The changes we have witnessed in the content and significance of sexual codes since the 1960s are symptomatic of deeper changes in how we think of the purpose of life, the meaning of happiness, and what actually constitutes people’s sense of who they are and what they are. Carl Trueman
Scripture
He gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds.
Observation
Slaves must obey their masters, being respectful and trustworthy.
The grace of God has been revealed bringing salvation to all people. So we must leave as godly people and reject sinful pleasures. We must live with wisdom while we look forward to eternity with hope.
Jesus gave his life to free us from sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people.
Titus must preach these things and encourage his people to obey. He needs to use his authority to correct them when necessary.
Application
Paul mentions here three goals of Christ’s death on the cross.
Firstly, he died to set us free from every kind of sin. We are all in bondage to sin because our fleshly natured dominates the way we live. When we follow Jesus, this unerring capacity for sin is broken, and we can live the life God intends for us.
Secondly, He died to cleanse us. Jesus’ death on the cross was a sacrifice that takes away the penalty for our sin. We were law breakers, breakers of God’s law, and we deserve to die. But Jesus has paid the price our sin.
Thirdly, Christ died to make us his own people. Once we were far away from God, but now we are adopted into His family. He calls us His Bride – a people set apart for him.
Prayer
Thank you Lord Jesus for all that you accomplished for me. I am free from the bondage of sin; I am cleansed from the blackness of sin; I am a part of your special people. Hallelujah! Amen.
A longer ride today. The weather looked promising earlier, but the clouds rolled in and the cold southerly wind sprang up. Good to be out on the bike though
The old sexual codes of celibacy outside marriage and chastity within it are considered ridiculous and oppressive, and their advocates wicked or stupid or both. The sexual revolution is truly a revolution in that it has turned the moral world upside down. Carl Trueman
Scripture
Teach the truth so that your teaching can’t be criticised. Then those who oppose us will be ashamed and have nothing bad to say about us.
Observation
Titus is to teach older men to exercise self-control and to live wisely. Similarly, the older women must not slander others or drink heavily. They are to train the younger women to love their husbands and children, and to submit to their husbands.
Titus should encourage the young man to also live wisely. He should be the good example to them by doing good deeds, and teaching the truth so that nobody can criticise him or Paul.
Application
Nowadays, teaching truth does not guarantee freedom from criticism. Preachers (and others) who point out that the Bible condemns homosexuality or that women are biologically different to men are likely to get roasted.
Nevertheless, as followers of Jesus, who is the way, the Truth, and the Life, we must commit ourselves to following and proclaiming the truth wherever we are.
The gospel has never been popular because it threatens those whose status and income are dependent on either their own sins or the sins of others. When we tell people that their lifestyle is not acceptable to God and they need to repent, then we can expect hostility.
Being unpopular does not make the gospel wrong. In the end, it is only God’s opinion that matters.
Prayer
Lord, please help me to keep my eyes fixed on you, the source of all truth. Amen
A milder, almost balmy, morning at 7 deg. C. Good morning for riding.
What marks the modern sexual revolution out as distinctive is the way it has normalized these and other sexual phenomena. It is not therefore the fact that modern people look at sexually explicit material while earlier generations did not that constitutes the revolutionary nature of our times. It is that the use of pornography no longer carries the connotations of shame and social stigma it once did and has even come to be regarded as a normal part of mainstream culture. The sexual revolution does not simply represent a growth in the routine transgression of traditional sexual codes or even a modest expansion of the boundaries of what is and is not acceptable sexual behavior; rather, it involves the abolition of such codes in their entirety. Carl Trueman
Scripture
Everything is pure to those whose hearts are pure. But nothing is pure to those who are corrupt and unbelieving, because their minds and consciences are corrupted.
Observation
There are many rebellious people who deceive others. This is especially true of those who insist on circumcision.
Paul says Timothy should reprimand them sternly, so they will stop believing Jewish myths and stand firm in the faith.
Everything is pure to those whose hearts are pure, but nothing is pure to those who are corrupt. They claim to know God but their lifestyles show that they are far from Him.
Application
If your heart is pure before God, nothing will take you away from him. It is only when we are impure or less than completely sold out to Him, that we can be deceived and turn from His truth.
The problem is that many of us have mixed motives. We want enough of God to be sure that we are saved, but we still want to enjoy the worldly way of life that leads to destruction.
To move on with God, we need to decide that everything is about Him. Our heart and mind must be surrendered to God alone.
Prayer
Grant me a pure heart, Lord Jesus, a heart that is 100% for you and you alone. Amen.
First bike ride in a week, due to being away from home. Cold and frosty, but no wind.
In his 1983 Templeton Prize address, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn offered this summary explanation for why all the horrors of Soviet communism came to pass: “Men have forgotten God; that’s why all this has happened. Carl Trueman
