivated to face the new year. A. Subtraction Subtraction- To renounce the things from the past as we talked about. Some questionswhat hinders you from receiving the grace of God and seeing the beauty of the glory of God? What hinders you from receiving His grace through Word, prayer, worship, going to small group, etc.? Sometimes, little sins can hinder us. There may be neutral things you need to replace. There are so many neutral things in affluent countries like America. In poor countries, you are just trying to survive. But in an affluent country, we have so much time because it s easy to live. So there is so much time for neutral things and entertainment. But often, spiritually speaking, those are the things that hinder us from receiving God s grace and seeing His glory. What neutral things do you need to replace? Are there relationships in your life that are hindering you? What are some thought patterns you have? I always talk about train of thoughts. Once you get on it, it goes; you need to build some other track that leads to the cross, so that you can receive His power and glory. Some of you have discouraging thoughts-every time you fail, you get discouraged and then quit. You feel so guilty even though the Scripture says, there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Do you have a habit of quitting? You need to overcome these things. We are a product of our past but we don t have to be prisoners of it. The past is important and explains, but does not have to

6 determine our future. If you re still talking about what you did yesterday- then you haven t done much today. The past is a good place to visit but you don t want to live there. You want to live in the present and face the future. Do not waste fresh tears over old grief. Save those tears for the cause of Christ, souls that are dying. Charles Swindoll said, Life is 10% what happens to you, and 90% how you react to it. As you reevaluate from the past and learn, you can now react better. React correctly as you face the future. B. Addition Addition for living in the future; subtraction for the past. What will help me to receive the grace of God so that I can live for the glory of God? What do I need to add in my life in place of the things I ve renounced? The obvious things are Word and prayer. But what else can concretely help me so that I am too busy to sin? Don t just say no to neutral things but replace some of those things. What are some things that I can enjoy and I can redeem in my spiritual life? Abraham Lincoln said, In the end, it s not the years in your life that count but it s the life in those years that counts. We have to live a life worthy of his calling and grace. Kierkegaard said, Life can only be understood backwards but it must be lived forwards. We have to keep going, making adjustments in our lives. C. Proof Proof for evaluation in the present. Am I doing okay? My simple suggestion is do you have a lot of WOW s in your life? Is Jesus the most beautiful person to you? When the angel saw the glory of Jesus in Isaiah 6, it could not help but to say, calling to one another, Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty. They could not help but to go WOW! And he said that verse, Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory! So not just the heavenly realm, but the earth is filled with his glory as well. Why can t we see it? Because we are so dull. We are still living in darkness; we can only see a glimpse of it. We experience it at times. But if our hearts are pure, and we are following the foot trails of Jesus, we will see the glory of Jesus every day. And we will be so mesmerized by the glory and beauty of Jesus Christ, we will not be able to help but to follow Him and say wow, I ll follow Jesus. Is that there in your life? Sometimes we crucify ourselves between two thieves- regret for yesterday and fear for tomorrow. No, we must follow the wow of Jesus. Edwin Bliss said this, Yesterday is a cancelled check- forget it. Tomorrow is a promissory note- don t count it. Today is ready cash- use it. We need to have the lessons from the past so we can be strengthened in our heart. Though circumstances may not change, you will be better equipped to face your circumstances if you see the glory of Jesus. You will realize that behind you is the grace of God and in front of you is the unfading, eternal, infinite glory of God waiting for you. Even emotions may not change but your desire is there. Sometimes you re emotionless in your desire but can still say Jesus I love you. There is true love for Jesus. Predominant feelings might be misery but there is the prevailing joy of Jesus Christ in you and you will overcome the circumstances.

7 Conclusion Think about this- tomorrow is the first blank page of a 365 page book. Write a good one. One day at a time. We can help write that story by just setting up daily goals. Someone said, Today, carve out a quiet interlude for yourself to dream. Pen in hand. Only dreams give birth to change. Dream about how you can love Jesus more. Bill Keane said, Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift of God- which is why we call it present. One of our girls said, New Years resolutions are stupid. I thought about it and it is stupid if the goal of your goals is to never fail. But if the goal is progression, not perfection, then it is a means of growth. Then, setting goals is not stupid but smart. I have probably made several hundred resolutions and I broke every single one of them. I did not keep one thing perfectly. But if I didn t set those goals, I wouldn t have grown through that process. I used to fail in reading through the Bible starting in January because I would stop at Leviticus. But if I didn t set that goal, I wouldn t have read Genesis and Exodus. The goal of setting goals in your life is not perfection but progression-you re going to grow. It s okay to fail. But we re going to grow through the process. So do it once again, commit yourself. Whenever you fail, behind you is the cross, in front of you is glory- you will become like Jesus Christ. Keep making adjustments, not just in January but constantly. It could be daily or a short period of your life. When I have significant break times throughout the year, I evaluate and readjust. In sports, the best coaches do two things. One, they set up a system and philosophy well. Two, they make adjustments, even half-time adjustments. When your system isn t working, within your system you have to make adjustments to alleviate problems in the system. Satan doesn t like us and Satan knows us and he makes adjustments personally and in the world, that s why the world keeps changing- Satan works differently in different generations. Satan works differently in your life than in your kids lives. We better make adjustments. Set up a system and then constantly make adjustments. In the end, we do all this so that we would love Jesus Christ more. He loved us with an infinite, eternal love. And we want to love like Him so that the world can see His love through us. The best thing for me is when I see alums loving the Lord deeply. The worst pain in ministry for me is when I see an alums love for the Lord grow cold. It s the same thing in marriage counseling. Oh, I m going to die without him/ her. And after a few years, I almost choked him yesterday. No married person wants to be loved less as the years go by. If you re married, love your spouse more today than yesterday. It s the same thing in our spiritual lives. I pray that today is the day you love Jesus more than ever. Everyday love him more so that the day you die will be the day you love Jesus the most. That s our goal. That s why we set goals and make adjustments, so that we live by His grace for His glory. We live by His grace as we are loved by Him and we live for His glory so that we will fall more in love with Him. I pray that we would be victors by His grace and lovers for His glory. Let s pray.