Then Jesus Came #17

Titus 3: 3 For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. 4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

The past day or so we have been looking at Paul's perspective on the Incarnation - not as a physical one as much as an eternal one.  Here he pictures us with all of our sin and its consequences on our relationship with God and one another. He then makes one of his famous contrasts: "but" our good and loving God did something: He sent His Son, who "appeared", He came to save us.  It had nothing to do with how naughty or nice we had been; it was solely His act of mercy and grace.  All three persons of the Godhead were involved, as the Holy Spirit came to cleanse us and give us rebirth.  Now, in Christ, we are not prodigal children running away, but full heirs to heaven with the rest of His family. Oh the goodness and love of God!