Right Here, Right Now

“training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age” (Titus 2:12)

It’s easy for me to think of what Jesus did for me 2,000 years ago or look forward to what He’s going to do for me after this little tour of duty here on earth wraps up. The cross is in the rearview mirror. Heaven is in my windshield. But what about right here? What about right now? Paul tells Titus that a huge part of what the people of Crete need to learn is that God didn’t give us His grace in the past or the future. It’s for the present. Jesus gives us everything we need to give the Heisman to ungodliness and live lives that honor Him. His grace is for right here and right now.

Before we dig in, let’s remember the reason Paul is writing what we’re reading. It’s about thirty years after Jesus’ resurrection. His Good News is spreading like wildfire throughout the Mediterranean rim. That includes the island of Crete just off the coast of Greece. With new believers all over the place, the apostle instructs his go-to guy Titus to do three critical things. First, find spiritual leaders called elders for all of the churches on the island (Titus 1:5). Two, do whatever he needs to shut down a team of false teachers that are distracting folks truly following Jesus (Titus 1:10-11). Three, set up a self-sustaining system that instructs folks about our ongoing need for the Gospel (Titus 2:1-10). In other words, here’s the connection between Jesus, His grace, and life change! God gives us everything we need to live obedient lives right here and right now.

In the previous verse, Paul tells the Big T that the grace of God really showed up in a big way when Jesus made His amazing personal rescue mission “bringing salvation for all people” (Titus 2:11). In verse 13, he reminds us that Christ will make a glorious encore. In between, God gives us the training we desperately need to live counter to the world’s values and “live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age” (v12). In describing this instruction, the man from Tarsus uses the Greek verb paideuo. It means to instruct with the intent of forming proper habits of behavior, to educate, teach, and guide. We’re talking about how parents bring up a child and guide them toward maturity. It speaks to the idea of training someone to learn a new way of living. You may have heard of paideia, a method of teaching kids using both classroom instruction and active learning. That’s the kind of educational environment we’re talking about. We learn as much by making mistakes as by doing things right. Paul describes how God molds character through correction.

This teaching about God’s grace has a two-fold purpose. On one hand, it gives us the power to reject the ungodly conduct that’s destroying my life. I can pound sin and disobedience with a stiff arm that would make Marshawn Lynch shudder. I’m able to renounce, reject, and refuse the lies of the world. On the other, grace plugs me in to the source of strength to now obey what God is telling me to do. It’s two very important steps. One is subtraction. The other is addition. Once I rid myself of the destructive garbage of ungodliness, I can replace it with constructive obedience. Obedience that is for God’s glory. Obedience that is for my own good. Obedience in the right here and right now.

Don’t miss the last phrase Paul writes in this verse: “in the present age” (v12). The apostle is speaking about the period of time after Jesus’ resurrection and before His incredible comeback. That’s what we have in common with the folks living on Crete. We’re living in the same in between time that they were. So this instruction is just as relevant to you and me as it was for them. One day, one very spectacular day, Jesus is coming back. Take it to the bank. His return is a stone cold, lead pipe lock. But what do we do in the meantime? What do we do while we wait patiently and expectantly? Well, we certainly don’t need to be sitting around, twiddling our thumbs, and staring at the sky. The cool thing is that Jesus didn’t leave us hanging while we wait. He gives us the power for the present. 

He gives us His grace for right here and right now.