11 For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, 12 teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, 13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works. 15 Speak these things, exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise you.
The Apostle now gives us the essence of our salvation,
telling us all that “the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to
all men”, vs. 11 for God’s grace is the extension of His love
for us all given to us all in the Person of His Son Jesus Christ coming to
earth as a Man, and paying the penalty for all of our sins by His death on the
Cross, which then paved the way for our having new and everlasting life by His
Resurrection from the dead. Therefore, God’s grace goes out to everyone,
everywhere, so that no one is excluded from His offer of remission of all their
sins and everlasting life the moment they believe in His Son the Lord Jesus
Christ (John 3:16). That said, not all will have eternal life, because He
allows each and every one of us to choose for ourselves whether or not we will
repent and believe in His Son, and not all will submit themselves to His Will
by doing so. Therefore, in saving us by His grace, God then begins to make us
His disciples of Jesus Christ through the same Word, Spirit, and Grace, “teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly
lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age” vs. 12
For in saving us
then from His eternal wrath and condemnation God does not leave us to continue
on in our ways which lead us into such a previous perilous state. But now He
teaches us to deny all forms of ungodliness, that is all this evil worlds
irreverence towards His Person and Name, for He is to hallowed and reverently
feared. That’s our duty, to hold His Person and Name in reverence, for we are now
His children, and that is our first duty towards Him, to keep His Person and
Name hallowed in our hearts and minds, and thus always amongst ourselves (Matt.
6:9). Next is worldly lusts, these are not just sexual sins and lusts, but also
lusts for wealth, power, fame, privilege, and anything else that the world
lusts after (and thus makes their “god”), for it is all these lusts that
corrupt this world and the people of it. Therefore, in denying the essential
evils of this world that are constantly being propagated and promoted by this
world as something to do and pursue, we should instead look to model our
persons and lives after our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ by living soberly,
righteously, and Godly in this present evil age in which we live, for we who
believe in Him have hope beyond this life, and its selfish and sinful pursuits
that only end in one’s own eternal ruin. For our hope is in Jesus Christ the
King and His Kingdom Coming, and so the Apostle Paul says we are to be, “looking
for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus
Christ,” vs. 13
For when the Lord
Jesus Christ Returns, all that is of this world will be consumed in the fire of
God’s wrath, and so there will be no traces of it and its violent and evil and
sinful ways and desires in Christ’s Kingdom. Therefore, the Apostle Paul is
admonishing us all who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ to live our lives
appropriately in anticipation of Christ’s Return and setting up His everlasting
Kingdom which will have no end. For it was Jesus Christ Himself “who gave
Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for
Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.” Vs.
14
Therefore, Lord Jesus Christ didn’t just come to pay
the penalty for our sins and transgressions on the Cross, but He came to redeem
us from every lawless deed and to purify us for Himself, so that we might be
His own special people, a people who are zealous for good works. And not just
in the church, and amongst ourselves, but everywhere, wherever there is a need
Christians are to be a people who willingly help and aid others.
Vs. 15 “Speak these things, exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise you.”
Therefore, the Apostle Paul says we who are leaders are to speak these things, exhort these things, and when necessary, rebuke those who contravene or oppose these things, and this we are to do with all authority; that is all the authority that the Lord Jesus Christ has bestowed upon us as His chosen and equipped by His Spirit leaders in the church. For a call to leadership does not come from man but through God, therefore the Apostle Paul also says let no one despise you when you do and are doing what it is that God Himself has chosen and called you to do.
Scripture Quotations
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