Saving and Instructing Grace.
For the grace of God hath appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us, to the intent that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly and righteously and godly in this present world.— Titus ii. II, 12.
1. To this important statement the Apostle is led up by the con- sideration of certain very homely and practical duties which fall to the lot of Christians in various walks of life, and these matters he refers to as " the things pertaining to sound doctrine." He has a word of practical counsel for several distinct classes of persons ; for he knows the wisdom of being definite. He speaks to elder men and elder women, to young men and to servants ; and it is from inculcating upon these last the first principles of common honesty that he passes with one of his characteristic " for's " to enunciate the sublime truths which the text contains.
2. St. Paul always had a tremendous reason for the simplest duty ; his motives are always great and far-reaching. This is not only Pauline, but Christian ; great reasons for doing little things ; high motives for all conduct; every act linked to some eternal purpose — this is the distinctive feature of Christianity. It appears in the text. He would have Titus teach the Cretans to be sober and righteous and godly, but he prefaces it by a statement of the great gospel — a word which is itself full of beauty, a sweet, melodious word : " For the grace of God hath appeared, bringing salvation to all men." It sounds like a strain caught from an angel's hymn. It is that, and it is also solid truth. All Christian injunctions and precepts rest on that truth — God's grace appearing and bringing salvation to all men. That fact is the ground on which we stand ; it is the atmosphere about us ; it is motive, path, end. God's gracious love, not sought or deduced, but appearing- by its own spontaneous will, moved by its own yearning heart, bringing salvation to all men, so that it is here, an already
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accomplished fact, food to eat, air to breathe, shelter to cover us — a great investing fact or condition, changing our whole life and giving direction to it.
3. The arrangement of words in the Authorized Version, " the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men," is not what St. Paul means. These last words, "to all men,"' should be connected with the previous ones, "that bringeth salvation." It is not part of his purpose to declare, what was not in fact true then and is not true now, that the grace of God has appeared to all men ; but it was part of his purpose to declare that that grace brings salvation to all men, however the present range of its manifestation may historically be contracted.
Saving Grace.
" The grace of God hath appeared, bringing salvation to all men."
1. What is salvation ? What is it to be saved ?
(1) First of all, it is to be forgiven. If we have ever done a wrong, if ever an estrangement between us and one whom we loye dearly has cast a shadow over our life, we know what forgiveness, even from human love, means to us ; how the estrange- ment ceases, how the burden is lifted, and love once more is joy and not pain to us. Now, let us remember that, as long as we are in the bondage of sin, we are estranged from God. We know God is holy and hates sin. So long as we cleave to our sin we cannot be at home with God. Even God's love is pain to us, because we know our sin is grieving that love, is hindering our enjoyment of the blessing that that love might bring to us. To be forgiven of God, to have Jesus Christ coming to us in the name and from the very heart of God, and saying, " Thy sins are forgiven thee ; go in peace " — what an immeasurable blessing that is ! Now that forgiveness is not only God's word, it is God's deed. It comes to us through the love that suffered for us, and as we look upon the cross, and see God's love in the self-sacrifice there, we must know that the love that would so suffer for us is a love that will not let us go. It is love that claims us for itself. It is
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love that will restoie us when we have been estranged from and distrustful of God,
(2) But not only do we want forgiveness, and to be put right with God. We want the power of sin to be broken in us. Jesus Christ offers us that strength. He offers to break the fetters of sin so that they shall no longer bind us. He offers us the strength that shall come into our weakness and give us victory, making us more than conquerors amid all the evils that are in the world. Why, we have something like it, even in human life. Take a companion, a strong, wise, loving companion. If that companion be beside the tempted, the weak, the companionship gives strength. We have known men who have been under the power of strong drink, and who have been saved by some good man who gave them friendship, help, and counsel when they were assailed by temptation at the end of their day's work. His strength passed into their weakness. Now something far more wonderful, far more certain, is offered to us in Jesus Christ. He is with us in all the fulness of His Divine power and pity. He is with the drunkard who is struggling to pass the public-house door. He is with the selfish man when he is trying to be a little more thoughtful for others. If there is only trust in Him, if there is only faith that will claim His grace, strength will be given, victory will be secured.