Paul McKenzie

Memory Verse, Monday, Oct 12, Titus 3:3

"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."

We are holding mid-term elections next month. One thing I've noticed in the commercials is how often there is little on issues and a lot on character assassination. The news media has done an excellent job creating class envy, and keys in on greed and personalities instead of the real issues and the consequences of those issues once those elected actually get voted in. They are simply figureheads to large party platforms, often not in our best interest.

In media venues like FB, I can see the real hearts of many people by what they write, and those that I thought were quite good have revealed a dark side of their heart by what they post. One thing this type of communication has done is reveal the biblical truth that in everyone the heart is truly wicked (Psalm 14, Psalm 53, Romans 3).

The reason I'm bringing this up is because it so fits our verse for today. When I used to hear people say, "America is smarter than this", I almost believed it, but through years of experience I've found that the majority live like what Paul wrote through the breathing of the Holy Spirit so long ago.

Foolish? Boy are we ever, and willingly so! We love to rebel. We are deliberately leading ourselves astray, speaking well of evil people because we hate others more.

We are willing slaves to our various passions and pleasures. I like how this is worded as "various", because we all have fallen natures, and have given in to different things. In this way we justify our own sin by pointing out someone else's sin. We may not be taken in by "their sin", but have plenty of our own that we like to suppress.

Passing our days in "malice and envy" is what our media loves to goad into us. Malice is that slow, burning anger you get when you read the character assassinations while overlooking others that sin more like you. Envy gives on a false sense of a demand for "equity", which has been re-defined that it is your "right" to take other people's stuff.

Even when writing this, I sometimes seethe as I see how the wicked one and his minions have deceived us, and how easy it is to fall from well-meaning concern to willful disobedience to the ways of God and goodness. To turn our hearts away from personal godliness and become "pharisaical" judges, religious or secular.

And as Believers, we should be ashamed. We need to vote for godliness, since God has given us that right. But we vote in the way of one who sees that this world is passing away, and it will never bring true hope. That there is a better land ahead, and that land is beyond what we see here.

And none of those things mentioned above will show its face in the New Kingdom, for they have been put to death through the cross of Christ, who willingly took upon Himself the sins of the world and gave us the chance to have new hearts, new creations, new natures.

And of all who ever walked this earth, no one has been castigated, lied about, maligned, re-invented into something unrecognizable to the real person than Jesus Christ Himself. And when the world sees the Real Jesus they will mourn whom they have pierced, and all will bow before Him in shame (Revelation 1, Philippians 2).

Or you can rejoice in relief for His grace and forgiveness, if you cut through the fog the world has given and receive the living water of the Holy Spirit, whose purpose on earth is to teach us to glorify God, and put us back into the proper perspective.

That this life is not about us. It is about the glory of God, and we becoming the images He has designed us to be before the foundation of the world.

"The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light" (Romans 13:12).

Today if you hear His voice, harden not your heart.

Memory Helps

"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."

This is a long verse and should be learned one line at a time. I look for things on which to link.

For example, the second line reminds me of the FDA (FOOLISH, DISOBEDIENT, led ASTRAY). FDA is a well-known acronym for the Food and Drug Administration, and we really have to be on drugs to believe some of the deception we're hearing from the world.

Second, I noticed that we are slaves to PPP: Passions, pleasures, Passing. And I think that it's nobody but ME I need to look at (ME=malice and envy), which causes me to both be hated and hate "others" and one an-"other".

Breaking it up piece by piece this way will bring order to the verse, and make it easier to memorize.

Linking verse numbers:

Keeping "Titus" on a tree holding tightly to an "S" (Tight S for Titus, Tree for Three), we get our Titus 3 picture.

I always use my dear "Ma" for verses 3 because "M=3" phonetically, vowels fillers. I have her up there on that tree, scolding me and Titus for our disobedience, and is holding FDA and a PPP signs, pointing out what they stand for and pointing to the Lord in Heaven. She's already in heaven, so that's not much of a stretch. And her good words still speak to me.