“Devote Self To Doing What Is Good!”(Tt.3:4-8).
Whether we write it down or not, to those who celebrate Christmas day, it has already been recorded that we are looking forward to another Christmas day, come 2024.
When we read the story of the Nativity we know that Jesus was born on a date. The Nativity is complete with a date, and any date is as good as any other; since whichever other preferred date remains another conjecture.
By the way, there are three different dates of the year on which Christmas is celebrated. I don’t think God is angry with anybody for celebrating or not celebrating Christmas, or for preferring one date over the other. If the birthdate was so important to God, he would have inspired any of the New Testament authors to write a date.
We try to pin a date for the birth of Jesus Christ so that we can celebrate and thank God for the reason for the season.
And what was it all about? We celebrate the day on which God’s kindness, love, mercy and Grace appeared and saved us.
Writing to young Titus, Paul explains, “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…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…”
Two things we must note and one thing we must now do:
- We have not been saved because of righteous things we have done. We have been saved because of God’s mercy.
- We are rebirthed and renewed by the Holy Spirit poured out generously on us through Christ Jesus.
- Importantly, whatever has happened induces us to practice and stress it to those who have trusted God to be careful to devote themselves doing what is good.
Bottom line: Devote self to doing what is good as a response to what has come to us through God’s kindness, love, mercy and grace. Do not do what is good as a condition to obtain God’s kindness, love, mercy and grace.
Prayer: Holy Spirit help me daily to be careful to devote myself to doing what is good. Amen!
Merry Christmas and Happy Boxing day! Peace be with you!
Rev Babila Fochang.