This evening, we'll be considering together Titus chapter 3, verses 3 to 8 particularly, although I read a little bit more of Titus chapter 3 just after 2 Timothy in the back of your Bible. In connection with it, we'll be considering Lord's Day 26 on the subject of baptism, drawing primarily from Titus chapter 3 with hopefully some clear application derived from the catechism Titus, as we know, is a letter of the Apostle Paul to Timothy, I mean, pardon me, to Titus, as he is ministering on the island of Crete, a church that Paul had been a part of and then had gone forth from, and Titus was there doing the work of the Apostle, continuing on. And this is the conclusion of the book, the closing, and I'll begin reading at the first verse of Titus chapter 3. On page 1272 in the back of your Bible. People of God, this is the very word of our Lord. Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle and to show perfect courtesy toward all people. 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. But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 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, whom He poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by His grace, we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people, but avoid foolish controversies, genealogies, dissensions, and quarrels about the law, for they are unprofitable and worthless. As for a person who stirs up division after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him, knowing that such a person is warped and sinful. He is self-condemned. When I send Artemis or Tychicus to you, do your best to come to me at Nicopolis, for I have decided to spend the winter there. Do your best to speed Zenos, the lawyer, and Apollos on their way. See that they lack nothing. And let our people learn to devote themselves to good works, so as to help cases of urgent need and not be unfruitful. All who are with me, send greetings to you. Greet those who love us in the faith. Grace be with you all. Thanks be to the Lord for his holy word. In connection with this, I would invite you to turn in the back of the Psalter hymnal to Lord's Day 26 of the Heidelberg Catechism, found on pages 33 and 34. And what we'll do this evening is I will read the question, and if you would respond together as one congregation with the answers as we recite our catechism together from the Heidelberg Catechism found on page 33. Congregation, how does baptism remind you and assure you that Christ's one sacrifice on the cross is for you personally? In this way, Christ instituted this outward washing and with it gave the promise that as surely as water washes away the dirt from the body, so certainly His blood and His Spirit washed away my soul's impurity, in other words, all my sins. And what does it mean to be washed with Christ's blood and Spirit? To be washed with Christ's blood means that God, by grace, has forgiven my sins because of Christ's blood poured out from me in his sacrifice on the cross. To be washed with Christ's Spirit means that the Holy Spirit has renewed me and set me apart to be a member of Christ so that more and more I become dead to sin and increasingly live only in the name of Christ. Question 71 on the next page. Where does Christ promise that we are washed with his blood and spirit as surely as we are washed with the water of baptism? In the institution of baptism, where Christ 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. He who believes and is baptized will be saved. He who does not believe will be condemned. This promise is repeated when Scripture calls baptism the washing of regeneration and the washing away of sins. Beloved in the Lord our God, what does your baptism mean to you? I ask this question this evening, sensitive to the truth that there are likely some here this evening who have not yet been baptized. And for you, there are going to be statements made arising from our text that don't fully describe your present state. And I do hope that what follows will cause you to think further about the question of baptism and personal belief in Jesus. But for you who are here this evening, already now bearing that mark of baptism, I ask, what does your baptism mean to you? For the simple message of this evening's text in Titus chapter 3 is this. That your baptism is a constant reminder that by faith in Christ Jesus, you can confidently say that I am clean in Christ. It's this cleansing symbol of baptism which is applied by faith to all the believers that is described in our passage this evening as a washing of regeneration and the renewal of the Holy Spirit that is a present and a future guarantee of your relationship with Jesus Christ. This evening then we will follow the Apostle Paul here in our passage as he draws attention to baptism just briefly. And yet he doesn't linger there in an extended discourse on the particulars of baptism as much as we may have wanted him to. He makes reference to it in the most amazing way. But then he keeps on going to describe more of what it is that we need to know in Christ. And so the same approach should be ours when we think about baptism and what it means to be clean in Christ. We should highlight the doctrine of baptism in all of its majesty while going on to describe more and more and more of what we need to know in Christ on a whole host of doctrine. And so to do this, let's look at our passage this evening with a three-part outline in mind. First, our need for what our baptism signifies. Second, our knowledge of what it is that our baptism does in us and upon us. And third, our now in light of what our baptism prompts in us. So first then, how does Titus chapter 3 set us up to consider our need for baptism? Well, Paul writes in verse 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. That's a pretty plain description, isn't it? Boys and girls, for those of you that were here this morning, we heard a sermon from Genesis chapter 3. And do you remember what the consequence of Adam and Eve's actions were? Because the Bible ties together so well, you could actually answer, for we ourselves by the fall became foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another, which we see almost immediately in the episode of Cain and Abel. And is this a fair description of men and women after the fall? Well, it certainly seems like we have a clear picture of what it is that took place. The fall of all in our first parents. Becoming fools and disobedient. Hated by others and hating one another. And so when someone asks, why do I need to be different than I am by nature? The answer is abundantly clear. That because all fell in the fall of Adam and Eve, we are all sinful. We all bear that with us. We bear that mark. And we have all been stained by sin. It is part of who we are. And Paul mentions this, that we are slaves to various passions and pleasures, being addicts in a sense to sins of all kinds. It is these kinds of activities that mark out all people in the fall, making them dirty and filthy and in need of cleansing. And our catechism describes this filthiness or this dirtiness as the soul's impurity. The very basic state of men and women after the fall is one of impurity and defilement. And we know as we read the Scriptures that they're full of this kind of language. The dirtiness and the filthiness of daily living, they're all descriptive of the deeper impurity and corruption that lies and rests in the souls of all of us. And here Paul lays out for Titus and his audience in Crete that this is what they once were. And he's describing the great need that they had for this major change to occur in their hearts. And earlier in the book of Titus, to set the context on what Paul describes these opponents of the gospel of grace in Christ as those who are insubordinate or empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision party. Those who wanted to turn the early Christian church into just an extension of what the Jews were doing in their synagogues. And all throughout this book, this short little letter to Titus, Paul is employing a contrast between the sinful, shameful, and self-serving actions of these Cretan false teachers and then the proper God-glorifying and other-serving actions of these true believers who were, In a sense, only weeks or months or maybe years before, those who could be defined as foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to passions hated by others and hating one another. But that was how they once were. And this is what Paul, the former religious leader, Paul, the law-abiding exemplar of zeal and holiness in the eyes of everyone, was using as a self-description, as a description for all of them. And all this leads us to this truth then, that we have to consider every time that we see the sacrament of baptism being administered, that all stand in need of it. And we apply the seal of baptism to children in the covenant household of God. And we apply it to those who are born into the homes of believing parents. Absolutely. But we need to see that every member of this household needs this baptism in a most profound way. You need to be baptized because you need a cleansing from above that is a purification from all of your sins. For you need, and we cannot let this escape us, you need what it is that baptism points to. You must be set apart as holy unto the Lord. It is necessary to be in a unique, sealed and signed relationship with God as one who has received the sign of the covenant of grace upon your head and upon your soul. And for all here who have been baptized, do you see the significance of what your baptism is pointing to? Do you know how great your need for this cleansing work of the Holy Spirit is? Even today. For you cannot take this for granted. And you may not remember your own baptism. You're probably, for many, you were a small child. Just an infant. But every time that you see a child or a convert being baptized, you should be reminded of your own need to receive that sign. and more profoundly your own need to receive all that the sign of baptism points to in Christ. For does baptism save by itself? No. But it does point to the one who has saved you and who has instituted this outward washing as a symbol, a declaration of what it is to be cleansed inside of your impurity and your guilt and your filthiness. And Paul, in our text, he moves directly from the sinful state of all who are in this unbelief, then to the life-changing work of God in Christ, in verse 4. For here he goes on to describe the most glorious thing, the work of God on our behalf. And after reminding Titus and the congregation in Crete of who they were before they were cleansed in the Lord, the Apostle Paul describes a work which God has done. The works of God which stand in all of history as the great delivery from sin and the great gift of grace to undeserving sinners. And it is this story that our baptism serves to signify in miniature in us and upon us. For the knowledge of what God has done is what our baptism is teaching us. And as we carry the sign of the covenant of God upon our heads, That sign comes always with a story. It comes with a significance. And the water may have dried off your forehead. There may not be a lasting permanent physical mark of that action. But the water of your baptism is a sign of a lasting participation in the covenant of grace which God has made with His children. A covenant of faith. And as surely as water washes away the dirt from the body, so certainly His blood and His Spirit wash away all my soul's impurity and all my sins. And so what do you have knowledge of in your baptism? What is it that it tells you? That when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 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 whom He poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ, our Savior, so that being justified by His grace, we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. We read that when God, our Savior, appeared, He saved us according to His own mercy by the washing of regeneration and the renewal of the Holy Spirit that He has poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ. And in Paul's brief reference to baptism here, taking up just a few words, as the washing of regeneration and the renewal of the Holy Spirit, you can see that he is including baptism in the heart of what God has done and is doing. While also continuing on in his letter to Titus to tell him of the justification of sinners by God's grace. And it's this water sign of baptism that contains this story. And that's what we cannot forget when we think about our own baptism. The story of the Son of God coming to earth to save sinners. You and me are the complete work of righteousness that God our Savior did in the person and work of Jesus Christ. Don't you love the language that Paul uses to describe this great redemption that God has poured out on us richly the washing of regeneration and the renewal of the Holy Spirit through Jesus Christ, our Savior. The water of baptism, the water that we see used each time that we see the sacrament administered, that water serves as a fitting reminder of the greater pouring out of the Holy Spirit that accompanies every believer who is transformed from death to life. And that's why this connection with the idea of regeneration, a washing of regeneration, is so important for us to see. As our Lord Himself said to Nicodemus as He was teaching him, He said, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus said to him, how can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born and jesus answered truly truly i say to you unless one is born of water and the spirit he cannot enter the kingdom of god that which is born of the flesh is flesh and that which is born of the spirit is spirit this outward sign of baptism is not itself without the work of regeneration. For that would be to confuse the water with the one Spirit of God who washes us over and over again in faith and new birth. And the outward sign of baptism is a testimony of what God has done in history and will do in the heart of the believer who is receiving the sign of baptism. That is why the Christian part of our identity is that we are born of water and the Spirit, born of the washing of regeneration that is actually applied by the Spirit and signified in our baptism and the ongoing renewal of the Holy Spirit. And one way to describe the knowledge that comes with the sign of baptism is to compare it to a common example from daily life. For my wife and I, we have Canadian passports that mark us out as Canadian citizens. And that same document marks us out as participants in the whole of the history of Canada. And I may have missed 117 years of our country's formal existence, but I'm a full participant in the entire history of Canada by virtue of my citizenship. And in the same way, our baptism gives us a stake, a participation in the history of all that God has done. That we stand there and we bear a testimony of God's work throughout all time and in particular for us on where we are now as we bear His name. And baptism gives us a knowledge of how God has saved a people and created faith in their hearts. My concern is sometimes we can treat baptism in a fairly limited sort of way. That it's merely a sign of entrance into the covenant. Well, it is that, but it is so much more. It is a sign of all that. All that's being described here. For Christians, your baptism signals your participation in the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior as He appeared to save us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and the renewal of the Holy Spirit, and He has poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior so that we are justified by His grace to become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. I don't know about you, but I know that I need to be reminded of that time and time again. I come to church each Sunday to hear this story. I come to hear the good news of a full and free salvation for sinners every Lord's Day. For I need that knowledge to be with me in times of my weakness and struggle, the times of temptation and sorrow. And do you know the comforts of belonging to Christ by faith? Do you have that assurance, that reassurance which is marked upon you by the water of your baptism and the renewal of the Spirit, that reassurance that God has justified you by His grace so that you might become an heir according to the hope of eternal life. God's Word promises this to all who believe over and over and over again. And God's Spirit confirms this in our hearts even when we go through periods of doubt and temptation. It's the knowledge which baptism creates in us that is a gospel knowledge, if I can coin a new word. A baptism that reminds you and assures you of the gospel of Christ's one sacrifice on the cross and its permanent application to you personally. And your baptism, whether as a child or as a convert of later years, should serve as a further means of reassurance and assurance to you. One more confirmation of God's work in drawing you to Himself. And the knowledge that you have been baptized is then not something you merely chalk up as a past incident that happened a long time ago. That sign is with you even now. That mark is upon your forehead. And it is still pointing you to these words of glorious freedom in our text this evening. For what then is our now, our present circumstances that we look at in light of our baptism? What does today look like for all who have received this sign. What does this mean for you right now? Paul goes on in his letter to Titus in verse 8 in this way. He says, The saying is trustworthy and I want you to insist on these things so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people. We are always in need of a reminder, aren't we? for the trustworthy saying that Paul speaks of here that we can take to heart every time we waver, every time we have a crisis of confidence, is that God has dealt with us in mercy and grace and He has opened up a way for us to receive the righteousness and holiness of Christ our Savior. Isn't that the good news that we require all the time? A reminder that we need to have perpetually coming to us. For the heart is always forgetting. My heart is always becoming distracted by minor, stupid things. Or turning inward on itself in despair. But the washing of regeneration is a permanent thing. And the regenerate believer is a new creation. And we don't really have any other parallel to something so profound in our normal everyday life. A complete transformation, a complete cleansing. And as I was preparing this sermon, I was thinking about the completeness of this transformation, this cleansing. And it reminded me of the two summers that I spent as a tree planter planting trees in the mountains. For after a day of work, I would be completely filthy. From head to toe, dirt, sweat, pesticides, and whatever else was clinging to me at the end of that day. When we would get back to our camp each night, I would try to take a shower, if I was able to, if there was time, to try to just get a little bit cleaner. And yet, because of all that dirt, because of all that had gone through in the day, I knew that I wasn't really going to get it at all. And I could never get fully clean. And I would even be in the shower extra long on the days before our days off when we would go into town. And I knew that I still looked like a dirty guy. And I knew that I would be carrying that dirt and grime with me for a long time under the fingernails every place possible to hide grime. No matter how long I tried to scrub, I couldn't get all the way clean. Well, the symbol of baptism is unlike any shower or scouring that we might think of. It is a sign of a complete cleansing that is accomplished by the Holy Spirit in the heart of every believer. And that's what puts Paul's words about devoting ourselves to good works in its proper perspective. As he says in verse 8, those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. Those who have believed. Those who have been washed in the washing of regeneration and the renewal of the Holy Spirit. Those who have been saved by the blood of Christ. They may then devote themselves to good works. To lives of gratitude and thanksgiving for what God has accomplished. This is the shocking reality that you are free to labor in your life now that you've been completely cleansed. And do you still sin? Certainly. Do you still retain the effects of the fall in your nature being simultaneously a saint and yet a sinner? Absolutely. For as the Catechism describes it, more and more I become dead to sin and increasingly live a holy and blameless life. And yet it is clear that that is a process, a time of sanctification. For more and more you will grow in holiness, grow in a holy devotion to God and a thanksgiving for His work on your behalf. But the clothes that you wear, the clean, pure, white robes of Christ's righteousness are yours forever, sealed to you by the Spirit. You may yet sin and stumble and walk into all kinds of darkness and sorrow and struggle, and yet the robes that you wear before the throne of God are already now pure and blameless, spotless and clean. And that's what your baptism signifies even now as you struggle in this life. That's what it means to be washed with Christ's blood and spirit. And that's what gives you the ability, the power to perform acts of devotion that are truly pleasing in the sight of God. Acts of service that give glory to our Lord and reflect our humble recognition of the great gift that we've been given. And Paul, the Apostle Paul, in the Word of God here, exhorts you, in light of all that God our Savior has done and in light of your baptism and your renewal by the Holy Spirit that it reflects to be careful and to devote yourself to good works. Not as a way of earning your salvation for just a few verses earlier. He makes it clear that it was not because of works done by us in righteousness that we were saved. Not as a way of earning salvation but as a way of life proceeding from a life that is consistent with the sign of the covenant that is on us. And being a grateful servant by avoiding foolish controversies, by avoiding, as Paul says, obsessions with genealogies or dissensions or quarrels about the law, or hating one another, or being hated. And are you frustrated by your sins? Are you despairing that you are not making any headway against the common foes? that you confront in your own life? Do you grow weary of the many sinful distractions in your life that keep you from serving the Lord rightly and meditating on His Word and serving others in His name? Then place your confidence in the Lord our God. Trust in Him alone. For what does your baptism mean to you? It means life and belief in Christ. It means an abundance of blessing and strength to pursue the ways of the Lord despite your own weaknesses and struggles in this life. Oh, rest in this knowledge, the conviction and the comfort of your baptism into the death and the resurrection of our Lord. For it is in Him that you have been saved and it is in Christ alone that you will be given all that your baptism points to. Rejoice in the Lord for His great work on your behalf. And remember always that by baptism, you have been set apart unto salvation and eternal life. And you may say, even now, that I am clean in Christ. Sing praises to the Lord, O you saints, and give thanks to His holy name. For our Lord is merciful and kind. Amen. Let us pray. oh lord our most merciful and heavenly father we give you thanks that you've ordained a means of comfort a means of reassurance a sign of baptism that you have placed in your good providence and your care and mercy upon us your servants we pray that you'll cause us to reflect more and more lord on the confidence that we can have in You. As we place our faith and our trust in You and in the finished work of our Lord, we may reflect more and more on Your goodness and live lives that grow in holiness and pleasing works before You. Lord, give us the strength to persevere through the struggles that we face and bless us in the remembrance of Your grace. All this we pray in the name of our Lord and Savior. Amen.