"A PROPER VIEW OF GOOD WORKS!"

TITUS 3:1-8, 14

Aesop tells the fable about a farmer who was lying on his death bed. The man summoned his sons. He wanted to give them a secret that would enrich their lives for a long time. He said, "My boys, I am about to die. I want you to know that in my vineyard lies a hidden treasure. Dig and keep digging until you find it." They wanted to know the precise location of said treasure, but the farmer merely smiled slyly and with a sigh, died. The farmer had always been a truthful man, and though the boys were surprised he had not told them about the treasure before, believed his promise and set about to dig. They toiled because their father told them to and they trusted him. Paul indicated in the text that there is a close link, a causative link, between our belief in the Heavenly Father and doing good works. This is Labor Day when we honor the labor force and pay tribute to workers. The work ethic is Biblical and admirable. Paul taught that if a man will not work, neither should he eat. He taught that those who stole ought to desist and start working to have something to share with others. He urged slaves to work heartily as if they were doing their labor for the Lord Himself. He said that each person ought to work to provide for their needs and not be a burden on others. Though even secular work is a lofty ethic, my emphasis today will be working for the Lord; doing good works that have some spiritual significance; works that bear upon, and are borne upon by, our Christian faith. I am referring to works of benevolence, worship, service, witness, burden bearing, teaching, encouragement, and obedience to Christ's commands. What is there in the text that helps us gain a proper view of good works? There are three insights: the first is:

• GOOD WORKS ARE PRODUCED BY BELIEF IN GOD: V8:
• The word for "believed" is the word that means "have faith, or put trust in someone." If we put trust in God, if we believe in the Biblical sense, it will issue in good works of all varieties.
• Saving belief in God opens our hearts, minds, and lives to His activity. He works in and through us as Paul wrote to the Philippians:
• Philippians 1:6 "For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus."
• Philippians 2:12, 13 "So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure."
• It is an oxymoron, a contradiction, and a denial of faith to present a workless Christianity!
• James 2:14 "What use is it, my brethren, if a man says he has faith, but he has no works? Can that faith save him?"
• James 2:17 "Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself."
• Genuine belief, Biblical faith, always produces good works. It is a given. The poem says, "If faith produce no works, I see that faith is not a living tree. Thus faith and works together grow, no separate life they e'er can know."
• There are many things which invariably produce other things in the world.
• If you apply sufficient heat and oxygen to fuel it will always produce fire.
• If you subject carbon to enough pressure for enough time you will inevitably produce a diamond.
• If you jump out of an airplane, gravity will certainly produce an earthward descent.
• If you plant apple seeds, and they grow, you will produce an apple tree.
• If you burn hydrogen gas it will always produce plain water.
• If you truly believe in God, and if you have genuine faith in Him, it will without exception produce good works.

The dying man told his sons there would be treasure for them if they dug diligently in the vineyard. Their belief in him produced work. They took spade and fork and turned up the soil of the vineyard. They did it over and over, deeper and deeper, hoping to find the precious treasure their father promised them. They didn't work for the sheer joy of it, but they worked with the prospect of some profit in mind. There are some who believe that doing good for good's sake is sufficient. That would be noble I'm sure. But Jesus does attach a benefit and a reward as an incentive to good works. This second insight helps us develop a proper view of good works.

• GOOD WORKS ARE PROFITABLE: VV8, 14:
• We have heard the old clichés:
• "Crime doesn't pay!"
• "Cheaters never win!"
• That may be trite, yet it is true! But good works pay! Those who engage in good works are winners. In what ways, and for whom is it profitable? It is profitable:
• For us: we are healthier, happier, more satisfied, at peace with ourselves, the world and God when we do good works.
• 2 Corinthians 9:10-11 "Now He Who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food, will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness; you will be enriched in everything for all liberality, which through us is producing thanksgiving to God."
• Furthermore, for good works there is an eternal reward: Matthew 10:42 "And whoever in the name of a disciple gives to one of these little ones even a cup of cold water to drink, truly I say to you he shall not lose his reward."
• Paul said to the Philippians in regard to their giving: "Not that I seek the gift itself, but I seek for the profit which increases to your account." Philippians 4:17.
• For other people: those who receive our benevolence, our help, our prayers, our good works, are better off. 2 Corinthians 9:12 "For the ministry of this service is not only fully supplying the needs of the saints, but is also overflowing through many thanksgivings to God."
• For God: He receives thanks and praise and honor through our good deeds: Matthew 5:16 "Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father Who is in heaven."
• The Bible says,
• Proverbs 14:23 "In all labor there is profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty."
• Ecclesiastes 3:12-13 "I know that there is nothing better for them than to rejoice and to do good in one's lifetime; moreover, that every man who eats and drinks sees good in all his labor -- it is the gift of God."
• Many invest time, energy and effort into a vain effort at obtaining the profit of worldly, fleeting, temporal, deceitful things.
• Solomon tried that, going after material things, partying it up, and seeking sexual stimulation. He wrote, "Thus I considered all my activities which my hands had done and the labor which I had exerted, and behold all was vanity and striving after wind and there was no profit under the sun." Ecclesiastes 2:11.
• Jesus poses the question: "For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul?" Mark 8:36.

The sons invested time and effort looking for profit. They had laboriously turned over every shovelful of earth once, twice, thrice. In spite of their diligence they found no buried treasure. There seemed to be no profit in their venture. They were somewhat mystified and disillusioned to say the least. All that work, and no cache of hidden treasure. They missed their father's point as we will see. Some miss the Heavenly Father's point too. Many believe they can work their way to heaven, or that they can earn their salvation by works they do. God wants us to work, but not to obtain the treasure of eternal life. That leads to the third insight to help us achieve a proper view of good works:

• GOOD WORKS DO NOT SAVE US: VV5-7:
• Paul couldn't be more clear:
• Titus 3:5 says "He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness!"
• To the church at Ephesus, Paul wrote, "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast." Ephesians 2:8, 9.
• Paul wrote to Timothy saying of God that He "saved us, and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity" 2 Timothy 1:9.
• If you could work a thousand times as hard, for a thousand lifetimes, it would not avail for salvation. The Psalmist is right: "No man can by any means redeem his brother, Or give to God a ransom for him -- For the redemption of his soul is costly, And he should cease trying forever -- That he should live on eternally; That he should not undergo decay." Psalms 49:7-9. No man can pay the price, but Jesus paid it.
• In light of that, here is a paradigm to remember:
• Works are not the cause but the consequence of salvation.
• Works are not the root but the fruit of salvation.
• Works are not the basis but the evidence of salvation.
• Works are not the origin but the outcome of salvation.
• The poet is right, "I cannot work my soul to save for that my Lord has done; But I can work with all my heart for love of God's dear Son."

The boys worked with all their hearts, but never unearthed buried gold or silver or fine jewels. But the treasure they did find was a rich, luxurious harvest. And that was the treasure their father had craftily set them after. He knew there would be no harvest without hard work, there would be no treasure without toil. God knows that too. That's why He created us in Christ Jesus for good works. We are saved by grace, through faith, for good works. On this Labor Day Sunday when leisure is the emphasis, let's renew our commitment to be workers for Christ; workers who share the Word of God; workers who serve one another unselfishly; workers who willingly take up the tasks of teaching, ministering to youth and shut-ins, property maintenance, transportation or music ministries, benevolence, meal ministries, and other labors in the church. The rally cry today is "To the work!" We are servants of God! Let us be eager to serve Him. Let us be willing to work for the good of others and the Glory of God. "To the work!" is our challenge, Christ's call, and the need of the hour. Who will do more than sing the words? Who will truly sign up to go to work for Christ?

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