How Can You Witness For God More Effectively As Good Citizens?

SERMON OUTLINE

• 💭 Consider this: Why do you think God allows our testimonies to impact people’s impression of the gospel? Since your ability to effectively witness starts in your heart, what kind of heart for others do you need to cultivate in order to best influence them?
• I. Remember Our Duty To Submit To The Authority
• II. Remember To Bear Our Christian Testimony
• III. Remember Our Former Condition

TRANSCRIPT

I greet all of you in the blessed name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. We are studying through the book of Titus, and we have come to Titus 3:1–3. Allow me to read for you Titus 3:1–3: "Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to be ready to every good work, to speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men. For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another." The Lord bless the reading of His holy and sacred Word.

In Titus chapter 1, we learn about this person named Titus, who was left in Crete. He was given a whole lot of responsibilities. He must ordain elders in every city. But first, he must deal with the qualifications of those elders before ordaining them, then, he must deal with the false teachers. In chapter 2, Paul gave the picture of a spiritually healthy church and the things that Titus ought to teach the members in the church, beginning with the aged men, aged women, young men, young women, and the servants. When it comes to chapter 3, he turned his attention to the manner in which Christians ought to live their lives in this world.

Today, we are living in a pagan society by and large. Some people profess to believe in God, and some may still attend certain religious practices or services, but most do not want to commit to what Christianity is. Their thinking and practices have become so secular. God does not want us to conform to the pattern of this world, and this is what Titus chapter 3 is dealing with. God has given us specific instructions on how we ought to live our lives in this pagan society. Jesus calls us to be the light of the world and the salt of the earth (Matthew 5:13–14), and our lives are to be centred in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Perhaps if I were to give you an outline of the book of Titus, it will go something like this:

• Chapter 1 is about the gospel and Christian leadership;
• Chapter 2 is about the gospel in the church; and
• Chapter 3 is about the gospel in the world.

It is all about the gospel. The Apostle Paul began by saying, "Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates." (Titus 3:1a) It means to remind the people to submit to the governing authorities. The title of our message is, ‘How Can You Witness for God More Effectively as Good Citizens?’

I. Remember Our Duty To Submit To The Authority

There are three points in our message. Firstly, we must remember our duty to submit to the authorities. When Paul says, "Put them in mind",—or remind them—obviously it was not something new. He had already taught them in the past. They knew their responsibilities living in a pagan society, but they needed to be reminded.

Parents always remind their children about certain things, like before crossing the road they have to look left and right for oncoming vehicles. And children would often respond by saying, ‘Yes, we already know that. You have reminded us so many times.’ But parents would reply, ‘Yes, I know you have heard that many times, but I also know you always forget.’ Indeed, as humans, we always forget. It is the duty of pastors and preachers to constantly remind the people of the Word of God. And here, Titus reminded the people once again of their duties to submit to the governing authorities.

When Paul wrote this letter, we have to understand the kind of government that was in control at that time. The people were living under the Romans' rule, and the Roman government was a pagan government who persecuted the Christians. And how should the people respond to such a government? They were to be subject, which means to submit.

In our Sunday school, our children have their own favourite Bible stories. They love the story of Moses and the ten plagues, Daniel in the lion's den, Esther and Mordecai, and how they saved the whole Jewish population, Jonah and the Ninevites, Paul and the Philippian jailer, etc. But when we ask them this question: apart from being believers of the one living and true God, what do all these people have in common? Moses, Daniel, Esther, Mordecai, Jonah, and Paul?

The answer should be: all of them were ministering in a time and in a place where they were a minority. All of them were living in a time and in a place where the vast majority of the people, including the governing authorities, did not believe God. Only in the case of Daniel, who had a few friends who stood by him, but others like Jonah and Joseph were all by themselves, living by faith in a secular world. Yet, they were the light and the salt of the earth. Dear friend, what about for us? How have we lived our lives in this secular world? By faith, obeying the commandments of God, or are we living like the rest of the world?

Believers must submit to the governing authority. We may not like what the prime minister is doing. We may not agree with the decisions he makes. We may not like the things being discussed and approved in the parliament, like the educational system, the human rights issue, the raising of taxes, and so forth. It doesn't matter whether we like it or not, whether we agree with it or not. It doesn't matter whether the governing authority is Caesar, King Herod, Pilate, Donald Trump, or Albanese. As citizens of this nation that God has sovereignly placed us in, we are to submit.

One of the best examples in the Bible about submitting to the governing authority was none other than our Lord Jesus Christ. In Matthew chapter 22, the Pharisees were trying to trap Him, so they asked Him, ‘Is it lawful to give taxes to Caesar or not?’ (Matthew 22:17) If Jesus were to say it is lawful to give taxes to Caesar, then all the Jews would hate Him because they hated Caesar. They hated the taxation system. If He were to say it is not lawful, then the Pharisees would report Him to the Romans. One way or another, they thought they had trapped Him.

But our Lord Jesus is omniscient. “But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites? Show me the tribute money. And they brought unto him a penny. And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription?—Whose image and name is inscribed on it?—They say unto him, Caesar's. Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's" (Matthew 22:18–21).

And so, our Lord Jesus paid His taxes. (Matthew 17:24-27) And what do you think the Romans would do with the money? Most certainly, it was not used for things that glorified God or were pleasing to Him. But it didn't matter. Jesus still subjected Himself to pay His taxes. Are we better than Christ, the Son of God, in that He was willing to submit Himself, and we are not willing to do so? God forbid!

We are to obey the authority, but there is one exception: when we ought not to obey the authority. That is when they want us to do something the Bible forbids us to do or not to do something the Bible commands us to do.

The best illustration is given in Acts chapter 5, when Peter and the other apostles were told not to preach and teach Christ, and their response was, "We ought to obey God rather than men" (Acts 5:29). If there comes a point in time where this nation turns against God and tells the church not to do what the Bible says, then we ought to obey God rather than men. And we ask the Lord to give us the strength and courage to face the consequence, be it prison or death. But very seldom, by the grace of God, we are told to do things contrary to the Word of God.

I remember many years ago, in the 70s or early 80s, the Singapore government wanted to clean up the beaches or seashores because they were filled with debris. They wanted all the churches to participate in the cleaning movement on Sunday.

Our church founding pastor, the late Reverend Dr. Tow, was in Singapore at that time, and he wrote to the government and said, ‘Sunday is the Lord's day, and it is the day we Christians worship our God. If you want to have it on any other days of the week, we are happy to participate, but not on Sundays.’ The government not only agreed but even published his letter in the official newspaper in Singapore, which was The Straits Times. That is a wonderful testimony of a believer who was willing to submit to the governing authority but not at the expense of his Christian faith.

We are also to perform good works, and this must come with an attitude of willingness. We must not grit our teeth and pay our taxes. We must not obey the authority grudgingly. ‘What to do? They are the government.’ No, we are going to do it willingly, not reluctantly.

One of the things that set the Christian apart from the unbeliever is this eagerness to do good works. It is this goodness that demonstrates our transformation, that there is this supernatural inner work inside us—our new life in Christ. Christians are to be known in the society for their goodness, for their good works.

1 Peter 2:13–15 says, "Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme; or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well. For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men." Here, the Bible is telling us that it is the will of God that believers submit to the governing authorities.

We must understand that God has a purpose in all things, and He works in and through those authorities He has placed above us. Yes, there may be kings, presidents, and governors, but we must not forget that if God does not permit, they will not be there. He is in control of all things, including placing those authorities in their places for a sovereign purpose.

If we want to know the will of God for our lives, the authority that God has placed above us plays an important part, whether it be our government, our church leaders, our parental authority, or our bosses at work. Nothing happens by chance or coincidence. It is by God's appointment and His providence.

If our relationship with them is not right, how can we know His will? Because God may show His will through the authorities He has placed in our lives. How can you and I disobey this command when God clearly says in His Word, "Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme; or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well. For so is the will of God" (1 Peter 2:13–15)?

In Romans chapter 13, God gave us six reasons why we must submit to the authority:

1. The government is ordained by God. Romans 13:1 says, "For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God."
2. When we resist the authority, we are resisting God. Verse 2 says, "Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God."
3. The offenders will be punished. "They that resist shall receive to themselves damnation."
4. The government is empowered to restrain evil. Verse 3 says, "For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same." God has given the government the right to exercise capital punishment—that is what bearing the sword means.
5. The government is designed to promote good. Verse 4 says, "For he is the minister of God to thee for good."
6. And finally, we submit to the government for our conscience' sake. "Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake" (Romans 13:5).

The whole point is that God has ordained the government in its place. It is the will of God that we submit to the authority, and you and I must remember this duty.

II. Remember To Bear Our Christian Testimony

Our second point is to remember to bear our Christian testimony. Look at Titus 3:2, "To speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men." What is the goal of our Christian life in this pagan society? Our goal is not trying to impact the society by changing their moral values or social values or even family values, however bad those values may be. Our main goal is in people getting saved.

The church has one mission, and that is to reach out to the world with the gospel because we are fully convinced that without the gospel, souls will be eternally lost. Our mission is to point the people to God. It doesn't matter if the people die under a communist regime or a democratic country. It doesn't matter whether the people die as a policeman or a beggar in the street. We all know without Jesus Christ, they end up in the same place the Bible calls hell.

So, it is not about human rights. It is not the time to argue over values and systems. That is not the issue. The real issue is salvation. If we want to see our society transformed, we have to preach Christ. Only He alone can transform their lives. But our preaching must be accompanied with our good Christian testimonies. It is our testimony that makes our message believable. If we do not live what we preach, whatever we preach will be counterproductive. The people will conclude that your God is not a God who saves sinners and transforms them because, most certainly, He did not transform you.

Look at your life. If we are going to preach and testify of God's saving power, we must first make it manifest in our lives. That is why verse 2 reminds us to bear a good testimony. "To speak evil" is from where we get the English word for ‘blaspheme,’ which means to slander or to treat with contempt. We must not blaspheme anyone. Yes, we must confront sin. When we confront the sinner of his sins, we call the sinner to repentance, but we must never speak evil or blaspheme against the person.

It is so sad that a lot of people are doing that to the leaders. Many of our leaders, our ministers in the parliament, our superiors, and bosses at work are unbelievers. And how do we expect the unbelievers to live and behave but in an unconverted way, right? So, it is absolutely not acceptable to blaspheme them. That is not the Christian's approach.

What is the Christian's approach? It is found in 1 Timothy 2:1: "I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men." And out of all men, Paul continued, "For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty." So, instead of speaking evil of our leaders, we have to pray for them. We pray that God will save them and work in their lives. I submit to you that very seldom we pray for our leaders. More often than not, we blaspheme them. God knows, and may the Lord forgive us.

We are “to be no brawlers”, which means we are not to be contentious, not to quarrel and fight with the leaders. It is so easy to get angry when we hear that our taxes are being raised or our rights are being denied or the things in our neighbourhood are not working well. We get so frustrated with those things, but we must not fight.

And one way we can do that is to constantly remind ourselves that we are just pilgrims on this earth. This is a temporal world. This world is not our home. We are just passing through. And as we pass through the different stages of life, by the grace of God, along the way, we reach out and touch some lives through the transforming, saving power of the gospel.

We are to be “gentle”, which means peaceable, considerate, and forbearing. Tensions around us may be running high. People around us may be unhappy with the authorities. They are murmuring and complaining about the government, but we are not to make matters worse by adding to the flames of fire. A believer is to heal the wounds, not deepen the wounds; to preserve peace, not destroy peace. So, we have to be gentle.

We are to show meekness unto all men. This word was used in the Beatitudes in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:3-12). It means to be humble. Christians do not fight for their rights or for any political agenda or for a place in society. They are meek. They just want to live for Jesus Christ. They just want to trust Him and commit their lives to Him. And we apply this principle not only in the church or in our homes but for everyone in the world.

III. Remember Our Former Condition

Our final point is: remember our former condition. Look at Titus 3:3, "For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another."

Before we start to slander the authorities, before we get angry with the system, before we attack the ungodly and the unsaved, Paul says, ‘Remember, we were once like them.’ Before his conversion, Paul was a persecutor of the Christians. He was a blasphemer until the Lord Jesus Christ appeared to him on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:3–6). So, in 1 Corinthians 15:10, Paul says, “by the grace of God I am what I am". We say the same thing about ourselves: by the grace of God, we are what we are.

Today, when we consider the foolishness of this world—how people spend their entire life pursuing after the things of this world, yet nothing they can carry out of this world—it is so vain. And then we realise that they are just like us. We were once foolish.

Today, when we consider the disobedience of this world—how people rebel against the authorities, how they disobey God, how they mock and reject His Word—we realise that they are just like us. We were once disobedient.

Today, when we consider the deception in this world—how people are led astray, no matter how educated or how many PhDs they have, they can be so scholarly and yet so blind, ignorant, and darkened in their minds—when we see that, we realise that they are just like us. We were once living in deception.

Today, when we consider the sins of this world—whether it be the gay movement, the homosexual parades, people indulging in all kinds of vices, tearing one another down to promote themselves, and the stories we hear of the sexual immoralities happening in the parliament—it is so terrible that men who have been given such authority yet do not have the capacity to live a moral life. And then we remember: they are just like us. We were once foolish, disobedient, living in deception, and in terrible sins.

More than 30 years ago, I finished my national service in Singapore. At that time, I was an unbeliever. Ever since then, for the past 30 years, every year, our army platoon would celebrate with a gathering to remember our army days. Sometimes, when I look at them, I will quietly laugh in my heart because they are still so rough, still so vulgar, worldly, and naughty. And then I'll say in my heart, ‘Why are they behaving like that at this age?’

Until one day, when I attended one of the gatherings, and one of my sons happened to join us because we were in Singapore at that time, one of my army platoon mates said to me, ‘Remember those were the days.’ I said, ‘Of course.’ And then he said, ‘And you were the worst amongst us.’ That was like a slap to my face. It is so easy for me to forget my former self and then start to critique them, start to point at their mistakes. Indeed, all of us, if not for the grace of God, we would be just like them.

Before we speak evil against anyone, remember we were just like them. Even if we were saved at a very young age, but nonetheless, we were just as depraved as anyone else. We could not save ourselves. Yes, they are rebellious; they are disobedient. But their lives remind us of our former selves. If not for the grace of God who cast His eyes upon us, we would have been lost.

When our Lord Jesus looked at the people, He did not mock them. He did not speak evil against them. But He looked at them sadly because they were on their way to hell, and they could not do anything out of their depraved hearts. That was why, when Jesus entered into the city of Jerusalem, He wept over the city (Luke 19:41-44). That was why Jesus sat at the well and waited patiently for the Samaritan woman to run all the way to the city and bring the lost souls to Him (John 4:28-30). And when the disciples asked Him to eat, He said to them, "My meat”—my work, and my food—”is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work" (John 4:34).

Dear friend, can we look at the people around us—the nation, the authorities—and weep for them? Can we look at the harvest field and cry for the lost souls? If we cannot, just remember: we were once like them. We cannot change this pagan society we are living in. In fact, it is getting from bad to worse.

Perhaps, in the past, we have been complaining about the authorities. We have been speaking evil of them. We have not submitted to them. Even when we submit to them, we are reluctant. We are always fighting. We are not gentle. But what about today? Is there a difference now that we are Christians? Do the people around us know that we are Christians? Have we been submissive, obedient, gentle, and kind? Have we been a good testimony to the glory of God? How can you and I be a good witness for the Almighty God?

To be effective in witnessing to others as good citizens, if you have forgotten whatever I've said, remember these three points:

• by remembering our duty to submit to the authority,
• by remembering to bear our Christian testimonies before the unbelieving world, and
• by remembering our former condition.

It is by the grace of God that we are what we are today. Let us pray.

Our Father in heaven, we thank You for this opportunity for us to consider a portion of Thy Word. We want to be Thy people, to live for Thy glory. We want others to know that Thou art a powerful God, a God who loves sinners, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. Thou who hast saved us from eternal damnation, it is by Thy grace that we are what we are today.

May Thou also use us as an instrument to bring many more into Thy kingdom. And wherever Thou hast placed us, and whatever authorities that Thou hast placed above us, we know that it is by Thy providence. And we submit for the Lord's sake, and we know that it is the will of God, and it is Thy will that we live a good Christian testimony before this pagan society. May Thou use us to be the salt and the light of this world, to the glory of Thy precious name. We pray all this in Jesus' name. Amen.

THE BOOK OF TITUS

The Commitment Of A Faithful Servant

The Commitment Of A Faithful Servant

Titus 1:1

The Hope Of Eternal Life

The Hope Of Eternal Life

Titus 1:2-4

Why Do We Need Godly Leaders?

Why Do We Need Godly Leaders?

Titus 1:5-9

How To Deal With Church Troublemakers?

How To Deal With Church Troublemakers?

Titus 1:10-14

The Product Of Who We Are

The Product Of Who We Are

Titus 1:15-16

What Legacy Are You Leaving Behind?

What Legacy Are You Leaving Behind?

Titus 2:1-3

How Should Young People Live?

How Should Young People Live?

Titus 2:4-8

How Can You Witness For God More Effectively At Work?

How Can You Witness For God More Effectively At Work?

Titus 2:9-10

The Wonderful Grace Of God

The Wonderful Grace Of God

Titus 2:11-15

How Can You Witness For God More Effectively As Good Citizens?

How Can You Witness For God More Effectively As Good Citizens?

Titus 3:1-3

Remember How We Were Saved

Remember How We Were Saved

Titus 3:4-8

Divisiveness Calls For Strong Action

Divisiveness Calls For Strong Action

Titus 3:9-11

We Need Faithful Men

We Need Faithful Men

Titus 3:12-15

Message 6: To Fight the Good Fight of Faith is to Hold Fast the Faithful Word

Message 6: To Fight the Good Fight of Faith is to Hold Fast the Faithful Word

Titus 1:9-11