Titus 3:1-11 (NRSV)
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Chapter 3Remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, Verse 2to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show every courtesy to everyone. Verse 3For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, despicable, hating one another. Verse 4But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, Verse 5he saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy, through the water of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit. Verse 6This Spirit he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, Verse 7so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. Verse 8The saying is sure. I desire that you insist on these things, so that those who have come to believe in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works; these things are excellent and profitable to everyone.
Verse 9But avoid stupid controversies, genealogies, dissensions, and quarrels about the law, for they are unprofitable and worthless. Verse 10After a first and second admonition, have nothing more to do with anyone who causes divisions, Verse 11since you know that such a person is perverted and sinful, being self-condemned.
Devotion
Can we find ourselves in the descriptions (verse 3) of what “we once were?” It is mercy that God has not been deterred by what “we once were,” but has reached out with great compassion to put us on another path, reveal to us another kind of life, offer us a way to see ourselves and one another as equally beloved and befriended. We need not compete for what is truly valuable and so we may abandon the ways of one-upmanship for the ways of mutual care. This passages enjoins us to understand that the good life must be good for all if it is to be good for any.
Prayer
Generous God, you give to your creatures good gifts for our flourishing together. Create in us the imagination and will to see and use wisely what we receive, that justice and joy become our way of life. Amen.