Team Effort

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, 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. 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.

In all the years I took groups of students mountain climbing in Colorado, there were a handful of features that were always true. And so, every year I would highlight the necessity to focus on these certain aspects of what it takes for a group to spend five days backpacking in the wilderness to a high mountain peak. One of the things that students had to figure out how to work through was working together so that everyone would make it to the top of the mountain. You see, this is the kind of trip where no one could be left behind. You couldn’t take someone out of the game to sit the bench. Being miles away from nowhere in the mountain wilderness did not leave us with the option of just telling someone who was struggling to just sit off the trail and wait for us to come back and pick you up in three days. We all had to stay together. And that meant we all made it up to the top of the mountain, or nobody made it to the top.

That always seemed to work itself out a little differently every year I hiked it with a group. Sometimes it was the strongest most muscular teens who felt the effects of altitude sickness and had to be pulled along. Sometimes there were students who dealt with sore feet and blisters from their hiking boots and struggled to keep waling the trail while carrying a 35-pound backpack. It was always an adventure each year seeing kids who thought this trip would be an impossible challenge rise to the top, while kids who thought this hike would be a piece of cake struggle to even keep up. Those things would change the dynamics of how we all needed to chip in and help one another by taking a little extra from one person’s pack and loading it into another to carry; to all figure out together who was going to filter stream water for drinking, who was going to set up and cook dinner, who was going to wash up dishes. Everyone had a part to play. And no one could be left out because no one could be left behind. That was the only way for a group to make it up to the top of a mountain. The real lessons came in those moments when everyone was tired, everyone was sore, everyone was hungry, everyone was dirty and stinky; and tempers would start to be a little short because frustration came easily. But always I left students to figure it out and work it out and solve their own tensions by simply reminding them we all make it, or none of us make it. That simple reminder of the reason and the purpose is all it would take.

so that

Sometimes we all need that. We all need an occasional reminder of the reason and the purpose for why we are doing what we are called to do. That’s the turn we take today in our reading of Titus. Chapter two lands us right in the middle of the letter. This is the spot where Paul takes a moment to remind his friend Titus of the reason and the purpose for his instructions.

We have been tracking this letter of Titus as a way of seeing what it means to live our Christian faith in a way that matters and makes a difference right now in the place where we live. Our Christian faith is more than a someday eternity in paradise. It is also a faith that matters and makes a difference right now for the world in which we live. This is what Paul is trying to teach for Titus and the community of Christians on the island of Crete. It is the instructions for godly living right now in the present. Today we catch a glimpse of the purpose—the reason why our faith matters and makes a difference in this world right now today.

You notice that once again this week it seems as though Paul is just shoveling along lists of virtues and behavioral instructions for the church. Yup, right, I get it; be good people. But there is more going on here. Take a closer look at these instructions and see what these words have to do with us in the church here two thousand years later.

Perhaps at first look it seems as though Paul is subdividing godly living into categories of age and gender. There are instructions for older men, older women, younger women, and younger men. Bible application here maybe seems simple enough; look up the category which applies to me where I am at right now, follow those instructions and I’m good. Wrap it up preacher; we’re done; time to go home. Sorry it doesn’t work that cleanly; this is not the Bible lesson to take away from Titus 2.

Notice that each section of instructions here is followed by a purpose. Every category Paul works through closes with a statement of result; a reason why. The Greek word is hina, but is comes over into English in your Bibles as the phrase “so that.” It can also be translated as “in order that” or “resulting in” or “for the purpose of.” You get the idea. It is an explanation; it gives a reason why.

The first one comes in verse five. Why do we live godly lives in the present age? So that no one will malign the Word of God. A word about what it means to malign the Word of God. Malign comes from the Greek word blasphēmetai. It is where we get our word blasphemy. It means to misuse or abuse. Apparently, there were those in Titus’ community who referred to themselves as Christians, but would misuse and abuse the message of scripture for their own ends, for their own means of control and power over others. You don’t have to look too hard throughout church history to see examples of this all over the place in the last two thousand years; for those who have used the words of scripture not as a gospel message of God’s grace and love, but rather as a sledge hammer to grab hold of power and control over others. The Roman Catholic church in Europe during the middle ages misused scripture as a means of power over kings and nobility. Some among the early protestants in Europe misused scripture as a justification for burning and killing those they branded as heretics. In our own time, look at the example of the Westboro Baptist church in Kansas who uses scripture as a means to project hate towards minority segments of our population and towards American military veterans. Or think of the handful of prominent American evangelical leaders who have become extremely outspoken in the divide of partisan politics as a way to grab influence and control of power by dragging the Word of God into a bitter and ugly political struggle.

The message for Titus and for us today is to live in such a way that no one may accuse us of abusing the Word of God as a weapon for our own agendas, for our own power, for our own control. Live in such a way that the Word of God lifts other up to the message of God’s grace and love, not in a way that stomps others under our feet away from the grace of God.

The second so that comes in verse seven. Why do we live godly lives in the present age? So that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us. In the memories I have of my grandma VanderPloeg while she was alive, I never remember her ever complaining or grumbling about anyone. Oh, certainly she might every now and then express lament or frustration over circumstances or events beyond her control; but I do not ever remember those frustrations being pointed towards another person. In fact, it seemed to me that when it came to other people, grandma had a kind word to say about everybody. That’s not to say my grandma agreed with everybody she ever met. But even those with whom she disagreed, she had the ability to see through the issue of disagreement and recognize whatever it might be that still gives that person value as another human being. But grandma wouldn’t stop there by only recognizing the value in every other person. She would also state it; she would say it out loud. She had a kind word about anyone she ever knew.

I don’t think my grandma had any enemies. After all, how could she? How could you be enemies with someone who only ever said kind things about you. She lived her life in such a way that no one else was able to say anything bad about her because she never used words to tear apart anyone else.

Paul tells Titus to live in such a way that those who oppose you will be ashamed. Let me give some clarity. The Greek word entrepo which translates as ashamed literally means to turn around in recognition. It is not shame as we might think about it as being a bad thing. In a softer way, entrepo is a recognition of being wrong about something and changing one’s mind to turn and think a different way. Titus and his community of believers are being instructed to live in a way that those who may be opposed to them will see the goodness of God expressed in the lives of Christians, and turn to recognize that goodness from God in their own lives too.

The third so that comes in verse ten. Why do we live godly lives in the present age? So that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive. One of the major critiques that Jesus leveled over and over again against the Pharisees is that they had made so many legalistic rules about following God that no one could ever do it. Jesus came to declare that, through the Grace of God, a relationship with God was no longer impossible. In fact, a restored relationship with God is now an invitation that is given to absolutely everyone. And all people have been given the grace to be able to respond to that invitation. There are no hindrances; there are no barriers; Jesus has removed all obstacles that might keep anyone away from coming to God.

The message for Titus and for all of us in the church is to live in such a way that absolutely anyone and everyone sees and hears that invitation in the way we live. Not many of you here know this, but I have started leading a community Bible study at a nearby apartment complex here in Grandville. Every two weeks I gather with a roomful of individuals from our neighborhood here in Grandville who all live in the apartments and we study God’s Word together. There is something similar in many of their stories. They are longing to learn more about God; they are longing for Christian community; and many of them, at this point in their life, will not step through the door of a church. Because they’ve been burned by past experience with other Christians in a church. That’s sad. It is sad that there are people right here in Grandville hungry for the Word of God and looking for a relationship with Jesus, and they see this place as a barrier keeping them away instead of family attracting them inside. I see that in the stories of people right here in Grandville and it leaves me with a prayer of confession for all of us here in our churches; that we are failing to see the way our lives push other people away instead of inviting them in. Paul reminds Titus and us; it takes more than a token gesture; it takes more than a few words; it takes more than a postcard or a flyer. It is going to take a faith that shows up in the way we live our lives within our community.

appearing

Alright, let’s move on to deal with verses 11-14, because that sets something of a frame around the application of this teaching for Titus and for us. One of the questions we always ask whenever we read a passage of scripture is to see where God shows up. There an awful lot of instructions coming in this passage for us to deal with. Before this whole thing runs in a legalistic earning-my-salvation-by-good-works kind of direction, it might be good to back off a moment and ask where God is showing up to be active in this life of faith we are trying to unfold along with Titus.

In these three verses there are two different appearings of God—two places where God shows up. Let me give a quick side note. The Greek of these three verses is rather complex and difficult to place into English. If you are looking at an older 1984 NIV version of the Bible, these verses will be quite different than if you look at the newer 2011 NIV Bible. I used the newer 2011 NIV on the screen because I think it better captures the intent of the original Greek.

The first thing to appear in verse 11 is the grace of God which offers salvation to all people. This grace is from God is not a result of faith, grace is not something which God offers in response to our faith. The order here is important. Grace comes first; and faith is the response to God’s grace. And so, it is entirely because God’s grace has appeared and has been given that we are even able to be people who respond in faith.

This means our live of faith and everything it looks like in the lives that we lead should always come as an outpouring expression of grace. Always. My life of faith does not prove anything to God. My life of faith does not earn any credit with God. Grace is not the response to my faith. It is the other way around. My faith is the response to God’s grace.

And the second thing to appear in verse 13 is the glory of Christ. Glory is something that needs a little further explanation. We hear the word glory and tend to think about a celebration of victory. Glory is an expression of fame. In the Bible, the word glory comes from the Old Testament Hebrew word kavod. It literally meant heavy. Something with kavod carries such weight and massive size that it cannot be moved or destroyed or overcome. When I lived in Denver, the range of Rocky Mountains to the west of the city are kavod. They are huge and insurmountable. Anyone who wants to travel west from Denver must deal with the winding passages through the Rocky Mountains. They are just too big and too massive to ignore or move around.

That’s what the Bible means when it talks about the glory of God. It means he cannot be ignored, he cannot be overcome, he cannot be hidden or diminished. His presence among the universe is so massive, so weighty, that it appears to all people. Our faith is founded upon that hope. Even in moments when perhaps it feels as though our faith might be weak or small or insignificant, Paul reminds Titus and us that the foundation—the hope—of our faith comes from something so much stronger and secure than my fleeting moments of faith. The glory of God which has appeared reminds us that it is not my faith which holds up God in this world. It is the other way around. It is God who holds up my faith.

my place

Time to wrap it up. Let’s take what we’ve unpacked so far and apply it to what a life of faith looks like for us today. There is still a piece of this passage from Titus 2 which we haven’t said much about. What are we supposed to make of these specific instructions that Paul is giving for older men, younger men, older women, young women – and let’s not leave out instructions for slaves?

Here is where we need to once again remember the difference between prescription and description. I’ve talked about this before in previous messages because it is a critically important principle for reading and interpreting the Bible. We need to know the difference between passages that are prescribing a timeless and eternal biblical principle, and passages that are simply describing an application within the circumstances of the society in which the Bible was originally received.

Now this one should not be too hard to figure out. Since we live in a world where we have come to know that slavery of other human beings is NOT something mandated (prescribed) by God, it then seems clear that Paul is rather describing a feature of the world around him as it existed in the time when he wrote this letter to Titus. So then, it would be a mistake for us to read Titus 2 and walk away thinking that somehow these particular behaviors being assigned to old men, old women, young men, and young women are somehow mandated as God’s timeless and eternal prescriptions for particular behaviors yet today. So please, do not walk away from Titus 2 with some crazy notion that a woman’s place is in the home because God says so in the Bible. It is a description of the society in which Titus lived being used by Paul to make an application of the Bible’s teaching.

But this leaves us with a question to answer. If these instructions are based on descriptions of a different culture in a different society with different expected social norms than we hold in our world today, then what is the application of this teaching in Titus for us? What does it look like in our world? How does this life of faith take real shape in our culture and in our society? What is my place here for finding a faith that makes a difference in this present age?

Look at the feature that all these instructions have in common. These are all behaviors that affirm the way in which our faith draws us together. It is not so much the specific instructions themselves, but the responsibility which they carry towards a life of faith which weaves together with other lives of faith. It acknowledges for Titus and for us that faith is not isolated alone in your soul and in your soul and in your soul. Rather, faith is a gift which finds its day-to-day expression inside of a community. Faith is something we share together.

Faith shares something in common with those groups of teenage students trying to hike their way up a Colorado mountain. We all make it together when we all share a responsibility for one another. Faith that matters and makes a difference in this world during this present age is a team effort; we teach and support and encourage one another.

Grabbing hold of that life of faith which makes a difference in our world starts today with two things. First, it acknowledges that there are others who go before me from whom I can learn a great deal. We all need mentors in our lives. We all need people we look up to showing us examples of godly living. Who is that for you right now? Who is that example in your life being used by God to teach and show you what faithful discipleship looks like?

And second, this is a faith that acknowledges we also carry the responsibility to support and nurture others. My faith lives in a place where I not only look for the guiding of mentors in my life, but I also look for those whom God might be placing for me to guide, for me to encourage, for me to support, for me to mentor. Who do you see around in your world right now needing a mentor? Who can you support? Who can you encourage?

Take a step this week in both of those directions. Embrace a life of faith which God feeds through the mentoring example of others. And pass on a life of faith by letting God use you as a support and encouragement for someone else.

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