He saved us
Titus 3:4-7 - What must we do to be saved? Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and we will be saved.
“But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.”
Titus 3:4-7 NIV
A very blessed Christmas to all of you who are part of the Heaven On Wheels family! Today’s verse from the Epistle to Titus is especially relevant for this season of giving, as it explains the ultimate gift that we have received from God — that “we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.”
This short letter was written by Paul to his co-worker in Christ, Titus. Paul was spreading the Gospel in Macedonia when he sent this epistle of encouragement and teaching to Titus, who was helping to grow the church on the island of Crete.
Just before these verses, Paul reminded Titus of what we — the followers of Jesus — were before He saved us. We were “foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another.” (Titus 3:3).
We couldn’t rescue ourselves from that situation; God rescued us with His kindness and love. He reached out to rescue us from sin well before we reached out to Him.
Paul reminds Titus that the salvation we have received isn’t dependent on “righteous things we had done”, but on God’s mercy alone. David Guzik of Enduring Word clarifies this:
In and of itself, response to an altar call does not save. Saying the sinner’s prayer does not save. Baptism does not save. Church attendance does not save. Giving does not save. Reading the Bible does not save. Each of these may be wonderful works of righteousness, but they do not save us. Instead, according to His mercy He saved us.
Verse 5 is often misinterpreted and used to support the concept of baptismal regeneration — the idea that baptism is necessary for salvation, or that spiritual rebirth doesn’t occur until a person is baptized in water. However, the ancient Greek word used here — λουτρόν (loutron) — is very specific and refers to the act of bathing!
So Paul is not referring to water baptism, but to the spiritual cleansing of the believer through faith and by the Word of God. The apostle uses this same word in Ephesians 5:26, where he refers to how Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her, “cleansing her by the washing with water through the word.”
This “washing” is accomplished by the Holy Spirit and is an end result of our faith in Jesus Christ. I’ll end today’s devotional with this simple explanation of the requirement of salvation, quoted from GotQuestions.org:
No baptism, no confession, just faith.
There are literally dozens of verses in the New Testament that attribute salvation to faith/belief with no other requirement mentioned in the context. If baptism, or anything else, is necessary for salvation, all of these verses are wrong, and the Bible contains errors and is therefore no longer worthy of our trust.
An exhaustive study of the New Testament on various requirements for salvation is not necessary. Receiving salvation is not a process or a multi-step formula. Salvation is a finished product, not a recipe. What must we do to be saved? Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and we will be saved. (emphasis is mine)
Heaven On Wheels Daily Prayer:
Father in Heaven, thank You for Your grace and mercy toward us, sinners all. Thank You for the amazing grace poured out on the faithful through the Holy Spirit, to the praise of our Lord Jesus Christ and to the glory of You, the Father. And thank You that by Your grace and mercy, we are justified, made new creations in Christ, and sealed with the promise of the Holy Spirit that makes us heirs of the hope of eternal life. We thank You in the name of Jesus as we celebrate the remembrance of His birth, AMEN.