WEBVTT 00:00:01.960 --> 00:00:05.400 This is your daily reminder. God has not run 00:00:05.400 --> 00:00:09.220 out of mercy, not for you, not today. Welcome 00:00:09.220 --> 00:00:12.500 to the New Mercies Podcast. Welcome to the New 00:00:12.500 --> 00:00:16.120 Mercies Podcast. Just so you are aware, the way 00:00:16.120 --> 00:00:18.559 I'm laying this out, I know we've kind of rebranded 00:00:18.559 --> 00:00:20.980 and relaunched. I have a daily reading plan myself. 00:00:21.280 --> 00:00:23.879 My church is going through it as well. And so 00:00:23.879 --> 00:00:26.579 I'm going to be reading each episode each day 00:00:26.579 --> 00:00:29.870 is going to be from the excerpt from the texts 00:00:29.870 --> 00:00:31.829 that I've been reading. And I just want to share 00:00:31.829 --> 00:00:34.750 a little bit about what God is doing within the 00:00:34.750 --> 00:00:36.789 text and how we can understand and kind of walk 00:00:36.789 --> 00:00:38.270 away with a little bit of encouragement today 00:00:38.270 --> 00:00:41.950 and a little bit of challenge maybe. So my reading 00:00:41.950 --> 00:00:44.450 today is in Titus chapter 2. So I just want to 00:00:44.450 --> 00:00:46.670 read a couple of verses out of Titus 2. I hope 00:00:46.670 --> 00:00:48.990 and pray you read the entire chapter. It's a 00:00:48.990 --> 00:00:51.049 great chapter in the scripture, but I just want 00:00:51.049 --> 00:00:52.890 to read a couple verses starting at verse number 00:00:52.890 --> 00:00:56.979 11. The Bible says this. For the grace of God 00:00:56.979 --> 00:00:59.960 has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, 00:01:00.159 --> 00:01:03.460 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly 00:01:03.460 --> 00:01:05.920 passions and to live self -controlled, upright, 00:01:06.079 --> 00:01:09.640 and godly lives in the present age, waiting for 00:01:09.640 --> 00:01:12.579 our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory 00:01:12.579 --> 00:01:15.180 of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who 00:01:15.180 --> 00:01:18.480 gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness 00:01:18.480 --> 00:01:22.379 and to purify for himself a people for his own 00:01:22.379 --> 00:01:25.489 possession, who are zealous for good. works. 00:01:25.989 --> 00:01:28.689 There's more scripture in that chapter, so I 00:01:28.689 --> 00:01:31.849 encourage you, go read it and let it all soak 00:01:31.849 --> 00:01:34.310 in. As we talked about in the first episode of 00:01:34.310 --> 00:01:36.670 all of this, let the Word of God breathe into 00:01:36.670 --> 00:01:39.409 your life and give you life and give it to you 00:01:39.409 --> 00:01:40.849 abundantly. I just want to break this down and 00:01:40.849 --> 00:01:42.250 look at a couple of things that stood out to 00:01:42.250 --> 00:01:45.859 me today as I was reading this. The grace of 00:01:45.859 --> 00:01:48.480 God appeared. This is Paul writing to Titus and 00:01:48.480 --> 00:01:50.840 he says the grace of God has appeared. I believe 00:01:50.840 --> 00:01:53.239 he's talking about the first advent of Jesus 00:01:53.239 --> 00:01:56.920 Christ. When Jesus came to save the world as 00:01:56.920 --> 00:01:59.060 the Savior, the Messiah, the one who would come 00:01:59.060 --> 00:02:02.099 and repair and restore all things. That's what 00:02:02.099 --> 00:02:04.980 he came the first time as Jesus of Nazareth. 00:02:05.019 --> 00:02:07.239 Because he says in there he's bringing salvation 00:02:07.239 --> 00:02:10.990 to all people. Salvation. What did we need? We 00:02:10.990 --> 00:02:12.650 didn't need another sovereign. We didn't need 00:02:12.650 --> 00:02:16.009 another military presence. We needed a savior 00:02:16.009 --> 00:02:19.370 because we had an issue. The issue is our sinfulness 00:02:19.370 --> 00:02:21.669 that kept us in rebellion against God. What did 00:02:21.669 --> 00:02:25.289 we need above everything else? We needed a savior. 00:02:25.409 --> 00:02:28.629 He brought us salvation through Jesus Christ. 00:02:28.949 --> 00:02:32.069 Now, once we receive this salvation, this is 00:02:32.069 --> 00:02:34.370 one of the most incredible places that I can 00:02:34.370 --> 00:02:37.650 encourage you and also challenge you today to 00:02:37.650 --> 00:02:39.770 know as soon as you receive salvation. There's 00:02:39.770 --> 00:02:41.930 something that happens within you. I don't want 00:02:41.930 --> 00:02:43.830 us to misunderstand the scripture today. The 00:02:43.830 --> 00:02:46.530 scripture says, training us to renounce ungodliness. 00:02:47.169 --> 00:02:49.550 Most of the time, whenever we read this scripture, 00:02:49.750 --> 00:02:53.210 we do it inappropriately. We do it to where we 00:02:53.210 --> 00:02:55.150 say, we're going to renounce anything that is 00:02:55.150 --> 00:02:58.150 ungodly in the world. That's not what he's saying. 00:02:59.090 --> 00:03:01.990 Because he says, I want you to renounce ungodliness 00:03:01.990 --> 00:03:05.219 and worldly passions. Then he goes and says what 00:03:05.219 --> 00:03:07.460 we are supposed to produce. So he first says 00:03:07.460 --> 00:03:10.699 what we're supposed to renounce or deny regularly, 00:03:10.840 --> 00:03:13.819 actively deny. And those things that we actively 00:03:13.819 --> 00:03:17.199 deny are within us. It's you're supposed to deny 00:03:17.199 --> 00:03:22.000 or renounce the ungodliness in you. The old man 00:03:22.000 --> 00:03:25.759 of Anthony, the old man is a sinful creature 00:03:25.759 --> 00:03:28.240 that is created in the flesh, fallen, broken, 00:03:28.340 --> 00:03:30.639 and there are things that still linger in my 00:03:30.639 --> 00:03:32.740 life. Yes, Jesus saved me, and yes, he made me 00:03:32.740 --> 00:03:35.139 a new creation, but there's still the old that 00:03:35.139 --> 00:03:39.419 tries to seep in. Anything that is ungodly, I 00:03:39.419 --> 00:03:42.340 am supposed to renounce in my life. It's supposed 00:03:42.340 --> 00:03:44.800 to be like, have you ever used two magnets and 00:03:44.800 --> 00:03:46.840 you put them together and they attach? Well, 00:03:46.860 --> 00:03:50.500 then you flip it around and they're not opposites 00:03:50.500 --> 00:03:52.759 anymore. And then they push against each other, 00:03:52.819 --> 00:03:55.800 right? They're renouncing one another. They're 00:03:55.800 --> 00:03:58.280 trying to push the other away. That's what we're 00:03:58.280 --> 00:04:00.360 supposed to do if we are a believer. Salvation 00:04:00.360 --> 00:04:03.580 has come into our life. The grace of God has 00:04:03.580 --> 00:04:05.680 appeared. And when the grace of God appears in 00:04:05.680 --> 00:04:08.439 your life and takes over you, you then start 00:04:08.439 --> 00:04:11.280 renouncing the ungodly things in your life. If 00:04:11.280 --> 00:04:13.400 you've got something ungodly in your life and 00:04:13.400 --> 00:04:16.160 you're not renouncing it, check your heart. Because 00:04:16.160 --> 00:04:18.899 then it says, and worldly passions. The things 00:04:18.899 --> 00:04:22.279 that the world is trying to make you, bring you 00:04:22.279 --> 00:04:25.620 in, whether it be worldly lusts or worldly... 00:04:25.959 --> 00:04:28.759 things that take your attention away from the 00:04:28.759 --> 00:04:31.680 God of glory, we're supposed to renounce it. 00:04:31.699 --> 00:04:34.759 We're supposed to push it away. And then what 00:04:34.759 --> 00:04:36.819 are we supposed to produce? We're supposed to 00:04:36.819 --> 00:04:40.500 live self -controlled. Well, if you're renouncing 00:04:40.500 --> 00:04:43.220 ungodliness and worldly passions, the opposite 00:04:43.220 --> 00:04:45.160 of that is being self -controlled. You're understanding, 00:04:45.480 --> 00:04:48.620 I'm going to say yes and no to the things I need 00:04:48.620 --> 00:04:51.259 to say yes and no to. No longer are you going 00:04:51.259 --> 00:04:55.139 to fool me or trick me or lure me in. I'm going 00:04:55.139 --> 00:04:57.959 to say no if you're doing something ungodly and 00:04:57.959 --> 00:04:59.980 you're trying to ask for me to do it. If you're 00:04:59.980 --> 00:05:01.699 trying to pull me into a worldly passion, I'm 00:05:01.699 --> 00:05:04.100 going to say no because I'm controlled. I'm self 00:05:04.100 --> 00:05:06.639 -controlled. I've got a sober mind that is willing 00:05:06.639 --> 00:05:09.519 to think things through and say, does this align 00:05:09.519 --> 00:05:12.180 with scripture or not? If it doesn't align with 00:05:12.180 --> 00:05:14.920 this book, the answer is no. I'm not going to 00:05:14.920 --> 00:05:16.620 do it. I'm going to be self -controlled. I'm 00:05:16.620 --> 00:05:18.980 going to be upright. Self -controlled is inward. 00:05:19.579 --> 00:05:23.000 I'm going to control my behavior. And then upright, 00:05:23.319 --> 00:05:25.879 or that word is also translated into righteously 00:05:25.879 --> 00:05:28.439 or righteousness, that's toward other people. 00:05:28.639 --> 00:05:31.160 I'm supposed to do the right thing all the time 00:05:31.160 --> 00:05:34.360 with everybody. If I've got the grace of God 00:05:34.360 --> 00:05:37.500 living in me, then I'm supposed to be self -controlled 00:05:37.500 --> 00:05:41.519 myself. I'm going to tame down my fleshly habits. 00:05:41.639 --> 00:05:43.899 I'm going to tame that down, and I'm going to 00:05:43.899 --> 00:05:46.500 treat you the right way, the way the Bible tells 00:05:46.500 --> 00:05:48.430 me to treat you. If you're a brother in Christ, 00:05:48.529 --> 00:05:49.750 I'm going to treat you like a brother in Christ. 00:05:50.110 --> 00:05:52.029 If you are a lost person, I'm going to do my 00:05:52.029 --> 00:05:54.009 best to draw you to the saving knowledge of Jesus. 00:05:54.110 --> 00:05:56.889 It's changed my life. So I've got to be able 00:05:56.889 --> 00:06:00.350 to walk in and help you see it, help you understand 00:06:00.350 --> 00:06:03.850 it. Because then it says, and godly lives in 00:06:03.850 --> 00:06:07.449 this present age. He's saying, whether you are 00:06:07.449 --> 00:06:10.410 dealing with something internally, be self -controlled. 00:06:10.800 --> 00:06:12.339 If you're dealing with a brother in Christ or 00:06:12.339 --> 00:06:14.079 those that are around you, do the right thing. 00:06:14.120 --> 00:06:16.699 Act the right way. Be the responsible person 00:06:16.699 --> 00:06:19.019 in the relationship. And then it says, or if 00:06:19.019 --> 00:06:20.720 you're dealing with, you need to live a godly 00:06:20.720 --> 00:06:23.000 life in this present age. Those that are around 00:06:23.000 --> 00:06:26.160 you need to see you and see the Lord first. If 00:06:26.160 --> 00:06:28.019 I were to ask all of your friends, all of your 00:06:28.019 --> 00:06:30.759 neighbors, all of your family, give me two words 00:06:30.759 --> 00:06:35.879 to describe this person. Would it be godly? Would 00:06:35.879 --> 00:06:39.819 it be holy? Would it be Christ -like? I'm just 00:06:39.819 --> 00:06:42.290 asking. That's for you to understand it to know, 00:06:42.370 --> 00:06:44.629 because then in verse number 13, it says this 00:06:44.629 --> 00:06:48.689 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of 00:06:48.689 --> 00:06:51.550 the glory of our great God and savior, Jesus 00:06:51.550 --> 00:06:54.810 Christ. If I can tell you one thing today, I 00:06:54.810 --> 00:06:58.949 am waiting on that day. See, he talks first about 00:06:58.949 --> 00:07:02.129 the salvation of God. The grace of God has appeared. 00:07:02.290 --> 00:07:04.850 Jesus has appeared bringing salvation to us, 00:07:04.870 --> 00:07:07.689 right? He showed up as the savior. He's showing 00:07:07.689 --> 00:07:10.910 up next. The next time Jesus comes, he's coming 00:07:10.910 --> 00:07:14.029 as king and reigning and ruling. That's when 00:07:14.029 --> 00:07:16.589 he's showing up. We get to wait on that day because 00:07:16.589 --> 00:07:18.930 I know that I'm in the right relationship with 00:07:18.930 --> 00:07:22.209 Christ. I have him as my savior. I have God as 00:07:22.209 --> 00:07:24.889 my father because Jesus has connected me to him. 00:07:25.029 --> 00:07:28.550 And now I get to wait for the blessed hope. The 00:07:28.550 --> 00:07:31.610 hope that I have that I get to live forever with 00:07:31.610 --> 00:07:33.589 the God who made me, the God who loves me, the 00:07:33.589 --> 00:07:36.149 God who saved me. Yes, those saints that have 00:07:36.149 --> 00:07:37.910 gone before, I can't wait to see them again. 00:07:38.050 --> 00:07:39.649 But let me tell you this. I've got a blessed 00:07:39.649 --> 00:07:41.990 hope. I've got an inheritance coming. And those 00:07:41.990 --> 00:07:44.800 saints before me didn't give it to me. Jesus 00:07:44.800 --> 00:07:48.300 did. I've got a blessed hope that I cannot wait 00:07:48.300 --> 00:07:52.839 to see God, my Savior, Jesus again. And then 00:07:52.839 --> 00:07:55.639 verse 14, who gave himself. This gives the explanation 00:07:55.639 --> 00:07:57.899 as to why I want to see Jesus so bad. Verse 14, 00:07:58.040 --> 00:08:01.360 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all 00:08:01.360 --> 00:08:04.600 lawlessness and to purify for himself a people 00:08:04.600 --> 00:08:07.100 for his own possession. I get to be. I get to 00:08:07.100 --> 00:08:09.579 be in the king's house eating at the king's table 00:08:09.579 --> 00:08:13.839 because Jesus loves me. He did that for me. If 00:08:13.839 --> 00:08:15.660 that doesn't change the way you live your life, 00:08:15.779 --> 00:08:19.060 you have probably Christianed wrong. You've probably 00:08:19.060 --> 00:08:22.000 done it all wrong. Knowing that Jesus is coming 00:08:22.000 --> 00:08:24.819 back to take me and take me home and show me 00:08:24.819 --> 00:08:27.160 the beautiful place he's created for me to be 00:08:27.160 --> 00:08:29.379 in perfect harmony with him forever and ever 00:08:29.379 --> 00:08:31.800 and ever. If that doesn't affect my life today, 00:08:31.939 --> 00:08:35.330 I've probably done it wrong. Same with you. Does 00:08:35.330 --> 00:08:37.789 that affect your life today? Has the salvation 00:08:37.789 --> 00:08:40.029 shown up in your life? If so, you've renounced 00:08:40.029 --> 00:08:45.250 godliness in your life. If the love of Jesus 00:08:45.250 --> 00:08:48.070 has penetrated your heart and your soul so strongly 00:08:48.070 --> 00:08:50.250 and so powerfully to save you, to raise you from 00:08:50.250 --> 00:08:54.889 death to life, you're going to renounce and deny 00:08:54.889 --> 00:08:58.370 all of the ungodliness and the worldly passions 00:08:58.370 --> 00:09:01.110 that once took you in. You're going to do that. 00:09:01.169 --> 00:09:01.909 And then what are you going to do? You're going 00:09:01.909 --> 00:09:04.090 to replace it with self -control within, with 00:09:04.090 --> 00:09:06.370 uprightness without, and with godly lives for 00:09:06.370 --> 00:09:08.889 the world to see. Why? Because our goal is, our 00:09:08.889 --> 00:09:11.470 hope, we are waiting on the day Jesus shows back 00:09:11.470 --> 00:09:13.509 up. And when he does, I'm going to be with him 00:09:13.509 --> 00:09:15.950 and everything's going to be fine. Every tear 00:09:15.950 --> 00:09:18.230 is going to be wiped away. Every sorrow I've 00:09:18.230 --> 00:09:20.049 ever felt is going to disappear. I'm going to 00:09:20.049 --> 00:09:24.470 experience perfect glory and bliss with the one 00:09:24.470 --> 00:09:27.950 who saved me. Let that change your life today.