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[0:00] I'm turning if you go to Titus chapter 2. Titus chapter 2.!

[0:18] When I was at Cornhill 20 years ago, and there was a man who was a little bit older than me.! During morning prayers, he announced his wife was pregnant and that it was going to be a little boy.

[0:34] Somebody asked him in our prayer room, what are you going to call him? And he said, I want to call him Athanasius. And that same person said to him, what does your wife think?

[0:46] He said, well, she's not so sure. Six months later, little Joshua was born. But I remember thinking, Athanasius is a great name for a son. If I have another son, I'll call him Athanasius.

[1:01] Athanasius was a great man in the 4th century. And he stood up to probably the most effective heretic in the life of the early church. A man called Arius. Arius had three qualities about him.

[1:15] First of all, Arius was a nice man. Heretics are nearly always nice people. Secondly, Arius had a reason on his side.

[1:26] He argued that if the son, Jesus, is the son of the father, there must have been a time when the son was not. Therefore, the son must be inferior to the father.

[1:40] He didn't understand that father and son express a relationship of the same nature. And the third thing that Arius could do is apparently he could write music.

[1:53] He could set his error to music. And once Christians start singing error, well, in the next generation, they'll start believing what they sing. And Athanasius stood up to him.

[2:05] And in the 4th century, virtually the whole church was an Arian church. Somebody on one occasion famously said to Athanasius, Nobody believes what you believe, Athanasius.

[2:17] The whole world is against you. And Athanasius responded, in that case, it is Athanasius against the world. It's a big challenge, and it's always a big challenge, that you will find leaders for Christian churches and institutions.

[2:38] And the big challenge that is always there for the church is to make concessions where concessions cannot be made.

[2:49] We call it compromise. Athanasius lived through four Roman emperors. He was exiled in the desert on five different occasions. He was cut off from his family. He was cut off from his friends.

[3:03] And it must have been like that for Titus. Titus was confronted with a brutal culture. And last week we saw, didn't we, an infiltrated, compromised church.

[3:13] And no one finds it easy to stand out. No one. The whole world is against you, Titus. Well, in that case, it is Titus against the whole world.

[3:25] And this evening we come to the second chapter. Just look at those first four words. They are brilliant, aren't they, in chapter two. But as for you.

[3:37] It's really obvious that what Paul is going to say to Titus, he's saying it is going to be costly. But as for you. It may well be, Titus, that you will have to stand alone.

[3:47] But as for you. You show a healthy regard. You teach what it calls, what agrees with sound doctrine. And so Titus must respect the trust that has been placed in him.

[4:03] He's been trusted with the message. Remember that, chapter one, verse four. And he must respect that by teaching what accords with sound, wholesome doctrine. So let's look at what the strategy involves.

[4:14] Verse two. You are to teach older men. Verse three. You are to teach older women. Who will in turn train the younger women.

[4:27] Verse four and five. Verse six. He is to encourage, urge the younger man. That is, he's to get alongside them.

[4:38] Verse seven. He is to recognize that he himself. Show yourself. He is on display as a model of good works. And so you have gender and age.

[4:54] Don't you? Older men, verse two. Older women, verse three. Younger women, verse four and five. Younger men, verse six. And then he brings in a vocational category. Verses nine and ten. He speaks about slaves.

[5:07] This is paideia, pastoral strategy. Whether it's urban or whether it's rural. Whether it's inner city or outer city.

[5:19] This is exactly the same. God calls on leaders. And he expects them to be like Titus. And like the Apostle Paul. To be experts in people.

[5:31] Do you understand people? Do you understand men? Do you understand women? Do you understand the challenge that young men? Old women. Young women face. There was a conference not long ago.

[5:46] And one minister. He had to share something about encouraging. About your church. And he said. Our church is doing really well. And is growing in the age group.

[5:57] Of 85 plus. And he said. We do really, really well with old people. Except for my listeners. But I can't tell you the number of people that I meet.

[6:08] That will say to me. Well that church does follow old people. Geriatrics. And so the question. For those churches. Is how you pastor in geriatrics. Right.

[6:20] Our churches. That have congregations of 85 plus. We're a nation of the reputation. Shouldn't they? Of doing the best food rules. Um. Of any denomination. Because there's not so many old people.

[6:33] And I think it's very important. Isn't it? To lead in my preaching. Myself. As much as I know. To say. That we don't take taste to God. Who are the people in front of you? The people in front of you. Who you pastor.

[6:44] That God has placed in front of you. Now notice in verse 2. The older men. Have particular needs. Yes. Teach the older men.

[6:54] Titus. Titus. You are young. They are old. Don't avoid them. I don't think they're just too sad in their ways. Look what he says. He says. Teach them to be.

[7:05] Sober minded. And not extreme. Uh. To be dignified. To be self-controlled. To be rooted in the truth.

[7:16] And that's going to show itself. Um. In love. And be solid. Be steadfast. Don't avoid them. Teach them. So the reality is this.

[7:28] Isn't it? Older men can be insensitive. Like talk too much. That's what my dad was. He said. Well think about it from our perspective.

[7:39] He said. You've got a whole. Life experience. You've got so much to share. At a time when no one wants to listen to you. And so he said.

[7:50] It's easy to get angry. I've got a friend who's got a bible study group for older men in the church. Do you know what it's called? The grumps. They don't mind that.

[8:02] And old men can get extreme and frustrated. I was talking to another friend. I said. Do you have any men like this? He said.

[8:12] No. I wish I had some. So go out and teach these older men. They are to be self-controlled. What about older women? Verse 3. They are to be reverent.

[8:26] In behaviour. They are to be temples living close to God. They are to watch their tongue. Not slanderers.

[8:37] And not to have too much alcohol. But to watch that. Both of which were freely available in Crete. It's quite a time of life isn't it?

[8:49] I'm sure. Everyone has left the household. The household that used to be full of conversation. Now isn't full of conversation anymore.

[9:01] So get out and talk to someone. But the great problem is. And the great danger is. That you're out talking to someone. You'll be involved in slanderous activity. And watch your consumption of alcohol.

[9:12] When the guard is down. Be very careful. And teach what is good. Self-disciplined. That is. You can't teach what you are not. So look at verses 4 to 5.

[9:26] It says. You older woman. You go out and you train. You invest in the younger women. Now that takes time. And you develop in the younger women. An attitude of love.

[9:37] For their husband. For their children. For their children. I love that isn't it? Sometimes younger women need to be taught. To love their husbands.

[9:48] And their children. Verse 5. They should be self-controlled. Pure. And working.

[9:59] And working. At home. Lady Wisdom. In Proverbs 31. She is busy. Isn't she? Lady Wisdom. In Proverbs 31. She is busy in business.

[10:11] She is an entrepreneur. But the home doesn't suffer. And Paul is concerned. That the younger women. Not be idle. She is to be kind. She is to be submissive. And if she has to work.

[10:21] A good deal. Outside of the home. She is to make sure. That the husband and children. In the home. Don't suffer. Because of that. Notice. I just noticed this. She is to be.

[10:31] Submissive. To her own husband. Not everybody else's husband. And that is an important aspect. To be subject.

[10:42] What does that mean? The word is to be respectful. And the opposite of the word. Subject. Is to be resistant. That helps us I think.

[10:53] Where you resist. Your husband's leadership. We are not to do that. We are not to be people like that. But to be respectful. And encouraging. Of our husband's leadership. Now notice that Titus is not.

[11:06] He is not saying. Is it. See to it husbands. That you make your wife. Subject. To them. Rather. The young one. Make every effort. It is the middle voice.

[11:16] This is something. That they are to do themselves. They respect their husbands. And they encourage their husbands. In leadership. And for that. Self discipline. Is required. Verse 6. Is very clear.

[11:27] Isn't it? Likewise. Urge the younger men. To be self-controlled.

[11:42] Combinations. Can be dangerous. So. A naked flame. A petrol station. That's a dangerous thing. A weak swimmer.

[11:54] And a beautiful. Inviting. Rolling surf. That's a dangerous combination. And pulling poison.

[12:05] In a soft drink. That's a dangerous combination. And a peer group. Of liars. Evil brutes. Lazy gluttons. And young men. That's a dangerous combination.

[12:16] Because that peer group. At Crete. Will influence. How you think about money. And how you think about food. And how you think about sex. And how you think about money.

[12:29] And to force us. Very, very clearly. Urge. Encourage. Young men. To be self-controlled. Do not.

[12:40] Trust. Yourself. Especially. Be self-controlled. When you're with your peer group. When you're with your mates. I love the story.

[12:51] The young man. Who goes to his old pastor. And he says. To his aged pastor. He says. Oh pastor. When will I cease. To be afflicted. With the temptations. Of the flesh. And the young man says.

[13:03] I wouldn't trust myself. Until I've been dead. Three days. Don't be self-trusting. No matter what age you are. Blokes. Putting their arms.

[13:15] Around the girls. Saying. She's young enough. To be my granddaughter. She's not your granddaughter. Get your arm off her. Do not.

[13:25] Be self-trusting. Be. Self-controlled. And now. Paul turns his attention. To one young man. Verses. I'm seven. And. Luther said.

[13:37] The most vital. An organ. The body. Is the ear. Because. The ear. Faith comes by hearing. But we need to realise. That actually. In the life of pastors. And leaders. That.

[13:48] People have eyes too. And therefore. He says in verse seven. He's saying. His leader. You be a model. You be a model. Of integrity.

[13:59] And dignity. And sound speech. And even. Though you're young. You be careful. Of your peer group. There are people.

[14:10] That measure. The success of Simon. By how many laughs. You get. That's all it's about. You be a model. Of sound speech. And good behaviour. And seriousness. Then Paul goes on.

[14:22] In verses nine and ten. He speaks to slaves. To a vocation. Who said. That the population of Rome. Was 19% slaves. In the first century. People who were kind of. Under some kind of bondage.

[14:33] And you can imagine. What it's like in Crete. We spoke about it last week. They were mercenaries. They would go and fight. In a foreign army. If you paid them enough gold. Or you could pay them in grain.

[14:47] Or you could pay them in people. So here. It takes them. And fight. And prisoners of war. Take the slaves. You can help them. You take them back to Crete. And notice.

[14:57] That these people. May well join the church. Teach them. And. Verses nine and ten. Bond savers.

[15:11] Are to be submitted. To their own masters. In everything. They are to be well pleasing. Not argumentative. Not pilfering. Not stealing. But showing all good faith. Teach them.

[15:22] To be really good slaves. Titus. Jeremiah. Do you remember. He said. Israel. You are going into exile. Be really good exilers. Work for the good of the city.

[15:34] Be a blessing. Slaves. And to your household. Work in such a way. That your masters. Will come to depend upon you. This is godliness.

[15:46] This is. The mark of gospel maturity. According to gender. According to age. And yes. Even according to vocation. You teach Titus.

[15:56] You urge Titus. You train Titus. Notice what Paul has. Done so far. He's telling Titus. What to do. But I want you to notice.

[16:09] That the apostle Paul. Never tells what. Without why. I think that's one of the most. Encouraging things. About the Christian life. The Christian life. Is. Reasonable.

[16:19] And rational. God never tells you. What. And without also. Telling you why. That's a great message. Isn't it. For us who are parents.

[16:31] When you're raising. Children. I suppose. Particularly adolescents. You tell them. What. Let's do. But we mustn't forget. To tell them. Why. Let's do it. Look at verse 5.

[16:43] Why should women. Live in such. A counter-cultural way. Why. Verse 5. So that the word. Of God.

[16:55] May not be reviled. Maligned. Or disrespected. People will look at that woman. And she'll say.

[17:07] Do you know what. I like what the gospel does. I like what I see. Why should Titus. Be a model of good work.

[17:17] So in verse 8. So that an opponent. May be put to shame. Having nothing evil. To say about us. What a privilege.

[17:29] To be led. By a young. Gospel driven person. Why should slaves. Be well pleasing. Look at verse 10. So that in everything. They may adorn.

[17:40] The doctrine of God. Our saviour. Literally. The word is. Cosmeticized. Cosmetics. You know. They make you.

[17:51] Should make you look beautiful. That they might make the doctrine. Of our God and saviour. Attractive. By their faithful respect. For masters. And all of these what's.

[18:03] And none of these what's. Is so that you and I. Might earn a relationship with God. It's never that is it. They are all the fruit. Of a relationship with God.

[18:14] They are all the fruit. Of a relationship. That we have with almighty God. The what. And the why. So let me put it to you. That the gospel. Of the Lord Jesus Christ.

[18:27] Itself. Creates the change. And the transformation. Which is its own. Best advertisement. I bang this drum.

[18:40] Quite often. But I have real. Concerns. With churches. That have. An older people service. At kind of. Nine o'clock. And then a family service. At eleven. And then a student service.

[18:52] At six o'clock. And then an afternoon service. For those whose kids play sport. In the morning. And like to watch TV. On Sunday night. Because.

[19:03] I believe. And I think the New Testament. Clearly teaches. That church should be a mixture. Of old. And young. Men and women. Rich and poor. And I think we need to be.

[19:14] Very careful. About filleting. Our worship services. Too carefully. Because we all have a part of the place. And when we're all together. Like that. The church.

[19:24] Grows. It's a little bit messy. It's a little bit slower. It's a little bit harder. But the church thrives. In that way. And we learn. From one another. I think last week.

[19:36] We thought. Didn't we. How do you get from. Chapter one. That and verse twelve. Do you remember that? Cretans. Prophet of their own descent. Liars. Evil brutes. Lazy glutton.

[19:47] How do we get from there. Chapter two. Verse twelve. To living self-controlled. Upright and godly lives. And I want you to notice. It's not by rules. It's not by regulations.

[19:58] It's not by genealogies. It's not by religious rights. They were no help in creation. Now let's think of it in another way. The first generation.

[20:08] That becomes Christians. Full of life. And godly. The second generation. That follows them. Is knowledgeable.

[20:20] Often more knowledgeable. The third generation. The third generation. Is worldly. Proclaiming.

[20:31] The gospel. Generation one. Assuming the gospel. Generation two. Denying the gospel. Generation three. How do you stop that pattern.

[20:41] Happening. That's where Paul comes in now. The verses 11 and 14. How do you keep a church on track. I said to you. I think the key to Titus. Is the long sentences. And there's one long sentence.

[20:53] Chapter one. One in chapter two. Chapter three. And so. The big one in chapter one. Is one to four. And the big one in chapter two. Is 11 to 14. Wonderful. Wonderful verses. It's one complete sentence.

[21:05] And the subject of the one complete sentence. Is the grace of God. This is the way you are to live. Because. Verse 11. The grace of God has appeared.

[21:19] And so in this verse. Paul is going to tell you something about the past. And then he's going to tell you something about the present. And then he's going to tell you something about the future. It's one long sentence.

[21:31] The grace of God has appeared. And so the incarnation when God became man. Was not a reward for good behaviour. It is contrary to our deserving. God does not shout down advice to you from afar.

[21:45] He comes down in the person of his son. And he comes down in the person of his son. To bring salvation. The grace of God has appeared. Bringing what? Salvation. To all people.

[21:57] To every single person. Without discrimination. Of course not. It's to all kinds of people. All sorts of different kinds of people. How does that work?

[22:07] Well the Lord Jesus Christ. He comes and lives the perfect life. And that is the basis for everything that he will do. And he goes to the cross. And he dies a death in our place. A death he did not deserve.

[22:19] Because he lived a perfect life. But he took upon himself. Our imperfection. Our sin. Our demerits. And he was able to bear the penalty for a broken law.

[22:31] For our sin. That you and I don't have to. So at the cross. At the cross. What God does. Is that he does justice to his justice.

[22:44] God cannot forgive you on just a whim. No judge. Does that. Can do that. But God provides for you. In his son.

[22:55] His perfect son. The just ground for forgiveness. And our salvation. So Paul says in verse 11. Because the grace of God.

[23:05] That brings salvation. Has appeared. Now. Look at verse 12. There's a present. That same grace. Which saved us. Now trains us.

[23:19] The grace of God. Does not leave. A person. Saved. But in an immature state. We say to people.

[23:33] Don't we. Or we haven't seen them for ages. Some people. I went. Lots of us. A lot like this. But we say. You haven't trained a bit. And when we say that. We mean that.

[23:43] Don't we. As a real compliment. To them. But spiritually. Somebody sees you 20 years later. And they say to you. Oh you've not changed a bit. That is. That is a terrible thing.

[23:54] That is something to be ashamed of. Because. The grace which trains. The grace which saves. Is the grace which trains us. It does not leave us. Saved. But immature. It coaches us.

[24:05] That's another way of putting it. And what does the grace of God. Coaches us to do. It coaches us to renounce. To say no. And say yes. To say no. To ungodliness.

[24:17] And worldly passions. And to say yes. To self-control. Upright and godly lives. The same grace. That saved.

[24:29] Is the same grace. That coaches. That coaches us. In the person. Of the Holy Spirit. Another way. The New Testament. Says. It says that. In the Christian life.

[24:39] You. You. You take off. And you put on. And so you take off. Your old life. And you put on. A new life. And here the grace of God. Does the same thing.

[24:50] Every morning. You. You. You take off. Your old clothes. You put on. Your new clothes. And here the grace of God. Says. Teaches you. To say no.

[25:00] To ungodliness. But to say yes. To. Self control. And this. Look at verse 13. Is the life. We live. As we wait. We wait.

[25:11] For another appearing. This time. The glorious. Appearing. Of our God. And saviour. Jesus Christ. So can you see. Verse 11. The grace of God.

[25:22] Appeared. Bringing salvation. Verse 13. We are awaiting. Salvation. In the past.

[25:33] God appeared to save us. In the present. God coaches us. That we should be godly. And in the future. We look to the appearing. Of the great day. Our great God. And saviour. So verse 14.

[25:45] This saviour. Jesus Christ. Who gave himself. For us. To redeem us. From all lawlessness. And to purify for himself. A people for his own possession. Sell us. For good works. So can you just notice.

[25:56] What the emphatic is. In verse 14. What's the emphatic. He gave himself. To redeem us. A people for himself.

[26:07] His own possession. He has purchased us. He has bought us. With the perfect life. Of his son on the cross. He's included us. And brought us into his family. And now.

[26:19] We get to show the family liking us. How do we do that? By being zealous. Of good works. Eager to do what is good. You can underline this.

[26:33] I think it's clear. Look at verse 3. The older women have to teach what is good. And verse 7. Titus is to do what is good.

[26:48] Now verse 14. We are to be zealous. For good works. For good works. As we look to the future.

[27:06] We know that there is a life. That is beyond this life. And we know that we are preparing for that. And we are living in the light of his coming. By being good and doing good.

[27:20] Why did grace come? Grace came to purchase us. To be God's own. To be eager. To do good works. So why should older men be sober minded? Why should older women be reverent? Why should younger women love their husbands and their children?

[27:33] Why should younger men be self-controlled? Why should slaves be honest? Well because we have been purchased. And we have been bought. And there is another world.

[27:45] And our redeemer is going to return from there. And we will give an account to him. And so we live don't we? Between the first and the second appearing of our Lord Jesus.

[27:57] We are redeemed. And the profound motivation. The great why. Why we live the way we do. Is because we have been purchased. And we are waiting for his return.

[28:08] Why? So the general belief in this country. Is this isn't it? If people believe in religion. Or they think this is what religion teaches. They say. If you are good in this life.

[28:19] You will earn salvation in the next. Are you doing your way to heaven. Just by being good? And so when I go to visit people in hospitals.

[28:29] Sometimes on their deathbed. I don't know how many times. They have said to me. Oh I don't know whether I have been good enough. But the reality is. You haven't. You haven't been good enough.

[28:42] But Jesus Christ is perfect. You see. We know that we have no will. We have no way. Ourselves. Of getting from 112 to 12.

[28:56] We are careful I think. To tell the world. That God's standard is perfection. And that is right. But I think we probably allowed. This emphasis on good works.

[29:09] To slip through our fingers. We've said to the world. And we say clearly to the world. It is not by good works. That you are saved. But we haven't reminded ourselves.

[29:22] Of the important part. In God's economy. Of doing that which is good. And the great mark. Of being in the family. Of God. Is that we're zealous.

[29:33] For good works. And so. As you studied in the house groups. And you picked that up. That eight times. In this letter. Of Titus.

[29:43] To Titus. Paul talks about doing good. Being good. As the fruit. Not the root. Of our relationship. With Christ. Christ alone.

[29:56] Is good enough. He lived the perfect life. He redeemed us. And the fruit. Of having a relationship. With the Lord Jesus. Is that now we live. A waiting life. That we're zealous.

[30:07] To do good. And so. The children's hymn. He died. That we might be forgiven. He died. To make us good.

[30:19] That we might go at last. To have him. And saved by his precious. But it's really excellent theology. Are you looking for opportunities. To be good this week? I was at the retirement of a theologian.

[30:37] A few years ago. He was in change. When he's. Kind of. On his retirement. About what he would do. In his retirement.

[30:47] And he said. I'm going to live. By the three motifs. Which I've always lived. That's how professors speak. Is it? What teaches me. Themes. The three themes. I'm going to live by.

[31:00] Which I've always lived. Don't whine. Don't shine. Don't recline. Don't whine. Don't complain about your loss in life.

[31:17] I think that's been. One of the really encouraging things. Over the last few days. How do we whinge. When we hear. What our brothers and sisters. Are going through. People.

[31:28] Say things like. I find it very hard. To be thankful. I want to kick them in the shins. It's ridiculous. Stop. Stop. Whinging. Don't shine.

[31:41] Don't. Seek to excel. In a way. That's obvious to others. And don't recline. Don't be weary. In well doing. Never be weary. In good doing.

[31:55] So I'm interested. I think. I think. What I want. To say. Let's be opportunistic. Let's be opportunistic. Believers. Always looking. For opportunities. To do good.

[32:08] There are some people out there. They're like. Budding entrepreneurs. And they see. Opportunities. Well let's be. Opportunistic believers. Looking for opportunities.

[32:19] To do that. Which is good. And if you were brought up. In a Christian home. What did your mum or dad. Pray for you. Before you went to school. I'm always interested in that. Do you pray for your children.

[32:30] Before they go to school. It's normally. Pretty much the same prayer. Is it. Let's be honest. And. A friend of mine. His dad. Used to pray this. O God.

[32:41] Give us today. Hearts. Which are clean. Humble. And alert. To the good things. Which you prepared for us to do. It's a good prayer isn't it.

[32:52] It's a great prayer actually. O God. Give us today. Hearts. Which are clean. Humble. And alert. To the good things. Which you prepared for us to do.

[33:02] That this week. I might have a clean heart. A mind. That I might have a humble. And not a proud heart. That I have an alert.

[33:16] And opportunistic attitude. To the things that are going on around me. As an opportunity to do good. To be zealous. To do good. Verse 15. Declare these things.

[33:30] Exhort. Push people on it. And rebuke. Tell people when they're not doing it. With all authority. Don't give anyone any grounds.

[33:40] Don't let anyone despise you. There it is. Reform the church. Transform the culture. Two points. Verses 1 to 10.

[33:53]  This is what you do. Verses 11 to 15. This is why you do what you do. Let's pray.