In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began …” (Titus 1:2 KJV).
Some seem to merely exist in this world, and with great difficulty. Others appear to live life to the full. They are rich and well connected. They have health and wealth in abundance. But what will they have when they die? Have you ever wanted to be one of the global elite? Well, you can become one of God’s elect! Life, with all the fulness that the Creator intended it to have, is offered to you in the gospel. You can enjoy God’s choice blessings through faith in Christ and have the sure hope of eternal life.
Paul declared that this sure hope finds its source in the promise of God – He cannot lie. It finds its strength in the power of God – He will never let us down if we trust Him. Trust (or “faith” – our believing God) is one of the three main words that Paul uses in these verses to describe the hope of the gospel. The other two are truth and time.
TRUST: The Bible teaches that we cannot trust ourselves. Because of our wickedness, we need salvation from the eternal punishment we deserve. We must confess our sinfulness to God and seek His forgiveness. Because of our weakness, we cannot save ourselves. We need a Saviour. The only Saviour available to us is God. He offers salvation through His Son, Jesus Christ. We must trust in Him alone to save us.
TRUTH: God is the only source of absolute truth. We cannot know truth apart from Him. Christ is the incarnation of truth – grace and truth came through Him. He said, “I am the way, the truth and the life” (Joh 14:6). It is for the truth that Christ died. He could not deny His identity and was crucified for declaring His equality with God. Christ died so that God could remain truthful while forgiving us. The truth is that Christ took our punishment and died for our sins. As this gospel is preached, the truth of God’s promise is declared to the world. We can come to the knowledge of the truth through obeying its message.
TIME: The promise of hope began before time and will continue after time ends. God was not taken by surprise when Adam sinned and brought humanity into rebellion against God. Before time began, God already knew the identity of the One who would be our Saviour. Jesus was born in Bethlehem at the precise time God had planned. And it was on the day of Passover that He, as the Lamb of God, shed His blood for our redemption. No other day would do. Therefore, Paul preached, it was at the time of God’s choosing that this gospel went out throughout the world. Now is the day of salvation. But you never know when you will get your last opportunity to be saved. For those who trust in Christ, their salvation will continue beyond time – when the quality and quantity of their life will increase forever. But for those who miss their opportunity, they will have all eternity to regret their dreadful mistake.
The truth is that now is the time for you to trust Christ as Saviour. Why risk your soul for another day?
