FRIDAY: DEVOTED TO DO WHAT IS GOOD
KEY PASSAGE
“At one time we too 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. 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.This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.”
DEVOTIONAL
Your salvation allows you to do good. Now that Jesus has cleansed you and led you out of the chaos of sin and selfishness, what is he leading you to do? Christians are here to do good work, to be good, and to show goodness to those around us. Verse 8 sums this up saying that believers should be “careful to devote themselves to doing what is good.”
That we should be “careful” suggests that doing good does not come naturally to us, that our impulses and emotions may take us in the opposite direction if we are not careful. The word “devote” brings to mind a daily decision and practice to do good. As Christians we order our lives based on doing good in the world. Our goals, our actions and our words are for good, and we should be careful not to be distracted from this. Being and doing good is not easy. It’s not any easier because we are saved by Jesus. We are saved by grace, filled with the Spirit, and we now have this task to do.
We can trust that when we are led by God, having been saved by His grace and made heirs of His eternal kingdom, to do the good work he has given us to do, that it will be “excellent and profitable for everyone.” This is the “trustworthy saying” Paul gives us in Titus 3, and now that we are saved, we should live a life that goes and does good in the name of Jesus.
CHALLENGE
We have spent these 4 weeks reading devotions on Serving. Now let’s devote our lives to doing good, serving each other, serving the stranger, and serving the Lord.
Create a daily practice that continues beyond these readings to seek the Lord on what, where, and how you can be and do good in your life.