Titus: Building a Healthy Church
How to Live as a Christian in an Ungodly World
Titus 2:1-10
Pastor Jefferson M. Williams
Chenoa Baptist Church
3-07-2021
WWJD
I had a friend in Mississippi that we will call Larry. Larry was in my Sunday school class and was on fire for Jesus. In his mid twenties with a wife and two young kids.
He bought a WWJD bracelet, very popular back then, and started praying that someone would ask him about it. [If someone ask, you explained the Gospel and gave it to them]
The problem was no-one asked him about it all. His company sent him to Mexico and he was going with a group of guys and we prayed that he would be able to share the Gospel while there.
He also was worried that he might be tempted to follow the crowd in Mexico so we prayed about that as well.
He did fine the whole week, although some of the guys did make fun of him. But the last night, everyone was going out and he decided that it wouldn’t hurt to have some fun.
Long story short, he was arrested for fighting (he was drunk) and put into the back of a paddy wagon. As he sat there, one of the young police officers leaned over and in perfect English said, “What does your bracelet mean? WWJD?” Larry burst into tears.
In the first chapter of Titus, Paul has focused on doctrine, right thinking versus false teaching. This is foundational and necessary to start our Christian journey.
But in chapter two, he will make the case that doctrine leads to duty, belief affects behavior, and orthodoxy results in orthopraxy.
In other words, if we say we are Christians, how we live out our faith is just as important as what we say we believe.
There is something supernaturally beautiful about a church that is full of people who take the call to follow Jesus seriously.
A watching world is desperate for hope and we have the honor of being ambassadors of Jesus Christ to them.
How do we do that in a way that they can see Jesus in us individually and as a church?
That’s the core of Paul’s directives to Titus in chapter two.
Turn with me to Titus.
Prayer.
Muzzle Them!
In chapter one of Titus, Paul leaves Titus on Crete to lead and equip the fledgling churches and to appoint elders to combat the many false teachers whose influence was growing among these baby Christians.
In the verses we studied last week, Paul doesn’t mince any words as he describes the false teachers:
They are insubordinate, empty talkers, deceivers, they upset whole hold holds, teaching what they ought not to teach, for personal profit, liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons, who focus on Jewish myths and rules made by man, their minds and consciences are corrupt and defiled. They deny God by their deeds. They are detestable, disobedient, and unfit.
Paul tells Titus to silence them, literally to muzzle them and to rebuke them sharply. Titus is to have a zero tolerance policy toward these false teachers.
Sound Doctrine
"You, however, must teach what is appropriate to sound doctrine.” (Titus 2:1)
The Greek begins an emphatic “But, as for you.”
Titus is to live and teach the very opposite of what the false teachers are peddling on the island of Crete.
His teaching must be consistent with “sound doctrine,” in contrast to the false teachers who are obsessed with Jewish myths and rules taught by men.
Sound doctrine in this context is the approved teaching of the Christian faith which provides spiritual health and a solid foundation.
Sound doctrine will lead to changed life that displays the beauty of Jesus.
The New Living Translation conveys this perfectly:
“As for you, Titus, promote the kind of living that reflects wholesome teaching.” (Titus 2:1, NLT)
One commentator wrote,
“To be rescued from sin and death through faith in Jesus Christ must result in a changed life that displays self-control and reflects God loves and grace.”
In the rest of chapter two, Paul is going to give Titus preaching instructions for five different groups - older men, older women, younger women, younger men, and slaves.
Grumpy Old Men
“Teach the older men to be temperate, worthy of respect, self-controlled, and sound in faith, in love and in endurance.” (Titus 2:2)
Titus’ first order of business is to train the older men. In that culture, “older” meant over 50 years old. These are the men from which elders would be chosen so it was vital that we begin to train and equip this group to live out what they say they believe.
America is now the oldest society in the history of the world. There are 23 million teenagers and 35 million that are over 65.
Bob Hope, who lived to 100, said that you know you are old when the candles cost more than the cake.
What’s the stereotype of an old man in this culture?
After listening to an older friend complain the entire way through dinner, I finally said with a smile, “Congratulations! You are now a grumpy old man. All you need now is to wear black socks with tennis shoes and yell at the neighbor children to get off your lawn!”
As men get older, they can either get better or bitter. They can either focus on themselves and their problems or they can become more loving and focus on others. They can turn inward or realize that their time is limited and turn outward to train the next generation of men.
What does spiritual maturity look like for these older Christian men? Paul lists six different character traits.
temperate - literally, this mean free from intoxication. More figuratively, it conveys the sense of sober mindedness, clear headedness, and a healthy perspective on what is important in life.
worthy of respect - this means to be dignified, noble, serious, with a sense of gravitas. These men would be deeply respected in the church and in the community. This does not mean that they didn’t laugh or enjoy life.
One of my favorite authors is Bob Goff. He is in his 70s, is a lawyer, and fights for justice all over the world. He is well respected and is a deep well of wisdom and grace. But he also carries balloons around with him and will give someone a balloon if he feels they need encouragement. Like he said, “Who can’t smile when given a balloon.?”
self-controlled - this is a trait that each group must have. This means having a sound mind, good judgement, balanced, prudent, sensible.
sound in faith - these men have “been there, done that” and know that God can be trusted. Their doctrine is sound but more than that, their experience bears out their trust of God’s faithfulness throughout the years. They are unwavering, strong, courageous.
sound in love - as a man gets older, his love should increase not decrease. Experience should make him more sympathetic to people who are struggling, more tolerant of others mistakes, and more respectful of different opinions. They aren’t bitter or selfish.
sound in endurance - these men have learned that the Christian life is a marathon not a sprint. They have lived through the mountaintop experiences and have walked through the valley of the shadow of death. They are not moved by circumstances and see the big picture of life. They don’t lose heart. Even though his body may be weakening his spirit is strong.
Titus is to train, equip and encourage the older men to be examples to the younger men by living a dignified lifestyle, characterized by faith, love and endurance. This does not come automatically with age.
Guys, if you’re not dead you’re not done! Charles Wesley got frustrated when he could no longer ride his horse 15 hours a day…at age 83. At 85, we was frustrated that her could only preach twice a day instead of seven. At 88, he wrote in his journal of the fact that he now had to sleep until 5:30 am.
Caleb was 85 when he asked for the opportunity to take the hill country:
“Now behold, as the LORD promised, He has kept me alive these forty-five years since He spoke this word to Moses, while Israel wandered in the wilderness. So here I am today, eighty-five years old, still as strong today as I was the day Moses sent me out. As my strength was then, so it is now for war, for going out, and for coming in.” (Joshua 14:10-11)
I’ve known older men who fit this description to a tee. They are a joy to be around.
John Dewald, a friend and elder at my last church was perfect example of this. In one sermon I asked the congregation a question - if you were led to Christ or were mentored by John, would you please stand?
In both services, dozens of individuals stood, many of them younger men who John had personally mentored and who were now in leadership themselves.
Point to Ponder:
Could this describe us, and I’m including myself in this question? As older men, are we growing in our faith, hope, endurance? Do people, especially young men, look to us for wisdom and guidance because of our rock solid integrity and dignity?
If not, then I want you to write this verse on an index card and carry it with you and ask God to make you this kind of man.
Teach the Older Women
“Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good.” (Titus 2:3)
Titus is to also train older women, which in that culture would have been 60 years old.
What’s the stereotype of older women in our culture? I think that “Maxine” the grumpy old lady, (not my wife), from the calendars is a perfect example of what older women can become.
At the church in Mississippi, there was an older woman in her 80s named Neddie. She was deaf and irritable and often times let you know it.
We had a college singing group come on a Sunday night and in between songs, Neddie yelled, “They’re turning out church into a honky tonk!”
Paul lists four characteristics (two positive and two negative) that older women should exhibit:
to be reverent - literally, this means to be a like a priestess carrying out her duties. These women are to radiate a holiness that comes from a heart that has been changed by Jesus.
not to be slanderers - this is the same word we saw last week, “diabolos,” literally devil. The devil is called a slanderer and accuser. Older women are not to join him by lobbing false accusations at people, gossiping behind other’s backs, or spreading stories.
not addicted to too much wine - On the island of Crete, the goddess Dionysus was worship through heavy drinking. Older women were known to enjoy a five martini lunch. But Christian women were to stand out by not living like the rest of Crete.
to teach what is good - By her words and life, these older women teach what is good and honorable.
Godly older women are a treasure to the church and should be held in high esteem.
A beautiful example of this is Anna:
“There was also a prophet, Anna, the daughter of Penuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying. Coming up to them at that very moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.” (Luke 2:36-38)
I was texting with someone after I was injured in Florida and they asked if I was down there by myself and I said I was with John and Vera Wahls. They responded that they were thankful that I was with Vera because they knew that I would be well taken care of.
Vera is a perfect example of a Godly older woman who loved, prayed, and care for me after I was attacked by the alligator.
What are these older women supposed to teach and to who?
The Younger Women
“Then they can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.”
These older women are to focus on the next generation. Maxine's grandmother used to write her long letters and most of the content was physical issues that she and other members of the family had.
She and older women (and men) often times become obsessed with their physical problems and appointments and lose sight of the big picture that they are still to be disciples who make disciples who make disciples.
Notice that Titus was to train the older women and the older women were to train the younger. This was probably to protect Titus from being alone with women his own age.
There are seven aspects of family life that the younger women were to train the younger women in.
love their husbands - older women were to set the younger women an example of love to love their husbands. This assumes it would not be automatic. Many marriages were arranged by parents and the young woman would need to learn how to practically love their spouses as that got to know them. ?
Love their children - older women have been through the child raising years and have much wisdom to offer younger women concerning how to shepherd their children’s hearts.
self controlled and pure - these two go together. The older women were to encourage sexual purity and self control of worldly passions.
to be busy at home - the young women’s priorities were to be the home. There are some who take this verse and say a woman shouldn’t work outside the home. In that culture, the only women that worked “outside the home” were prostitutes. Obviously, from Proverbs 31 we see that women are gifted to work in any number of areas. But Paul’s man point is that their number one priority should be their families.
to be kind - this means to be good. This is a young woman who is know to be kind and good to her family and others.
to be subject to their own husbands - This is a very controversial verse and many women of today that have been influenced by the feminist movement, believe this verse is archaic and proves Paul’s chauvinism.
But notice that Paul says that a women should be subject to her own husband, not to men in general.
His directives in Ephesians helps us to understand:
"Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.” (Ephesians 5:22-24)
Their is a pattern here. Christ the Son submits to God the Father. The Church submits to Christ as its head. And the wife submits to the husband as her spiritual leader.
Paul gives the husbands an assignment that is designed to make a woman’s being subject easier:
“Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.” (Ephesians 5:25-27)
Husbands are called to love their wives in the same way that Christ loved the church, with a holy self-giving, sacrificial kind of love. If a woman is loved and cherished that way, this it not a burden to submit to their husband’s leadership.
Husbands are not to lord over their wives or be dictators in the relationship. Maxine and I are partners and we love and serve each other. But, in the end, I am called to be the spiritual leader of the home and there have been times, few actually, where Maxine had to submit to what I thought was the right thing to do.
I want to show you a video of a pastor who took these ideas and gave the Cretan false teachers a run for their money in the ridiculous category.
What’s the point of all the older women teaching the younger women these things?
so that the Word of God will not be maligned. This word in Greek is the word we get “blaspheme” from. The older and younger women are to stand out like stars in the blackness of Cretan culture. When they did not take this seriously, then those around them would question their faith and mock the Bible.
Point to Ponder: Younger women desperately need older women to encourage, challenge, and disciple them. If you are an older woman, how are you doing in this? Could you give me the name(s) of younger women that you are currently mentoring? Are you growing and displaying all the traits that you are to be teaching? You can’t give away something that you don’t have.
Are you a spiritual mother to anyone? Do you have a band of spiritual sisters like Maxine’s tribe? Are you a spiritual daughter?
If you need to grow in this area, write this verse down on an index card and carry it with you. Memorize it and ask God to help you grow into a spiritual mother who disciples others with her words and life.
Younger Men
“Similarly, encourage the young men to be self-controlled. In everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned, so that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us.” (Titus 2:7-8)
Interestingly, Paul only has one training point for the younger men - self control. Titus is to urge the young men to be level-headed and disciplined in their life. They should be growing in their control of their temper and their tongue, of their ambitions and appetites.
What’s the stereotype of a young man in our culture? The 25 year playing videos games in his mother’s basement.
Titus is to set them an example of how to live out their faith as a young man.
I love the way Eugene Peterson paraphrased this verse:
“But mostly, show them all this by doing it yourself, trustworthy in your teaching, your words solid and sincere.” (Titus 2:7, The Message)
The Greek implies learning that is up close and personal.
The word example is a word picture of a stamp that leaves an imprint on paper. What imprint are you leaving on the young men around you?
Titus should set them an example by doing what is good which would contrast with the false teachers who “claim to know God but by their deeds deny Him” and “are unfit for any good work.” (1:16)
In Titus’ teaching, he is to show
integrity - pure in motives as opposed to the false teachers that taught for the “sake of dishonest gain.” (1:11) ,
I read about a church that it turns out the pastors don’t write their own sermons. There is a professional writer that ghostwrites their sermons each week!
seriousness - with dignity and reverence
soundness in speech that cannot be condemned - as opposed to the false teachers who were “rebellious, empty talkers, and deceivers.” (1:10).
Why was this so important to Paul? Because when people would oppose Titus, and that was inevitable, those scoffers would recoil in shame because they would have nothing bad to say about us. They would be silenced, or muzzled, as verse 11 states.
I love that Paul says “us.” He is not some distant apostle sending letters telling them how to believe and behave. He is in the same boat as Titus and the believers on Crete. He is their spiritual father and what is said about them or Titus affects him as well.
Paul was a spiritual father to many young men, including Timothy and Titus, who he called “my son in the common faith.”
It doesn’t take a pastor to do this. I was blessed with an older wiser man named Milt Hanson and we ate lunch together nearly every Tuesday for over a decade. We laughed together and cried together, we studied Scripture but we also lived life together. He modeled what it looked like to take his faith seriously but not take himself too seriously!
Young men in this culture are lost and many didn’t have fathers growing up. It is seems that 18-25 is particularly difficult. Men, we have an opportunity to step into that gap and help build the next generation of husbands, fathers, and leaders.
Point to Ponder: How are you doing men? Are you a disciple that makes disciples. Do you have a young man in your life that you are pouring into? If not, write this verse down on an index card and memorize it and ask God to give you an opportunity to be that kind of mentor.
Slaves
The last group that Paul gives Titus instructions on were slaves.
“Teach slaves to be subject to their masters in everything, to try to please them, not to talk back to them, and not to steal from them, but to show that they can be fully trusted, so that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive.” (Titus 2:9-10)
It’s been estimably that at that time, one third of every person were slaves and that there were over 50 million slaves in the Roman Empire.
This was not the type of slavery that we think about in the history of our country. Slaves were of all races and ages. You could become a slave by being captured in war, by being in debt, or by choice. Slaves were manual laborers but also were high ranking government officials. They ran business and households. And slavery was temporary, not life-long bondage.
But it was still sin for one human being to own another like an animal. So why didn’t Paul simply say that Christians were going to abolish slavery?Because complete emancipation would have caused the breakdown of the society. Instead Paul sets in motion Biblical decrees that undermined the very nature of slavery and ultimately led to its death and it was Christians like William Penn and William Wilberforce that helped bring that about in our country and England.
Paul gives five behaviors that Christian slaves are to exhibit:
subject to their master in everything and try and please them
Paul told the slaves in Colosse:
“Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord.” (Col 3:22)
* do not talk back to them and do not steal from them
Paul told the slaves in Ephesians:
“Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. (Ephesians 6:5-6)
but to show that they can be fully trusted
“Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free.” (Eph 6:7)
While the analogy isn’t perfect, these verses can give us some insight into how we are to conduct ourselves as Christians in the workplace.
Do your duty with your boss.
Go out of your way to please your boss.
Don’t talk back or talk about your boss.
Don’t steal from your boss.
Work in such a way that your boss trusts you.
The other day, my son’s boss asked him where he learned to work the way he does. He told him what I taught him. Most people do their jobs at about 75% effort. If you simply do the job and do it well with 100% effort, you will stand out. If you take the time to go above and beyond, even a little bit you will be a rock star.
What is the result of Christian slaves in Crete or Christian employees in America live out this faith?
Paul says that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive.
The word used here is where we get our word “cosmetics.” Your translation may use the word adorn. Its means to beautify.
In Crete, they would have understood this to mean arranging jewels in a necklace to show off its brilliance.
As we live out our faith in the workplace our conduct will make the Gospel beautiful to non-christians.
During seminary, I waited tables at Red Lobster and did my best to see every day as a mission field. I prayed for the people I worked with and tried to share the Gospel with my words and deeds.
One afternoon, I came back in to work a dinner shift. I had worked the lunch shift but had forgotten to clock out. I took my time card to my manager and asked her to change it for me. The waitress sitting with her looked at me like I was an alien.
She said, “Who cares? It’s less than five dollars and no one would have known?” I told them, “I would have known and my integrity is worth a lot more than five dollars.” My manager changed it for me with a smile.
Later than night, during a slow time, she asked to talk with me. She began to cry and told me that she didn’t understand me and why I cared so much about doing the right thing. Although she didn’t understand, she said she wanted to know what made me tick.
Because she saw faith in action, I got the opportunity to share the Gospel with her and give her a Bible.
Communion
We will study these verses next week, but Paul ends this section with his mind on the cross:
“For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.
These, then, are the things you should teach. Encourage and rebuke with all authority. Do not let anyone despise you.” (Titus 2:11-15)
Ending Video: “Remember Me"
