Sermon Tone Analysis

March 14, 2012

By John Barnett

Read, print, and listen to this resource on our website www.DiscoverTheBook.org

Christ's church was born into a sin-warped, sin-darkened world of mixed-up marriages, sin-scarred lives, and confused families.

But men and women who were gloriously saved did not automatically become great wives and mothers, or husbands and fathers.

When they came to Christ and were forgiven, God graciously gave them everything they needed to become godly wives, mothers, husbands, and fathers.

But, they needed something else.

They need worship services that taught them to believe correctly, and then they needed small group discipleship times to learn how to behave correctly.

These new believers needed coaching, training, modeling, and encouraging in a one-on-one relationship.

Godly behavior is a series of choices; and those men and women had to be nurtured in daily skills that would lead to loving marriages and families.

And that is the vital ministry which we find captured for us in Titus 2.

*Christ's Church Used Coaches in Godly Living*

Christ's church grew into the potent force for changing the world in the quiet nurturing sessions that Titus 2 men and women performed in practical discipleship.

Just as important as the preaching and teaching of the doctrines of God's Word was the modeling and nurturing of individual saints through practical hands-on lessons in godly living.

The building blocks of Christ's church are Spirit-filled men and women.

Lives given daily as obedient servants of God.

God wants men and women that will mentor, nurture, and coach godly living for His church.

These individuals believe that God has called them to touch one life at a time for His glory.

For just a moment please follow along in your Bibles in Titus 2:1-8, as I again read those 12 special character traits for men and women.

Then we will go back to our word-by-word look at the Titus 2 woman of God.

Stand/Read/Pray

v.1 But as for you, speak the things which are proper for sound doctrine: v.2 that the* older men* be:

1. sober,

2. reverent,

3. temperate,

4. sound in faith,

5. [sound in] love,

6. [sound in] patience;

v. 3 the *older women* likewise, that they be

1.

reverent in behavior,

2. not slanderers,

3. not given to much wine,

4. teachers of good things— v. 4

5. that they admonish

the *young women*

1. to love their husbands,

2. to love their children, v. 5

3. to be discreet,

4. chaste,

5. homemakers,

6. good,

7. obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed.

v. 6 Likewise exhort the *young men*

1. to be sober-minded, v. 7

2. in all things showing yourself to be a pattern of good works;

3. in doctrine showing integrity,

4. reverence,

5. incorruptibility, v. 8

6. sound speech that cannot be condemned, that one who is an opponent may be ashamed, having nothing evil to say of you.

(NKJV)

When God gets to pick the curriculum for His Church, what does He choose to be taught?

He lays down twelve vital godly character qualities for women and 12 vital godly character qualities for men.

*Twelve Godly Characteristics of Highly Useful Women*

Women who are highly useful to God have these characteristics.

The long-term goal of their lives is geared towards being useful to God.

Parents who want their children be useful for the Lord begin early on to point their children towards the high calling and great joy of being a Titus 2 woman and the Titus 2 man.

The whole goal of a Titus 2 woman is to train younger women in Biblical, simple-to-measure, Spirit-empowered, love-based living.

Paul did not call for Titus as the pastor to train all the women in these qualities God wanted them to cultivate; rather he called upon the godly older women of Christ's church.

He singles out the women of faith, those who had already learned to love their husbands, learned to love their children, and learned to be reverent, godly, modest and wise—and charged them with seeking out and meeting with every younger woman in the church.

Now, let’s begin a step by step look at all 12 characteristics of a Titus 2 woman.

Paul lists them in the verses we already read.

Here they are one-by-one.

The older women are to have mastered all 12 and the younger women are trained in the last seven.

First the godly character of the older woman in the faith is profiled.

Without a reverent lifestyle behaving like a living sacrifice, dedicated to God—none of the rest even matter.

That is why Paul starts here first!

*v.

3a “the older women likewise, that they be reverent in behavior”* (1)

Paul first draws a word from the Roman world to capture the entire bearing of these godly role model women in Christ's church.

The Greek word translated “reverent” is used only here in the Bible, and it conveys the idea of priest-like.

That word for ‘acting as a representative of a god’ is the word Paul uses to describe the devout and godly character of the Titus 2 woman.

Older women are to live like holy priests serving in the presence of God.

Their sacred personal devotion to the Lord has slowly come to influence every aspect of their lives.

So a godly woman (or any believer) won’t allow anything to stimulate their flesh away from God; and they insist on only feeding their mind with what encourages and increases being “reverent in behavior”.

Godly older woman have simply taken Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 and Galatians 2:20 seriously.

Romans 12:1-2 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you* present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God,* which is your reasonable service. 2 And* do not be conformed to this world,* but be* transformed by the renewing of your mind*, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

NKJV

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 Or do you not know that *your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit* who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?20 For you were bought at a price; therefore *glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.*

NKJV

Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but *Christ lives in me*; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

NKJV

They have presented themselves to the Lord, they have begun to live life the way God asked them to live—as a walking temple of God, as a consecrated priest of God, as a living sacrifice, and as a bondservant of the Lord.

Godly women seek to be reverent in their behavior.

*v.

3b “not slanderers” (2)*

Next Paul turns the spotlight on the hardest member of the body to control, according to James--the tongue.

Twice in his epistles Paul targets a woman’s habits of their speech, saying it is a spiritual qualifier or disqualifier.

Though this is a universal problem we all face, Paul specifically says to women who want to serve Christ's church—guard those tongues. 1 Timothy 3:11 “In the same way, their wives are to be women worthy of respect,* not malicious talkers* but temperate and trustworthy in everything” (NIV).

“Whereas men tend to be rough or violent in their actions, women have a tendency to be rough or violent in their words.

Older women who find themselves with time on their hands can be tempted to allow their conversations to lead to gossip, criticism, and slander”.

James tells us that a tongue out of control indicates a life out of control.

He goes on to warn how huge cab be the dangerous effects of uncontrolled words.

James 3:2, 6 “For we all stumble in many ways.

*If anyone does not stumble in what he says*, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well.

6 And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, *and is set on fire by hell*” (NAS).

Note that the source of all wickedness, especially of an uncontrolled tongue is hell; and it is Satan who is at the root of all gossip, all harmful talk, and all slander.

If you are damaging the reputation and ministry of others you are a tool of the devil.

Right after James’ discussion of the tongue he explains that our motivation either comes from below (Satan’s realm) or above (God’s).

We can tell by the byproduct of our words and actions.

When what we says causes this list of woes from James 3:15-16: “jealousy, selfish ambition, disorder, envy and every evil practice” or as one man puts it, “Whenever you’re trying to look better than others or get the better of others, things fall apart and everyone ends up at the others’ throats”.