Thank you for selecting this message by Dr. James Hoffman. Dr. Hoffman preaches verse by verse through the entire book of the Bible. From all of us at Living Water of Lapine here in Central Oregon, we hope that it will encourage you and feed you spiritually. And if you would like to leave a message after the sermon, our contact information is found on the sermon page where you found this sermon. Now may God richly bless you as you listen. What germs are to the physical body? False teaching is to a spiritual body, the church. It's hard for me to imagine that you have not heard this song if you listen much to contemporary Christian music or the radio station that broadcasts it. It's called Free to Be Me by Francesca Battistelli. At 20 years of age, I'm still looking for a dream. A war's already waged for my destiny. But you've already won the battle, and you've got great plans for me, though I can't always see. Now, so far it sounds good. There's a catchy tune behind it, even, to listen to this song, and the message is right, so far. Christ has won the battle, and he does have great plans for us all. But then comes the chorus, which gets repeated over and over again. "'Cause I got a couple of dents in my fender, got a couple of rips in my jeans, try to fit the pieces together, but perfection is my enemy. And on my own, I'm so clumsy, but on your shoulders, I can see I'm free to be me. Of course, trying to live perfect in our human strength will always lead to disappointment. will never meet the standard of perfection this side of heaven. Especially in the eyes of those who might want and expect us to be more perfect than we really are. But here is what deeply concerns me about this song. I can't imagine anyone being encouraged to live a more holy life because of this song. In fact, I think it would be the exact opposite. I think it would encourage people, it's much more likely to encourage people to just not even try, just be yourself. Stay the same as you are. What germs are to a physical body, false teaching is to a spiritual body, the church. This happy, tune-catchy song encourages us to stop growing, to be more like Christ. Forget what the Bible teaches. Here is your new theology. Perfection is our enemy. Christian, here's your new theology. The Holy Spirit's ongoing work in your life, His work of sanctification, that is your enemy. You see, the Apostle Paul got it all wrong. When he wrote to the Philippian church, Philippians 1.6, and I'm sure this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion in the day of Christ Jesus. Now, a lot of translations have the word perfect in it. He who began a good work in you will perfect it because the Greek word epitelostai has both as its meaning. Epitelostai means to perfect. as well as to complete. And so according to this new theology, the work that he has begun in us is our enemy. Furthermore, this new theology makes it even clearer by teaching us that if we climb on Christ's shoulders, it's so that we can be free to be me. It's so that we could be free to be our own imperfect self. I'm free to be me. I'm free to live my life my way. Nobody needs to change me. I'm free to be me. I don't think I am misrepresenting the message of this popular Christian song, folks. Look at the wording and look at its context. But does Jesus want me to be free, to be me? Or does he want me to pick up my cross, die to self, and follow him by allowing the Holy Spirit to transform me into the image of Christ? What gems are to, germs are to a physical body. False teaching is to a spiritual body, the church. Our passage this morning will demonstrate how much bad theology has crept into Christianity today. That nobody has a problem with this song, it gets played so much. Here, just pray this magical little prayer so you can go to heaven. And then you could just live any way you want. You'll be free to be you. We're about to see how critical good sound theology is to a proper living of our faith. Theology and holy living go hand in hand. Theology is not a dirty word, folks. The first 10 verses of Titus chapter two concern themselves with holy living. What it should look like for believers. And then, Verse 11 begins to show the how we are enabled to live that way. Verses 1 through 10 reveal what holy living should look like, and then verses 11 and following reveal its facilitator, what is to fuel it. I'll give you a hint, it starts with a T and ends in ology. We will begin with this second part of our chapter, the enablement. And then we're gonna go back and we're gonna look at the how then should we live. So we begin in the middle of our passage this morning, in the middle of Titus chapter two. And we start with verse 11 and then we're gonna go back after that, after we go through that back up to verse one. But right now, turn with me if you haven't already done so to Titus chapter two and verse 11. For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people. Paul writes, live the way that I have just described in these opening 10 verses of this second chapter, live the way that I have just described for this reason. What reason? The grace of God has appeared. bringing salvation for all people. In other words, here is the doctrinal foundation for the practical instruction I just gave you. It's the grace of God. Now, what does the doctrine of the grace of God have to do with how we live day to day? Answer, it trains us. Verses 11 and 12. Get a running start into verse 12 here. It says this, 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. The doctrine of grace puts moral steel into the believer's heart. It motivates us. to live a godly life. The doctrine of grace not only saves, it transforms. The full doctrine of God's grace is that God's grace saves us. And it also teaches us and motivates us how to live. Instead of believing the biblical doctrine about God's grace, we have a new theology to come into the church. that has reflected through contemporary Christian music. I don't need to change. I'm free to be me. As long as I prayed a prayer, I got my fire insurance, I'm okay. But Titus 2, verses 11 and 12 says differently. The grace of God that saves also leads believers to live a new way. One cannot truly claim to be a recipient of saving grace if they're not being trained by it. Here's my point. A person who thinks they have been saved by grace, but audaciously claims perfection is their enemy, and that they are free to be mean, probably has not experienced God's grace that saves. If you think that you have been saved by God's grace, but there has never been any change in your life, and if you have no desire to grow to be more Christ-like, there is little doubt in my mind that you have never actually experienced God's true grace that saves. Paul told Titus that grace that saves trains us to live godly lives. what germs are to a physical body, false teaching is to a spiritual body, the church. Over the years, Evangelical Christianity has been busy getting people merely to pray a sinner's prayer of salvation. Our churches are full of people who prayed that prayer, but have no work of grace inside of them that's at work training them to live godly lives. Today's Christian music only reflects a sad truth. But many cling to a false They still need the saving grace, which the Bible says it also trains. You know what else? According to the very next verse, it also makes us eager for Jesus's return to earth to set up his kingdom reign. So if you're having too much jolly fun with this present world and you don't really care when or if Jesus really returns, it might be another indication that you have not really experienced God's saving grace. God's saving grace trains us to live godly lives, and it trains us where we should be looking. Verse 13. Waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus. Christ. God's grace gives us a growing anticipation, a love flamed in desire for Christ's return to look him in the face when he's going to establish his kingdom of righteousness here on earth. The Greek word for waiting, prosdekamai, carries the connotation of an eagerness, eagerly expecting the return of Christ. is the way grace trains Christians. I have hope that you've experienced God's grace. It's a grace that saves. It's a grace that trains. It's a grace that gives us an eagerness for Christ's return according to what Paul wrote Titus here. Jesus did not save us just to give us insurance from hell. Here's your free get out of hell card. Now you're free to be you. No, everyone that he saves, he saves to make pure. That kind of sounds like perfection, which I hope that we all agree now is not our enemy. He saved us to be pure vessels for his own possession. He saved us so that we would be zealous for good works, which we weren't before we were saved. Verse 14, 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. Well, now that we have seen that everyone who experiences God's saving grace is not free to be me, And we have seen what trains us to be holy and make us eager for Christ's return, and that is grace. It's time for us to look more closely at this holy life that we're being trained for. So let's now turn to the beginning of Titus chapter two, verse one says this. But as for you, teach what accords with sound doctrine. good doctrine is connected to a holy life. Therefore, it's imperative that Titus should give it first place. There can be no godliness without it. Theology and righteous living are one. They are so connected. Now so far we've looked at a sound doctrine that says grace that saves also trains us to live holy lives. The lack of giving ourself to this doctrine has resulted in this I'm free to be me mentality. Now we're about to deal with one more sound doctrine which counters another aspect of faulty thinking that has crept into the church and is very pervasive. what germs are to a physical body, what false teaching is to a spiritual body, the church. Our next sound theology that needs to challenge us from what has crept in and seeped into our thinking is this. If you have been saved, it is to impact the lives of others. and to do so by observing age-related gender roles. Now, there's a dirty word. Through church community life. That's what holy living is. It recognizes biblical age and gender roles in seeking to impact others. In our homes, at our places of employment, but primarily through church community life. Undoubtedly, a large majority or a large percentage of people in the modern church are not driven by interdependence, but by a consumer mentality. They value only what is beneficial to them. They partake in what only pleases them. At times that are not disruptive to their schedules. And at costs not significant enough to burden their lifestyles. Such persons will pick the church activities that are attractive to them. But never think of the impact of their actions on others. Only the most mature have a sense of personal investment in regular fellowship, disciplined worship, and church community life, and that's the point we're gonna see here of what a holy life looks like. We live in a culture that's drowning in gender confusion. The lines have become blurred. We're groping about trying to understand what it means for a man to be a man, a woman to be a woman, It's perfectly clear that the cultural engineers that dominate the media, the educational system from preschool through university, and other strategic places of influence, they all want to neutralize, if not eliminate gender distinctions and differences. Add the courts now to that. But God is hardwired into human beings, as we're about to see here. role distinctions, gender distinctions. We've got to stand firm because germs are to a physical body. False teaching is to a spiritual body, the church. In Titus 2, verses two through eight, God's roles for men and women in the church are plain and clear. Paul outlined God's expectations for each of the four major groups in the church in terms of gender and age. And he defined godly living that seeks to impact others in our homes and our places of employment, but primarily through church community life. Now let's look at verse two now. Older men are to be sober-minded. dignified, self-controlled, sound in faith, in love, and in steadfastness. Paul tells Titus to teach the natural leaders of the community, the older men, there to be sober-minded. Sober-minded means restraining one's natural desires and presenting a balanced Christian life. This man is wise in his decision-making, careful when making judgments, is clear on what really matters and decisive in making godly choices. All that matters to him is to please God. Next is dignified. Comes from a Greek word that means others give him honor. You see, you cannot be a dignified man without being involved in other people's lives. Dignified man is such because of his community life. Others recognize it and give him honor. Then older men are to be self-controlled. They're to curb their desires and impulses. This is probably the key idea to this entire passage here. Some form of this word appears to each of these four groups of the church. Young and old men and women all need self-control. because the Christian community then and now is made up of people from differing backgrounds and different viewpoints and that makes conflict inevitable. Faith describes a personal relationship with God. Love describes relationship with others. Endurance describes steadfastness in maintaining these relationships. Mature Christianity is defined as a commitment to maintain vertical relationship to God and horizontal relationship to others. It's a commitment to maintaining those relationships. A mature Christian is a man that's just the exact opposite of the old grump who goes around saying, ah, go away, you bother me, leave me alone. Verses three and four. Older women, likewise, are to be reverent in behavior, not slanders or slaves to too much wine. They are to teach what is good. Likewise. Older women, likewise. Likewise connects verse three to verse two. These older women have a task that's parallel to the older men. The first character trait they should pursue is reverence. word that literally means temple fitting or appropriate behavior in the temple. Their behavior reflects the fact that Jesus is always present in every thought and deed. They know he's right there with them, observing, conscious of their thoughts and behavior. That's temple fitting. Not slanders comes next. This woman has control, a governor on her tongue. She knows that the saying sticks and stones may break my bones, but names or words will never hurt me. Well, that's not true. So when she speaks, she speaks the truth and she speaks it in love. And this daughter of God is not addicted to much wine or to much alcohol. Alcoholism must have been a severe problem since It is an issue in the appointment of church leaders on every list you find in Scripture. We see it in 1 Timothy 3, verses 3, verse 8, 1 Timothy 5, verse 23, and we saw it previously in Titus 1, verse 7. While this is true in almost every culture, one commentator pointed out that it was especially true on the island of Crete, where Titus was to appoint all these elders. And get this, The island of Crete, apparently, viewed heavy drinking as a virtue. Teach what is good, like their godly counterpart, the older men. These mature disciples of Christ are to be adept at teaching. They are to teach what is good. This is the informal, one-on-one, or small group instruction. that these mature women pass on to their younger spiritual sisters. Issues of marriage, family, child rearing are set alongside of basic matters of spiritual life in Christ. This mentoring of the younger by the more mature is the biblical pattern we have too often neglected to our great hurt and harm. Younger women are desperately needing the role modeling, teaching, discipling, insight, and practical wisdom that these older ladies can provide. Being more experienced in life and in the Lord, they can pass on a godly legacy that will hopefully reproduce itself for generations. A godly home will orbit around a godly wife and mother. This ministry of women to women opens up numerous possibilities in terms of its format and its content. This teaching could take the form of home visitation, Bible study groups, social outings, one-to-one friendships, book readings, and more. The one provisional is that what is taught should be good. In other words, thoroughly Christian, practically helpful. Now, I find it very interesting that verse four says that younger women are to be taught to love their husbands and their children. Interestingly, this is the only time specifically in the Bible where a woman is encouraged to love her husband. Husbands, of course, receive multiple and detailed instructions in that regard. Ephesians 5, 25 through 33 and Colossians 3, 19 are two great examples. And Paul was concerned that a woman's first commitment under the lordship of Jesus Christ was first to her husband and to her children. But here's what I find worthy of taking note of. This verse is saying that we do not so much fall in love as we need to learn to love. It's to be taught by the older to the younger. It's a decision that is to be taught, to love, not a feeling that simply falls on us. Now here are a few more things that older women are to teach the younger, verses four and five. 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. Here we see the word self-controlled again. Best way to learn this is to see it up close, in person, in the life of another. Young women will best learn to exercise balance and wisdom in their own lives as they observe it in the lives the older, more mature women. I think that's a problem that we see today. I think the evangelical church is in for a world of hurt as we see more and more churches target a single age group. So many churches are ignoring what Paul is teaching Titus right here. as they singly focus on primarily attracting young people and young families for their church. The church growth movement has taught that the church is analogous to a radio station. Radio stations will fail if they try to play all kinds of music, symphonic followed by acid rock song, then Motown, and then a 1940s swing song, maybe an Italian opera. Mix it all up like this and nobody is going to tune in to your radio station. Well, you mix up your aspects of your worship service and nobody's going to come. You need to pick one and focus on that one. Church growth movement teaches that churches have to do the same thing a radio station does. The way to grow a big church, they say, is to do that. Focus on only one age group. Target your service with a type of music and worship that appeals to only the young, if that's who you want to reach. A lot of churches are doing this, folks. And their churches do grow big. But what are they losing? They are not the tightest two-church, that's for sure. Now, before we move on, I need to say something about a phrase in a single word that appears in verse five, which I have little doubt has sent shivers down the spines of many. The phrase is working at home. Working at home does not prohibit working outside the home. If it did, then it would contradict Bible passages such as Proverbs 31, specifically verses 16, 18, and 24. What this phrase in Titus 2.5 indicates is that Paul expects wives to carry out the primary responsibility for the day-to-day care of their homes and children. It's unlikely that Paul had in mind a concern about career women or mothers in the secular workplace. His emphasis is not on the location of a wife's work, but on being productive in the normal occupations of a wife each day. Her home is her primary base of operation, the main focus of her attention. The apostle, without question, ranks a wife's obligations to care for her husband and children over the personal benefit of fulfillment. Any woman who makes a career status or financial advantage a higher priority in her life than the welfare of her marriage or children or her home, I believe is opposing this biblical principle. The word that is used in verse five, which I need to say something about is submit. The Greek term for submit is hupotasso. It means to arrange under. It does not mean that a wife is to suppress her intelligence, her talents, and her gifts in the home. Rather, she should fully express these gifts in the purpose of supporting her husband and the spiritual leadership of the home. Suppression of gifts is not the point. Proper expression of them is. A Christian wife arranges her gifts and her talents under the higher purpose of supporting the spiritual nurture of the household. You know, sin is a principle of rebellion against God's appointed order with legitimate inbuilt authorities. Satan began a great rebellion when he refused to submit to the place and function that God had appointed for him. And ever since then, he has been teaching human beings how to do the same. by rejecting those authorities that God has appointed in the family and in the church for efficient operations. Can you imagine a business that didn't have a head? God knows how to make a home work efficiently, and so he settled that question here. It's for efficiency's sake. Christian wives, in being subject to their husbands, are actually doing what Christ does to the Heavenly Father. Both are God. One is not less than the other, but Jesus submits to the Father. It's a matter of working efficiently. Now, just to be clear, being subject to their husbands does not mean that wives must be subject to unreasonable demands of their husbands, or they must be subject to the abuse of male authority in physical or psychological ways. or they should have no say in running the home or in decision-making process. Verses six through eight. 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. Here we see self-control once again. Boy, do young men need it. Number one, the bodies of young men are more sexually alive. Attraction and passion increases and stirs young men to pay attention to the opposite sex. But young men must control themselves. Passion can engulf a young man and drown him. Number two, young men are discovering themselves and searching for and finding a place in society. They face two of the biggest decisions they'll ever have to make in their life. The decision of leaving home, when to leave home and take on the total responsibility for themselves, and maybe even start a family. And they also face the decision of employment or a profession, a career, what they're going to do in life. Number three, young men are full of visions and dreams and they have lots of energy but they lack experience. The result is they often become reckless and inconsiderate and unfeeling. They often make mistakes and so they must be mentored to be self-controlled. and sound in speech as they move forward in life. Verses nine and 10. Bond servants 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. Most of the first century workforce in Roman society were slaves. Since we don't have slaves in our culture, so to speak, I'm going to apply these principles to career workers of our culture, those who have bosses. And that, we'll see what godliness looks like there. Number one, the Christian workman is to be obedient. He is to follow the instructions of the person over him. Now, notice he is to obey in all things, it says. In the workplace, there is to be no instruction that is not obeyed. This, of course, doesn't mean that he's to obey orders that are contrary to the teaching of the Lord, though. Number two, the Christian workman is to go beyond the call of duty. He's to actually please his master in all things. This includes such things as attitude and spirit. He shows commitment and loyalty, eagerness and diligence in his work. Also in his thoughts. He thinks about his work, how to improve it, how to be more efficient. In his relationships, he seeks to build good relationships with all fellow employees and management. In his work and labor, he's on time. He gives a full day of labor plus some. He actually seeks to increase his own productivity and that of the whole workplace. He helps the company when extra effort or hours are needed and goes well beyond what's required. And number three, the Christian workman does not answer back, talk back, or contradict his manager. Number four, the Christian workman does not steal. The Greek word that was used here actually stresses the stealing of small things, petty items, pins, paperclips. How many have stooped to stealing, to doing what so many in the world do? How many feel that they're not getting what's due them and therefore they're justified just taking a little here or there? A Christian workman is not to steal, ever. In short, both in action and in attitude, the servant of Christ puts on display for all to see the grace of God that has trained him or her in righteousness. Now Paul has listed four classes of people as well as the workforce here. That should be in every church. Godliness is not simply for the spiritual elite. All true believers are expected to have their faith reflected in their conduct and to have their conduct affirm their faith. What may seem like straightforward advice that can be easily applied, However, it turns out to have some curves and some angles when you stop and consider our modern society today. The 21st century, there's some things that we might have to negotiate. Older men and women today are trying hard to be contemporary, to be pals with their grandchildren. The old image of grandmother knitting in her rocking chair or hair in a bun, humming hymns, is long gone. Young women are not usually only busy at home, but are more likely to be found on a judge's bench in the executive suite of a downtown office, skillfully using the latest computer programs and searching out the newest exciting website. Ambition has overtaken them and many young men who have little spare time for moral or religious concerns after rising early to hit the gym for a workout, commute 30, 40 miles, and then put in long hours on the job to say nothing of rushing home so that they could catch the football game, the basketball game, or the baseball game, whatever's in the seasonal rotation. But here is what is so relevant to our passage. It is that we must find ways to increase the flow of God's grace in training us in righteousness. That flow, according to our passage, starts with the older and passes to the younger. Old age is actually an opportunity in itself. One does not have to be the have the same activities and ministries of the youth, to have challenges and usefulness. Arthritis might limit action, but it does not limit prayer. Neither does failing vision or hearing. The greatest opportunity for cheerfulness and witnessing may come not in a corporate office, but in a Sunday school class. or at an Awana event. While young children may not enjoy being captive, a captive congregation hearing repeated advice and moralistic stories from the older generation's younger years, they can be blessed by the older going to their games and their concerts, listening with interest to their joys and to their woes, and perhaps without their even realizing it, filling out prayer lists of the needs in their life and praying for them. Young women are often turned off by the repeated criticisms of the older women because they go to work, they have their children in daycare, they share in the decision-making with their husbands. They may already feel sad and even guilty for having to work and letting others care for their children They need understanding and encouragement rather than criticism. Older women may have little concept of how much a mortgage, food, and taxes take out of even two regular paychecks. And if a mother or grandmother thinks that their daughter Michelle's payments on two cars and a large screen TV are unwise and unnecessary, Perhaps more prayer and loving help and learning about caring for a family will bring Michelle to a new spiritual perspective and value. Most important in light of this passage is that the older must seek ways to have fellowship with the younger, sharing with them without preaching at them what they've learned along the way from the Lord. Well, pastor, you're just picking on us as the older people. What I'm doing is I'm observing a flow of the grace. It starts with the older generation. It's the way that Paul is presenting it here. And I think it's a challenge to the older generation to find these ways of using grace to train the younger in the church. in the community. There needs to be a willingness among the men and women of the church to work cross-generationally. Agnes lost her husband early in their marriage. With two daughters to raise, the menial jobs that she could get would not provide enough income. So she supplemented her small salary by baking wonderful, melt-in-your-mouth sourdough bread. When the daughters grew up and left home, the baking didn't stop. Agnes had given herself so much to others and baking of this bread that the habit of putting others first didn't stop. She kept baking bread, giving away to all of her friends. And then something began to affect her sight. She progressed from weakened sight to total blindness very quickly. With so much against her and so much pressure to simply survive, no one would have blamed her for calling it quits on everything except what was needed to take care of herself. But instead of submitting to the darkness, the elderly woman made an important decision. Baking bread was what God had given her to do to express her love and care to others. She would not give up simply because she could not see. So she mixes the flour and water. She doesn't see. She finds the dials of the oven in the dark. She bakes the bread by instincts long developed in the light and gives the loaves to people whose faces she can only imagine. She cannot tell you entirely why she bakes blind. only that God has given her love to share with those whose future and present need the yeast of her selfless love in order to share the bread of life with others. Whether we are attending church or a Bible study or offering fellowship to another family or baking blind, we do not physically see the spiritual effects on others. But what we share with each other in these settings is spiritual life, nourishment, and protection more sustaining than earthly eyes can estimate. Still, heaven sees and blesses through such selfless sharing that prepares us for the future, protects us in the present, and shapes hearts forever. Godliness considers how you're participating in community life. And whether or not you know it, you may be having a powerful impact on others. Keep it up. Let's pray.