Sound Teaching And Christian Living

INTRO

The letter to Titus is a fascinating letter about how to live out faith. Paul told Titus that he had been sent to Crete to make a difference in the lives of those Cretans who were known for their lies and evil ways. Demorest describes it as “a beautiful summary of everything contained in the Pastoral Epistles.”¹

TEACHING

Titus 2:1-5: Paul told Titus to teach differently from those he described in chapter ¹. While the false teachers taught legalism and fables, Titus was to teach sound doctrine in order to fulfill Jesus’ Great Commission (Matthew 28:19–20). It is the height of hypocrisy to say we believe the truth of the Bible if we ignore how it tells us to live our lives. Oswald Chambers wrote, “Beware of harking back to what you were once when God wants you to be something you have never been.”

The Greco-Roman world in which Paul lived had two age categories—young and old.² That’s very different from the way our culture divides people into a myriad of generational divisions (such as: Gen Z and Millennials). These two divisions were used to set forth responsibilities in groups already recognized. Paul told older men to be levelheaded and worthy of respect (v. 2). They were to be leaders/examples to the younger people in the congregation. Paul said they must live with the maturity and wisdom that their years should give them. The older men should be sound in faith, love, endurance, and hope (1 Thessalonians 1:3). The word endurance means steadfast and active, not passive waiting. “Older men are not to just patiently wait until they pass on to the next world. They are to actively endure the challenges of life—even the challenges of old age.”³

Older women were to be reverent in their behavior and teach what is good to encourage younger women in godliness in their homes (vv. 3–4). “In the same way” means there was no difference between what was expected of older men and women. The phrase “reverent in behavior” can be understood as priests carrying out their duties. The older women were to see their entire lives as worship to God (Romans 12:1). The word for slanderers is the same word used for devils. That means that when the older women—or anyone else for that matter—slander and gossip, they do the devil’s work. Drinking too much wine was a common failing of older women in Roman and Greek cultures. Paul described it with the verb doulo, which meant “bondage” (RSV interpreted it as “slaves to drink”) (v. 3). Note that Paul told Titus to teach older and younger men, older women, and slaves, but not young women. Titus was to equip and encourage the older women to teach the young women (v. 4). Paul told the older women to love their husbands and their children because God had given them a strategic position of influence and assistance to their husbands and children. They were to let love dominate their influence and assistance. Keep in mind the submission here is mutual, biblical submission (Ephesians 5:21–33). When Christians don’t live in a biblical, godly manner, the Word of God may be slandered among those who do not know the Lord.

Note that the importance of a good wife and mother never changes. However, this context is different. In Crete, young women had no option about marriage and motherhood; the only employment for a young woman outside the home was as a prostitute.⁴ Paul was not limiting a woman’s place to being a slave to her husband but was rather addressing them where they were at that time. Demorest explains the people coming to Christ saw themselves as all part of one body:

“For people raised in culture where women were regarded as inferior and treated like chattel—and slavery was normative—the Christian view introduced an entirely different way of living, of thinking. That this would change the outward forms of the community has been validated in history. But we must understand the tension created by the gospel in this and other areas of human relationships . . . early Christians wrestling with how to relate their new relationship of freedom in Christ to the oppressive structures of the world around them.”⁵

Titus 2:6–8: Paul addressed younger men “in the same way,” with the requirements for them (v. 6). It shows that the young men need to learn what the younger women, the older women, and the older men need to learn. Paul gave one command to be emphasized to younger men (“to be self-controlled in everything”), a challenge for some younger men. Further, Paul told Titus to to be a good example (a role model) to the younger men through his good works, integrity, and dignity in teaching (v. 7). His guidance could not be taken seriously if he was not pursuing the Lord.

Titus 2:9–10: Paul said the slaves were to be submissive to their masters, well-pleasing, respectful, and honest, showing their faithfulness to the teaching of God. Although this passage historically has been used to justify Christians having slaves, that is contrary to Paul’s intent. Paul’s message was directed to slaves who were Christians living out the Christian lifestyle even while being despicably used as slaves. He presented freedom in Christ to the culture of the day, when it was commonplace with both Greeks and Romans to own slaves. In the ancient world, Christians shocked the larger culture by mixing slaves and masters in the social setting of the church service. My sense is, Paul believed the change in following Christ would eventually overthrow slavery throughout the world. Demorest noted that “it is the prerogative of the slave to choose to submit—even to injustices—if by so doing the Gospel can be attractively adorned.”⁶

Titus 2:11–14: These verses give the gospel in one paragraph. God brings salvation for all people. God doesn’t have a gospel of grace for some and a gospel of law or self-justification for others (v. 11). God’s grace pushes godlessness and worldly lusts into our pasts, and teaches us to renounce and avoid them (v. 12). We live in the interim between the two appearances of Christ—giving us the opportunity to live in anticipation and knowing that our days are numbered (v. 13). Of verse 14, Guzik wrote, “Every word of this description of Jesus’ work is important.”⁷ Jesus gave (which was voluntary) Himself (everything He could give) for us (as a substitute for sinful man). In this sense, we can learn how dear and precious we are to Christ because of what He willingly did for us––a people of His own possession. We are His treasure above all other treasures. Paul spelled out that one thing will always characterize the special treasures of God—the eagerness (or zealousness) to be bright witnesses to the truth of God’s love and saving grace.

Titus 2:15: One day, the righteous, saving reign of God shall no longer be a matter of faith but of full sight (v. 15). And so the church of every age prays, “Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20).

CLOSING

Jesus is coming back, and we have a mission because of that. We are to be engaged in the ministry, not observers. What areas in your life would you want to see improved if you knew for sure that Jesus is coming back soon? Because of the grace of God, the followers of Jesus Christ are set on living a life that is energetic in goodness, and in their daily experience they live looking for His return (Titus 2:13). We get so confused and panicked by the arguments and events that we have forgotten that the Savior has purified for Himself a special people, expecting that we will eagerly live a life worthy of the call we have received, looking for the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior.