Beyond the Walls with Jeremy Thomas
Jeremy approaches Bible teaching with a passion for getting the basic doctrines explained so that the individual can understand them and then apply them to circumstances in their life. These basic and important lessons are nestled in a framework of history and progression of revelation from the Bible so the whole of Scripture can be applied to your physical and spiritual life.
Beyond the Walls with Jeremy Thomas
Titus - Learning to do Good
And you thought all your learning was over when you left school! In this session, Jeremy shows us that God understands we still have learning to do. Becoming a Christian doesn't mean we are automatically perfect. Our position in Christ makes us so, but we won't realize that till we are glorified in the resurrection. Until then, we need to learn how to do good and to do that we need to learn what is good and what is not good. So, I'm sorry to tell you, we all have a lot of learning to do. Thankfully though, there is no final exam to worry about.
More information about Beyond the Walls, including additional resources can be found at www.beyondthewalls-ministry.com
This series included graphics to illustrate what is being taught, if you would like to watch the teachings you can do so on Rumble (https://rumble.com/user/SpokaneBibleChurch) or on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLtV_KhFVZ_waBcnuywiRKIyEcDkiujRqP).
Jeremy Thomas is the pastor at Spokane Bible Church in Spokane, Washington and a professor at Chafer Theological Seminary. He has been teaching the Bible for over 20 years, always seeking to present its truths in a clear and understandable manner.
Welcome to Beyond the Walls with Jeremy Thomas and our series on the book of Titus. Today a smaller, bite-sized piece from the larger lesson. We hope you enjoy it.
Speaker 2:Our people, which would be Christians, must also learn to engage in good deeds Now. So you're leading the way, you're going to help these guys, you're going to show good deeds as an example, and our people must also learn to engage in good deeds Now. By the way, here we go again with that controversy I mentioned earlier. If you know the Calvinist and Lordship Salvation folks will say well, if you're really a believer, you had the right kind of faith, then you'll automatically have good deeds as an inevitable fruit, right? Well, why then do Christians have to learn to engage in good deeds? I mean, if it's just something that's going to happen, why do we have to learn it so? Obviously it's not true that just because you're a believer, you're automatically going to have all these good deeds. Maybe you will, maybe you won't. The point, the thing is, you have to learn to do that, and that's what we've been learning through this book. So our people must also learn to engage in good deeds to meet pressing needs. Why? So they will not be unfruitful. So that's the whole reason I set out to teach this book, and this is the key verse of the book. All Christians have to learn to engage in good deeds so that they are not unfruitful. I mean, do you want to be fruitful or unfruitful? I mean we should all want to be fruitful. When we talk about things that are fruitful, we're talking about things that will last, things that will carry over into the world to come. You know, jesus said it right store up for yourselves treasures where in heaven where neither ross rust nor moth decay, see, in other words, once we make a deposit there, it's secure and it will continue forever. That's being fruitful. So we can, if we see opportunity, we can engage in good deeds, meet a pressing need. The result of that is we will be fruitful and that is something that we will carry with us for all eternity in the form of rewards. What do we mean by reward? We mean that something that God gives us some capacity, something in the world to come, in our resurrection life, that we will be able to use for him and for his glory in that world to come. We don't mean something that you can use as a prize for yourself.
Speaker 2:You know I have a lot of soccer trophies from when I was a kid. I think they're all in a box now, but those are things that I could hold on to and people could walk in my room and that was about me and that was about my accomplishment. Most of them are second place trophies because I never could get on the team. That was like the winning team. But I have a lot of MVP trophies, you know, because it's the best in the league as an individual player. And that was me, you know.
Speaker 2:It was like look at me and this is my accomplishment. See, that's not what our rewards are going to be like. We're not going to be like look at me and look at my accomplishments in the resurrection life. Be like look at me and look at my accomplishments in the resurrection life. Those are things that Revelation, chapter 4, describes as us like crowns that we received as a reward and we cast them at his feet. Why do we cast our crowns at his feet?
Speaker 2:It'd be like me taking my trophies and saying and laying them down before him and saying because you gave me the skill, because you gave me the desire, you're the one that helped me become a great soccer player, or whatever. It's not in me and I wouldn't be going around boasting. Look at me, I'm the captain of the team, I'm the best guy in the league, and I wouldn't be like, I wouldn't carry it on my shoulder like that, but it would be, you know. You say you're the one who outfitted me, you're the one who gave me these skills and talents. I do it just for you. And in the resurrection, when we're fruitful, and whatever rewards we see, we'll cast him at his feet. We'll claim it was by your grace alone. It wasn't through. You know me. Okay, it's not because of my strength, it's because of your grace enabling me to meet pressing needs, to engage in good deeds and thereby be fruitful. And so I give credit and honor where it is due to you, right.
Speaker 2:And so that is how he ends the main instruction of the letter, and it's the key verse. And then he says, in verse 15, all who are with me, wherever he was in Nicopolis or wherever we greet you, and I want you to greet those who love us there on the island of Crete, in the faith. And then he closes his letter like he closes all of his letters without exception, with grace. Grace be with you all, because what do all Christians need in order to live the Christian life? They, with grace. Grace be with you all, because what do all Christians need in order to live the Christian life, they need grace. We've already enjoyed grace to be justified. We're justified by grace. He said that in verse 7. He's already said that we're also sanctified by grace. That's what we need to live the Christian life. It's what prevents us from sin. Grace is a preventative. Grace doesn't mean oh, it's a license to sin.
Speaker 1:That's not what grace is. Grace is the prevention of sin, the enabling prevention. It keeps us from sinning. Thank you for joining us on Beyond the Walls with Jeremy Thomas and our series in the book of Titus. If you would like to see the visuals that went along with today's sermon, you can find those on Rumble and on YouTube under Spokane Bible Church. That is where Jeremy is the pastor and teacher. We hope you found today's lesson productive and useful in growing closer to God and walking more obediently with Him. If you found this podcast to be useful and helpful, then please consider rating us in your favorite podcast app and until next time, we hope you have a blessed and wonderful day.