It wasn’t so long ago that we ourselves were stupid and stubborn, dupes of sin, ordered every which way by our glands, going around with a chip on our shoulder, hated and hating back. But when God, our kind and loving Savior God, stepped in, he saved us from all that. It was all his doing; we had nothing to do with it. (3:3-5)
Our reading of Titus has now come and gone. God has used this letter to the Cretans, "the most relationally dysfunctional people" to reveal much about how He is washing me "inside and out by the Holy Spirit" and pouring out His "new life so generously" in me. It's not what I expected I'd find when reading Paul's letter to Titus. I was bracing for shoulds and oughts. Instead, I'm finding release from unnecessary pressures and life in unexpected relationships.
God’s gift has restored our relationship with him and given us back our lives. And there’s more life to come—an eternity of life! You can count on this.
I want you to put your foot down. Take a firm stand on these matters so that those who have put their trust in God will concentrate on the essentials that are good for everyone. (3:8-9)
This "bath" that Paul describes restores us and gives us life, but it also cleans up the mess of entanglements that we often wrap our Christianity in. This washing of the Holy Spirit strips away all but the essentials and leaves us to linger and soak in the only true essential: Him. In Titus, I hear God's confirming voice asking me to slow down, to remember where I was not so long ago, to linger and soak, and to receive His life that I miss when I'm striving for unnecessary things,
"Don't let your eagerness to mature create pressure to mature. You'll walk too fast. Saunter with Me as we continue our conversations.... Don't rush ahead looking for immediate relevance and quick insights to make you mature sooner than is possible." (66LL)
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