Bible Study for Young Men from Titus 2:6-8

We are doing a Bible Study that will take us through the book of Titus. Most recently we have studied Biblical instructions to younger and older women and also to older men. I would encourage you to read these study posts as well. Here are the links: Bible Teaching for Younger and Older Women 

Bible Teaching for Older Men

But today the focus of our study is young men. At first thought you might think that it will be a teaching on how to treat a young woman or girlfriend or on remaining sexually pure. These are very important issues and you may be surprised to find a variety of instructions to young men in three short verses. So let's begin and see what these verses from Titus 2:6-8 will teach us. We will go through each verse in the study.

A Teaching to Young men - ( picture shutterstock.com )

Titus 2: 6-8

6 Young men likewise exhort to be sober minded.

7 In all things shewing thyself a pattern of good works: in doctrine shewing uncorruptness, gravity, sincerity,

8 Sound speech, that cannot be condemned; that he that is of the contrary part may be ashamed, having no evil thing to say of you.

 Verse 6 - Young men likewise exhort to be sober minded.

Here again we see the word sober minded. We have seen similar words of exhortation to women and to older men in previous studies. Young men are encouraged to live with a sober mind. This means to live intentionally and to make right choices with purpose. Sometimes a young man does not take the time to think through the choices he is making and he seems surprised when he must face the consequences of his actions. Here in Titus young men are strongly encouraged to be careful to be of sober mind.  Living sober mindedly first of all includes submitting your life to the Lord Jesus Christ in complete surrender. To do this is the most important thing you can ever do and then as you make Jesus Lord of your life and your first love, everything else in life will fall into place. With Jesus as your Savior, the Holy Spirit then indwells you and living according to Biblical teaching becomes clearer every day. So secondly, living sobermindedly would include living a life of integrity, being careful of the friends you choose, careful in entertainment choices and abstaining from alcohol, abstaining from drugs and smoking, and other addictions. Viewing and participating in pornography has no place in the Christian life. It is very dangerous to view and participate in pornography and lustful living and will have lifelong consequences in friendhips and it makes it almost impossible to have a good marriage. So please, please young men do not set yourself up for failure by viewing and participating in pornography, it is a terrible addiction. The Bible has very harsh words for anyone who is living in immorality. Please do not take this lightly. ( For a more complete look at what the Bible says about pornography/immorality, please read my blog post on this topic - link here Sexual Immorality ) 

Ephesians 5: 1-7

Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;

2 And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.

3 But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints;

4 Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks.

5 For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

6 Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.

7 Be not ye therefore partakers with them.

Verse 7- In all things shewing thyself a pattern of good works: in doctrine shewing uncorruptness, gravity, sincerity,

Here in verse 7, a young man is encouraged to be an good example to those he come in contact with. Let your peers, friends, family and fellow employees see you doing good. A Christian should be the most loving, kind and helpful person anyone meets. When you feel that  prompting from the Holy Spirit, urging you to help someone and to show kindness, then do not hesitate to follow the Lord. 

Make it your habit to read and study your Bible every day. Set aside a time of day and a place where you meet with the Lord, and pray about everything - and just thank the Lord for things, what He has done for you, for His presence in your life and how He is guiding you, He has your best in mind and He will not disappoint you when you give your whole mind, soul, and body to the Lord Jesus.

The Lord would have men to be leaders, so be willing to follow the Lord in this. Study the Bible and be ready to teach others the pure Word of Scriptures.

Let everything you do be done with integrity, serving the Lord with intentionality.

Verse 8- 

Sound speech, that cannot be condemned; that he that is of the contrary part may be ashamed, having no evil thing to say of you

Here in verse 8, young men are encouraged be be careful in speech. As quoted in the earlier passage from Ephesians, in verse 4 we read these strong words, as to what is not to be a part of our speech - so  Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks

So we see that foolish talking, or dirty jokes, are not to be a part of our conversations. Another translation reads -  Obscene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes—these are not for you. Instead, let there be thankfulness to God.

 It is important to always be a man of truth. Satan is the father of lies and every lie you or I tell is pleasing to satan but entirely a sin and an offense to the Lord Jesus. 

Be encouraged young men - live your life with integrity, intentionality, truth, decency, purity, and love the Lord Jesus with all your heart. Put Him first in your every thought and decision and may the Lord richly bless you as you seek Him!!

Bible Study - Titus 2:1-2 Biblical Instruction to Older Men

Titus 2:1-2 But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine:

 That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience.

As we begin our Bible Study in Titus chapter 2, we see that Paul is giving instructions to Titus as to what he is to teach various groups of people. In this chapter, he will give instructions concerning older men, older women, younger women and younger men. These instructions are applicable to us today. God does not change and His instructions and guidelines for living do not change with the changing times. Some of these instructions that he gives are going to sound old fashioned to some of you but we need to remember that God created marriage and family and He does know best. He sets the boundaries and not we ourselves. So lets begin.

picture thanks to fitnnessthrroughfasting.com

Verse 1 -  But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine:

The Words of the Bible are the Words of God, Words of Wisdom. Sound doctrine is the basis for holy living and for producing characteristics and qualities that a Christian possesses. These are qualities that identify us as true Christians. This includes living a life of faith in our Lord Jesus, and trusting Him with our lives. It includes living a life of love, love in action. A good definition of the word love is "you before me" - that is the putting the needs of others ahead of what we think we need or want. We care for others - this includes those in our immediate family. It can be easy to neglect those closest to us, when these are to be our first priority.

Verse 2 -  That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience.

We see here a list of characteristics that are to be evident in the life of an aged ( or older ) gentleman. Let's go through them word by word.

*sober - this means to be clear minded, level headed and serious in how one lives, not thoughtless or careless, but rather making right choices intentionally with purpose. 

* grave - this is to be self controlled and live with dignity

* temperate - this means to show moderation and self restraint

*sound in faith - this means to be solidly grounded in the Lord, living the faith you profess to have. This would include having a personal relationship with the Lord and being in prayer and in His Word daily, saturating yourself in it, keeping your mind focused on the things of the Lord throughout the day.

* in charity - we understand charity to mean love - this is not romantic or puppy love or lust for younger or older women. It is not listening to love songs on the radio all day stirring up your flesh. It is a pure desire to bless another in the Name of Jesus. This includes helping the poor, and widows and widowers, a neighbor in need, those who are lonely, donating to honorable causes and charities etc. but also just putting others in your family ahead of yourself.

* patience - this is being steadfast and willing to wait. Sometimes the answers to our prayers are delayed, and as we wait on the Lord, we need to keep strong in our faith, and not begin to doubt that He is indeed good, that He loves us and He has planned the very best for us.

That concludes our study on instructions from the book of Titus specifically written to older men. 

Deuteronomy 11:16  Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them;

May God bless each one of you!

THE HOLY BIBLE AND THE TV GUIDE

THE HOLY BIBLE AND THE TV GUIDE

They lie on the table 
side by side, 
The Holy Bible 
and the TV guide. 

One is well worn 
and cherished with pride, 
Not the Bible 
... but the TV guide. 

One is used daily 
to help folks decide, 
No, not the Bible 
... but the TV guide. 

As the pages are turned, 
what shall they see, 
Oh, what does it matter, 
turn on the TV. 

Then confusion reigns, 
they can't all agree, 
On what they should watch 
on the old TV. 

So they open the book 
in which they confide, 
No, not the Bible 
... but the TV guide. 

The Word of God 
is seldom read, 
Maybe a verse 
as they fall into bed. 

Exhausted and sleepy 
and tired as can be, 
Not from reading the Bible 
... from watching TV. 

So then back to the table 
side by side, 
Lie the Holy Bible 
and the TV guide. 

No time for prayer, 
no time for the Word, 
The plan of Salvation 
is seldom heard. 

But forgiveness of sin, 
so full and free, 
Is found in the Bible 
... not on TV. 

-- Author Unknown 

(from seekfind.net)

The Book of Isaiah - Did you know??

Did you know that the Old Testament book of Isaiah has a lot of similarities to the Bible as a whole. Some have went as far as to say that the book of Isaiah is a mini - Bible. Why would they make that connection? In this study we want to explore the similarities between the Bible and the Old Testament book of Isaiah.

First of all let's think about the message of each as a whole:
The Bible tells us that God is holy. All glory belongs to the Lord God and He displays that glory by judging sin and saving each one who calls on the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation.
The book of Isaiah has the same message. God is holy. He is glorified when He judges sin and people are redeemed to Himself.

Secondly, There are 66 books in the Bible.
There are 66 chapters in the book of Isaiah.

Thirdly, The Bible begins in the Old Testament with the story of sin entering this world and ends with the New Testament where the story of salvation through Jesus Christ is told.
The Book of Isaiah tells of Israel's rebellion against God and ends with the predictions of its restoration.

Fourthly: The Bible has two sections - There are 39 books in the Old Testament and 27 books in the New Testament. The Old Testament describes our lost condition and our need of a Saviour. The New Testament tells of God providing our Saviour Jesus Christ and His death on the cross and resurrection. It describes our need of repentance and invites us to come to Jesus for salvation through faith in His finished work on the cross.
The book of Isaiah has two sections - Section 1 includes Chapters 1- 39  where Isaiah delivered his message of condemnation to the Israelites, pronouncing judgement on their idolatrous and immoral way of life.
Section 2 includes Chapters 40 - 66 where Isaiah explains that Israel's captivity is due to the disciplinary action that God is taking towards them. Isaiah encourages the people to rid themselves of their idolatry, self righteousness and greed.

Fifthly, Both the Bible and the Book of Isaiah stress God's righteousness, His holiness, His justice, His compassion, love and grace.

Discerning False Teachers and Prophets

In our world today, there are many many teachers and preachers providing programming on the radio, TV, and through the internet. There are books coming out constantly that claim to be from the Lord. How do we know which Bible teacher or preacher to trust? We are told that in order to recognize a counterfeit, one must be thoroughly familiar with the authentic and in that way we will be able to distinguish the true teachers from the false. I have found though, that the false teachers also proclaim some truth mixed in with their deceptions. So it can be quite a challenge sometimes to differentiate between the true and false teacher. I am not going to name any names in this blog post but I want to explore what to look for. What does the Bible say about this? How can we know and what should we be looking for? Jesus says in Matthew 7 that false prophets come in sheeps clothing but inwardly they are ravening wolves. This means that they are very deceptive - they really do look like good people whom we could trust - BUT they are not. Jesus also says - Ye shall know them by their fruits - This means that it's not so much who they say they are but their actions ( their fruits) will make it obvious for whom they are working ( either for the Lord or for satan) Jesus says a good tree bringeth forth good fruit, but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.
Evil fruit is that which Jesus mentions in Mark 7 -evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness
SO, look at the life of the person who is claiming to be God's messenger - what kinds of things are they doing when they think no one is watching? What kind of life are they promoting?
Matthew 7: 15-17 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.
Mark 7: 21-23 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.

Let's look at some more characteristic of false prophets and false teachers as described in the Bible:

* deception and false teaching - ( shall deceive many - Matthew 24)
* sign and wonders - ( shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, - Mark 13)
* destructive, untrue doctrines - (who privily shall bring in damnable heresies - 2 Peter)
* in word or action they deny the Lord; ( denying the Lord that bought them, 2 Peter)
* they are popular and are held in high regard by many people ; ( all men shall speak well of you! Luke 6)
* a Bible teacher must confess Jesus Christ is come as a baby, Son of God or else he or she is not from God - ( confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God 1 John )
*some other clues to discerning the false teacher is if he claims there are other ways to be saved than through Jesus alone. The Bible teaches that there is only One true God, One Savior - our Lord Jesus Christ.
* a false teacher will justify sin - especially sexual sin. This could be in promoting or tolerating the gay lifestyle, or the false teacher may preach that there is no real freedom from lust, pornography, adultery and other sexual sins. Beware of these kinds of teachers. The Bible teaches to flee sin, to put sin to death in our lives, to be a separate and a sanctified people.

As I read through this list, what I see over and over again is that the false teacher lies. He lives a lie and speaks a lie but all the while tries to have people believe that he is a true Christian. He pretends to be a true preacher of the gospel.

Bible Teaching on Alcohol and Drunkenness

Proverbs 20: 1 Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.

          Who has woe?
          Who has sorrow?
          Who has contentions?
          Who has complaints?
          Who has wounds without cause?
          Who has redness of eyes?

Those who linger long at the wine,
Those who go in search of mixed wine.
Do not look on the wine when it is red,
When it sparkles in the cup,
When it swirls around smoothly;
At the last it bites like a serpent,
And stings like a viper.

Your eyes will see strange things,
And your heart will utter perverse things.
Yes, you will be like one who lies down in the midst of the sea,
Or like one who lies at the top of the mast, saying:
“They have struck me, but I was not hurt;
They have beaten me, but I did not feel it.
When shall I awake, that I may seek another drink?”

In our world and culture today, we see that the consumption of alcohol is idolized. Even among so called Christians alcohol is being consumed at  parties and weddings. Many people consume alcohol regularly and it becomes an addiction that ruins their lives. We know for a fact that the consumption of alcohol by a pregnant mother is the cause of  Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder or FASD  - a disability that greatly hinders the abilities of a child causing a perfectly innocent child to live with the consequences of the unwise and unnecessary choice to drink - that choice made by the mother. We see many injuries and deaths on the highway due to drunkenness, and it also contributes to poverty, broken homes, violence within families and on the streets. We would all agree that alcohol is a very dangerous substance. I believe the Bible teaches abstinence from all use of alcohol except that a small amount of wine can be used for medicinal purposes and also a small amount of wine can be used at the Communion service where we remember the Lord Jesus's sacrifice on the cross.
Let's look into Scripture and see what we find.

First we will look at a few verses that show where the use of wine is appropriate.
Secondly we will look at verses that show us the use of alcohol is not appropriate for a Christian.

APPROPRIATE USE OF WINE
The Use of Wine at the Lord's Supper we normally call "Communion".
It is also commonly refered to as "the cup" in the Bible - 1 Corinthians 11: 25-26 After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, this cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come.

Matthew 26 : 27-29 And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it;  For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. But I say unto
you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.

The Use of Wine for Medicinal Purposes:
1 Timothy 5: 23 Drink no longer water, but use a little wine for thy stomach's sake and thine often infirmities.
The Good Samaritan uses wine as he dresses the wounds of the man who fell among thieves.
 Luke 10: 34 And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.
They offered Jesus wine to numb his pain on the cross - he refused to accept it  Mark 15:23  And they gave him to drink wine mingled with myrrh: but he received it not.

INNAPROPRIATE USE OF WINE
The Bible has strong warnings about drinking and becoming drunk. Drinking leads to addictions, and also to immoral behaviors.
The Lord wants us to be filled with His Spirit and not become filled with any alternatives - not alcohol and not drugs illegal or other. God is our source of strength and he is our refuge in times of trouble.
Ephesians 5:18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;

Drinking Alcohol  is an unrighteous behavior

Drunkenness is a Sin against God - you may have heard people say that alcoholism is a disease - it is not a disease because you cannot get it from a germ or a virus. It is definitely a sin.
 1 Corinthians 6: 9 says the unrighteous shall not enter the kingdom God  Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Then it goes on to list what unrighteous behaviors will prevent entrance into the kingdom  in verses 9-10  Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,
¹⁰ Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
If any who are reading this knows of someone who  is living in the sin of alcohol, and you may be getting discouraged at this point - I want you to know that there is hope and through faith in the Lord Jesus there is freedom and salvation. 1 Peter 4: 1-4 gives this kind of hope. It says -  Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind, for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will of God. For we have spent enough of our past lifetime in doing the will of the Gentiles—when we walked in lewdness, lusts, drunkenness, revelries, drinking parties, and abominable idolatries. In regard to these, they think it strange that you do not run with them in the same flood of dissipation, speaking evil of you.
Repent of this sin and turn to the Lord for forgiveness and healing.

Drunkenness leads to immoral behavior:
In Genesis 19 is the story of Lot. It is really a very sad story. The two daughters of Lot were afraid they each would never have a husband and be able tohave children and  extend the family line. So together they decide to get their father Lot drunk and so in his drunken state he impregnates both of his daughters.  You will notice that it says that father Lot being drunk " he did not know when she lay down or when she arose" .  Alcohol brings Lot do do such wickedness that he would not do if he were sober.  You can read the story here:
 Genesis 19: 31- 35 Now the firstborn said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is no man on the earth to come in to us as is the custom of all the earth.  Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve the lineage of our father.” ³³ So they made their father drink wine that night. And the firstborn went in and lay with her father, and he did not know when she lay down or when she arose.
³⁴ It happened on the next day that the firstborn said to the younger, “Indeed I lay with my father last night; let us make him drink wine tonight also, and you go in and lie with him, that we may preserve the lineage of our father.” ³⁵ Then they made their father drink wine that night also. And the younger arose and lay with him, and he did not know when she lay down or when she arose.