The Teaching of Grace (Titus 2:12-15)

(Class Notes)

• Living in this World (Titus 2:12)
  • The "GRACE of GOD" (Titus 2:11) "TEACHES (TRAINS)" the believer HOW TO LIVE in this "world (age)" (Titus 2:12)
    • The "GRACE of GOD" (Titus 2:11) provides the believer's TRAINING for how to live in "this present evil world (age)" (Galatians 1:4) just as Moses was "LEARNED (TRAINED) in all the the wisdom of the Egyptians" (Acts 7:22)
  • The "GRACE of GOD" (Titus 2:11) "teaches (trains)" the believer to DENY (RENOUNCE) ungodliness" (Titus 2:12)
    • The believer is to "SHUN profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness" (II Timothy 2:16) and is to instead "STUDY (BE DILIGENT)" in "rightly dividing the Word of Truth" (II Timothy 2:15)
    • FAITHFULNESS to "the WORD of GOD" will have the CORRECT APPEAL to the hearer's conscience in "the SIGHT of GOD" (II Corinthians 4:2)
    • FAITHFUL "PREACHING" exalts what CHRIST has done and NOT what WE have done (II Corinthians 4:5 cf. Galatians 6:14)
  • The "GRACE of GOD" (Titus 2:11) "teaches (trains)" the believer to LIVE "SOBERLY" (Titus 2:12), i.e. "TEMPERATELY" (Titus 2:2) and "DISCREETLY" (Titus 2:5)
    • The LIFE of the believer is likened to the "RACE" of an athlete, which requires "TEMPERANCE (MODERATION)" for a successful outcome (I Corinthians 9:24-25)
    • "Under GRACE" (Romans 6:14), "ALL things are LAWFUL ... BUT ALL things are NOT EXPEDIENT (PROFITABLE)" (I Corinthians 6:12), which requires "DISCRETION (SOUNDNESS of mind)" to in "LOVE" make that DISCERNMENT (II Timothy 1:7 cf. I Corinthians 8:1,13)
  • The "GRACE of GOD" (Titus 2:11) "teaches (trains)" the believer to LIVE "RIGHTEOUSLY" (Titus 2:12)
    • The believer is to "PUT OFF ... the OLD MAN, which is CORRUPT" (Ephesians 4:22)
    • The believer is to "PUT ON ... the NEW MAN ... RIGHTEOUSNESS" (Ephesians 4:24)
  • The "GRACE of GOD" (Titus 2:11) "teaches (trains)" the believer to LIVE "GODLY" (Titus 2:12)
    • To "LIVE GODLY in Christ Jesus" (II Timothy 3:12) is to "CONTINUE ... in the THINGS LEARNED" (II Timothy 3:14) FROM the apostle of GRACE (II Timothy 3:10 cf. Ephesians 3:1-2)

• Looking for that Blessed Hope (Titus 2:13)
  • The "GRACE of GOD" (Titus 2:11) "teaches (trains)" the believer to LOOK "for that Blessed Hope ... the Glorious Appearing of the Great God ... our Savior Jesus Christ" (Titus 2:13)
    • This verse shows that the "the Great God" is "our Savior Jesus Christ" (Titus 2:13) and so He is referred to in this SAME epistle as "God our Savior" (Titus 2:10; Titus 3:4)
    • The Blessed Hope to which the believer is to be "LOOKING" is "the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ" (Philippians 3:20) Who is to "descend from Heaven" (I Thessalonians 4:16)
      • Of the Lord's earthly disciples, it is recorded that "while they beheld, He was taken up: and a Cloud received Him out of their sight" (Acts 1:9)
      • The Lord's heavenly citizens (Philippians 3:20 cf. Ephesians 2:6) are to be LOOKING to "be caught up together ... in the Clouds, to meet the Lord in the air" (I Thessalonians 4:17)
      • The "Clouds" (I Thessalonians 4:17) are the "Clouds of Heaven", i.e. the angelic hosts (Matthew 24:30-31)
    • The believers under "the Dispensation of Grace" (Ephesians 3:2) have the Blessed "Hope of Salvation" (I Thessalonians 5:8) also called "the Good Hope through Grace" (II Thessalonians 2:16), because they are promised to be "delivered ... from the Wrath to come" (I Thessalonians 1:10 cf. Matthew 3:7; Luke 3:7), i.e. "the Day of Wrath" (Romans 2:5; Revelation 6:17)
      • This "Good Hope through Grace" (II Thessalonians 2:16) teaches believers under "the Dispensation of Grace" (Ephesians 3:2) that they are of "the Day" and, therefore, do NOT belong to "the Night" (I Thessalonians 5:4-5)
      • "The Times and Seasons" associated with "the Day of the Lord" have to do with "Destruction" (I Thessalonians 5:1-3)
      • Many are the foreboding OT prophecies concerning "the Day of the Lord" (I Thessalonians 5:2):
        • "a Cloudy Day" (Ezekiel 30:3)
        • "a Day of Darkness and of Gloominess, a Day of Clouds and Thick Darkness" (Joel 2:1-2)
        • "Great and Very Terrible" (Joel 2:11,31)
        • "Darkness and NOT Light" (Amos 5:18,20)
        • "Great and Dreadful" (Malachi 4:5)

• Zealous of Good Works (Titus 2:14)
  • The "GRACE of GOD" (Titus 2:11) "teaches (trains)" the believer to UNDERSTAND WHY Christ "gave Himself for us" - so that He might " REDEEM us FROM ALL INIQUITY" (Titus 2:14)
    • Christ gave Himself as a "RANSOM for ALL" (I Timothy 2:6) and so He is "the SAVIOR of ALL" and "SPECIALLY of THOSE THAT BELIEVE" (I Timothy 4:10) for it is "THEY WHICH RECEIVE the abundance of GRACE and of the GIFT OF RIGHTEOUSNESS" (Romans 5:15-17 cf. Romans 5:1-2)
    • Christ "GAVE HIMSELF for our sins, that He might DELIVER US from this present evil world (age)" (Galatians 1:4)
      • It is God's desire that we be NOT CONFORMED to this world (age) by having CORRECT THINKING (Romans 12:2-3), so that ALL GLORY goes to the GIVER (I Corinthians 4:6-7)
  • The "GRACE of GOD" (Titus 2:11) "teaches (trains)" the believer to UNDERSTAND WHY Christ "gave Himself for us" - so that He might " PURIFY UNTO Himself a peculiar people, zealous of GOOD WORKS" (Titus 2:14)
    • The Lord "SANCTIFIES and CLEANSES with the WASHING of water by the Word" (Ephesians 5:26), i.e. "the Word of His GRACE which is able to BUILD you UP" (Acts 20:32)
    • The LOVE OF CHRIST is the TRUE MOTIVATION for ALL SERVICE to Him (II Corinthians 5:14-15)
      • It is the LOVE OF CHRIST which God desires for ALL BELIEVERS to experience TOGETHER, i.e. the FULLNESS OF GOD (Ephesians 3:18-19)
      • God's GREAT LOVE (Ephesians 2:4) manifested by His EXCEEDING GRACE (Ephesians 2:7) has placed the believer in the HIGHEST GLORY with CHRIST (Ephesians 2:6 cf. Ephesians 1:20-23)
      • Only HIS GRACE causes the believer to ABOUND with THANKSGIVING (Colossians 2:6-7), which is the ONLY TRUE RESPONSE to the SACRIFICIAL LOVE of HIS SON (Ephesians 5:1-4)

• Ministering with ALL Authority (Titus 2:15)
  • Paul charges Titus to "speak", "exhort", and "rebuke" with "ALL AUTHORITY" - "these things" (Titus 2:15), i.e. the "TEACHING" (Titus 2:12) of "the GRACE of God" (Titus 2:11)
    • At the time of his farewell to the Ephesian elders (Acts 20:17), Paul "commended" them "to the Word of His GRACE" (Acts 20:32), i.e. "the dispensation of the GRACE of God" which he received from God for them (Ephesians 3:2)
    • The AUTHORITY behind Paul's CHARGE to "reprove, rebuke, exhort with ALL LONGSUFFERING and DOCTRINE" (II Timothy 4:2) comes from "God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, Who shall judge the quick (living) and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom" (II Timothy 4:1)
    • At the Judgment Seat of Christ" (Romans 14:10; II Corinthians 5:10) the believer will be judged for service and NOT for sins (I Corinthians 3:13-15)
      • At that JUDGMENT every believer shall "have PRAISE of God" (I Corinthians 4:5) for the acknowledgement that ALL is the WORK OF THE LORD (Romans 14:11-12; Isaiah 43:23-24)
    • At that time when "Christ, Who is our LIFE shall APPEAR" (Colossians 3:4), ALL those who "LOOKED" for His APPEARING (Titus 2:13), i.e. ALL those who "LOVED" His APPEARING (II Timothy 4:8) - they will be REWARDED for having:
      • "FOUGHT A GOOD FIGHT" (II Timothy 4:7 cf. II Timothy 2:3-4; Philippians 3:18-20)
      • "FINISHED MY COURSE" (II Timothy 4:7 cf. Acts 20:24; Philippians 3:12-14)
      • "KEPT THE FAITH" (II Timothy 4:7 cf. I Timothy 3:9; II Timothy 2:24-26)

        Study Outline

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