Exhortations to Young Men

 

 

 

 

"⁶ Likewise urge the young men to be sensible; ⁷ in all things show yourself to be an example of good deeds, with purity in doctrine, dignified, ⁸ sound in speech which is beyond reproach, so that the opponent will be put to shame, having nothing bad to say about us."

Titus 2:6-8

 

Good Morning My Beloved,

Welcome to worship this Lord's Day!

We are so very grateful for our beloved brothers and sisters in Christ, we are so thankful that you are all with us today.

I would like to encourage you to visit our Prayer Wall, not only to pray for our brothers and sisters in their time of need, but to also add any prayers or concerns that you may have as well. We are all called to pray with and for one another, in keeping with the commands of our Lord.

It has often been said, that it takes a lifetime to build a good reputation, however, it can be easily lost, in one single foolish action. And, once it has been lost, it is a long, and difficult process to recover even a portion of it again. It is no secret, that in light of all the sandals that have hit the modern church, the majority the unsaved world, think that all Christians are a bunch of hypocrites and, of course,  this gives them an excuse to reject Jesus Christ. The reputation of the Christian church in America has taking a beating, over the last several decades.

And, that is not including the various scandals involving the Catholic church. The public opinion does not differentiate between evangelical and Catholic church. Unbelievers continue to justify themselves by thinking, "Hey, I may have my faults, but at least I’m not a child molester. At least I’m not bilking the poor out of their last dollar so that I can live in luxury. Or, at least I don’t pretend to be religious like those hypocrites do!" And so, the enemy damages the reputation of the church and the gospel. As Christ's church, we called the body and the bride of Christ. As His body, we are to beautify our lives with godliness, in order to attract others to Jesus, our Savior. 

 

However, allow to boldly state, given the tainted reputation of the modern church, we have certainly got a major job on our hands! It will not be some kind of quick fix, we must deliberately invest ourselves to the task of lifting up the reputation of God and our Savior by living  holy lives that will put the enemy to shame, leaving them nothing unfavorable to say about us. 

 

Let us bow our heads in prayer.

 

Heavenly Father,  

Father, we again thank You for wonderful truth and instruction to the young men listening today. Lord, we pray that You would give us the strength to be what we need to be, help us to realize that the way in which we win others to Christ, is by our witness and testimony through our godly behavior outside the church, in the world. Help us to demonstrate to them, that we have what they do not, a saving God who transformed our lives. Keep us from being like the world, and cause the world to want to be more like us. That we would live, as You have called us to live, bring honor to Your Word, glory to Your name, all for Christ's sake.

In His precious name we pray

Amen

Today's Message: Exhortations to Young Men

A pastor is responsible to present healthy teaching, and he is to expect that those accepting healthy doctrine will reveal the reality of what is professed through a righteous life. By our example and by God's Word, we are called to be invested in the lives of the younger generation. What is important for us to notice that it is not the job of the elders to provide such teaching. Though an elder is to be able to teach, and he is certainly responsible to provide healthy teaching, however, it is primarily entrusted to the older men and women of the church. Good teaching leads to godly lives and godly lives lead to good teaching. When the pastor is committed to providing sound teaching, therefore, every member of the congregation will be equipped to provide sound teaching. However, it cannot not be expected that sound teaching will be found within the congregation, if it does begin from the pulpit!

 

Throughout the Scriptures, we are told that certain roles and responsibilities are different for certain Christians.  However, the entire Bible is a guide that tells us what is expected of each of us as Christians. I believe that it important that we understand and fulfill our responsibilities as Christians. We must also understand, there are consequences when we fail to carry out our duties. There are some within the modern church who refuse to do certain tasks because they feel that "it isn't their responsibility, or it isn't in their job description." 

 

I am convinced, this is primarily due to the fact many simply do not know what their responsibility is. The Apostle Paul goes to great lengths to explain the responsibilities of certain individuals in the church. So, let's get started with what God expects from younger men the church. Open your Bibles with me to Titus chapter 2, verses 6 through 8.

I would like to encourage you to follow along with me as I read, to set our text in minds as we prepare our hearts for what the Spirit of God has for us today. Titus 2:6-8. 

"Likewise urge the young men to be sensible; in all things show yourself to be an example of good deeds, with purity in doctrine, dignified, sound in speech which is beyond reproach, so that the opponent will be put to shame, having nothing bad to say about us."

 

The Apostle Paul was one who lived what he preached. He referred to himself in Philemon 1, as Paul "the aged." During his time in prison, he was writing Epistles, and, when he wasn't in prison he was traveling, evangelizing, establishing churches, and encouraging the brethren. Paul did not give up when he reached a certain age and we shouldn't either! When God is finished with you, when you have fulfilled your God given purpose, He will take you home to glory! So until that day arrives, serve Him well. Today, in our study of Titus, we come to the final group of people whom Paul addresses, the roles and responsibilities of the younger men.

 

In verse 6, Paul instructs Titus to, "Likewise urge the young men to be sensible." Paul sums up the character qualities for young men in one word, "sōphronein." It means to be of sound mind, to be temperate. In verse 7, Paul writes, "in all things," grammatically, this could go either with the preceding or following statement, however, I believe that it goes with verse 6, "to be sensible in all things." As a footnote, Paul has often used the word sensible in many of his letters. Younger men, from all walks of life need good role models. Just look at the prison population, sadly, through no fault of their own, there is an overwhelming majority of those young men who did not have a positive male role model, a positive male influence, in their lives  when they were growing up. And, the impact this is having on the current and future generations is disastrous. 

 

Young men are to control their thoughts, passions, and desires. He is to be alert and ready to fight any attack or temptation that comes his way. He is to possess the same self control that was covered in the earlier verses of this passage, in doing this he will be a good witness for Christ. Titus, probably in his thirties, was a also young man, there is little doubt that Paul was reminding him of these truths as well. Titus was to share this exhortation with the other young men in the church. 

 

They are to be to "show yourself to be an example of good deeds." This literally means to be an example for others. The Apostle Paul was a godly example to Titus, and now, Titus was to be a godly example to others and they were in turn, to be godly examples, to other young men. That is the way it is intended to be, not "everybody out for themselves," we so often see in the world today. We even see evidence of this in the church, as soon as the sermon ends, people are rushing out the door. It would appear as though they are afraid of being asked to do something. Beloved, this is not what God calls us to do! I often wonder if someone set off a fire alarm, that only I am unable to hear, I mean it that's just fast how some people move out!

 

Is any wonder why king David said in Psalm 25:7, "Do not remember the sins of my youth or my transgressions; According to Your lovingkindness remember me, For Your goodness’ sake, O Lord."

When I consider the sins of my youth,  all of the foolish things that I said and did out of youthful ignorance and pride, I am truly grateful to God, that none of them resulted in my premature death. But, as I grew older, I began to realize that is only due to God’s grace! I really did some stupid things in my youth, I mean I really though I was cool.

 

Perhaps, is that same youthful senseless propensity, that caused Peter to write I Peter 5:5, when he wrote "You younger men, likewise, be subject to your elders; and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble."

 

Charles Hadden Spurgeon, the great highly influential preacher, began preaching at the age of 17, just two years after he was saved! Through God's grace and the power of the Holy Spirit, he managed to set an example of godliness and sound doctrine even in his youth, while there is no age limit given in Scripture for elders,  the title itself suggests that they should have some years of experience behind them. So, I would certainly not recommend that. However, it is certainly a wonderful time to begin the foundational work necessary. My only regret in becoming a pastor, is that I didn't answer God's call on my life earlier, I would have saved myself from making a lot of stupid, stupid mistakes!

 

Many Christians rightly memorize Ephesians 2:8-9, "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast." I believe however, they must also commit to memory verse 10, which says "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them."

 

Older men who are strong and mature in the faith are marvelous examples to the younger generation that is coming up today. Allow me to remind you, to never forget that they are watching us. Like it or not, we are having an impact on their lives. We are influencing them by our words and deeds, whether it be positive or negative. I would encourage all of us, who have a few miles on the odometer, to do our part to ensure that we are a godly example for these young men! 

 

I believe that it is imperative, that young men of today, should be in church. They must be rooted in the Word of God in order to be sober minded and vigilant! The Holy Scriptures gives us all of the instructions that we need to live a life that is pleasing to God. However, in order for this to occur, we must spend time in His Word. We must know what we believe and why we believe it, this is impossible apart from the Word of God! When the Christian man, regardless of age, is sound in doctrine there will be evidenced in the way he behaves and speaks!  

 

Men who are rooted in the Word will have "healthy" or "pure" speech. What he says will please God and His conversation will not push people away from Christ. Unfortunately there are many people who claim to be Christians, if you spend anytime at all with them, you quickly discover, that they do more harm to the cause of Christ than good. I mean, its hard to believe they're Christians! I want to emphasize that our good deeds are deeds done in obedience to God’s Word, out of love for Him and for others, "with purity in doctrine," It essentially means not corrupt, not immoral. The imperishable Word of God. Pure doctrine and sound doctrine are one and the same.

 

Paul then adds "dignified." I believe that there is a need for purity in doctrine, and an emphasis how pure doctrine is to be communicated. Titus is to teach God’s pure truth in such a manner as to command respect for the Word of God and command submission to its authority.Look, I am not opposed to a bit of humor coming from the pulpit, however, there is a time and place for humor, and I strongly believe this must be limited, we should never make light of the Bible or use it as the basis for some sort of stand-up comedy routine to garner attention for ourselves, as we often witness today! I heard a number of "preachers," who keep their congregations congregation roaring with laughter.While it may be entertaining, at the end of the day, I believe that it is making a mockery of the Word of God! If you are standing in the pulpit, you have a responsibility, to both God and the flock. Therefore, we must communicate the truth, with the seriousness that these eternal truths demand.

 

That bring us to Paul's final instruction given to the younger men in verse 8; "sound in speech which is beyond reproach, so that the opponent will be put to shame, having nothing bad to say about us."

 

To broaden the spectrum of what Paul is saying here, let's look at Ephesians 4:29, where he says "Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear."

 

I believe this is a wake up to all of us, as church leaders, as Christians, and parents, we must set a godly example by good deeds, be pure in doctrine, dignified in how they teach it, and be examples of sound speech that is above reproach, because the Lord is near to us at all times. I mean, if He is near enough to hear you whisper a prayer in desperation, then He is also near enough to hear everything that you say and do, right? 

 

The result of living our lives as a godly example, is that our critics, will eventually disappear. They will vanish. However, there will almost always be someone coming right behind, the point is, we can expect to face opposition when the world in which we live is set against the plans and purposes of God.  To see this more clearly, we need look no further than the earthly life of our Savior. Opponents of the gospel will always attack the character of a Christian leader, therefore, they should not be given a shred of evidence to give substance to their accusations, so that others will see through their false claims.

 

In Closing...

 

I believe this is a lesson for every Christian. If you take a stand for Jesus Christ, you will become the subject of attack. The enemy will bring attack against your character and your beliefs. Ungodly people are threatened by those who proclaim and exemplify God’s holy standards for living. We see this all the time in our media, and social media. Unbelievers attack Bible believing, Christ following Christians, accusing us of being fundamentalists, "Christo-fascists" who are trying to impose our deliberalizing version of morality, on their freedoms, which are guaranteed them by our countries Constitution. 

 

I want you to understand, to  expect to be attacked if you stand for the biblical values and speak out for Christ. So make sure that there is nothing in your life that would bring shame to the Living Savior and the gospel. In other words, if you are addicted to pornography on the internet, then do not try to give people the impression that you are a godly, Bible believing, Christ following Christian! Because it may be brought to light! 

 

It is through this kind of behaviors, these kinds of hypocrites, that the enemy has plenty of bad things to say about Christians, and far worse, about our Savior. 

 

The Bible, the message of the gospel has been the subject of attack by many critics over the years, , this is especially true in our society today. However, far too often the cause of offense has not been the message, but the messenger, whose shameful life clouds the purity of God's Word!

 

As followers of Jesus Christ, we have all received a wealth of biblical knowledge concerning how we  are to live, how we should treat one another, lift up and teach one another. May we live in such a way that points people to the cross of Christ! As Christians, if we are going to evangelize this broken and fallen world, then something has got to dramatically change!

 

May it be so ...

And now may the Lord bless you and keep you;

the Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;

The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.

Now and forever, in Jesus' name
Amen

 

 

 

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