A MOTHER’S PRIORITIES
Titus 2:4-5
Women are most effective at attracting people to Christ
when they model a godly lifestyle. 1 Pet. 3:1-4
Peter and Paul both call women to “dress up” in a godly lifestyle; NOT fancy clothes!
In Titus 2, Paul describes what that lifestyle ought to look like.
He’s been urging Titus to teach ALL God’s people to live in a way that is consistent with our sound doctrine--that adorns it appropriately.
General principle: 2:1 “But YOU teach what agrees with sound doctrine”
Everyone should live in a way that’s consistent with what we believe.
Application to (mature and younger) women 2:3-5
Not just men; women, too, affirm the good news by their transformed lifestyle.
If our life doesn’t support our doctrine, God’s Word will be discredited on our account.
One of most significant ministries for godly women: investing your life mentoring others.
Mature, godly women model godly living
for younger women.
Mentoring should be a major focus for mature godly women.
That’s the main focus Paul is dealing with.
It’s legitimate that we have focused primarily on mentoring in this passage, . . .
WHAT DO GODLY, MATURE, FEMALE MENTORS LOOK LIKE? 2:3-4a
Description of what mature, godly women ought to look like
Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live,
not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good.”
Contrast with what older women often looked like in his day:
Parallels our “nasty old men” idea–cantankerous, crabby, angry men.
“Cranky old women:” irreverent, gossiping, drunks–concerned about themselves!
Godly women ought to look different!
Women ought to live a godly life, and teach it to others.
Most significant ministry mature, godly women can have:
teaching others what God has taught them, through years of walking with Him.
Teaching young women how to live a godly life isn’t the pastor’s job!!
Paul didn’t tell Titus to do this. He’s to urge mature WOMEN to do it!
A woman who has walked with God and knows God’s ways from her own experience,
can be a stimulus to younger women just starting out on the path to godliness
With age and experience come wisdom that godly women, who have discovered secrets of godly living can share with younger women.
When hard times come, who is better to turn to than someone who’s been there?
This raises an interesting question:
How old do you have to be to qualify to teach a younger woman how to live a godly life?
Most would answer that question: “Well, certainly older than I am!
Term develops from the idea of age–but not any particular age.
It’s a relative, comparative term = older than someone, or something, else.
The older lead the younger:
Old => young; grandmother => mother => daughter; big sis => little sis.
That’s the focus we have usually emphasized in this passage.
Today I want to focus on what these godly mentors ought to teach younger women.
WHAT ARE A GODLY MOTHER’S PRIORITIES? 7 Priorities for a young mom: 2:4-5
“Then they can train the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.”
These are counter-cultural ideas!
These priorities will never become popular with the masses in our culture!
These are critical issues that won’t go over very well “out there” in the world!
They won’t draw a crowd!
They WILL make godly mothers stand out in a crowd, as different from the crowd.
What are these 7 priorities of a godly mother?
1. Commitment to husband “to love their husband” => to be committed to ...“
What they’re living for!—not money or pleasure, not self, but for their husband!
1st priority: commitment to husband– NOT SELF-fulfillment!
They can make that commitment even when husbands don’t deserve it (few do)
and when they don’t feel like it (all women feel that way, at times)!
First priority is a commitment to their husband–not even to their children!
2. Commitment to children Same expression repeated relative to children
Every young woman has times when she feels resentment about constant demands placed on her by her children.
They wish they could be free again. “When do I get a day off?!!”
Older women know the feeling. They’ve been there.
You can come alongside a struggling young mom,
and share how YOU survived those feelings and felt God’s love.
3. Discernment (<= self-controlled, sensible) See life from God’s perspective.
Central to whole passage–difficult to translate–dual focus:
Train them discerningly so they will become discerning.
Impart discernment (pass it on!), so they will BE discerning!
Related to understanding God’s perspective on our role in life!
–How GOD values a young woman’s role.
Young women struggle with their significance,
because they don’t see their role as GOD sees it!
4. Purity—true to her husband in mind and heart, as well as in action.
We hear a lot in our days about the temptations MEN face.
Our culture isn’t just appealing to men with sexual temptation, but women as well.
Movies, magazines, music, and television, make marital unfaithfulness sound romantic and appealing; women are drawn in by the bait also
Women need to learn how to face that appeal,
to follow God’s escape routes, to avoid the traps.
5. Invest her life in her home (busy at home)—in contrast to being "busy-bodies".
This passage doesn’t address issue of whether women should work.
It refers to women who spend their time sitting around talking about others.
Godly young women keep busy doing what God has called them to do.
Dedicate energy to creating home environment pleasing to God.
Your most significant role: invest your life in your home —children and spouse.
That in no way excuses men of responsibility to lead family in godly living,
but it recognizes role God gives women of making a house into a home.
6. Show kindness—doing good deeds to help other people.
1 Tim. 5 describes appropriate conduct of widows: known for good deeds,
such as, raising children, showing hospitality,
washing feet of saints (serving others), and helping people in trouble.
7. Submit to her husband
This doesn’t make women inferior;
nor are men authorized to be dictators, or abusive.
Christ was in every sense God--in no way inferior to the Father
–yet He submitted to do His will.
So God has established leadership in the home.
That authority is to be used in love and concern for the other person.
Godly women can teach younger women the importance of a godly, submissive spirit in their attitude toward their husband
–by showing them what it looks like
and telling them how THEY have done it
–especially when it’s HARD to do–or we don’t WANT to do it!
After considering these seven priorities of godly women,
you may be thinking: “NO ONE can live like that!”
We’ll never live a godly lifestyle in our own strength, by our effort!
Only GOD can produce a godly life!
It’s an impossible expectation! It isn’t in us!
God has to work in our life to transform us into the kind of people He wants us to be.
We must depend on Him.
We have to ask GOD to make us godly people.
That’s why a godly lifestyle is an effective evidence that HE is at work in us.
That’s why this kind of lifestyle will get people’s attention.
That’s why this kind of lifestyle affirms the truth of God’s Word that we preach!
When women function as God intends for them to,
BOTH older AND younger women attract others to truth.
Godly women serve to
affirm the truth of God’s Word!
If women fail to live godly lives, God’s Word is discredited by BOTH.
Vs. 5: “. . . so that no one will malign the word of God.”
Scriptural focus on how God intends godly women to function:
Mature godly women model what godliness looks like through their lifestyle.
Then they invest their life in young women, who can pass it on to next generation.
As observers watch the women of the church go about life,
as they examine a healthy lifestyle that is in agreement with healthy doctrine,
through the behavior of godly young women, led by godly older women,
the Word of God gains credibility!
What happens in the home, as result of the woman’s care,
is a powerful tool for the spread of the gospel!
Counseling young women how to live isn’t MY job!
God assigned that job to mature Christian women.
One reason many women live confused, messed up lives is because mature godly women have abandoned their God-assigned responsibility.
Young women need MENTORS!
We could blame it on our culture.
Women no longer hold neighborhood sewing gatherings,
these provide opportunity to dialogue and pass on what our mothers taught us.
Nevertheless, today women have no mentors, when they’re needed most.
We need people who give time to young men and women; show them how to live for God!
Young adults today WANT someone who will love them,
who accepts them as they are,
and who will give themselves unconditionally to them.
Godly women are needed
to help younger women learn how to . . .
* Live a godly life.
* Care for their husband and children.
* Function in their home
A generation of mature women have walked with God through the joys and trials of life,
have developed a working knowledge of God’s Word they can share.
That’s the concern Paul is addressing.
He urges mature women to invest their lives teaching younger women how to live for God
—someone who has “been there and done that”
to show them how to do it!
Aubrey Malphurs:
“Most churches . . . desperately need women . . . to shepherd other women.”
If you’re a godly woman, look for an opportunity to show a younger woman,
how she can follow God. Share your life with her.
If you’re a young woman, find an older woman you respect,
corner her, ask her if she would be willing share her life with you,
teaching you what she knows about walking with God.
[ Incidentally, men, this isn’t just for women! We need the same kind of relationships.]
Instead of thinking of our later years as a time to retire, withdraw from life and take it easy
I can’t find that concept anywhere in Scripture!
How about making one of our goals to invest our life sharing what God has taught us about walking with Him, with a younger person.
So, what is God asking YOU to do?