Titus 3:1-5 - Remind them to be subject to rulers, to authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good deed, to malign no one, to be uncontentious, gentle, showing every consideration for all men. For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, haring one another. But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit.
This is such a rich passage, chock full of glorious truth and clear instructions on our behavior. I must’ve read it a zillion times. And checked off all the “little things” I should remember to do.
But I read it recently and a couple of phrases jumped off the page. “Malign no one” and “showing every consideration for all men” Maybe these things are not so little after all. Unpack them with me …
“Malign no one” - what does that mean? To “badmouth” someone. To speak of them critically behind their back. To make them look inferior in someone else’s eyes.
WOW.
“Showing every consideration for all men” The dictionary defines “consideration” as “thoughfulness and sensitivity toward others”. And Scripture makes it quite inclusive - “every” and “all”. Well, that pretty much covers it!
WOW again.
These “little” phrases that are so easy to read quickly and pass over - how does God want us to see them? Probably not so casually.
I don’t know how they strike you, but as they jumped off the page to me, the Holy Spirit brought some things to my mind that didn’t measure up to this standard. I thought of times I had spoken of someone critically, behind their back. Times my actions had not be thoughtful of others’ needs/desires but instead were insensitive and considering only ME. And undoubtedly caused angst or pain to others.
GULP
I probed my heart and wondered why I had acted that way…and what did I need to course correct.
At the root of it all, I think, is pride. A desire to make myself look significant (or at least more significant than the object of my criticism). A mindset that considers my own needs/wants before others. Because I consider myself as more deserving. Consumed with self.
How do I (and you, if these phrases happen to jump out at you as well) repent from this? And “do right”?
It’s interesting that the lecture I was giving myself was quite stern. I was chiding myself and rightly so. But as I read this passage again, I saw that God takes a different approach. Oh, no mistake about it - He does not tolerate sin. He insists that we not treat these behaviors as “little” and thereby dismiss them.
But instead of shaking His finger at us and giving us a terse (yet well-deserved) fussing, what does He do?
For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, haring one another. But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit.
He gently but truthfully reminds us of our past. Of what we, too, are capable of. And when we remember that, maybe we will be less inclined to criticize others of the same things. Then, He directs our hearts towards His kindness. He has every right to be mad at us but instead He reminds us of His love through Jesus. Of our salvation which we received through no merit of our own but only because of the kindness He shows us in Christ.
WOW.
That is powerful.
For transformation. And as example.
Turns out those “little things” aren’t so little, after all.