Mirrors of the Past
My reading today took me through Titus. There are many passages on which I could comment, but this one struck me particularly:
Titus 3:1-7: Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, 2 to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people. 3 For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. 4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. (ESV; emphasis mine)
Which among us can claim that we deserve God’s grace? Not one; grace is by definition unmerited. Aside from symantics, we need only look at our own lives – probably only the last five minutes of our lives – to find instances of unrighteousness, or self-righteousness in our hearts with which to convince ourselves that, no, we do not save ourselves and that, no, God doesn’t save righteous people. He didn’t save us on condition of any past goodness, nor on condition or anticipation of future perfectness on this earth. He simply saved us from and despite ourselves.
Pay attention to verses 2 and 3. Here we’re commanded to “show courtesy” to all men (“speak evil of no man,” according to the KJV). As far as I understand this, ‘all’ extends beyond our own Christian circles. It extends beyond the realm of friends and family. It extends to all. That would include others with whom we might disagree over areas of biblical interpretation, as well as strangers, and even enemies. It doesn’t mean we concede to every man’s opinion, or fail to call sin sin and the Savior the Savior. It does mean that we’re to treat all men with courtesy, as opposed to contempt. For most of us humans, contempt can only be administered from atop a high pedestal of our own construction. We put ourselves there when we fail to remember the meaning of grace (unmerited favor). Verse three reminds us of what we were before Christ saved us. Maybe I’m in the minority in this, but I can personally provide a wealth of examples of times when I’ve been “foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing [my] days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating” even long after I trusted Christ to forgive my sins and declare me righteous before God. So how is it that I dare claim the self-righteousness necessary to treat anyone else – be it an erring brother or sister in Christ, a social enemy, or simply a lost and sinning stranger – with contempt? When is contempt appropriate? I was reminded of one yesterday:
When I survey the wondrous cross
On which the Prince of glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss,
And pour contempt on all my pride.
~Isaac Watts, 1707; emphasis mine.
If we treat anyone with contempt, it ought to be ourselves and our pride, unbelief, and unthankfulness.
Such a view of how we are to treat all others cannot lead to a dilution of the gospel. We are never commanded to ignore unholiness or sugar-coat the message of the cross. This command must lead, I think, to just the opposite. When we look into the lives of unbelievers, we look into a mirror of our own past hopelessness and (sometimes present) wickedness. Knowing what we do of the hope of Christ and His power to change, how could we look on others with contempt and not offer that power, in turn, to them in their need?
Let’s step down from our pedestals today. Let’s look these mirrors in the eye.