The book of Titus is Pauls pastoral letter to Titus and the members of the church in Crete, after Paul had completed his third missionary journey and had been released from his first imprisonment in Rome. The church was full of Jews who were trying to undermine the gospel with their native beliefs and various ideas unique to the island, and there were many residents who were indifferent to the gospel because they were economically prosperous due to their active trade, so they easily fell into lewdness and laziness. Paul left Titus, whom he loved and cherished enough to call his son, to take on the rest of his mission. In todays lesson, well look together at what we should leave behind and pass on to our children.
First, we should show that there is something entrusted to you and me.
Paul uses the unique phrase 'servant of God' rather than 'servant of Jesus' or 'servant of Christ' as he had introduced himself in his other letters. The reason for this is that many of the recipients of his letters are Jews who do not recognize Jesus and believe in only one God. From the very beginning of sharing the gospel, the apostleship is not disrespected, and it is not about right or wrong, but only about sharing the gospel. It is important to read the heart and mind of the one person to whom you are going to share the gospel and see and know what is important to him, even if it does not make sense by your standards. Paul explains how he got the opportunity to preach the gospel and why he was called an apostle: to preach faith in Jesus, the knowledge of Jesus, and the hope of eternal life. He says, 'In his own time he manifested his word in preaching, which preaching was entrusted to me by God our Savior, as he commanded me' (v. 3), and Titus followed the same faith and became a true son of Paul (v. 4). Evangelism is the spreading of Gods word and is the distinct purpose of life for those who have been saved and sent. The reason God gave us the Word and brought us to repentance as hopeless sinners is to send us on a mission. We must never lose sight of this purpose in life. Titus, a Greek left behind in Crete, could have been ignored, shunned, and threatened with death as a Gentile among the Jews, but he saw Paul, a persecutor of believers in Jesus, living a life of holding on to the Word and preaching the gospel after he was saved. Pauls life of living the Word was passed on to Titus. Only the Word lived by the Word is passed on to the next generation. Dont be ashamed of your circumstances or your past, but make decisions based on the Word and pass on a life of repentance to your children. In a life full of temptations, your children will remember what you lived for. Paul didnt teach Titus how to cope, how to talk, or how to behave in a strange place. He made it clear to him that he had a job to do for the 'I' who left Crete and the 'you' who stayed behind, and he showed him how to go back into Rome and preach the gospel to the end, even being martyred.
Second, you need to show that your home is worth protecting.
The church was being planted on the island of Crete, a place where obscenity and falsehood abounded, and deciding who would lead the church became a top priority. While social skills and relational skills were important in a leader, Pauls most important criterion for a church worker was how they viewed their own home, because the first relationship God gave to man is the home. It is Gods will that we recognize the importance of the home. The core values of our church are 'meditating on the Word and repairing the home.' 'Repair' means to tear down and fix, but if there is always gratitude and satisfaction in the home, we would not use the words 'repairing the home, protecting the home.' It is not easy to protect the home .No home is perfect because the God who made it is 100% perfect and good, but we who run it are 100% sinners. When I recognize this and defend it without giving up when I face disappointment and betrayal in my home, I experience the amazing grace of repentance where my pride and boastfulness are broken and I cling to the Word. Thats why its worth defending. Not only does God know and remember how much we struggle and struggle and struggle to keep it, but so do our children.
When I was in middle school, my mother moved out of the house. My dad found out the fact that my mom ran away with her boyfriend and He traveled all over the country to find her. Because my mother was a small part of his life and he hadnt treated her properly, he repented and never gave up looking for her. I was a gambler, an alcoholic, a gang member, and a smuggler, but only the Lords grace has brought me to this place, and that grace is home. No matter how far I wandered, I had a family to go back to, and if my father had abandoned it, I would not be here today. There are many families whose stories and circumstances make them untenable, and there is no reason to keep them, but I believe that the perseverance of the saints who hold on and build their families will never fall to the ground.
Today we all gather in united worship. Our parental generation has a responsibility to instill biblical values in the homes that the next generation will raise. And God has given those of us who are left behind a mission to spread the word of God. The passage of a comprehensive anti-discrimination law, cunningly disguised in the name of equality and freedom, will shatter the order and roles of the home with confusion of identity. We should protect our children from the deception of worldly values. The home must be defended. May the next generation know that the purpose of life is holiness, not happiness, and may they decide and apply Gods Word, not the ways and wisdom of the world. May todays corporate worship be a time to proclaim the gospel by our lives and make a will of faith. We fervently pray that you will deliver our children from the deceitfulness of the wicked law.
