Four Marks of a Healthy Church

Never in a million years, did I dream that one day I would be standing in the pulpit of my wonderful childhood pastor, facing the possibility of taking the baton, to carry on his years of faithful ministry.

Titus 2:1–15 (ESV)

But as for you, teach what accords with sound doctrine. Older men are to be sober-minded, dignified, self-controlled, sound in faith, in love, and in steadfastness. Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good, and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled. Likewise, urge the younger men to be self-controlled. Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity, and sound speech that cannot be condemned, so that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us. Bondservants are to be submissive to their own masters in everything; they are to be well-pleasing, not argumentative, not pilfering, but showing all good faith, so that in everything they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior.

For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our 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 lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

Declare these things; exhort and rebuke with all authority. Let no one disregard you.

Introduction

What Constitutes a Healthy Church?

I think that is a question worth asking, and one that I want to address this morning.

For the last few decades, evangelical megachurches have become a ubiquitous part of the religious landscape in America. Consequently, many pastors and church laity alike, often—perhaps subconsciously—measure ministry success by the size of a congregation.

Now, almost every ministry leader would deny this claim. They would proclaim that the size of the congregation is emphatically NOT the measure of a church’s health or success.

Yet, in my 20 plus years of ministry, when I attend pastor conferences, or just converse with other clergy, do you want to guess the first question that I am asked, almost without exception? How many is your church running?

I am certainly not against large churches: One of my favorite pastors, Tim Keller, led a church of about 10,000 people in New York.

I am simply arguing that congregation size is NOT the Biblical standard to measure the health of the church.

Nor is it the size of church buildings

Nor is it the presence of skilled musicians and amazing production & theatrics.

Nor is it the eloquent speech of a man behind the pulpit on Sunday mornings.

I say all of this, to let you know, that—be it small or large—I want to pastor a healthy church. And I think we all want to be part of a truly, healthy church.

In Titus Chapter 2, Paul gives us at least four marks of what constitutes a healthy church.

A healthy church has servant-leaders worth following

A healthy church has seasoned believers worth emulating

A healthy church has submissive disciples worth training

A healthy church has a sole purpose worth pursuing

After Paul’s time of ministry on the island of Crete, he leaves his Gentile apprentice, Titus, to carry on the work of the ministry to the multiple churches that have been established in that large, geographical area.

As we read this book, we see that church issues are nothing new.

There is no such thing as a perfect church, because every church is full of imperfect people like you an me.

There are some issues amongst the believers Crete:

Paul is concerned about false teachings that have crept into the churches

It seems that the believers are not walking in ways that are particularly pleasing to the Lord

Paul’s aim, is to encourage Titus to help these churches become healthier and more Christ-exalting.

And he begins—in chapter 1, by encouraging Timothy to install qualified elders (or pastors) in each of the churches, because healthy churches—number 1—must have servant-leaders worth following.

I. Servant-Leaders Worth Following

I use the title “servant-leaders” very intentionally.

Titus 1:1 (ESV)

Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the sake of the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth...

Before Paul is an apostle, he sees himself as a servant of God

And he says, that He does what He does for the sake of God’s elect.

We pastors, must remember that the purpose of our calling is not to bolster our own egos or to revel in our own glory, but to to live our lives for the glory of God and the good of His people.

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Paul is a servant-leader. Titus is a servant-leader. And if the churches in Crete are going to be healthy, they much each have servant-leaders—namely pastors—worth following.

How Do We Know a Pastor is Worth Following? There are two things to take into consideration, namely, his beliefs and behavior.

A) He Holds to the Right Beliefs

To bring order to the churches in Crete, Paul instructs Timothy to install qualified elders in each of the churches. And then he gives a list of qualifications.

One of those qualifications is found in verse 9:

Titus 1:9 (ESV)

He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.

In a similar sentiment, Paul instructs Timothy to:

preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. (2 Timothy 4:2 (ESV))

A qualified pastor must know the Word of God; he must hold to the Orthodox teachings of the faith, AND he must be able to clearly teach others those doctrines. Furthermore, he must have the integrity and courage to correct false teachings and gently rebuke false teachers.

In chapter 1, v. 10, Paul then contrasts the sound teachings of faithful pastors, with the empty words of the false teachers.

It is interesting that Paul does not deny the false teachers ability to speak eloquently or their ability to articulate their beliefs. He calls them “deceivers” which means they must have the ability to captivate their audience.

But, and eloquent preacher does not mean that he is worth listening to.

There is a particularly popular and trendy pastor, who is an extremely engaging speaker. Some of the young people in my church often posts his clips, and his speech will draw you in… but he literally says nothing of any Biblical value. He uses Scripture, but it is normally spiritualized, meaning that he puts things in the text that simply aren’t there.

What we need in the pulpit is not well-spoken, glorified motivational speakers, but faithful men who rightly handle the word of truth.

If you are looking for a glorified Dr. Phil or Oprah who preaches a self-help gospel, I am not your guy!

Titus 2:1, Paul writes:

Titus 2:1 (ESV)

But as for you, teach what accords with sound doctrine.

And it seems here that—as we consider the context of chapter 2, as well as the Greek words used in this verse, that faithful preaching not only communicates the doctrines of the church, but then teaches believers to live out those doctrines in very practical ways.

Having lofty theological ideas do little good if we don’t know how to apply those truths to our lives.

Years ago I was a music leader at a church and I had a college student come to me and tell me she wanted to play drums. When I asked her about her skill level, she proceeded to tell me that she was a pretty drummer, but struggled with one thing: tempo. I thought, mam’, then you are not a drummer.

A man be godly and a great leader, but if he can’t effectively teach God’s word, He is not a qualified pastor.

The second mark of a qualified pastor moves from belief to behavior:

B) His Behavior is Congruent with His Beliefs

In Titus 1, Paul gives a long list of virtues for qualified elders.

In this position, I can’t say “do what I say, not what I do.”

No, I must be able to say, follow me as I follow Christ.

According to the text, pastors must be above reproach, we must have a good name and reputation in the church and the community. We must love our families and have our homes in order. We must be humble and gentle. We must not love the things of this world, but instead, love God with all of our hearts.

Good teaching means nothing, if it is not backed up with godly living.

A Pastor’s identity is not in himself, nor is it in his ministry; he finds his identity solely in Jesus Christ.

So, a healthy church has servant-leaders worth following.

I am going to quickly move through the next two points and then give some thoughts that tie them together.

II. Seasoned Believers Worth Emulating (A healthy church must have...)

Titus 2:2–3 (ESV)

Older men are to be sober-minded, dignified, self-controlled, sound in faith, in love, and in steadfastness. Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good...

At the most basic level, what we see here is having older, seasoned believers in the church is crucial.

There are several churches that I have seen that—in their pursuit of younger families—have almost completely disregarded the older generation. That is quite tragic for many reasons. I will mention a couple:

First, Paul says in 1 Cor. that the body of Christ is made of many members… and EVERY member has a unique gift. And if the gifts of a certain generation are not used, the church can’t function at its maximum capacity.

Secondly, Discipleship is not only the job of pastors.

We see in our text that the older generation is to train up the next generation.

It is imperative that you:

Teach them to pray

Teach them to walk in unity

Teach them how to be in the world but not of the world

Teach them to hold their tongues and be kind and respectful

Teach them to share the Gospel

Teach them to be husbands and fathers and wives and mothers

Older Generation: I want you to know, you are so valued. And you play a vital role in the church. Though your ministry may look different from years past, your days of ministry are not behind you.

Old Age is often associated with wisdom, but that is not always the case. If we aren’t careful, as we grow older we can become more bitter, cynical, and can be prone to complaining and grumbling.

In other words, it is not enough, merely to have older members in the church. For a church to be the older generation must live godly lives worth emulating.

A) Older Men

Paul begins by addressing older men, and encourages them to:

Older men are to be examples in Sober-mindedness (which means to be temperate)

Examples in dignity which means to be honorable.

In practicality, it means they are not inappropriate or crude.

If you ever watched old show “Everybody loves Raymond” its like, don’t be Frank Barone.

They are to be examples in self-control: through years of walking with God and through progressive sanctification, they can resist temptation. They should NOT be impulsive. They should be consistent in their thinking, their attitude, and behavior.

They Need to be sound in faith: meaning, no matter what they go through, their faith is not shaken. Their trust in God does not waiver.

They are to be sound in love—both in declaration and demonstration

And they are to be steadfast. They are stable. They persevere through any hardship. They know that all things work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose.

A) Older Women

They are to be examples in reverent behavior: they are to be modest and honorable (This makes me think of 1 Peter 3:3-4)

1 Peter 3:3–4 (ESV)

Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious.

I don’t think we need to take this verse to legalistic extremes, insisting that women have to have a homely appearance, but—in today’s day and age—so much emphasis is put on outside beauty and very little on inner beauty and godliness.

Older women are to be examples in godly speech. They aren’t to be slanderers.

Theologian Craig Kenner points out that in the Greco-Roman world, older women were often objects of ridicule in comedies and were especially mocked for gossip and foolish talk.

In 20 years of ministry, most of the issues within the churches in which I have served have come from gossip and slander.

Godly women (and men for that matter) refuse to propagate slander or demeaning words or even listen to such talk.

I’ve heard people try to spiritualize gossip by calling it a “burden for someone.” Ladies, let’s pray, because I just have such a burden for sister so and so… let’s just pray for her… because she is a horrible person.

Finally Older women slaves to wine (in other word “drunks”) Just in case you were wondering.

And then Paul says that the older generation is to be willing to invest in the next generation of women. And—Paul tells Titus that he (and I think by implication all the godly men) are to invest in the men of the next generation.

Illustration of the church that I preached at on Easter.

This leads us to the third point, that a healthy church must have submissive disciples (or younger believers) worth training.

III. Submissive Disciples Worth Training

What makes a younger believer worth training? Well, I think it means that they are willing to listen and to submit to council.

I’ve done marriage counseling with some men, and we have our first session and they come back a second time and say nothing has changed. And I’m like, did what I encouraged you to do. And they are like, no not really.

A believer worth discipling is one that is eager to learn and apply the wisdom that is bestowed upon them.

Part of mentoring the younger generation, involves gently correcting wrong behavior. Today, many people don’t want to be called out for anything. Often, when confronted, they get their feelings hurt and just leave the church.

But, a true disciple is willing to receive correction.

A) Young Women

Titus 2:4–5 (ESV)

(Older women are to)...train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled.

What we see here is that the younger women are to be trained to emulate your godly behavior.

Paul tells us that young women are to be trained to be godly, both in the church and in the home.

And let’s park here for a moment: For men and women alike, Paul is not telling us how we just merely act in church. He is telling us the virtues that ought to mark our lives everywhere we go. At work, at home, at church, in the supermarket, we are to live for the glory of God.

One virtue in this list that I would like to point out is “kindness.”

We have these relatively new social media platforms where it is easy to be hateful, impulsive, and unkind. And the words of many Christians are destroying community within the church AND, tragically, our witness to the world.

Older people, you need to be willing to gently confront and correct those who post things that are contrary to the Bible calls Christians to behave.

B) Young Men

Titus 2:6 (ESV)

Likewise, urge the younger men to be self-controlled.

In my study, I started thinking about why Paul only addresses one competent of training up young men.

Perhaps, its that he knows that you ladies are good at multi-tasking.

For us men, we can only handle one piece of instruction at a time.

More likely though, Paul knows that young men are particularly vulnerable to impulsivity…

They are prone to fly off the handle at a drop of the hat.

Young men tend to prone to be impulsive when it comes to sexuality...

And so, I think it is imperative that young men learn self control

Jordan Peterson is a famous professor and clinical psychologist, and one of his “12 Rules for Life” is that “We must do what is meaningful, not what is expedient. That is something worth keeping at the forefront of our minds.

We must learn to not give up what we want most (hopefully godliness), for what they want in the moment.

What do we learn from this idea of the importance of churches having godly older men and women who pour into younger Christians?

1) Healthy Churches must be Multi-Generational

That’s one of the reasons it is so important to me to incorporate blended music in our services.

To me, that communicates the importance of every generation.

To navigate through the contention of different music preferences, many of us thought it might be good to have one service that appealed to the older generation and one to the younger generation.

But we quickly learned that this separates us, which is tragic, because our generations need one another.

2- Healthy Churches Need Intergenerational friendships

It is not enough just to go to church together. We need to do life together.

Most American Christians have the habit of only connecting with people in the church who are most like them.

We need to be intentional about building relationships “inter-generationally.”

I just recently asked each of the people in our senior ministry to “adopt” a young person or family within the church. Have them over for dinner. Read Scripture with them. Pray with them. Serve in the church with them. That brings wisdom to the younger generation and encouragement and purpose to the older generation.

These intergenerational friendships will bless both the older and younger generations.

The older can impart wisdom and the younger can help you with your iPhones.

The final mark of a healthy church (that we see here in Titus chapter 2), is

IV. A Singular Purpose Worth Pursuing

Titus 2:11–14 (ESV)

For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our 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 lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

After speaking about the importance of godly living, Paul starts the next section of his letter to Titus with the Word “For,” and what we see is the purpose behind all that he has commanded up to this point.

There is a purpose in faithful preaching. There is a purpose in training up the next generation. There is a purpose in godly living. And it is a purpose worth pursuing.

In light of our redemption in the Lord Jesus Christ, we pursue godly living for the good of others and the glory of God.

Paul says the grace of God “has appeared,” meaning that God’s redemptive plans have now manifested in the life, death, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. And that should not be taken lightly.

And in light of that redemption, the people of God must live godly lives for a couple of reasons:

1) Through godly living, the grace of God becomes visible to the unbelieving world.

Paul says salvation has brought salvation for “all people.”

This is not universal salvation

Salvation comes only to those who are truly in Christ

In the context of Titus chapters 1 and 2, we see that salvation is available to both Jews and Gentiles.

We also see that salvation is extended to men and women alike

We also find that salvation is extended to every generation

And we see that salvation is available for every social class (as Paul mentions Bondservants in the previous verses).

So then, the goal of every Christian should be that every man, woman, boy, and girl comes to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.

And, wonderfully, by the grace of God, the HS uses our changed lives—our godly living—to point the unbelieving world to God’s salvation.

Matthew 5:13–16 (ESV)

“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Our good works—the way that we demonstrate a love for God and people—are meant to point others beyond ourselves and to the Lord.

Adversely, when those who claim to be Christians speak, think, and behave in the same ways as the world, we lose our distinctness (we lose our saltiness), and thus we turn others away from the Lord Jesus.

So we pursue the goal of godly living for the good of others.

AND we pursue godly living for the glory of God.

B) Godly Living for the Glory of God

Paul said that, Jesus Christ, gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

Our Holy God has redeemed us, not just for the forgiveness of sins, but from the bondage of sin, making us new creations in Christ, that we might live, truly, as His people.

Some warn from preaching the message of grace, because they believe that people will us it as a license to sin.

But grace actually is what compels holiness.

Christ’s work at Calvary was effective in the canceling of sin AND the overcoming of sin.

Godly living and good works are not optional for believers. Good works are not the means of salvation, but they serve as the evidence of salvation.

So, in light of our redemption in the Lord Jesus Christ, a healthy church will pursue godly living for the good of others and the glory of God.

Closing

I will close with a story of a lady by the name of Tricia, who—by God’s Providence—I met in a local coffee shop about a year ago. Tricia was broken, bound by sin, lonely, and miserable. After a short conversation, she decided to visit our church. She was saved shortly thereafter and I had the privilege of baptizing her.

Tricia has been faithful to attend Sunday and Wednesday services. She takes copious notes to learn all that she can about the Lord Jesus Christ.

One of our older couples, Joe and Millie Riveria, have disciples her. She goes to their home several times a week, where she has learned prayer and other godly disciplines.

She told me not to long ago, that she prays every morning that God would use her to minister others who are lost and hurting.

Last Sunday, our we had “church in the park.”

As we were setting up our sound system, I looked back and saw Tricia ministry to a homeless person. She shared her testimony with him, listened to him intently, gave him a bag of toiletries that she had in her vehicle, and shared the Lord with him. He was moved to tears.

Tricia has received the Lord.

She has sat under the faithful teaching of God’s word.

She has been discipled by seasoned believers within our church.

And now, she is DAILY doing the work of the ministry.

And that, is the road to a healthy church.