“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.” - Titus 2:13-14
Too many people think of salvation as a fire insurance policy. Certainly, when we get saved we are delivered from the penalty of sin. Our eternal future shifts from hell to heaven when we receive Jesus as Savior and Lord. But salvation is more than an item to check off your bucket list. Sugar-coated sermons are partly to blame for such weak theology. Selfishness and self-preservation also contribute to this problem.
When Paul wrote to Titus, he reminded the young minister (and us) that Jesus is coming soon. That is our blessed hope. His return is the exciting event that we are looking forward to. Also, Paul reminds us that Jesus died for us, “... that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people.” Why did Jesus die? So that through His death, He would redeem us. Because of sin, we were spiritually bankrupt. We owed a debt we could never pay. His death is the full payment for our sins. That's great news, isn't it?
Furthermore, He died to redeem us, “... from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people.” He died to save us from our sins. If we treat salvation like it is only a fire insurance policy, we overlook a major aspect of salvation. Jesus died to save us from our sins. He did not die so we could continue to be rebellious, wicked people. No! He died to save us from our iniquity. Our salvation should lead to sanctification. We've been saved to be a purified and special people for the Lord. We need a revival of holiness among God's people today!
I want us to focus on the last part of our text. Jesus died to redeem us, that we may be, “... zealous of good works.” He wants His people to be consumed with a passion. He wants our lives to manifest good deeds that are the product of a loving heart.
When we think of passion and zeal, we have examples around us. Some are passionate fans for a football team. Their zeal leads them to do unusual, uncomfortable and even bizarre things. For instance, I saw a picture of fans attending a Buffalo Bills football game. They were covered with several inches of snow. In spite of the poor weather, they traveled to the game and sat in the cold, snowy stands as they cheered their team on. That is zeal. They had a passion for their team. Others will travel hours to see a musician perform. The fans will arrive early. They will pay several dollars to get in the concert. They will get excited, scream and sing along during the concert. It is an unbelievable experience they will treasure. They are zealous in their show of affection for a musical artist.
To be rather honest, we are suspicious of spiritually zealous people. We question their sanity. We think they don't have proper balance in their lives. However, God expects us to be zealous of good works. He expects us to be consumed with a passion for Him.
Jesus is our example in all things. Our goal should be to emulate our Master. Here is what Jesus said of Himself. “My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.” “For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.” “I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.” “... the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Jesus was zealous of good works. He had a passion to accomplish His Father's will. He came to redeem lost souls. He had compassion on people. Jesus lived with passion.
Where are the people who are zealous of good works? Where are the Christians who are consumed with a passion? Where are the believers who have a burning heart for God and a burden to reach lost people? Where are the saints who have genuine compassion for the people God has placed around them?
What about you? When was the last time you had a burden to see someone saved? When was the last time you were so consumed with a passion to reach people that it led you out of your comfort zone?
Perhaps we need to get off our cellphones and get on our knees. Instead of looking at social media, we need to look to the harvest fields. Rather than being consumed with politics or sports, we should be consumed with the plight of the lost people around us. Our focus needs to shift from the temporal to the eternal.
A thousand years from this date, it won't matter who won the Super Bowl or was elected to the White House. Facebook and Instagram will not be important. All that will matter is where we and others will dwell through eternity. Let's be zealous of good works. Be consumed with a passion to accomplish God's will.
Time is running out.
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