Sober Living

Titus 2
Here we have special words of exhortation addressed
to five different classes of peopleaged men, aged
women, young women, young men and servants.
You must teach what is in accord with sound
doctrine. Titus was exhorted to think carefully what
he should speak as a minister, so that his words
should be fitting. It is serious work to teach others.
Paul exhorts another young preacher to handle
aright the word of truth. Wrong direction has sent
many a life to destruction! Those who speak for God
must know well the Words of God.
There is a word here for aged men. The preacher is
to exhort them, to be temperate, worthy of respect,
self-controlled, and sound in faith, in love and in
endurance. Temperance is commended in every
part of the Bible. Drunkenness is unworthy of any
being wearing Gods image. The old men ought to set
the example to the younger. But temperance in the
Bible includes all the lifethe appetites, the feelings,
pleasures, and it means self-control.

Older men are also to be grave, preserving dignity

and propriety in all their conduct. They should be
sober-minded, serious, thoughtful, realizing the
meaning of life. We often hear about being sound in
the faith. This is well. But Paul exhorts these older
men to be sound in love and patience as well as in
faith.
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. The second
word is to aged women. They are exhorted to be
reverent in demeanor and behavior. It is not fitting
to see an old woman, foolish and frivolous in her
conduct. She should watch her acts and words and
bearing, for younger women look to the older for
example. Aged women should not be slanderers, says
Paul. Perhaps it was then as it is now, that there was
too much gossip in certain companies of women.
Gossip borders perilously close all the time to
slander. It is a fearful thing to start or to repeat a bad
story about another person. Christian women should
never do it. Aged women are urged also not to
become slaves to wine. They are exhorted to be
teachers of that which is good. Very beautiful is a
saintly old woman who has learned her lessons well

and is living sweetly. She has a wide and helpful

influence wherever she goes.
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. The young women have their
word, too. Their mothers and older women are to be
their teachers, training them to be sober. Over and
over again this word sober is repeated in this
passage. It has a much wider meaning than the
sobriety which comes from abstinence from strong
drink, though this is properly included, too. Life is
not merely a bit of fun from the cradle to the grave.
We are in the world to do something of Gods work.
We are moving toward the judgment bar of God,
where we must give account of every act; and toward
eternity, where we shall forever eat the fruits of the
trees we plant now and here. We should live soberly,
taking hold of life with earnestness, striving with all
our might to do Gods will.
Young women are also to love their husbands.
Certainlyif not, they should never have married
them. They should love their children, too, and be

sober-minded, watchful of their conduct. They

should be workers at home. This is a very suggestive
bit of teaching. Home is the young wifes realmand
she is to do her sweetest and best work there. It is
not enough for her to be active and earnest in
societies outside; if she neglects her own home
dutiesshe has disappointed God. She should be a
good housekeeper and a good homemaker, kind,
loving, thoughtful, earnest, and filled with the
Christly spirit.
Similarly, encourage the young men to be selfcontrolled. In everything set them an example by
doing what is good. The apostle has earnest words
also for young men. They, too, are to be soberminded. They should put away childish frivolities,
and not trifle. Paul was writing here to a young man,
and he exhorts him to be a pattern to other young
men. There are several things in which this young
minister was to be an example. One was in good
works. We are to be interpreters of Christ, and His
life was full of good works.
He was also to be seriousnot long-faced, solemnvisagedbut remembering always that he was living

in Gods presence and must give account for all his

life.
He was also to watch his speech. This is important.
Some young men are careless in their talk. They
speak rashly, foolishly, sometimes saying false
words, sometimes staining their own lips and the
souls of those who hear them with indecent stories
or allusions. This young man was to live so that
those who disbelieved Christianity should be
ashamed when they saw how beautifully, how
unselfishly, how purely, and helpfully he lived. This
is a noble ideal for lifethat the enemies of Christ
shall be compelled into silence, having no evil thing
to say of us.
There is a word also for servants. Teach slaves to
be subject to their masters in everything, to try to
please them, not to talk back to them, and not to
steal from them, but to show that they can be fully
trusted, so that in every way they will make the
teaching about God our Savior attractive. There
were slaves in those daysmany Christians were in
bondage among the Romans. Paul tells the young
minister what to say to them. They are quietly to
accept their bondage, not rebelling against their

mastersbut cheerfully obeying them. Christ always

counsels His followers to submission, even when
they are unjustly treated.
The starling in a cage flies against the wires and tries
to get out. All it does, however, is to batter and
bruise its own wings and breast. It does not get out.
The canary, far more wisely, when put into a cage,
flies up on a perch and sings, filling its cage with
song. We may take a lesson from the birds.
Servants were also exhorted to do what would please
their master, obeying, not complaining, not talking
back to argue the caseTheirs not to reason why.
Servants are not to stealbut are always to be
faithful and honest. In other epistles Paul
encourages servants to do their best always,
regardless of the character of their master, because it
is Christ they are really serving; they should do their
work as for Him, even if their human master is hard,
unjust, unreasonable. Christian slaves also were to
adorn the doctrine of God in all things. That is, they
were to live so beautifully that by their conduct that
in every way, they will make the teaching about God
our Savior attractive.

While these counsels were primarily for slaves, they

are applicable to all who are under others as servants
or employees. The great majority of us have to work
under a master or superintendent. Not always is this
master gentle, patient, or lenient; sometimes he is
unjust, harsh, severe, exacting and oppressive. But
the character of the master does not modify the
duty of the servant. We must keep sweet and must
be faithful and gentle with the worst overseer. Other
peoples sin does not excuse sin in us.
For the grace of God. .. teaches us to say No to
ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live selfcontrolled, upright and godly lives in this present
world. This a great teaching for all of us who bear
the name of Christ. There are some things we are to
condemn, that is, give up, put out of our life
ungodliness and worldly lust. There is something we
are to dolive soberly, righteously and godly in this
present world. It is not enough to intend to be saintly
when we get to heaven; we are to be saintly in this
present evil world .
The closing words tell us what the motive for a
Christian life should bethe blessed hope and
appearing of Jesus Christ. He has given Himself for

usthis reminds us of the cross. Then, He is coming

againthis is a glorious hope, which cheers all
believers in this world. Life may be hard here, with
struggle, self-denial, toil and lossbut we are to live
for that day when Christ will come again, when all
earths iniquities shall be made right.