Titus 3:3-8
Food for thought:
There are two basic, yet profound thoughts to dwell on for today. They are ideas we have repeatedly visited in these devotionals, but they are worth saying every day, for they are the core of our belief. In these verses we see the hope and purpose for today and the hope and purpose for the future.
For today, as we struggle against the constant bombardment of the world’s values and are being tempted at every turn to take the low road, we have a simple truth to claim. Our salvation was, and is, a process of washing, rebirth, and renewal. God did not re-create us in order for us to stay just as we are. God saved us from the pits of despair and sin in order that we could be transformed into His image. We have the power of the Holy Spirit within us so that we can be scrubbed clean from the inside out. We don’t have to wallow in the sins that seem to cling to us like grease. The Holy Spirit is the grease-cutting detergent that is active in our soul to loosen and even repel the grime. Let’s claim this cleansing power and hold each other accountable to a holy life, which is pleasing to God.
Secondly, this passage reminds us of the true power in our salvation; the motivating power that infuses purpose into everything we do. We are heirs of God, inheritors of all His glory. Our hope is in the fact that we will have eternal life in the glory of God the Father! I don’t know what that means, exactly. I only know that it will be incredible! Notice that we have hope in the fact. We do not hope that it might happen. No. We have hope because of the fact that God has given this to us. We don’t earn it, He has given it. We are heirs, and in that we have hope that, even if this life is difficult, our destiny is in the eternal Kingdom of God. Do you believe that? If you do, if your eyes are fixed on that hope, then the seemingly technicolor problems of this life will fade into the black and white, shadowy images that they really are. May we live in the hope of our salvation today!