What’s your motive for doing good deeds? Many people believe that doing good deeds enables them to earn favor with God. We may think if our good deeds outweigh our bad deeds then God will accept us. The problem is God doesn’t grade on a curve – His standard is perfection. The reality is none of us can achieve perfection in our own strength – that’s why we need a Savior.

Religion is often viewed as what man needs to do to be right with God. Christianity is different. Christianity is not about earning God’s favor – it’s about a relationship with Jesus. In Christianity, God takes the initiative to break through time and space and comes to man in the person of Jesus Christ. Christianity is not about working our way to heaven, but it’s realizing that we can’t work our way to heaven and that we need to depend upon Jesus for our salvation.

The Apostle Paul, in his brief epistle to Titus, reminded him of this principle as several times he mentions the importance of performing good deeds. Good deeds are important, but they are not the cause of our salvation, rather they are the evidence of our salvation.

He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:5)

Good deeds are the fruit, not the root of our salvation. We do not save ourselves, God saves us. We are saved by God’s work, not by our good works. In this passage we see that salvation is an accomplished fact. Salvation is also on ongoing process in which we are becoming more like Jesus. This is often referred to as progressive sanctification. Finally, there is an aspect of salvation that is a future prospect that is called glorification in which we will be free from the presence of sin.

Paul makes it clear that we are saved by God’s mercy, not by our merit. We are saved by Christ’s dying, not by our doing. The word regeneration conveys the idea of a genesis or renewal to a higher existence. The Jewish historian Josephus used this same word to refer to the reestablishment of the Jewish people after the exile. Imagine that you are covered with dirt and grime; the washing of regeneration brings you back to a pristine state of cleanliness.

We not only experience the washing of regeneration, but also renewing by the Holy Spirit. The word renewing means to cause something to become new and different with the implication of becoming superior – this is a qualitative difference for the better. This is not a change that we can make in our own strength, but it is effected by the Holy Spirit. Do not be deceived – your salvation is not based upon your performance, but on Christ’s finished work.

Rick Higgins

Associate Pastor – Discipleship.  The Church at LifePark