Titus 2:1-10

[0:00] Yeah, welcome Shoreline and everybody who is joining into this live stream service or so that you are a part of this.

[0:13] For the last couple weeks now we've been in the book of Titus and we've been going through this letter from Paul and we've chosen to walk through it as a church while we're socially distant because it contains, as Dave said, perhaps the most tightly concentrated teaching about the church in scripture.

[0:32] So Titus is one of the three pastoral epistles, the other two being 1st and 2nd Timothy and that just means that they are letters written to pastors about the ministry with which they have been charged.

[0:45] So two weeks ago we answered the question from the introduction of the book, what is the church? And we saw that the church is made up of a people who trust the God of the Bible and have taken him up on his promise to redeem sinners by the blood of the risen Messiah, a people who have been transformed in their hearts by the powerful working of the gospel and become a family together, all adopted into Christ and have become servants of God, of his church and of his mission.

[1:17] So that's what we saw two weeks ago. And then last week we answered the question, how is the church set in order? And we saw that the church is set in order by, by setting godly people into office to actually lead in that direction.

[1:31] And so this week we're jumping into chapter two and we're going to consider what it looks like when a church's knowledge of the truth accords with godliness.

[1:41] That, that I'm picking that up from, from the very beginning of the book in chapter one, verse one, Paul says, for the sake of the faith of God's elect and their knowledge of the truth, which accords with godliness.

[1:54] We're going to see what it looks like when the gospel takes root in a church leading to transform lives that commend God's word to a watching world and glorify his name.

[2:06] So grab a copy of God's word. If you have it, open up to Titus chapter two, if not already there. And we're going to, we're going to read this is, this is God's word here, but as for you, teach what accords with sound doctrine.

[2:21] Older men are to be sober minded, dignified, self-controlled, sound in faith and love and in steadfastness. Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine.

[2:35] They are to teach what is good. And so train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be revived.

[2:50] Likewise, urge the younger men to be self-controlled. Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works and in your teaching show integrity, dignity and sound speech that cannot be condemned.

[3:02] So that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us. Bond servants are to be submissive to their own masters and everything. They are to be well pleasing, not argumentative, not pilfering, but showing all good faith so that in everything they may adorn the doctrine of God, our Savior.

[3:24] This is God's holy, inerrant, inspired word. Let's go to the Lord in prayer. Heavenly Father, thank you for your word. As I was reading this morning in Psalm 119, God, your word is sweet.

[3:39] Your word is life. Your word gives light to our eyes. Your word is truth. It is peace. It is so many things. And we thank you that we have the holy, breathed out word of God here in this book.

[3:56] God, I pray that by your spirit, you would illuminate its truth. And God, take that truth and plant it deep into our hearts that we might be transformed by your word and your gospel, that we might gladly bear your name for your glory.

[4:12] In Christ's name we pray. Amen. So we're going to start at the beginning of chapter two here. And the first point is this.

[4:22] God's word must be taught. It must be taught. Paul says to Titus, but as for you, teach what accords with sound doctrine.

[4:34] But as for you indicates a contrast, right, to something that was previously said. Paul is contrasting what Titus's ministry ought to look like with the ministry of false teachers that he was just talking about.

[4:47] Especially chapter one, verse 11. Paul said they must be silenced since they are upsetting whole families by teaching for shameful gain what they ought not to teach.

[4:59] See, these false teachers were preaching a distortion of the truth. They were preaching a false gospel. And because of that, they must be silenced. But not so Titus, right?

[5:11] Not so Titus. But as for you serves two purposes. First, but as for you, Titus, don't get lured away from the gospel. Don't get lured away from the truth of God's word like these false teachers.

[5:23] Hold fast to God's word. And secondly, but as for you, Titus, don't be silenced, right? Instead, teach what accords with sound doctrine.

[5:34] See, Titus wields the true word of God and the gospel of Jesus Christ. This is the same gospel with which Paul was, we saw in chapter one, verse three, entrusted by the command of God, our Savior.

[5:47] Paul was entrusted with it. And now Titus is entrusted with it. And those that are entrusted with the gospel have a duty and a privilege to do something with that gospel.

[5:59] Now, the command of God to teach his word was not new, right? Before Israel enters into the promised land, Moses exhorts them with this, known as the great commandment.

[6:10] Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. That's Deuteronomy 6. But then Moses goes on and says this.

[6:22] And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise.

[6:35] So we see the great commandment was appended with this exhortation to teach God's word. And then if we fast forward to the great commission, what does Jesus say? He says, go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

[6:52] And then what? Teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. So we see here God's word must be taught. Now, every believer is actually called to teach in some way.

[7:06] And we're going to we're going to see this in this passage. But but in this verse, in chapter two, verse one, Paul is specifically charging Titus to teach his church. And Titus, as we saw last week from chapter one, is told to find other men who will also do the same work.

[7:21] And second, Timothy to verse two, Paul tells tells Timothy what you have heard from me and trust the faithful men who will be able to teach others also.

[7:31] So Paul is specifically charging pastors to teach what accords with sound doctrine. Now, that word sound there, if you've read through the book of Titus, you've seen it pop up a few times.

[7:44] It actually shows up five times in the book. It's the word from which we get our word hygiene. It means healthy, uncorrupt, wholesome. Something, as John Calvin says, which actually feeds the soul.

[7:57] So the only message that can feed the soul is the message of God's word. It's a message of the gospel. And see, pastors are entrusted with and charged to teach that.

[8:09] Right. That word. And briefly, just for it, for quick, quick applications that follow from this idea. This is why we, one, depend on the Holy Spirit.

[8:21] The Spirit is the real teacher. He helps us understand the things of God. That's 1 Corinthians 2. He illuminates our minds to comprehend spiritual truths.

[8:32] So that's point number one. We depend on the Holy Spirit. This is why, secondly, we, as a church, are committed to expository preaching. See, God has chosen to build his church upon the preaching of his word.

[8:45] And so we're committed to that, particularly to expositional preaching as the norm. Now, that just means that we strive to the best of our ability for the content and the intent of the sermon to be the content and intent of the passage.

[9:03] And that's because we want to understand God's word as it was intended to be understood. Thirdly, this is why we study God's word together throughout the week. Right. We're helping one another to hold to sound doctrine, which, as we'll see, leads to godly living.

[9:19] And fourthly, this is why we must individually be committed to the study of God's word. How do you know that your pastors are preaching sound doctrine? Members of Shoreline, members of the church ought to regularly examine the scriptures, like the Bereans in Acts 17, to ensure that what is being preached is in accordance with God's word.

[9:40] So the first point was God's word must be taught. Secondly, moving forward in the passage, God's word must transform.

[9:51] So what follows in verses two through 10 are the practical and the intended results of the teaching of God's word within a church body. The right doctrine must lead to right living or else it's not doing its intended work.

[10:08] See, every time we read God's word, every time we hear it spoken or preached, we ought to remember that its intended effect is not just head knowledge, right, but heart and life transformation.

[10:20] And so this should change the way that we approach God's word. I don't know about you, but I know I'm so often guilty of casually approaching God's word, whether it's in my morning quiet time or listening through my Bible reading plan or sitting under the preaching of God's word.

[10:39] So often I just let the words, you know, hit me and bounce right off. My wife can attest that I do that in other ways, too. But in those moments, what I'm saying to God really is, hey, God, I don't believe your word is anything all that relevant for me today.

[10:55] Like, I don't believe your word is really going to make me any different or worse. I'm just not that interested right now. God forgive me, right? God forgive us for this sinful view of his word.

[11:06] See, through the power of the Holy Spirit, God's word actually changes us. The gospel changes us. If the gospel is the power of God into salvation, Romans 1 16, and we believe it is, if the gospel makes dead people come alive, then it's powerful enough to bear fruit in the life of a believer.

[11:27] And so Paul actually says down in verse 12 of chapter 2 that the grace of God trains us to renounce ungodliness and to live godly lives.

[11:39] And that it says right down there, Jesus Christ gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

[11:52] But that's next week's passage, and I'm trying my best not to, like, jump into those verses because they're awesome. But in our text for today, Paul shows us that there's no age, there's no season, there's no area of life in which God's word cannot be applied.

[12:10] So stated positively, the gospel ought to transform us in every age and season of life. So we're going to talk specifically about some of those since Paul does. He speaks to five different categories of people, older men, older women, younger women, younger men, and bond servants.

[12:28] And I just want to note how kind of God to actually give us practical character qualities to strive after in each season of our lives. Before we jump in, I want to say this.

[12:42] Paul doesn't define here when somebody reaches older, right? He doesn't say, like, hey, older men, age is blank to blank, and younger, blank to blank. And personally, I'm thankful that we're meeting virtually for this part, so nobody can accuse me of making eye contact with them when I say older men or older women.

[13:01] And then the qualities that Paul mentions for older men and women, they define what spiritual maturity ought to look like. And so these are qualities that every believer ought to be striving for.

[13:13] And then secondly, no matter where you are in your physical or spiritual journey, you could be considered an older man or an older woman in comparison to somebody else, right?

[13:25] And so God might actually be calling you to take that place of mentorship in their lives. Okay, so with that, category one is older men. Look at verse two of chapter two.

[13:36] Paul says, older men are to be sober-minded, dignified, self-controlled, sound in faith, in love, and in steadfastness.

[13:47] Now, how many times have you heard a young man say, you know, I can't wait until I get old so I can do and say whatever I want? That's truly what's modeled for us in our culture.

[13:58] And so it would be easy for us to think that as we age, as we get older, we're allowed to kind of like, you know, loosen the reins and let things slide a little bit. But that's not the picture of seasoned, mature manhood that Paul paints for us, is it?

[14:13] The picture here is of a man controlled by the spirit, right? Not reckless, not self-indulgent, but serious, in control, not spiritually backsliding, but actually spiritually strong, resilient, and only getting stronger.

[14:30] So that man, that man by implication is someone that the church looks up to, right? It's somebody that the rest of the church respects, that the church looks to for wisdom and advice and counsel.

[14:44] That's the picture of the older man that Paul has in mind here. Now, verse 3, older women, he says, older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine.

[14:57] They are to teach what is good, and so train the young women. So older women, similar to older men, and in contrast to the surrounding culture, they ought not to grow increasingly self-indulgent, but rather increasingly holy in all their behavior.

[15:15] Notice here that both for older men, the term Paul uses is sober-minded, and then older women, he says, not slaves to much wine. Those are actually similar ideas.

[15:26] Paul is exhorting the older generation to refrain from overindulgence in alcohol, right? We know that our culture is very much about alcohol. They want to lose themselves, forget the cares of life and the haze of drunkenness, but Christians are called instead to sober living, right?

[15:45] And as Paul says in Ephesians 5.18, to be filled not with wine, but with the Holy Spirit. So that's Paul's picture for older men and for older women. Older women, too, are called specifically to teach the younger generation, the younger women.

[16:01] Now, we're going to pick up on that more later. So older men, older women, younger women now. So what do the older women teach the younger women? Let's look at verses 4 and 5.

[16:11] Paul says, and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be revived.

[16:26] First, I want to address the phrase that glares out at us in 2020. The phrase, working at home. So you're not distracted thinking about it before I get there. Is Paul commanding women to stay home?

[16:40] Is Paul forbidding the working woman? Let that sit. I don't think so. And here's why.

[16:51] First of all, if we're looking at verses 1 through 10 as a whole, all the adjectives that Paul uses have to do with conduct and character. And so it would seem out of place for Paul to be telling women where they ought to live their lives.

[17:05] Secondly, the phrase translated as working at home in your Bibles is really one Greek word and has the idea of being a guarder or keeper of the house.

[17:17] In other words, caring for the house or a good housekeeper. And the point is that wives and mothers ought to be giving themselves in service to their families. They ought to be working hard under the leadership of their husbands to see that their families and households are loved and well taken care of.

[17:34] And certainly a woman can be a working woman and still ensuring that her household is loved and taken care of. So for those two reasons, I do not think Paul is commanding women to stay home.

[17:45] I don't think he's precluding women from working outside the home. Okay, so zooming out then on the picture of the woman. The picture Paul portrays is of a woman who fulfills her God-given roles with self-sacrificing love and purity.

[18:00] Right, a woman who manages her household, not in self-interest, but for the good of the family. And what happens when she lives her life in this way?

[18:12] Paul says that the word of God might not be reviled. Awesome. We're going to get to that later. I'm going to keep saying that. Next category is the young man.

[18:24] Verse 6. Paul says, likewise, urge the younger men to be self-controlled. Now, while Paul gives a laundry list of things for the other categories of people, he chooses one adjective for the young men.

[18:38] A testament to both their inability to multitask and also the power of that one characteristic. So actually, the word likewise there, it's linking what was previously said to the other categories of people, to the younger men as well.

[18:53] So just like the older men, the older women, the younger women, the younger men ought to exhibit godliness in all areas of their lives. It's not as if Paul is setting the bar lower for the younger men.

[19:06] And see, the word he chooses to reemphasize for them makes that clear. Self-control. That's the word. Why self-control? Well, Paul knows how prone the younger men are to cast off restraint and to make reckless choices based on their passions.

[19:23] Proverbs has a lot to say about self-control. One verse, 1632 of Proverbs says, it's better to have self-control than to conquer a city. The young men are like, go forth and conquer the world.

[19:34] And Solomon in Proverbs said, it's better to have self-control than to conquer a city. One commentator writes that self-control is the strength of mind, which has learned to govern every instinct and passion until each has its proper place and no more.

[19:53] Gospel-empowered self-control puts to death the passions and the deeds of the flesh by the Holy Spirit, Romans 8.13. Gospel-empowered self-control takes captive every thought and makes it obedient to Christ.

[20:06] That's 2 Corinthians 10.5. So this is the picture of the young men putting to death the deeds of the flesh, controlling their passions for God's glory. The last few Paul speaks directly to are bondservants or slaves.

[20:21] You might notice in Paul's letters, wherever he addresses specific groups of people, he addresses slaves as well. And that's because Christian slaves were tempted to misapply their newfound freedom in Christ as freedom from their masters.

[20:37] So there was this tension there. There was a tension that needed to be continually addressed. So let's look down at verse 9 and 10. Bond servants are to be submissive to their own masters in everything.

[20:48] They are to be well-pleasing, not argumentative, not pilfering, but showing all good faith so that in everything they may adore in the doctrine of God our Savior.

[21:01] Paul shows how God's word and the gospel informs and transforms the mindset and behavior of slaves toward their masters. Now, while being a slave in the first century wasn't glamorous, it also was not like American slavery that's in our minds when we hear the word slaves.

[21:20] The modern-day application of this would be closer to, though not exact, but closer to being an employee rather than being a slave. So what picture does Paul paint for us of a godly servant, godly slave?

[21:34] It's one who is respectful and obedient, right? One who doesn't take advantage of his master, but rather is trustworthy. And what's the result of this godly living?

[21:47] So that in everything they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior. We're going to get to that later. Now, you might be thinking, we just went through these categories. Mike, I didn't really see myself exactly in any of those categories.

[22:01] And I just want to say, like, most of the lists that we see in Paul's letters, like the traits of an elder or the spiritual gifts in 1 Corinthians 12, the lists aren't intended to be exhaustive.

[22:13] These are broad, general categories. But they serve to portray the power of the gospel to transform our lives into ones of godliness, right? Into lives that are distinct from the culture around us.

[22:26] So whatever age you are, whatever season you're in, God's word has practical applications for your life today, right? And God intends for his word to transform you by his spirit into someone who is godly.

[22:40] So we've seen how God's word must be taught. It must transform. And thirdly, God's word must be transferred. Transferred.

[22:51] Look at verses 3 and 4. Paul says to the older women, they are to teach what is good. And so train the young women. And then we skipped over verse 7.

[23:03] He addresses Titus, show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works. And then your teachings show integrity, dignity, and sound speech that cannot be condemned.

[23:15] See, Paul is establishing a pattern where one generation passes on the truth of God's word to the next. Remember, at the beginning of this sermon, I said that every believer is called to teach on some level.

[23:28] And this is where I'm getting that from. And specifically, the pattern, the normal pattern is of the older, more mature believers teaching and training the younger.

[23:39] Teaching and training, it isn't just the job of pastors and elders. It's the job of all Christians. And the preaching and teaching ministry of the pastors is meant to be bolstered by the ongoing day-to-day relational teaching ministry that occurs between believers.

[23:56] Personally, I'm so thankful for the older, more spiritually mature men and women that God has placed in my life over the years to teach and to train me, to be a model for me.

[24:10] You know, whether it was small group leaders or a pastor or my father and my mother or a teacher at my Christian school. All throughout my life, I've looked up to other believers who were further along in years.

[24:26] You know, not all of them were considered old. Like when I was in high school, I had a small group leader who was in their mid-20s. But they were an older man to me. And I'm thankful that God used them to sharpen and refine me and to be a model for me.

[24:42] That word model, actually, in verse 7, it carries with it the idea of a dye being used to replicate a shape. And so just as Titus has been pressed by the divine image of God, so he is to impress upon others that same image.

[25:02] Older men and women, just as they have been over the course of years, made into the likeness of God, so they should press their lives upon younger believers to form them into the likeness of God.

[25:14] This was God's plan from the beginning. He made mankind into image bearers that would go forth throughout the world, impressing upon all things the divine imprint of God himself.

[25:28] Now, the implication here for us is that your personal spiritual growth is not a personal matter. I want to say that again. The implication here is that your personal spiritual growth is not a personal matter.

[25:46] Your growth in godliness, church, your growth in godliness is meant to be on display for the building up of the church. So if you ever hear somebody say, hey, man, that's between me and God, they probably don't understand Titus chapter 2.

[26:01] So you know, your life is not just between you and God, because God intends for your life to be a showcase of his heart and character, to be, you know, a die pressing his image upon others.

[26:14] In our men's Friday morning group, we went through a book on discipling. And the theme verse was Colossians 1.28. And Paul says this, him, Christ, he's talking about, him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom that we may present everyone mature in Christ.

[26:36] So we are all called to help prepare one another to meet our bridegroom. And so this looks like a bunch of different things from the from the formal to the informal.

[26:49] This looks like just having intentional conversations before or after a Sunday gathering. This looks like it might look like times of formal, you know, one on one spiritual mentoring. This looks like simply bringing others into the normal spheres of your everyday life, inviting them to go grocery shopping with you, invite them over for a meal, invite them to go on a hike with your family where you can teach God's word and model godliness in all areas of your life to them.

[27:18] Certainly, this involves parenting as well. Now, obviously, some of these normal options I just mentioned aren't currently at our disposal. Right. So it looks more like video chats and text messages and Facebook live streams.

[27:32] But even though it might look different, we're still called to this same work. So let me ask this question. What hinders this kind of life on life teaching and training?

[27:46] What what hinders discipling from going on? And you might guess it pride and selfishness. So first, pride. I think there are two sides to the pride coin.

[27:58] The first is is a pride that manifests itself in arrogance. You know, we might think that we're somehow above receiving teaching and training. This could look like a lot of different things.

[28:11] But one example is that the younger generation is often guilty of just kind of dismissing the advice of the older generation. Like, oh, we don't you know, we don't do things that way anymore.

[28:21] That very well might be true. But if God has placed someone in our lives with with years of experience and with spiritual maturity that's been forged through the difficulties of life, then we would do well to listen and to receive her teaching.

[28:37] So arrogant pride. So arrogant pride. Pride can also manifest itself in shame. You know, on the flip side, we might think, you know, God can't use me to teach and train her. What you know, what what do what do I have to offer this person?

[28:52] And I want to say, sister, are you filled with the Holy Spirit of God? Sister, have you have you experienced the grace and the goodness of God in your life? And if so, then you have a wealth of riches to offer.

[29:07] And God wants to remove that shame and to end up to push you into a role where you are teaching and training those that might not be as far along in life or in their spiritual walk.

[29:18] So first is pride. Secondly, is selfishness. So, you know, investing our lives in the building up of others invariably means we will have to make sacrifices.

[29:30] We might have to give up some hobbies. We might have to adjust our schedules. We might have to adjust our grocery budget because the person we invite over eat so much food, you know, but selfishness will prevent us from accepting these inconveniences.

[29:45] And church, may we be those who deny the flesh and who welcome opportunities, no matter the sacrifice to prepare the bride of Christ to meet her groom.

[29:56] So God's word must be taught. So God's word must be taught. It must transform. It must be transferred. And finally, what I've been waiting for this whole time, we get to the result.

[30:08] And that is this. The gospel is adorned. The gospel is adorned. Three different times in these 10 verses, we see this idea.

[30:20] It's stated negatively in verses 5 and 8. And then Paul states it positively in verse 10. Verse 5. Young women are to live godly lives.

[30:30] Why? That the word of God may not be reviled. And then verse 8. Titus is to be a model of good works and consistently speak the sound doctrine of God's word.

[30:41] Why? So that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us. And then verse 10. Bond servants are to demonstrate respect and obedience and faithfulness towards their masters.

[30:53] Why? So that in everything they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior. So in these verses, we see the result of Christians living godly lives.

[31:05] It's that we might adorn the doctrine of God our Savior. That God's word would be honored rather than scorned. That opponents of the church and of the gospel would be silenced. The word adorn, it means to garnish, to decorate, to embellish with honor.

[31:21] Some of your versions might say to make attractive. So let me ask this. Can we add anything to the gospel? Can we add something to God's word?

[31:35] No. The answer is no. We can't. I can't add anything to God's word. So what does it mean to adorn it then? Think about a present that you were really excited to give at Christmastime.

[31:49] You spent hours thinking about what your loved one would want and would put a smile on their face. And you spent time researching exactly the best one. And then you took that gift. And what did you do with it?

[32:00] You wrapped it up in some glossy paper. And you might have stuck a sparkly bow on top. Now, did your gift wrapping add anything to the gift? See, when your loved one ripped open that gift and tore aside the wrapping paper, did they put the gift aside and then grab the wrapping paper and talk about, oh, man, this wrapping paper is so awesome?

[32:20] You know, they might have made some sort of passing comment. Like, I know my mother-in-law wraps amazing presents. And we're always like, wow, this is such a great wrapping job. Or like, oh, man, look at those cute little snowmen.

[32:31] But, you know, as soon as those comments are made, the wrapping job is forgotten about and the attention turns to the gift itself. Right. And so that's the idea here. Christians don't add anything to the gospel of Jesus Christ.

[32:46] But we draw people's attention to its excellency by our lives. Our godliness proclaims, look at what Jesus did for me. Look at his mercy and his grace.

[32:57] And so it compels people to the gospel. Now, I want to draw us back to the beginning again. And this is kind of where we're going to end our time.

[33:08] From the beginning of human history and all throughout, this has actually been the goal. So let me show this to you. Genesis chapter 1, verse 26 and 27, that creation.

[33:20] Then God said, let us make man in our image after our likeness and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.

[33:35] So God created man in his own image. In the image of God, he created him. Male and female, he created them. So God made mankind to image, to reflect his heart and character, and then to spread his life-giving goodness to the world around them.

[33:54] That's the goal of mankind. That's why we were put on this world. So then we fast forward to when the law is given to the nation of Israel. So in Leviticus, it says this, So you shall keep my commandments and do them.

[34:10] I am the Lord. And you shall not profane my holy name, that I may be sanctified among the people of Israel. I am the Lord who sanctifies you, who brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God.

[34:23] I am holy. So out of God's overflowing love, he picked Israel. He picked the nation of Israel to be a people holy and set apart from the nations around them.

[34:36] Israel was to bear God's image in the world and broadcast that to the surrounding nations, broadcast the heart and the character of God. So fast forward some more.

[34:47] Israel failed, as we know, over and over again at doing this. And so God sent prophets to backing them back to him. In Ezekiel 36, So Ezekiel reveals God's concern for his name and his glory among the nations.

[35:21] And over and over again, like a drumbeat throughout the book, God says, Then they will know that I am the Lord. Then they will know that I am the Lord. Yet it was clear that Israel could never be the image bearers God was looking for.

[35:35] Right? Israel could never perfectly reflect the character, the holiness, the love of God to the world around them. Enter Jesus Christ onto the scene. And the word became flesh and dwelt among us.

[35:49] And we have seen his glory. Glory is of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1.14. Colossians 1.15. He is the image of the invisible God.

[36:01] And down in verse 19. For in him, all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell. Hebrews 1.3. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature.

[36:14] So finally came one who would bear the true image of God to this world. And not only did he bear God's image perfectly, but he fully paid for the sin of those who could not.

[36:26] And the rest of Colossians 1.19 says, and through him, through Jesus, to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

[36:40] And that means, church, that we too now, through the gospel, are restored to the position of image bearers. Listen to this incredible truth from Ephesians 1.3.

[36:51] And he, God, put all things under his, Christ's feet. And gave him his head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

[37:07] And then in chapter 3, Paul says that through the church, the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.

[37:17] Through the church. Through the church. The fullness of the triune God dwells within us. So that through us, the riches of his wisdom are on full display to your neighbors, to your coworkers, to your families, and then to the whole cosmos.

[37:36] So we, the church, as we live lives of holiness and godliness, consistent with the teaching of God's word, we're heralds, we're messengers of the glorious gospel.

[37:49] Right? So that people everywhere, even heavenly beings, as Paul says, looking on, are awed at the beauty of the gospel and the beauty of God our Savior.

[38:01] So God's word must be, it must be taught. It must transform. It must be transferred. And when it is, the gospel is adorned.

[38:12] Right? When it is, the world is compelled to the excellence of the gospel, the excellence of God's word, the glory of God's name. And then he is exalted among the nations.

[38:24] Hallelujah. Pray with me, please. Heavenly Father, we are floored that you would bring us into this amazing work.

[38:38] That through your son, through the shedding of his blood on the cross, you have made peace between us and you. Something that we could never do.

[38:51] That we could never live lives of godliness that adorn your gospel. We could never be your image bearers. We could never be accurate representatives of your heart and your characters to the world.

[39:04] But now through Christ and by faith in him, we are reconciled to you and we're restored. We are made new creations.

[39:14] The old is gone. The new has come. We're actually new creations. And through the gospel, through the power of your spirit, through your word, we can reflect you in all that we do.

[39:26] So God, I pray that as a church body, that we would adorn your gospel. That we would compel the world to its glory and excellency by the godliness of our lives.

[39:39] Father, for your glory, we pray this all in Christ's name. Amen. I'm going to turn it back over to the Landex. Thank you, Mike.

[39:57] Thank you so much for that.