I’m sure most of you at some point have been
completely humiliated by something a parent, sibling, or close friend has said.
Most of us would agree, “Honesty is the best policy;” However, we may recall a
time when we wished someone had been a little less honest.
In College, after I had been dating a guy for a
couple months, I wanted to introduce him to my parents. Most people say my
parents are extremely friendly, and they have always taken an interest in the
people I hangout with; so I really didn't think this was a big deal. Anyways, my
dad told me after the introduction, he was going to take my boyfriend out for
coffee. I should have known better than to let this outing occur on their very
first meeting, but at the time I really didn't think anything of it. So soon
after their first encounter, he and my dad went off to have, what I now refer
to as: “the talk.”
When they came back from their heart to heart,
I could instantly tell something bad had happened- My boyfriend looked as pale
as a ghost and my dad just had this huge grin. For the rest of the day… and
actually for a long time after their chat…. he seemed really uncomfortable when
I came too close. So of course I started asking: “What did you and my dad talk
about?” When I heard what my dad had said, I was absolutely mortified!
Apparently, my dad had said: “I want my
daughter to have three things on her wedding day: 1) her faith in the Lord 2) Her
sexual purity and 3) Me by her side. Now son, you can mess up two of these
things. You can rob her physical purity, you can hinder her walk with Christ,
BUT hear me out…. you can never take away my love for her! That being said, if
I hear or suspect that you have in any way damaged either of the first two
things- I will make sure you have a very difficult time finding a job and I
will make sure you regret hurting my daughter!” For those of you who do not
know my father, he is very involved at A&M’s business school… so this
threat wasn’t taken too lightly. But anyways, when I heard this I was
speechless, embarrassed, and a little angry that my dad would say those things.
But now looking back, I realize he was verbalizing what he believed Christ
wanted for my life and also what was best for his daughter. He wasn’t going to
stand by and allow anyone or anything to come between my relationship with
Christ.
Today as we look at Titus Chapter 1, Paul is
going to encourage us to do exactly what my father did. Just like my dad established
some standards for dating his daughter, Paul tells us in Titus, that as
Christians, we have to set standards pleasing to God. If we fail to speak up
and allow the grey areas to go unaddressed, then we are not winning the world,
but rather: the world is winning us! - Even if we do not partake, but passively
allow other believers to continue because we think “they may not like me if I
address this situation.”
But this is a hard thing to do… most of us have
been in a position where we knew a Christian friend was doing something that
could potentially harm them, maybe not physically, but emotionally or
spiritually; however, we failed to say anything. And for most of us that have
failed, it was because we didn’t want to offend the other person, or we feared
our honesty would ruin the friendship (Even though it was out of love and
concern). But because we are called to be different, we shouldn’t be concerned
with worldly acceptance. We should not be like the world- so we should not be
ashamed of standing out:
2 Peter 2:11- Dear friends, I urge
you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war
against your soul.
John 15: 18-19 “If the world hates you, know that it has
hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love
you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of
the world, therefore the world hates you.
Philippians 3:20 “But our citizenship is in heaven, and from
it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.”
In these three
verses, we see that not everyone is going to like us or agree…. But that is ok,
because this world is fading and one day our citizenship will be in Heaven.
When we love others the way Christ loves us, people will think we are strange
and peculiar. I don’t know about you, but if my words and actions could lead
people to Christ- It would be worth letting people think I was weird.
So as we begin the
book of Titus, I want us to get real and address some things that might not be
the easiest to talk about. If I offend anyone or if you do not agree with the
things I say- please do not think I am judging or saying I have it all
together… Because God knows I DO NOT! I do however encourage each of you to dig
into the word yourself. Make your own opinions about these matters, you don’t
have to listen to what I say, I am human and I make mistakes, but God’s word is
true- so use his word to form opinions. It is important that we follow Christ,
not a Sunday school teacher, professor, or pastor- but Christ alone.
Turn with me to Titus 1.
Titus
1:1-3 Paul, a servant of God and
an apostle of Jesus Christ to
further the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness- in the hope of eternal life, which God, who does
not lie, promised
before the beginning of time, and which now at his appointed season he has brought to
light through
the preaching entrusted to me by the command of God our Savior.
Paul opens this book (which is
a letter written to Titus) stating 1) who he was and 2) the purpose God give him.
·
Who is Paul:
o
A servant
of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ
·
Purpose God give him:
o
To increase
the faith of God’s people
o
To expand
the knowledge of truth
o
To advance
Christ’s Kingdom - Paul reminds us in this introduction that our God, a God
who cannot lie, has promised eternal life. So our focus should be on advancing
Heaven by inviting more to join us…. Not advancing our earthly status.
o
NOW- I also
want to point out the timing- “and which now at his appointed season he has
brought to light through the preaching entrusted to me.
Now is our appointed time to
encourage others to increase their faith and expand their knowledge.
Titus 1:5 The
reason I left you in Crete was
that you might put in order what was left unfinished and appoint elders in every
town, as I directed you.
Paul had left Titus in Crete-, a place known for scandal- the people of
Crete were compared to pirates. For the past few weeks we have been studying 1st
& 2nd Timothy, which was written for the church of Ephesus. Paul’s
instructions/encouragements to Timothy were very similar, which makes me
believe that if Paul were writing to us today we could easily insert Houston as
the location. Titus 1:5 could say: “The reason you are in Houston, the reason
you work at EP Energy, the reason you are at Second- is to:
1) Put in order what was left
unfinished (Spread the gospel to non- believers)
2) To appoint elders (Create leaders within the church body)
Today we are going to focus more closely
on the second instruction= building Christian leaders.
Titus 1:6-8 An elder must be blameless, faithful to his wife, a man whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and
disobedient. Since an overseer manages God’s household, he must be blameless—not overbearing, not
quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest
gain. Rather, he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined.
Christian Leaders
must not be:
·
Overbearing
·
Quick-tempered
·
A drunk
·
Violent
·
Dishonest
Christian Leader must be:
·
Blameless
·
Faithful
·
Able and willing to be of good influence: A role
model
·
Hospitable
·
Lovers of good
·
Self controlled
·
Disciplined
So now we know the qualities of a Christian
Leader… but why must a leader posses these qualities? And what is their
responsibility. Lets continue in the text...
Titus 1:9-11: He must hold
firmly to
the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others
by sound doctrine and refute those who
oppose it. For there are many rebellious people, full of meaningless
talk and deception, especially those of the circumcision group. They must be
silenced, because they are disrupting whole households by teaching things they
ought not to teach—and that for the sake of dishonest gain.
Paul warns Titus= what is going on in Crete is
also going on inside the church body- the “Circumcision group.” This group is
guilty, they think they have it all together but they are destructive and
foolish. If we jump down to vs. 16 it says: They claim to know God, but by their actions
they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything
good.
So in these verses, Paul gives Titus some
responsibilities as a Christian Leader:
Responsibilities of Christian Leaders:
1) Hold firmly to the Trustworthy message
a. In order to know the trustworthy message- we have got to be in the
word
b. We must educate ourselves in scripture
c. Our spiritual growth MUST BE our #1 Priority
2) Encourage
others to live in Truth (sound doctrine)
a. Again-
we have to know what scripture says in order to do this.
3)
Refute
those who oppose it!!!
The third responsibility is the one many of us do not like to
do….so lucky for us, this is the one we are going to focus on today. If number
three isn’t something practiced in our church, in our class, in our small
group, and amongst Christian communities, then the first two responsibilities
will not be as powerful. They will begin to lose significance, become routine,
and taken for granted. Ignoring this responsibility may also be an indication
that Christ is not our first priority.
Now in order for me to address
this issue, I have to make it clear, that this message is meant for the church
body- or for individuals that claim Christ as their savior. I also have to
admit that I am guilty of ignoring this responsibility. I don’t want to be the
unpopular girl, I like being invited to all the social scenes and I like having
tons of friends, so I kind of dance around this responsibility and think… “oh
as long as I am living how Christ wants me to live, then others will see I am
different and my witness can be through my love and actions- not my words. I
catch myself asking who am I to address these things with her or him? I have a
past… I too have been involved in things I shouldn’t have been… so surely God
will use someone else…I mean wouldn’t it be hypocritical for me to tell them
something is wrong when I have been guilty of similar things?? I think God just
wants me to love them and invite them to church.”
I think this is false because we see throughout the bible:
God has forgiven our past in order to share his grace and mercy with others.
2 Corinthians 12:9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you,
for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the
more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.
Going back
to the instruction given to Titus to refute those who oppose the truth doesn’t
mean condemn them and it doesn’t mean judge them. The Greek word for "refute" is epitimao- which oddly
enough means to “put honor or importance upon something.” By refuting we are
putting importance on accountability and also we are putting honor on a
different set of choices. We can make godly statements by drawing attention to
godliness.
We are to examine our own lives but then, as a
body of believers, we are called to address these things in the lives of each
other- not out of judgment or arrogance, but out of love!
If we go back to
the first verse of our text, it tells us that: As a servant of God and an
apostle of Jesus Christ, we are to: further
the faith and knowledge of truth that leads to godliness—in the hope of eternal
life.
To further God’s
Kingdom, I have to live and SPEAK the truth. Sometimes I wonder if I really
understand what that means… Because I
thought I did… but I really don’t know if I do, because if I did, then my words
and my actions would look a WHOLE LOT DIFFERENT.
I sometimes catch
myself thinking, well it is 2013… sex outside of marriage, homosexuality,
abortion… (the list could continue)… those things have most definitely become
acceptable outside the church, but sadly they are sometimes viewed acceptable
even inside the church. ESPECIALLY IN SINGLE LIFE! So, if I verbalize my
beliefs and stand for what is biblical, then it is basically guaranteed that no
one outside the church walls will accept me, and actually many inside the
church walls will think I am being narrow minded. So am I the one that is
wrong? Do I need to modify my views to better align with the time?
Many people might
say: “You must become more like them in
order to win them.” I sometimes believe this, but that is what Satan wants me to
believe. Although you may think there is truth to the statement, I believe the
true statement should be: “You must love them in order to win them.”
We
are to love all kinds of people: believers, non-believers, homosexuals,
adulterous, drunks, liars… However, the way we love people isn’t by becoming
like them or passively accepting their practices. We love them by sharing
Christ with them. When we truly love others, the way Christ calls us to love
others, their joy & the benefits Christ wants to share with them become
more important than what they think about us.
1 Cor. 6:9-11: Or do you not know
that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor
adulterers nor men who have
sex with men
nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what
some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the
Spirit of our God.
In this passage, it is clear that our sins can
keep us from eternal life with Christ; however we should not be discouraged
because in verse 11 it says: “That is where you WERE- but you WERE washed,
sanctified, & justified.” Shouldn’t we want to share this kind of grace
& mercy with others?
Thinking of Single
life, I know many of us struggle in these “grey areas;” however, none of us
really wants to address them. A lot of these things get swept under the rug.
One topic in particular, that I think our age group probably struggles most
with, is premarital sex. Since our church just wrapped up a series on sex I
guess it is appropriate to go there…but I really hoped I would never have to
talk this issue in a room full of young adults- so I keep it brief.
I believe God
designed sex for marriage in order to protect us. Many will say: “We love each
other, we are going to get married eventually, we are physically attracted to
each other, and Girl don’t you know it is 2013?”
Well
I mean, that is kind of a valid point. This world, your friends, your
co-workers, maybe even your parents will have arguments that sound reasonable.
As a Christian community, if we are not diving into God’s word, if we are not
encouraging each other, and if we are not keeping each other accountable, then
we might begin to change our views. When we are not in scripture and when our
eyes are not on Christ’s kingdom, then we can easily be enticed by the ways of
the world.
Also, When I dig into scripture, when our other
teachers: Will and Jarred dig into scripture, when Lindsey, Rachel, or the
other small group leaders dig into scripture, it isn’t only for our own sake,
but for the sake of people in this class and other believers. When scripture is
a priority in our lives, we can encourage someone who is struggling in this
area. We can lead others to verses like the one we just read in 1 Corinthians,
explaining that Christ wants to wash us clean! But we can also look at scriptures
that explain why we are given specific instructions: look at 1 Thessalonians 4
(vs. 4-8)
1 Thessalonians 4: 4-8
“It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you
should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control your
own body in a way that is holy and honorable, not in
passionate lust like the pagans, who do not know God; and that in
this matter no one should wrong or take advantage of a brother or sister. The
Lord will punish all those who commit such sins, as we told you and warned you
before. For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy
life. Therefore, anyone who rejects this instruction does not reject a human
being but God, the very God who gives you his Holy Spirit.
By knowing
and reading these verses we can share that God wants us to learn while we
are single, how to possess & control our bodies. God knows that as
single adults, we have a desire to be sexually active- and we see in 1 cor.
That we can be forgiven for our mistakes; however, God wants us to learn RIGHT
NOW- how to control our passions! So as we learn how to say no to our flesh, it
will preserve us for marriage. If we don’t learn how to control our flesh or
our worldly passions as singles, then we will never be able to A) put Christ
above our own desires or B) put our spouse (or others) above ourselves.
As a class, as a
body of Christ, this is what fellowship looks like. Paul tells us to focus on
the wonderful treasures of living in Christ. I am very confident that HIS
blessing whether it be here on earth or in heaven, His blessing will be FAR
better than whatever fun this world offers. Don’t yall want to be part of a
community that practices fellowship like that- a community that is more
concerned with God’s eternal gifts than the temporary pleasures of this world?
This concept
applies to any “grey area.” Whatever we might be involved in- it is time to first
address it in our own lives, but then share this kind of freedom with the body
of Christ. Lets not allow the world win us, but we should live for the Truth-
so that we can win the world!!
For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is
destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven. 2 Corinthians 5:1
This verse basically wraps up our lesson today.
If our earthly tent is destroyed- meaning we don’t see all the pleasures and
rewards of this world, it is OK! All this world has to offer is a temporary
tent. But God is building us an eternal mansion that will last forever! So what
are you going to live for? A temporary tent or an eternal mansion?
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