Adorning the Gospel

All right, we are going to come to our time in the Word together now.

If you have your Bible with you, you can open it up to the book of Titus.

We are in chapter 2.

Titus is a letter that was written by Paul to a guy named Titus,

and he was on the island of Crete, a little island southeast of Greece.

And Paul gave him some works, an assignment to do there,

to strengthen the churches that were there,

to put things in order for the churches there.

And we've been working our way through this letter.

As we come to chapter 2, actually we started chapter 2 last Sunday,

and we looked at the verses 11 to 14,

and we heard again the gospel, the good news of what Jesus has done to save us.

We heard that this gospel, this good news about Jesus,

it leads us to a certain kind of living,

away from a certain kind of living,

living in sin,

living to please the flesh,

and two,

living a good, holy life.

And we saw just how God desires for us to be freed

from that sinful life,

and moved into a life of good deeds,

where we're eager to do them.

Not begrudgingly, but eager.

Well, this morning we're going to look at how Paul sees this

translating into the practical everyday lives of Christ's followers

there on the island of Crete.

So we're actually going to go back up and look at verses 1 to 10,

which came before all this.

Let me read the passage for us this morning.

Paul writes to Titus,

You, however, must teach what is appropriate to sound doctrine.

Teach the older men to be temperate,

worthy of respect,

self-controlled,

and sound in faith,

in love,

and in endurance.

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.

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.

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,

honesty,

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.

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.

So Paul organizes Christ's instructions for how we should live,

based on age,

gender,

and a little bit on social status,

as we see at the end there with the slaves.

Why does he organize it like this?

Well, it doesn't really say,

but Paul knows that being a follower of Jesus

is going to look a little different depending on those things,

your age,

your gender,

and your social standing.

There are also different things that we may struggle with,

or be tempted by,

because of our age,

or gender,

or social standing.

At the same time, though,

we notice that some of the same things

are to be there for each one of them.

He encourages Titus to teach them all

to be self-controlled,

for example.

But let's start with the men at the top,

in verse 2.

Paul says,

teach the older men to be temperate.

What does it mean to be temperate?

It may help to think of the opposite.

The opposite of temperate is rash,

impulsive,

a person who is given to extremes.

So to be temperate means to be self-controlled.

It means to be moderate.

If you're thinking about food and drink,

it means not given to binge eating,

or gluttony,

or to drunkenness.

If you're thinking about decisions and finances,

this is the person who carefully weighs

and considers the cost of things.

A person who looks before he leaps.

A temperate person is not obsessed with things,

but shows balanced and prudent judgment.

Paul says,

teach the older men to be temperate.

Teach the older men to be worthy of respect.

This means to live in a way

that is dignified or respectable.

And this one really warrants

a fair bit of reflection.

You know, as I was thinking,

what does it mean to be worthy of respect?

What makes for a respectable life?

Think about it.

What kind of character

is respectable

in a person?

What kind of behavior?

I hope some things are coming to mind.

Things like honesty.

People who tell the truth.

Kindness.

Even to those

who are rude.

A person who's a good listener.

And really listens

because they care

about the person

that they're talking with.

And the list could really go on here.

We could talk about things like courage.

We could talk about perseverance.

We could talk about generosity.

There are many character things

that we respect in others.

Be a person who is worthy of respect,

says Jesus,

to the older men.

And this really does cover

a lot of things in life

when you step back

and think about it.

Who do you respect?

Are there some people

that come to mind?

What is it that you respect

about them?

It really filters

into every area of life.

We could think about

conflict

in relationships.

Who do you respect?

Do you respect the person

who owns their mistakes

and apologizes

and seeks forgiveness

when they wrong others?

Or

the person

who minimizes

their wrongs

and doesn't want

to take responsibility

for anything

they've said or done?

It affects our speech.

Do you respect the person

who is always

joking coarsely

and insulting others

to get a rise

out of their buddies?

Or do you respect

the man who always

speaks well of others

and says things

to build people up

and keeps a rein

on his tongue?

Teach the older men

to be worthy

of respect.

Let's talk about

older men

for a second

just coming back

to this.

What are older men

sometimes known for?

I know I might

step on some feelings here

but

it's here.

Sometimes

older men

are known

for being

cantankerous,

belligerent,

rude,

critical,

sometimes

bad-mouthing others.

You get the idea.

But for the follower

of Jesus

age

is not an excuse

to become

a crotchety,

cranky,

rude gossip

who goes around

offending people.

Teach the older men

to be worthy

of respect,

to live lives

that are worthy

of respect.

Let's go on

to the next one,

self-controlled.

Don't worry,

older men.

Everybody else

was covered

in the other ages

and genders as well

so we're coming to you.

Teach the older men

to be self-controlled.

We talked about this

back in chapter one

with the qualifications

for elders

and even

last week

we talked about it.

It's mentioned again

as a general thing

that all believers

should strive

to have,

self-control

down in verse 12.

But I want to go

over this again.

It's repeated

so many times

in this letter.

Christ wants us

to hear this.

Notice who this

is first spoken to.

It's to the older men.

Teach them

to be self-controlled.

self-controlled.

So just because

men are older

does not mean

that they have learned

to be self-controlled.

A lifetime of living

doesn't automatically

make you a person

of self-restraint.

Experience

doesn't always

teach a person

to control

their tongue

or their emotions

or their appetites.

So what is

self-control all about?

Let's just

say it again.

To be self-controlled

means to be a person

who governs

themselves well.

A person who rules

over their appetites

and their desires

instead of a person

who is ruled by

their appetites

and desires.

The self-controlled

person fulfills

their obligations

and their responsibilities.

They keep their promises

and they're able

to do that

because they're

in control

of their lives.

Unlike the person

who lacks self-control,

they're kind of

spiraling out of control.

the person

who lacks

self-control

is ruled

by their emotions.

They're as dependable

as they are feeling

that day.

The person

who lacks

self-control

is often derailed

by bodily

appetites

for food

and drink

and sexual pleasure

and entertainment.

They just kind of

go with their

feelings

wherever

they take them.

They feel powerless

to say no

to themselves

when they should.

Now let's take

a step back here

and notice

that this

self-controlled

is not just

how the older men

are to be.

It's how all of them

are to be.

Look down in verse 3.

The women

of the older women,

they're not to be

addicted to much wine.

That's a self-control

thing there.

And they're to teach

the younger women

in verse 5

to be self-controlled.

And he says

to Titus,

teach the young men

to be self-controlled.

And even to the slaves

with regards

to their master's possession,

exercise self-restraint.

Don't just

help yourself

to their things

and steal from them.

If you're a follower

of Jesus,

God wants you

to be self-controlled,

to say no

to worldly passions

and lusts

as we talked about

last Sunday.

God has given us

many good things

in this world

and in this life

for our enjoyment.

But he wants us

to receive those things

with self-restraint

as good gifts

from him.

And not just

to engross ourselves

in them

and become obsessed

with them

or addicted to them

where we live lives

just to maximize

our pleasure.

He wants us

not to live

just to scratch

the itch

of our bodies,

our flesh,

but to live

to please the spirit.

He wants us

to be wise

and prudent

to think about

how our actions

affect others

and how the things

that we do today

or don't do today

affect tomorrow.

Self-control.

He says,

teach the older men

to be sound

in faith,

in love,

and in endurance.

To be sound

means to be,

it means to be good,

to be healthy,

to be as you should be.

And Jesus highlights

three things

for the older men

to be sound in

and the first one

here is faith.

Now this one

almost seems like

it should be a given,

doesn't it?

Tell the older men

to be sound

in their faith,

but could it be

that as we get older,

we men have a tendency

to drift

or to get bored

or to want to

hear something new,

to take some new

ideas or things

that are interesting

and maybe add that

to our faith.

Consider King Solomon.

He started so well.

He asked the Lord

for wisdom

to govern the people

of Israel

and God gave it to him.

And what wisdom

he had.

Look at the Proverbs

that he wrote.

Look at the list

of accomplishments.

But what happened

to Solomon?

Solomon,

his heart drifted away

from the faith.

By the end of his life,

he became a bitter,

cynical old man

as we see

in the book

of Ecclesiastes.

And his downfall

was, ironically,

his lack of self-control.

He lived

to please himself.

He piled up the wives.

He lived

for sexual pleasure.

His lust burned

so hot

that he considered

women as a thing

to be collected.

He had 700 wives

and 300 concubines.

And it says

in 1 Kings 11

that they led

his heart astray.

By the end of his life,

he was flat out

worshiping

at the shrines

and altars

of the pagan false gods

of his wives.

So yes,

it is possible

to lose soundness

in the faith

and to drift away

from the good

and true words

of God.

There's no autopilot

in the Christian life.

So teach the older men

to be sound

in the faith.

To stay true

to that trustworthy message.

If you feel

like you're getting bored,

let me encourage you.

It's not the Bible's fault.

It's not God's fault.

It's something going on

in your own heart.

Come to the Lord again.

Humble yourself

before him.

Call out to him.

Plead with him

to remedy that apathy

and to bring back

that joy,

that spiritual fervor

that you once felt.

It says in James 4,

James 4:8

verse 8,

draw near to God

and he will draw near

to you.

That's a promise

that we can count on.

Teach the older men

to be sound in love,

Paul says to Titus.

Again,

doesn't this seem

like it should be a given?

And yet he says it.

Does Paul actually expect Titus

to look the older men

in the eyes

and encourage them

to be loving?

Yes.

Love is what God

is all about.

God is love.

And love is to be

the number one fruit

of a believer's life.

The Apostle John

has lots to say

about this

in his letters.

Here's the problem.

Love can grow cold.

Christians who once

lived to bless

and serve others

in the past

can be tempted

to turn inward

and just live

to please themselves.

And so Paul

urges Titus

to teach the men,

even the older men,

the more experienced men,

to be sound

in love.

Here's a question

to ponder.

Would the people

who know you best

say

that you are

a loving person?

And if you're not sure,

you could ask them.

This isn't about feelings.

Love is more

than just feelings.

This is about action.

This is about a life

lived in service

of others

and for the benefit

of others.

It's about loyalty

and commitment

in relationships,

in your family,

in your church,

to your fellow man.

Lastly,

Titus

urges the men,

the older men,

to be sound

and endurance.

The Christian life

isn't easy.

It requires patience.

It requires

perseverance.

Let's move on

to talk about

what he says

now

to 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.

Teach the older women

to be reverent

in the way

they live.

There's two things

emphasized here.

First,

in the way

they live,

in their conduct.

And second,

in their conduct,

in the way

they live,

they are to be

reverent,

which really means

to show respect

in their conduct,

in their behavior.

It's just really

another way

of saying

what he said

to the older men.

So,

just as I said

to the older men,

same for the older women.

There's no excuse

to be rude,

cantankerous,

or overbearing.

Women,

think of other women

who you respect deeply.

Why do you respect them?

What is it about them

that makes them

so worthy of honor?

Aim to live

like they do.

Imitate them.

Let's go on.

He says,

teach the older women

not to be slanderers.

Gossip is something

that should not be part

of the Christian's life.

And this can be an issue

for older women.

First of all,

older women

can be less busy

with work

and family

and children

in their later years.

As we heard

from Paul's letter

to Timothy

in the fall,

there's a tendency

for women

who are not busy

with home

and family

to be idle

or at least

a temptation

to be idle

and to go

from house to house.

And it's not

that this is

no problem for men.

Let me just say that.

Gossip can be

a problem for men

as well.

But maybe I'll say

it this way.

Women tend to be

generally better

at relationships

than men.

More social.

And that strength

can be used

for sin

in the promoting

of gossip

and rumors

and more specifically

in this instance

slander.

Slander is more

than just gossip.

It's the spreading

of something

untrue

about someone.

And it ruins

and it hurts

the reputation

of others.

Remember the saying

of the people

of Crete

that we heard

from chapter 1.

They're known

for always being

liars.

So Paul says

teach the older women

not to be slanderers.

Not like all the other

people around

to put it positively

speak the truth

about others.

He goes on

teach the older women

not to be addicted

to much wine.

Drunkenness

really seems

to have been

a problem

on the island

of Crete.

It's again

essentially a call

to self-control

or to temperance

just like Paul said

for the older men.

Teach the older women

to teach

what is good.

Now this doesn't

imply that every

older woman

must become

a Sunday school teacher

but it does imply

that older women

be teachers

in some sense.

And in this case

teachers

teachers

who show

others

how to live

good lives.

And Paul has

something specific

in mind here.

Let me just put

the next verse

up there.

He says

teach the older women

to teach

what is good

so that

they may encourage

the young women

to love their husbands

and to love

their children

and the list

goes on.

We'll get to that

in a moment.

Some of you

maybe heard

of the word

discipleship.

It's kind of a word

we use in the church

to refer to

how we teach people

to live as

to be followers

of Jesus.

And there's all kinds

of small group methods

and materials

and books

and methods

that you can

get into

and there's value

to many of those things.

But let's not miss

the fact that Jesus

right here

is giving us

a pattern

for how we teach

others

to follow Jesus

in the church.

And it's that

the older women

are to teach

the younger women

in the church

how to live,

how to follow Jesus.

And it's not just

the older to younger women.

Later on we see

it's older men

to younger men

as well.

And part of why

I think we see this here

is that purity

is a big factor here.

Notice that Paul

doesn't instruct

Timothy

or sorry,

Titus

to teach

the younger women.

Not at all.

He's to teach

the older men

and the older women

and the younger men

but it's the older women

who are to teach

the younger women.

So purity

is one of the

big concerns here.

But just practically

I mean who knows

what it means

to be

a woman

who follows Christ

better

than an older woman

who has been

following Christ.

so the older women

are to teach

the younger women

how to do that.

In all this

we see a pattern

that we're to live out

in the church.

The older

are to teach

the younger.

So I want to just

ask you the question

are you older

or younger?

Yeah, good answer.

Always both

said Dan.

That's right.

Look around the room.

It's kind of relative

isn't it?

There's always somebody

hopefully

that's a little

further ahead

in their life

in their age

than you.

both of these

come with some

kind of relational

responsibility.

If you're the older

person

look around the church

at those who are

younger than you

that are of the

same age.

It's your responsibility

to teach them

how to live

for Christ.

And if you're

one of those

younger people

look around the room

at all those

who are older than you

of the same gender.

It's your responsibility

to learn from

those older

brothers and sisters

and to listen

to those who are

older than you.

This is something

that maybe we've lost

in our very

individualistic society.

We sometimes see

the other people

in the church

as unrelated to us.

You know

I'm following Jesus

for myself

and you guys

you kind of

got to figure that out

how to do that

for yourself.

But as we heard

last fall

the church is

a family

and we're to

conduct ourselves

like a family

in many respects.

Sometimes we get

this idea that

well the church

should just have

programs

and you know

you just kind of

go to the program.

Well we do our best

to offer some

programs that

especially for

the larger groups

in the church

that make sense

for the kids

for the youth

for the adults

but there's going

to be

we can't possibly

have a program

for everyone

in everything

every age

dynamic

every demographic

there are going

to be some

of you

who would just

do well

to seek out

a bit of

a one-on-one

mentoring

relationship

with a brother

if you're a man

or a sister

if you're a woman

in the church.

If you're older

is there someone

younger in the church

who you'd be willing

to build a closer

relationship with

where this kind

of teaching

can happen.

If you're younger

is there someone

in this church

that yeah

I'd like to

build a relationship

so I can learn

better how to be

a follower of Jesus.

Is there someone

like that

that you could

consider asking

to be a mentor

and this doesn't

have to be complicated

because I know

when we hear

the word mentor

we think

oh what is that

I can't do that.

It could be as

simple for you women

as inviting a younger

woman to come over

for tea.

Or to bake cookies.

Or to just get together

every so often.

It could be as simple

as saying yes

to that invitation.

And asking that

older believer

a question about

how they handled

things different.

How they handled

different things

as a mother

or as a wife

or whatever

you're facing right now.

Or men

you got something

in your house

that needs fixing?

Why not invite

another younger believer

or even older believer

in the church

another man

to come give you

a hand with it?

Build that relationship.

This is where

this kind of teaching

often happens.

It's not so much

always here

on Sunday mornings.

Now let's look for a moment

at what the older women

are to teach

the younger women

verses 4 and 5.

He says

they are to urge

they are to 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.

Now there's a lot

in here

we're just going to

skim through this

quite quickly.

The first one

teach the younger women

to love their husbands.

Again

it kind of seems

like it should be

a no-brainer

but sometimes

we men

can be hard to love

and on behalf

of the men

I apologize

but you older women

have a lot of encouragement

to offer

the younger women here.

Many of you

have stuck

through some

pretty tough times

and you've learned

how to love your husband

through thick and thin.

Have those kinds

of conversations

with each other.

teach the younger women

to love their children

he says.

Children also

can be hard

to love at times.

Sometimes

there's crankiness

there's messes

there's things

that try our patience

but as followers

of Jesus

we are to love

our children

through it all

just like God

has loved us

through it all

through our worst moments.

purity is one

of the things

that's emphasized

here for the younger women.

Yes

us who are older

are called to teach

about marriage

and sexuality

to those who are younger

in the church.

Where else

are they going

to learn it from?

So for those of you

who are younger

look to the older women

and the older men

for relationship wisdom.

Ask them those questions.

Older women

are to teach

the younger women

to be subject

to their husbands.

Now

I know that might

sound crazy

to some of you

we're not going

to go deeply

into this.

He's not talking

about like a slave

and master

relationship here.

He's talking

about submitting

to husbands

as the God

appointed head

of the household.

God has made it

that men

are to be the head

the leader

in the family

and that

the rest of the family

is to submit to

and follow

that leadership.

But men

are to be

loving

servant leaders

not domineering

leaders

to their wives

just like Jesus

was a

humble

serving

leader.

And we're not

going to go

into more

of that today.

We'll leave it

for another time.

It's talked about

in other passages

a lot more

in the New Testament.

The older women

are to teach

the younger women

to be busy

at home.

This too

is a very much

debated thing

and I think

we need to be

careful

when it comes

to this

not to take

it to either

extreme.

On the one hand

some see this

as a mandate

that the woman's

place is at home.

That's her special

area of responsibility

that's been given

to her from God

at creation

and it's

even a sin

for her to

work outside

the home.

The other

extreme would be

to look at this

and just say

well that was

just for back

then.

That doesn't

apply at all

to today.

Back then

men went to

work outside

the home

and women

stayed at home

and so

it doesn't

have any

bearing on

today.

I think we

need to

avoid

both of

those

extremes.

Let's remember

the issue

here on

Crete.

The people

of Crete

are known

for laziness.

In Paul's

letter to

Timothy

he touched

on the

problem

of the

young

widows.

They would

get in

the habit

of being

idle

and going

house to

house

and gossiping

up a storm.

The picture

we get here

is of young

women who

were perhaps

well off

and instead

of using

their time

to bring

blessing

and benefit

at home

on something

they're given

to laziness

they're being

idle they're

frittering their

time away

while their

husbands or

fathers or

possibly their

servants do

all the work

but work is

good.

Work brings

benefit

blessing to

other people

whether it's

at home or

in the church

or in the

community

and so he

says the

older women

are to teach

the younger

women to be

busy at

home

to help

look after

their own

households.

Finally we

come to the

young men

and after all

that it might

be rather

surprising to

see that Paul

just tells

them one

thing.

Teach the

young men

encourage them

to be

self-controlled

and that's

it.

It might seem

unfair.

Why do they

get it so

easy?

I don't think

it's that they

don't need to

work on many

of these other

things.

Of course

they do.

But self-controlled

is a big one

for young men.

We've got lots

of energy.

We're in the

prime of our

lives and

without self-control

we can end up

doing a lot of

damage.

We can end up

wasting a lot

of time, a lot

of money, a lot

of resources.

I think perhaps

Paul gives this

one thing because

this one thing

would make all

the difference in

the world in a

young man's life.

when he learns

to be self-controlled

in his

appetites, his

emotions, his

desires, his

plans, his

finances, his

habits, with

his words, in

his relationships,

you get the

idea.

So these are

Paul's instructions

for various groups

of people in the

churches.

We're going to

skip over the

part about slaves

and the

instructions for

Titus in verses

8 to 10.

10.

But I want to

end just by

highlighting the

why.

Of course the

big why comes

down to us in

verse 11 to 14.

We looked at that

last Sunday.

This is the only

kind of living that

fits with Jesus

Christ being our

Savior and King.

This is gospel

living.

This is the kind

of living that

Christ died to

bring us into.

And he wants us

to be eager to

live this way.

But in addition

to that we see

three statements

sprinkled throughout

all of these

instructions.

The first one

comes to us in

verse 5.

The older women

are to teach the

younger women to

live this kind of

life.

Why?

So that no one

will malign the

word of God.

Then there's a

second one which

comes to us in

verse 8.

Titus is to

teach and to

show integrity in

his life and

soundness of speech.

Why?

So that those who

oppose you may be

ashamed because they

have nothing bad to

say about us.

And then the final

one comes in

reference to the

slaves and how

they ought to

earn the trust

of their masters

not steal from

them.

Why?

So that in every

way they will

make the teaching

about God our

Savior attractive.

Notice the theme

here.

In how we live as

followers of Jesus

we are to make the

teaching about God

our Savior attractive.

God's sake.

It's already good

news but we can

put the goodness

of this news on

display in our

lives or we

can give

opportunity for

people to malign

the word of God

to speak ill of

the word of God.

Like oh those

Christians.

They don't even

practice what they

preach.

church.

I've said it

before but I'll

say it again.

You are the

Bible that most

people read.

What does your

life say about

our Lord Jesus?

Or in the words

of Jesus you are

the salt of the

earth.

But if the salt

loses its

saltiness how

can it be made

salty again?

It's no longer

good for anything

except to be

thrown out and

trampled underfoot.

He said you are

the light of the

world.

So let your

light shine before

others that they

may see your good

deeds and glorify

your Father in

heaven.

There is a kind

of living that

goes with our

faith in Jesus.

It flows out of

our faith in

Jesus.

Every one of us

needs to take a

look at this list

and I want to

encourage you to

take some time

this week and

just reflect over

it.

Pray and ask the

Lord which of

these things on

here do I need

to grow in the

most?

Would you help

me Lord to be

more self-controlled

or to be more

loving or whatever

it is for you in

this list?

Which of these is

most convicting to

you?

Maybe it's that

you've been sitting

on the sidelines and

you haven't been

involved with teaching

youngers or maybe

it's that you've been

trying to do the

Christian life as a

lone ranger and

you've been ignoring

those who are older

than you and you

don't think you need

their wisdom and

guidance in your

life.

Whatever it is for

you may we not just

hear these

encouragements and

forget these words.

May the Lord give us

grace to respond to

them.

let's pray.

Father in heaven we

thank you that you've

just spelled it out so

clearly for us how we

should live.

And we thank you

also that for every

moment in which we

fail to live like this

there is the blood of

your son.

which has brought us

into a right standing

with you by faith.

And we thank you that

nothing can take that

away from us.

But now we want to

live to please you

because we love you.

You are our God.

So I pray that you

would work these things

out in us.

That we would be this

kind of church described

here.

Speak to us this week

as we reflect on these

words we ask for your

glory.

Amen.

Amen.