Former Blackout Artist

One of the habits I’ve developed over the years is highlighting sentences that I don’t want to forget in some of my favorite books that I’ve read. Every now and then I’ll go back and reread some of those old books, and I find it interesting to see what caught my attention the first time around. Some of those highlights no longer seem all that important. But a few of them have become even more meaningful to me over time.

When I read Paul’s letters to Timothy and Titus, I notice that he does something similar. On five occasions he effectively says, “Highlight this.” Five times he writes, “This is a trustworthy saying.” These are more than just memorable quotes… they are essential truths that God intends His people to build their lives upon.

The first is the very heart of the gospel.

“Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners..” – 1 Timothy 1:15

Mark those words well. Christ didn’t come merely to teach or to reform society. He came to save. Nor did He come to save the deserving, but sinners – those who’ve broken God’s law and stand guilty before Him. This is the only hope for any man or woman who knows the plague of their own heart. The gospel isn’t good advice; it is good news, indeed!

The second trustworthy saying teaches that it’s a noble thing to desire the work of overseeing Christ’s church.

“Whoever aspires to be an overseer desires a noble task.” 1 Timothy 3:1

The Lord has always delighted to raise up faithful shepherds for His people. The office isn’t one of worldly honor or status, but one of holy responsibility. The church has no greater earthly need than godly leaders whose lives mirror the doctrine they proclaim.

Here’s the third one.

For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. – 1 Timothy 4:8

What a needed reminder in a world consumed with the temporary! We commit and devote ourselves to worldly pursuits that promise us comfort, security, success. But in the end they’re all meaningless. Godliness, however, is never wasted. Every act of faithful obedience that’s spent in our pursuit of Christ bears fruit not only in this life, but also in eternity. No investment could possibly yield a greater return!

The fourth trustworthy saying.

“If we died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will also disown us; if we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot disown himself.” – 2 Timothy 2:11-13

Every Christian that wants to wear a crown must first carry a cross. There is no resurrection life without union with the crucified Savior. To belong to Christ is to die daily to sin, to self, and to the love of this passing world. Yet what are our present trials compared with the everlasting glory that awaits us as His faithful people?!

Finally, Paul points Titus back to the true fountain of all salvation.

“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.” – Titus 3:4-7

We are saved not because of righteous deeds we have done, but because of God’s mercy. Here, every ground of boasting is swept away, our works contributing nothing to our justification. They are the fruit of salvation, never the cause. The Christian’s confidence rests entirely upon the grace of God in Christ Jesus. Hallelujah!

These five trustworthy sayings deserve more than our admiration, don’t they? Do they not deserve our faith, our obedience, and the entirety of our lives? It’s one thing to know them with the mind… it is another to embrace them with our heart. O, that we would let them into our hearts to do that great work that only the Spirit of God can produce!

Loved ones, God hasn’t left us to wander aimlessly in uncertainty. He’s given us these truths that are trustworthy because they come from a loving God who cannot lie! Happy indeed is the soul that receives them, believes them, and walks in them until faith becomes sight.

Prayer: Most gracious Father, write these trustworthy sayings upon our hearts. Deliver us from trusting in ourselves, in this fading world, or in our own righteousness. Teach us to rest wholly upon Christ, and to live lives worthy of the gospel we profess. Keep us faithful until the day we see our Savior face to face. In Jesus name, Amen.