Gracious Heavenly Father, thank you again for our time together to worship and ask for your mercy and your kindness upon us as we study your word, that it would be a benefit to all who are here today, that they would be blessed by it and grow and be better worshipers of your Son. Help us, Lord, to In a study like this, I take every thought captive in obedience to Christ, that we may honor You. In Jesus' name, Amen. Alright. Well, you'll have to forgive me ahead of time. I've got a head cold, so if I wix up murders or put the emphasis on the wrong syllables in my sermon, I trust you will overlook those mistakes. So today, we are going to be in Titus 2, if you'll turn with me there. Continuing our study of marriage. Titus 2. And we had that as our Scripture reading this morning so that we could get the entirety of the context, really just the duties of Christians of all ages. So if we are members of the body of Christ, of course, there is always something for us to do. The Lord has a calling on us so that we can serve and love one another. So let's get into our passage. Let's read it. Primary verses this morning are going to be 3-5. Older women likewise are to be reverent in their behavior, not malicious gossips, nor enslaved to much wine, teaching what is good so that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be sensible, pure workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands so that the Word of God will not be dishonored. go through the resurrection of Jesus Christ according to the Gospel of John, and I think it's very useful really in any kind of preaching to reflect on the resurrection because everything that we are commanded to do comes from the platform of living the risen life. That we obey all of these commands from the standpoint of the resurrection of Jesus Christ and are partaking with Him in that resurrection life. These are instructions from Titus to new creations. people who have, through the redeeming work of the Holy Spirit, who have put off the old and daily put on Christ and make no provision for the flesh. So we are, of course, in reforming marriage. And by reforming, we do not mean to overthrow or deconstruct marriage, but rather when we say we are reforming, that is simply a call to return to the practice of something as God originally designed and intended. And it is to honor that beautiful design that God has set forth in the pages of Scripture. So that is our standard, that is our start and our end. And as we say, I think we understand this, that reformation, reforming anything, is never easy. There's always going to be bumps along the way. Sometimes it's going to be two steps back, one step forward. And yet, We do this with perseverance. We do this with endurance. And I think those bumps along the way represent that resistance from those who are disobedient, right? They're disobedient to Scripture. And also in addition to our own failures. We recognize that we are still fallen creatures. We are being redeemed. We are being sanctified. And so, yes, these things are difficult. But if we do have the mind of Christ, And indeed we have been born again and our focus is on Him. We're looking unto Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. We can be confident that these things will bear much fruit. We are confident that the Lord will provide for us an obedient heart which delights in His ways, which desires to follow His Word, And even though we may fail at these instructions, we understand that the Lord will continue to provide and to do His work in our individual lives, as well as our lives as husbands and wives. So this faithful endurance and pursuit of righteousness in marriage, I am confident will yield unmistakable fruit and blessing. And so, we've been talking a lot about, especially the last several weeks, about submission. The submission of wives, we've talked about the headship of husbands, we've started out there, spent several weeks there, and now we come to submission in wives. And so, we've kind of wrapped up that primary part, and yet we have to realize that in terms of the role or calling of the wife, submission is not the only thing that the wife does. It's not that a wife, be compliant, be submissive, and that is all. From this submissive position, or posture, or attitude, flow several other instructions for women, dealing both with actions and, I would say especially, with attitudes. And so Titus 2 lays the groundwork for that, and that's why we call the sermon, hey, don't forget Titus 2 too. Because there's a lot of great instruction in the New Testament regarding wives and women, and yet we don't want to leave Titus 2. This speaks volumes as to God's design for for men and women and not just that, but it actually divides them by age. So we see that as we grow, there is sort of a development that takes place when it concerns the call to men and women. Their respective roles and duties are not merely static. They're consistent, but they do develop. They don't stay exactly the same. And I think we see this pretty readily in our passage this morning where Paul begins by speaking to the older women in verse 3, and then of course, in verse 4, that flows down to the younger women. So there are responsibilities particularly suited for the age depending upon the woman in question and her age. And so, before we go on, we want to understand how this fits in with the rest of Titus 2. So really quickly, scan down to verse 11, because I think we will miss out on really the import of this passage if we skip this verse. But Titus 2 says this, For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men. And then on verse 12, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires, and to live sensibly, righteously, and godly in this present age. And of course, that's within this anticipated hope. This hope of the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus. And it kind of reminds us of 1 Peter 3 and what we went through in that chapter, where a godly woman's hope is ultimately in God. It's ultimately in Jesus Christ and not in her husband. So, there is a readiness here. There is a waiting. There is an anticipation of the Lord to return. And so, within the context of that great and glorious hope, we all operate according to what God has commanded us to do. What this does in particular, I think especially for women, is once again dispels the myth that women in particular are to look at these instructions as oppressive and misogynistic. Sort of as a law that only enslaves and terrorizes. We've talked about that. We've talked about the impact of all four waves of feminism and how it affects women and Christian women in particular. But we would say that this kind of teaching is not based on Oppression, it's not based in law, it is based in grace. So remember that. The instructions that are given to wives are gracious instructions. They are from the benevolent and loving heart of God who cares immensely for those whom He saves. And so He's giving women these commands for their good. For their good, and the good of their marriages, and ultimately to the glory of God. So these gracious instructions are to be seen as something that free, that really, truly liberate women to fulfill their calling as women and wives. And this is all a revelation of God's grace, revealed in Jesus Christ, who is grace incarnate. That is the grace in question that has appeared to all men. And really what this grace does is it frees every level of society, even slaves, even women. This would be particularly profound in a Roman society. It frees them to deny ungodliness and worldly desires, and as Paul says, to live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present age. So we can't forget that when we are discussing the intricacies of marital roles and duties, that we have to do so from the platform of grace. This is a gift of God. It is not meant to enslave and oppress. The grace of God is meant to free us to pursue righteousness, to pursue godliness, so that we can serve Him fully and with joy in this present age. And so let's just jump into the text. I don't really have a fancy outline today. I just want to walk through the text and kind of do some cleanup. Again, we've talked a lot about submission, but once again, we see submission in play. What does that look like in marriage? Is she just telling the husband, yes, my Lord, or no, my Lord? No, there's much more to it than that. And I think Titus 2 spells this out rather remarkably. So the first set of instructions are to older women, and I think we'll try get through this fairly quickly, but I think we can understand these instructions very, very clearly. Andreas Kostenberger remarks regarding older women. The restricted movements that are often brought about by advanced age make older people particularly susceptible to fill their days with pastimes such as drinking or gossiping. This calls for godliness and self-control. And so if you look at the text, verse 3, it says, Older women likewise. Now again, what was an older woman is probably differently understood than an older woman today. Of course, lifespans were not nearly as long back then as they are today. So I think rather than try to identify an exact, particular, scientific age of when a younger woman becomes an older woman, I think within the life of the church, we sort of allow that to develop organically. Not all women have children at the exact same age. There's going to be a different age regarding the transition between when a woman is primarily being discipled by another woman and when she actually becomes the discipler. And of course, I think a lot of this comes to fruition through a life lived by simple faithfulness, right? Living as God commands, being attentive, being careful, being godly, a godly influence in the church, especially to other women. And I think those things sort of just, they happen naturally as God provides. And so, of course, these instructions to older women, I think, are very clear. Women, likewise, are to be reverent in their behavior, reverent speaking of respectful behavior, I think, that comes from a fear of God. I think that's pretty well understood. They're to be known for that. There is to be a reputation developed that this elderly woman who is called to disciple younger women is first of all to fear the Lord. She is to be respectful. And I think that's a very good lesson, not only to women, but to men. And there is a potential pitfall In the church when it comes to age that when you reach a particular perceived age or a perceived point of Christian maturity There therein lies that temptation to think that you are somehow above it all you don't have to listen to others You don't have to take counsel, right? You don't have to subject yourself to the teaching that goes on in your church. You can kind of do what you want and say what you want. And yet the call here is to continue to be respectful and to be involved and to set an example. And here's the next one, and this goes on. Not malicious gossips. Not malicious gossips. Paul talks a lot about malice. Just general, evil, wicked, insightful behavior. And so not a slanderer. And so what's the warning here that is throughout Paul's writings? He says elsewhere in Timothy that this person does not pay attention to myths. They're not a busybody. They're not going around from house to house, making things up or shaking things up, saying things that do not need to be said. They're not a slander. And so what's the opposite of that? An older godly woman is a woman who is preoccupied with truth. Biblical truth. She is well-versed in the Word of God. She learns truth. She internalizes truth. She continues to seek out truth for the purpose of repeating and teaching the truth. I think this is something that is so important to instruct early on to our daughters, and then of course as they grow and develop into young women, to continue to inspire in them a hunger for the Word of God so that when they are older, they can speak the truth. And that is something that it must be trained. Whether man or woman, husband or wife, if you indulge in gossip, if you involve yourselves in things that are not your business, or if you just outright speak things that are not true, which we understand to be lying, then that is a dangerous position for you to be in, and you are putting other Christians in danger. because hardly anyone will come out and admit that they are a slanderer or a gossip or malicious or a liar. Many of these women in question who are busybodies and slanderers are unaware of that fact. They probably think they are doing a good thing. Oh, so-and-so needs to know this. Or I have nothing better to do, so I am going to go around and spread rumors. I'm going to be a tailbearer. And of course, older women are warned here not to do that. They're not malicious gossips. See, Paul puts it in the negative. Not malicious gossips. Rather, they are benevolent truth-tellers. They say that which is useful for building up and edifying other women. It also says, they are not enslaved to much wine. The malicious gossip. Compare this in your mind. Combine this in your mind. The malicious gossip and enslaved to much wine. A woman who sits around, says things that are none of her business, and is a drunk. She drinks too much wine because she has nothing better to do. You know what we call this in modern parlance? We call this the cat lady. The cat lady. You see, the Bible talks about everything. It doesn't miss a thing. This is the cat lady, and Paul is very clear here to women. Do not be a cat lady. Don't be a gossip. Don't be known for drinking in excess. Don't be a slave to wine. We understand wine is a good thing. It makes the heart merry. It's from the Lord. And yet, we are to take it in moderation and not get drunk with wine. And as Paul says in Ephesians 5, be filled with the Holy Spirit. So moving on, do not be enslaved to wine. And we would say here that women of this character, of this stock, are sure to stand out in an ungodly society. They will be remarkable. Hey, this person's in the church. They must be one of us. And so their slander actually brings slander against the gospel. And one of the reasons we know this is a remark that Paul makes in chapter 1 of Titus. He says, one of themselves, a prophet of their own, said, Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons. And so the theme of Titus, especially you men have been coming to the Titus Bible study, is finishing what remains. So Paul writes a letter to Titus, and tells them, hey, you need to set in order, verse 5, chapter 1, set in order what remains and appoint elders in every city as I directed you. So again, church planting, church building, getting structure, getting leadership, so that the church may continue to grow and flourish in Cretan society, which is a very pagan society. Paul says, go preach the gospel and advance the kingdom on the island of Crete. And then he lays out those qualifications for those men. And with those qualifications and responsibilities, that there are also responsibilities for young men, old men, young women, older women. So here's the next responsibility. And we've already talked about it a little bit. Teaching what is good, right? So this teaching what is good stands in direct opposition to being a malicious gossip and enslaved to much wine. Rather than be a busybody, set your heart and mind to teaching other women what you know. And we would certainly hope that as this woman has grown old and she's been involved in the church, And it's after years of faithful service, she knows the Word, she is competent to disciple other women, and so applies herself and her time toward that endeavor, rather than sitting around not having anything to do. I think that's a huge encouragement. There can be a particular disheartening discouragement that accompanies aging. And I think a lot of American society looks down on older folks and sees them as useless and irrelevant. That what they have to say is for a bygone era that really doesn't have a whole lot of relevance to our enlightened progressive era. And of course, Paul warns us, forget about that. God's truth stands for eternity. God's truth is always relevant and useful and powerful to save and sanctify. So he tells women, be a teacher, a teacher of what we could say good and noble things. This is simply women discipling women. And it's really encouraging to see a lot of that happening. Adamus wrote, as small as we are, that women are using their gifts to bless one another. I think in women's Bible study, was it once a month? There's this thing called Be Fruitful. I haven't been to one because I'm a man, but I've heard that it is really good. It is a very fruitful time where one woman will be selected and she will pass on a particular skill to the wider group of women. And so far it's been a great blessing. So it's visible, practical, concrete things like that where women can get together and instruct one another about what it looks like to be a godly wife, and we would say, too, a godly homemaker in this context. And so that is Paul's encouragement for women. And so, if we go down to verse 4, we see this purpose clause. that older women are to do these things so that they may be an encouragement to the young women. And as we've said many times before, godliness does not exist in a vacuum. Older women must be prepared. They must be schooled. They must be ready. And it's hard to pass on qualities and characteristics that an older woman herself does not possess. It's hard to teach reverence when you're not reverent. It's hard to teach discretion when you are a gossip. It's hard to teach what is good if you do not know what is good. It's hard to communicate that cats are, in fact, evil if you've got 20 of them running around your house. It's true. So this is what old women are supposed to do. And if you've got the question, well, who are you calling old? It does say old, and I'm not calling you old. Paul is calling you old. So there you have it. But there's a purpose clause here. Rather than being a discouragement to the younger women who are looking to you as an example, you are to be an encouragement to them. And of course, that means being available. It means being present. It means not being aloof and silent so that no one knows you're around. In His church, the Lord has a very useful design for you, and it is to be an encouragement to the younger women. And what are these encouragements? And there's a long list of them, to love their husbands, to love their children, to be sensible, pure workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands so that the Word of God will not be dishonored. So a quick note on this, being subject to their own husbands, we will not go in any real kind of depth today on that because we've spent already a few weeks going down that trail and studying it, I think, very specifically and very closely. But just to know that All of this relates to being subject and being submissive to their own husbands when it comes to loving them, when it comes to loving their children, to be sensible, pure workers at home, kind. All of those things connect with being subject to their husbands. Because all of these things are expressed within the context of submission, within the context of that calling and role that God has placed upon the wife. So this is it. So that. So here's the first thing. The first thing Paul brings up is love. And this is not the same kind of love as we discussed when it comes to a man loving his wife. We have said very concretely, and I want to emphasize this again today in a fresh way, is that the wife is never called to love her husband sacrificially. She is not called to mirror Christ's love for His church. That is the husband's duty. That is the husband's high calling and design expressed by his faithful headship over his wife. So a different Greek word altogether is used here. Rather than agape, phileo is used. Sort of a brotherly affection, a brotherly kindness and devotion is in view here. And so, the wife is to be attentive both to her husband and children in this affectionate and caring kind of way. So if you want to pay attention to this, this is where this encouragement is. for the young women to love their husbands and to love their children. And so, of course, loving the husband well is to fulfill the wifely task for him first. And, of course, this will assist and set an example. It'll give a picture to your children of what this love looks like. And whether your children are very young and as they grow and develop, they'll be able to testify later that your marriage, your love between one another, and particularly, wives, your love for your husband, brought unity, strength, and faithfulness in your marriage. And I believe that in the long run, normally, this makes your children less inclined to rebel, especially while they are living in your household. Children have this sort of divide-and-conquer mentality. Most of us can testify to this if we have multiples. If they see any kind of disunity in their parents' marriage, Yeah, they may get sad. They may wonder what's going on with mommy and daddy. If my wife and I are having a discussion, not even a disagreement or an argument, if we are just intensely discussing something, my little girl just falls apart. She thinks something is wrong. She senses that. But what kids often do as well is they then try to usurp. They try to take over. They see that disunity. They see that lack of strength. and camaraderie between their parents, and then they'll mount an offensive. And they'll try to overturn and undermine your authority in the home. And sometimes they succeed. Furthermore, children tend to copy and mimic what they see between their parents. So if you are in a loveless marriage with your husband, and you show no affection to him, and if you show no affection to one another, it will cultivate selfishness, I believe, and a lack of affection in your children. Your kids will. Your kids are watching you. And they will follow your example. And so wives are called to love their husbands. They're also called, same word used, to love their children. And here is where one of the big debates constantly rages. Is the issue of children. And we kind of went down this trail a bit when we were talking about the impact of feminism on women, especially on Christian women, and how that mindset, how that philosophy has just wreaked havoc, especially when it comes to the issues of sex and childbearing. Interesting stat, in 1970, the average age of childbearing, it's almost like you have to say, by a woman, The average age of childbearing in the U.S. was 21 years old. Now today, it is somewhere in the neighborhood of 30, and what that simply tells us, and there's hardly a need to argue it, but simply observe it, is that having children has become less of a priority. I got this stat from Wikipedia, and of course we know that anyone in the world can write anything on any subject, so you know you're getting the best information possible on Wikipedia. Okay. Love your children, it says. Love your children. Prioritize them. It's hard to love what you don't prioritize. It's hard to love or show affection toward things that are seen as, you know, people, little people that are seen as a hindrance. Little people that are seen as an irritation. It's really tragic the way that parents are encouraged to look at their children. It's not uncommon to hear women characterize their children, and even tongue-in-cheek, you've got to admit this is a little disturbing, to hear them characterize their children as little monsters, right? To convey some kind of disapproval or lack of satisfaction in their kids, rather than delighting in them and seeing them as a gift from God. Remember, you know, on that note, I remember when I used to work in the ER in LA and saw a lot of interesting things, and I was the ER phlebotomist, and so it was just me working around a ton of doctors and nurses. It was pretty daunting. Saw a lot of crazy stuff. But I remember having this random discussion with a nurse one day, and she was telling me that she was going to a high school reunion, and she'd been contacted by one of her friends. And she was rolling her eyes because she said that her friend had related to her, but she hadn't really pursued a career at all. She was a happy mom of, I think it was three or four kids. She was a homemaker. Her husband went to work and provided for the family. And she told me that upon hearing that, she just kind of rolled her eyes and said, well, if that's what you want, if that's what you want to pursue in life, and here she is, yes, a nurse, and nursing, of course, is a very valuable occupation, but Here is a woman who is a nurse, works in a very difficult environment, and she acts as if this woman somehow is failing to live to her highest potential, failing to achieve her hopes and dreams. And here is a woman who is single, lonely, constantly frustrated due to the various things that happen in an ER in Los Angeles. and looked down upon this woman for simply desiring to be a wife and a mom. You know, and I think there's a huge difference there. This woman who wants to be a wife and a mom, she's at home. She has one man who's running the house and telling her what to do. And this other woman who is really decrying the virtues of being a mom, she has to come into work every night and have 20 different men telling her what to do. And telling her how upset they are at the lack of good service in this hospital. It's very strange. that someone would somehow think that being a wife and a mother is just this second-class calling in life, when in fact it is the highest and most noble calling that God can place on a woman. And so I say that again to encourage you women to not ever question the goodness of being a wife and having children. It's a blessing from the Lord, and we'll see more on that in just a bit. But prioritize it. And so again, how do you love your children? We've talked about loving your man, providing a good home for him, taking care of him as he arrives home. With kids, I think I'll just break this down into a few things. Of course, with kids, you teach them, right? You be the primary teacher. You are not only responsible for teaching them the basic things of life, but you are responsible primarily for educating them. I think this is both a father and mother combined effort, combined duty. You know, we say if you really treasure your kids, why are you turning them over to Caesar day after day to be educated in a godless school system? We can't harp on that enough. It is your responsibility to train your kids up in the fear and admonition of the Lord, and I would say protect them from the things that compromise that. Do not send your children to a public school and think that somehow they're going to be this successful world-class missionary. That is not their responsibility. It is your responsibility to teach them the Word of God. and to teach them to love the Lord and to follow Him and to embrace Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. That is all wrapped in teaching. Developing a firm foundation and a Christian worldview. And that is a commitment. It's a commitment you should look forward to. It's a commitment that should be embraced. Not looking for an opportunity to send them away for seven hours a day so you can enjoy some freedom. That'll turn you into a cat lady faster than anything. So you teach them. You disciple them. With your husband. Then of course, with discipleship comes discipline. Teaching them, instructing them, and the difference between right and wrong, applying the rod when necessary. You care for them. Obviously, they're your children. You're not going to sit there and let them starve. If they ask for an egg, you're not going to give them a serpent. You're going to feed them and take care of them. Psalm 127, starting in verse 3, Behold, children are a gift of the Lord. That is so key. You must start seeing things as a gift that God intends to be as a gift. If the Lord says children are a gift, then see them as a gift. Not an affliction. Not a hindrance. Not a roadblock to all your hopes and dreams of life in a corporate office. The fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one's youth. So we talk about taking dominion, right? Subduing the earth. There's no subduction without reproduction. This is how this is accomplished. By having kids. And by treasuring those kids. So, let's take this word, a gift from the Lord, or a treasure from the Lord. What do we do with a treasure? Some direct application here. How do you treat a treasure? Well, of course, the first thing is you guard it. Develop protective instincts over your children. You guard a treasure. And if you treasure your child, you will guard your child. You will guard your child, among other things, from those worldly and sinful influences. You will guard their heart. You will nurture them. You will give them truth. and guard them against unrighteousness, guard them against error. You will give them love and goodness and kindness as opposed to all of the hatefulness we see coming from an ungodly generation. What else do you do to a treasure other than guard it? Well, you grow a treasure. You don't just look at your kids and smile. Get in there. Interact with them. Disciple them. Teach them. Play with them. Worship with them. Spend time with them. Grow the treasure. If you have a treasure trove, you don't just look at it and admire it. You don't act like Smaug the dragon and sit on your treasure and hoard it. No, you seek to grow it. You seek to multiply it. In the same way, we raise our kids, as we've said already, that they would love the Lord and treasure Him. That they would grow in godliness, grow in virtue, grow in the Lord. Here's the next thing. What else do we do with a treasure? Rather than hoard it, rather than sit on it, we seek to be generous. That is, we give a treasure. We guard it, we grow it, we give a treasure. Now if you go back to Psalm 127 and you look at verse 4, it says, like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one's youth. Arrows. And when they're ready to be sent out, you take your bow and world take that. You want your kids to be effective fruitful ambassadors of the Lord Jesus Christ. And that is the treasure you disperse into the world. You prepare your children in the home. You prepare your children by spending time with them. Even, Dad, you had this opportunity by taking them to work. And I realize, post-industrial age, the framework of employment and work has somewhat changed. Most work used to be done at home, and then you would train up your son primarily so that he could take your trade when you were gone. But you taught him your trade. And a lot of the time, that doesn't really happen anymore because we live in an age where Dad's mostly leave their home. And some of you are really blessed to be able to stay home or work very close to home and do your work. But insofar as it depends on you, include your child in the work that you do. Even if it's work that doesn't involve making money. So if you have a green thumb, plant a garden and show your kid how to do it. If you like to shred on a guitar, teach your kid music. Pass down the skills that you have so that they can be a blessing. And then aim those arrows true and shoot them out into the world so that blessing can be multiplied. And those arrows, of course, they pierce in a couple of ways. It's not just so that they're a blessing, but so that they can strike into the heart of apostate culture. So that they too are equipped with truth to cast down every argument that exalts itself against the knowledge of Christ. That is what it means to teach your kid. That's what it means to discipline them and care for them. And treasure them. And all that points to this love for your kid. Love for your children. A godly affection toward them in raising them to be Christ-like soldiers for the Lord. And of course, that's well connected with loving your husband. So let's read on in our text going back to Titus. to love their husbands, to love their children, and it says to be sensible, pure workers at home. So here's sensible. And depending on your translation, this may say a variety of things. But this is actually very common in Paul's instructions to the church, not just in Titus, but also in Timothy. There is this instruction to be self-controlled, literally to be safe-minded. You think about how your thoughts are. This is especially true for women. when it regards thinking, that you're not being controlled by emotions, rather you are willing to think a matter through, that truth is mastering your emotions, truth is guiding your emotions, and that you have the self-control to master your passion so that you can stay self-controlled through all of the challenges that accompany being a wife and a mom. You're going to need self-control when your kids disobey you. You're going to need self-control when your husband irritates you. You're going to need self-control when you poured too much salt in the carbonara. Many things require self-control around the home. And so Paul reminds us here, minds wives especially, young women, to be self-controlled, to be safe-minded. I think that this also alludes to, along with the word pure, to be faithful to your husband. Speaks to sexual fidelity and keeping the marriage bed pure and holy. Most of what we do requires a measure of self-control. Especially when things don't go the way we want them to. The ability to be kind and gentle as opposed to harsh and abrasive. Self-control is also a fruit of the Spirit. It's a sign that the Spirit is present and active, conforming you to Christ's likeness. Be self-controlled. Paul says this so that young women avoid falling into that trap of being a busybody and being a malicious gossip. One has to have self-control. So moving on, there's also this issue of being pure. He says, be pure. It comes from the Greek hognos. And if you remember from 1 Peter 3, verse 2, Peter uses this word to characterize a woman who wins her husband over without a word by her, chaste, that is, pure and respectful behavior. And this word refers to It relates to holy, but alludes mostly to what we understand, this is like an Old Testament picture here, what we understand as ceremonial or ritual purity. And of course, in the Old Testament, you wanted to be ritually or ceremonially pure so that you could serve before God, so that you could be in His presence. And so of course, to be pure or to be hagnas, as he said, or good is to say that You are a woman who is prepared to serve. You are a woman who is prepared to serve and is not hampered by corruption or compromise. And Paul uses the same word in 2 Corinthians 11. He says, for I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy, for I betrothed you to one husband to present you as a pure, that is, hognos, a pure virgin to Christ. So wives here are called to be pure wives. Uncorrupted. So that how they render service and how they fulfill their role in their own household is not hampered by corruption. Is not hampered by the continual presence of unrepented sin. So of course, we desire purity in our households. Purity and faithfulness. Here's the next one, of course, also hotly debated. He says He wants them to be workers at home. So wives here, along with loving their husbands and loving their children, are called to be homemakers. This is also discussed in 1 Timothy 5-14 where Paul says, therefore, I want younger, the implication here, younger widows to get married, bear children, keep house, and to give the enemy no occasion for reproach. So mark that one down. 1 Timothy 5, verses 14. So, He wants them to bear children, keep home, fulfill their creational role that God has designed for women. And so of course, this is a big one. And remember, this has to do with a woman being a garden. She multiplies what her husband brings to her. This is where the multiplication happens primarily, is through the wife keeping home. And of course, the question inevitably comes up, is a woman's place in the home? You hear that thrown around a lot. And it sounds biblical. A woman's place is in the home. And we want to be discerning when it comes to statements like that, because it can somehow imply that the woman's only place is in the home. And I would say not place, but priority. The home is the woman's priority. So, of course, I think there are certain indications that will emerge when keeping the home has failed to become a priority. Certain things will be out of place. So it does not mean that a woman can never work for money or be enterprising. Not at all. That's where we make the distinction. And this comes through a woman being diligent in her responsibilities. And I think this diligence can be expressed in a variety of ways, but just practically speaking. One, of course, is that if you are diligent in your homemaking, things are most of the time put in their place, that there is a clean and orderly environment for your family, for your husband and your kids. Now, we've already talked about the fact that the home should resemble a training ground. It doesn't have to be spotless and bleached all the time. Your home shouldn't look like a museum. Where everything is in its exact place all the time. Where you're cleaning, and you're cleaning so much, and you're so obsessed with sanitizing your faucets that you don't pay any attention to your kids. But there should be a general orderliness. And of course, a homemaker connects to loving your children. You're teaching and discipling your kids from a Christian worldview. You're taking care of your husband's needs. And of course, those may vary from husband to husband, but that's why you are called to know one another, familiarize yourself with one another, and know, of course, your responsibilities. But here's the big one. I think this one may be the most important, is that being a homemaker means being prepared for hospitality. Being prepared for hospitality. Now I've got a whole hour-long sermon on that from 1 Peter 4 and 9 if you want to look that up on Sermon Audio. We covered hospitality individually. It's that important. Literally means a love of strangers. The same word used here as in 1 Peter 4 and 9. And that all to say it's very difficult to show hospitality if your home is always a disaster. One, you're going to be so self-conscious, it's going to be very difficult to even enjoy yourself. You're constantly apologizing to your guests. And most of the time, your Christian guests don't want to be apologized to. They just came over to enjoy your company and eat your free food. Right? So don't make it weird. Right? Don't make it weird. But keep your home orderly so that you are always prepared to show literally a love for strangers. That's what the word hospitality means. Philoxenos. Love of strangers. So how much more should you be prepared for those who you do life with in the church? Be prepared to care for those who God has placed in your life by serving them a meal and drink. Here's the next one. He says in verse 5 here, workers at home, kind, right? Be kind. That's a big saying. It's put on t-shirts everywhere. Be kind. I think it's a granola bar too. The kind bar. Something like that. And usually what we mean is be nice. But Scripture means something completely different and something way more profound and exalted. So, be kind is not the same word used in Paul's list of the fruit of the Spirit for kindness. This actually means good. In the Greek, agatha is the most generic word we have for good. It speaks about the nature and quality of something. So when He's telling a woman here, be good, He's speaking to the nature and quality of this young woman. Jesus uses this word many times in the Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, where He speaks to things like good gifts. We have good trees. We have good man. Good fruit. This is something that finds its origin in God. So this is the picture of a godly woman. So don't underestimate a word so plain as good. Because this is something that is inherently godly. And in the context of a young woman, this speaks to the transformation that has occurred. First and foremost, this points to a woman who is regenerate. Who has been brought to life in Jesus Christ. She is a new creation. Her origin is in God. And furthermore, this is something that is sustained by the power of God. It points to things that are useful, excellent, upright, honorable, virtuous, and wise. Sometimes when we think of good, normally it's something we command our kids. Right? Hey, you be good. Going over to Johnny's house or Billy's house. Hey, you be good. Don't get into too much trouble. We tell our kids to be good. As if that means anything to them. But I think the reason Paul uses this is because it encompasses so much. This is a very rich word. It encompasses all that is consistent with God's character and power. So women, once again, use this passage to encourage yourselves because it points to your high calling. That you are called to be a virtuous and righteous woman who is sustained by the power of God. What is possibly bad about something like that? And you're empowered by God to be the woman that He has created you to be with all of its attitudes and responsibilities and blessings. So what can we say about this goodness? And I think one passage that spells this out well, and because we won't go and do a full exposition of this passage individually, we can kind of gloss over it today, but I think it's very helpful. Turn, if you will, with me to Proverbs 31. Because I think this really breaks down What makes a good woman? What are the characteristics of a good woman? What does a good woman express? How is that goodness expressed? And just this morning, I kind of went through Proverbs 31 and just looked at what the writer is describing here. Look at verse 10. An excellent wife, who can find? That's the first thing we know about a good wife. Or excellent meaning virtuous, right? She excels at goodness. First thing we know about an excellent wife is that she is unique. She's not found everywhere. She is difficult. She is difficult to find. I mean, single men in here too. Right? That's a challenge. You want to find an excellent wife. You may say, hey, she may be fine, but is she good? That's the most important question. Is she a good woman? Is she virtuous? Now look at how the writer breaks this down. For her worth is far above jewels. That means she is precious. She is a woman of quality. She's more than just glamour and sparkle. She is a truly precious woman. The heart of her woman trusts in her and he will have no lack of gain. She's trustworthy. She is a faithful woman. Going on. She looks for wool and flax and works with her hands in delight. Skip down to 16, she considers a field and buys it from her earnings. She plants a vineyard. What this at least tells us is this woman is creative. She is industrious. She's hardworking. She prospers her own household. You go down to verse 15, we find she is diligent as well. She rises also while it is still night and gives food to her household. She's not sitting around in her household during the day trying to think of something to do. She's diligent and creative and thoughtful. She finds ways to be useful and to build her home. Rises while it is still night and gives food to her household and portions to her maidens. So she's also generous. A good woman is a generous Woman. Now, if you go to verse 20, it says the same thing. She extends her hand to the poor and she stretches out her hands to the needy. Here is a woman who is not miserly, who is not what we call tight-fisted. She's generous and giving and looks for ways to bless people, but note that her creativity and industry is the platform for that. She works hard. She is blessed. She is abundant. And so out of her abundance, she is able to bless others. And I think that's something we need to constantly disciple our kids in. Yes, again, pursue wealth. Pursue a blessed and abundant life, but make provision for generosity. Give in abundance. Consistent with the abundance that God has given you. What else do we have here? Verse 17, she girds herself with strength and makes her arms strong. Yeah, she's strong and her work shows it. She's diligent in that work and so has made herself strong. She's not merely a weakling or a damsel in distress. She is able to do things. Here is a woman who is able to turn a wrench. As it were. She senses that her gain is good. She's discerning and wise. She is well aware of this prosperity. She is well aware of the fruitfulness that her hard work has resulted in. And her lamp does not go out at night. She's not in want of things. She's not going to run out of oil. It goes down again. Verse 21, she is not afraid of the snow for her household. She is confident. She is confident in ample provision. She's not afraid of the future. She's also skilled. She makes coverings for herself. Her clothing is fine linen and purple. She's able to make clothing. She's able to make things. This requires diligence. This requires wisdom. This requires taking risks rather than sitting around and waiting for someone else to do it. Men, this is the kind of woman you should desire. Her husband is known in the gates when he sits among the elders of the land. Here's another trait. She brings honor to her husband. This is a good woman. And men, we know sometimes we don't act so good. And women, you may wonder, well, I'm commanded here to be good. What happens if my husband is not good? Well, you obey Jesus. That's the command from Scripture. You obey the Lord. You are a glory and a covering for your husband. So even if your husband ain't so good, you, by your righteous behavior, are going to make him look good. You are going to bring honor upon him, even if he's incapable of bringing it upon himself. She brings honor to her husband. She makes linen garments and sells them. There's that creativity, industriousness again. And supplies belts to the tradesmen. She opens her mouth in wisdom and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. So she disciples as well. She does not simply contain this knowledge and wish others luck. No, she is diligent in passing this knowledge along. Teaching of kindness is on her tongue, so she does it in a gentle and winsome way. Verse 27, she looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. She's responsible. She takes responsibility for herself. I would say in partnership with her husband. She does not eat the bread of idleness. So she's not lazy. And she is also honored. Look at verse 28. Her children rise up and bless her. Her husband also and praises her saying, many daughters have done nobly, but you excel them all. That is a woman of honor. Verse 30, charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised. We talked about this before when talking about the princess bride, Sarah. She is not vain. She knows where true beauty lies. She does not rely on external beauty, but rather, the beauty of character. So give her the product of her hands, the writer of Proverbs concludes. give her the product of her hands and let her works praise her in the gates." So she is well known and she is well known with honor. That is a good woman. That is a virtuous woman that any man thinking straight should desire. So goodness is that crown for her husband. A couple other things to consider regarding goodness. That this goodness is consistent, right? She does her husband good all the days of his life. There's no wavering. There's no wishy-washiness. She is diligent in doing him good. And this goodness is considerate. It's thoughtful. It considers how it can be a blessing to others. And I would say one thing, women, you don't want to miss here is that this goodness, because its origin is in God, because it is a goodness by nature, this goodness is confrontative. It is confrontational, meaning that It is hostile towards unrighteousness. It is hostile toward ungodliness. It stands against evil, and by doing that, you are guarding your household against that ungodliness. That's what it means to be a good woman. Covered a lot of ground. So take that and pursue those things. And then of course, let's turn back to our text. Titus 2 closes with being subject to their own husbands, so all this is done within the confines of being submissive and obedient to their husbands and bringing honor to them and honor to their household. And then it says, so once again, to qualify this, this subjection is not merely compliance. It's fruitful embracing of a faithful woman's position by her husband's side as they serve the Lord together. Remember that the task of the woman is to help her husband take dominion to fulfill his God-given task and mission on this earth. And we would say, well, what is that dominion task? It is however and wherever God has strategically placed the man in every sphere of society to advance Christ's kingdom and bring him glory. That's the dominion task. And so all this is done, let's not miss this very important conclusion to this section. All this is done so that the Word of God will not be dishonored. So if there is ever a temptation, ladies, to second guess this calling, to second guess this task, remember this ultimate purpose. This is the next so that. So that the Word of God will not be dishonored. I mean, that is a high and mighty task for any Christian. That we do what we do so that we will not bring reproach to the Word of God. That we do what we do so that the Gospel will be honored. I mean, Peter gives this encouragement to Christians that when they are slandered, when they are reviled, don't revile in return. You keep living righteously. Unbelievers will see your good deeds and glorify God in the day of visitation, so that they will not be able to deny that God is among you and working in you. That whatever accusation they may hurl your way, it will be an unjustified, untrue accusation. This word dishonored is the word that is typically used elsewhere to refer to blasphemy, like blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. to ascribe the work of the devil to the work of the Holy Spirit. To completely mistake the nature and power of something. That when God is at work, they say, no, that's clearly Satan. And so when a woman fails to uphold her duty as designed by God, the Word of God will be dishonored. It will be misrepresented. It will be slandered. It will be blasphemed. And a woman can say, well, what if I do this anyway and the Word of God is still blaspheme? Well, of course, we understand that that's going to happen because these are those who are on the outside who do not understand the Gospel or the power of God. I think the key here is that the Word of God will not be justly dishonored. But they will be able to look at you and not be able to justly accuse you of hypocrisy Or living some kind of double life where you say this, but then you're doing the other. You say that you respect your husband, but take cheap shots at him. You say that you love your children, but you're always complaining about them. That kind of thing. And that is our top priority as Christians, whether man or woman, no matter what age, is to uphold the glory of the Word of God. So that people, when they look in on us and the way we do our lives and the way that we love and regard one another, that no one will be able to justly say that the presence of the Word of God in your midst is without power. Right? They'll never be able to justly accuse you of that. And so women, be encouraged and consider the glory and the high priority of being a wife and mom because you're doing more than just going through the motions. You're doing more than even just obeying God. You are bringing glory to His Word, and your life is reflective of God's saving power. So never underestimate that, but rather treasure it, care for it, nurture it, and continue to be faithful in passing it on. So for now, that is what we have to say about women. and being a wife and a mother. So let's commit this to the Lord. Father, thank You again for Your love and grace to us. Thank You that we could get through this passage and consider Your wonderful high calling for wives and mothers and that You would continue to work in their hearts, that they would embrace their femininity, embrace the way that You have created them, and even embrace this new creative work that you are doing in their lives to conform them to your image, that they would delight in the same things you delight in, that they would take great joy at being a wife and a mother even though some parts of it are obviously very difficult and they come with frustrations, but that you would continue to encourage them by bearing much fruit in their lives, And that fruit would be exemplified in a God-honoring marriage, a joyful marriage. And also, Lord, we would pray that that would be expressed through children who love You and who desire to serve You and honor You. Lord, what an encouragement it is to see our little ones proclaim faith in Christ and to desire to follow You and to have open hearts to Your Word. Lord, all of these things must be require our careful attention. And Lord, we thank You again for our wives here in our midst and the beauty and the loveliness and the godliness that they bring, not only to our marriages, but to Your church. Lord, that they are truly a glory and a covering for marriage and are able to reflect the church's devotion and love for You. So Lord, please bless them Help them to be fruitful. Continue to encourage them as they are wives and mothers. So in all these things, Father, we give You thanks. In Jesus' name, Amen.