Titus 2:11-12
For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Chris…
The grace of God in our lives does not leave us unaffected but rather produces something in us. In other words, God’s grace is not idle in us. One of the most obvious ways in which grace manifests itself, as revealed in our text today, is through the ability to shun sin and evil. This same grace that saves us also trains us to withstand every form of temptation and to boldly refuse to be participants of ungodliness. This means then that one cannot resist sin unless they are recipients of God’s grace. It also means that one cannot claim to have received God’s grace and yet continue to be defeated by sin.
Grace manifests itself! This is extremely important in a time and age when we are tempted to sideline grace to the realm of intellectual discourse. Yes, we must seek to understand grace and all its nuances, but we must go beyond that and appropriate it in our lives. Through God’s grace, we must pursue personal holiness. Through the same grace, we must be a people who love and forgive others. Grace must cause us to walk in humility since we are constantly reminded that all we have we have received for free. Grace must help us to be patient with the failings and weaknesses of others since we stand, not by our own might and strength, but by God’s grace. We need God’s grace, more and more, and thus we receive Paul’s prayer to the Corinthians:
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. (2 Corinthians 13:14)
Reflections
1. In what other ways do you see Gods grace manifest in your life?
2. How will today’s devotion affect your faith and life?
