SERMON: “Encouraging Younger Women” (Titus 2:4–5)
“Encouraging
Younger Women”
(Titus 2:4–5)
Series: “Titus: Godly People, Godly Church,”
#9 Text: Titus
2:4–5
By: Shaun Marksbury Date: June 30, 2024
Venue: Living Water Baptist Church Occasion:
PM Service
I.
Introduction
Last time, we considered instructions for elders and older
individuals within the church. These are
important categories within the church.
It might be tempting to only think of church elders or pastors as essential,
those preaching and ministering.
However, there’s only so much that pastors can do, and discipleship is
something in which the whole church should be involved. As such, it’s important that church elders
empower older congregants so they can help in church discipleship.
There are many ways in which older people can disciple
others. It may be as simple as demonstrating
a consistent walk and providing some wise, biblical words at the right
moment. Sometimes, they may take a more direct
approach, such as through teaching group studies or leading fellowship groups for
younger people. Perhaps they can
volunteer with such ministries, ensuring that we have the manpower we need. It may be through pursuing some education and
certification in counseling, so they can help with troubled discipleship cases
within the church. Perhaps there is someone
you connect well with and you just go to the park together, walking and
talking. These are just a few suggestions,
and maybe they will get you thinking about other ways God can use you to
disciple others within the church.
Discipleship is an essential area of ministry within the
church. It is something I would love to
see more of in our church, and I would love to talk to you about ways in which
you could disciple others. Of course, if
you’re not being discipled right now, we would also love to talk to you about
ways in which that can happen here.
The general pattern is that the older disciples the younger,
which is what we see in Titus 2. For
instance, verse 3 leaves us with a command for spiritually sound older women to
teach good works to the younger women. In
these next two verses, we see six ways in which older women are to teach the
younger. Younger women should be taught to
think wisely, to love their families, to work at home, to be kind, to be
subject, and to honor God’s Word. Let’s
consider the first of these.
II.
Younger women should be taught to think wisely
(v. 4a, 5ab)
so that they may
encourage the young women… to be sensible, pure
Yet, the word is more than “encourage,” and the LSB has “instruct”
here. The ESV uses “train.” The Greek word means “to make sane or sober-minded, to recall a person to his senses,” hence
“to moderate, chasten, discipline.” [1] The Reformation Study Bible
says this is to “bring them to their senses.”
To summarize the thoughts here, older women are to instruct younger
women in right or wise thinking.
This doesn’t just
refer to the acquiring of knowledge.
Hopefully, if they are not new converts, young ladies in the church learn
about Scripture and theology from childhood.
Yet, as they enter this new chapter of life through marriage, they must
now begin applying Scripture in a practical way. Moreover, there may be certain gray areas they
never considered and therein don’t know how to apply
Scripture.
The term here is
related to the term in v. 5. These women
are to be “sensible,” we read, or sober-minded.
There is a sense of self-control here, where they learn to think through
issues and don’t become slaves to their emotions. The pressures of marriage can expose areas of
immaturity in the thinking of both spouses, and a younger woman should be able
to talk to a spiritually mature woman to learn how to better think through disagreements
and conflict.
Moreover, she must
learn to live a life of purity. This is
sometimes translated as “holy.” Women with
right thinking are not like ships tossed by the waves of temptations. There are many women who fantasize about
other men or different life situations (like having more money), and they grow
discontent. They may also get drawn in
by false teaching or false promises, placing their hope in the wrong
places. So, they know what they need
and, just as importantly, what they don’t need.
They think and plan in a godly manner with a pure heart.
Godly young women must behave sensibly or moderately. Those
who don’t want God’s Word reviled through their lives must have right thinking. More than that, they also should learn to cultivate
a proper love for their families, bringing us to our next point.
III.
Younger women should be taught to love their
families (v. 4b)
to love their
husbands, to love their children,
It has been incorrectly said, based on Ephesians 5, that husbands are to love their wives, while wives are only to respect and submit to their husbands. It is true that husbands need respect from their wives, and her disrespect can drive a wedge into the relationship. However, God also commands her to love her husband!
Now, remember that there are different words for love in the
Greek (as we noted this morning). This
is a phileō love, not an agapeō love. Some
feminists have a hatred for men (misandry), and some married women might,
because of the fall, desire to usurp their husbands. This term is the opposite of that: philandry
(not to be confused with the modern definition of “philander”). A major task given to older women in the
congregation is to oppose the spirit of the age and encourage younger women to
desire marriage and to love their husbands.
This term isn’t the same term as say, erotic love (which is also
needed in marriage, but it is a subject for another time). This is affectionate love,[2] a “commitment
of a woman to her husband’s welfare.”[3] She should be concerned with what he needs and
even desires (just as he should for her).
Some women might grow to despise their husbands for having needs,
wanting only to receive rather than to also give, and wise women in the church
have to come around younger women and tell them that they are not princesses —
they must show affection and care for their husbands.
The same is true of their children. Paul uses the same word, applying it to
children. Women are to have both a philandry
and a philtekney (if that is a word) — a love for husbands and a love
for children. While this seems obvious, some
women suffer from post-partum depression, which requires care. Moreover, it seems that natural love in our
culture has grown cold, which we see most pointedly in abortion.
Lack of love for children isn’t new. Consider this comment from a theologian in
1930: “This exhortation is still needed where some married women prefer
poodle-dogs to children.”[4] Today, there are various trends on social
media about people who want to be “child-free,” with several couples bragging
that they are “DINKs” (“double-income, no kids”). These are couples who reveal in the money
they have for themselves, their ability to buy what they want and go on
vacations. There have always been women
who did not want children, either because of abuse in their past or the love of
self.
So, older women should help younger women to see that
children are a blessing from the Lord.
They will have to help them in specific ways — sometimes, even well-meaning
mothers can do too much, and must learn the value in letting the child cry and
not be a helicopter. Other times, they
may need to be motivated to put their phones down and pick up the child. Just as we noted with husbands, women must
show affection and care for their babies and children.
Some will see that this requires a lot of time at home. This is correct. And that leads us to the next point:
IV.
Younger women should be taught to work at home
(v. 5c)
workers at home,
Here, we step into a bit of controversy. The Greek word here literally means “one who works in the home,” coming from the words for “house” and “work.” This is why the HCSB and the NKJV have “homemakers” here. This is a specific way a woman shows care and affection for her husband and children.
Unfortunately, some Christians have made a law here where
there is no law. This word doesn’t imprison
a woman to her home, forbidding her any duties beyond cooking, cleaning, and
childcare. Scripture shows this is not
the case; the so-called Proverbs 31 woman participates in commerce, for
instance. Prior to the industrial revolution
and urbanization, it was common for women to be involved in helping to work and
provide for their families, even while the husband does the lion’s share of
work outside the home. Still, a godly
woman is primarily focused on, as 1 Timothy 5:14 says, keeping house or managing
their households.
Her high and holy calling expresses worship of the Lord in
action, reflecting His image, as the Lord fashions a home for us. This is an area in which women excel. They take a house and make it into a
home. They can take a neighborhood and
make it into a community. That’s why
women in the church are so vital, for they can together make a building a church
home for all the people of God.
To be clear, men need women in the home. The Reformer and bachelor Martin Luther, for
instance, had marks of a bad housekeeper.
He recalled, “Before I was married, the bed was not made for a whole
year and became foul with sweat. But I
worked so hard and was so weary I tumbled in without noticing.” I wonder whether Katharina von Bora washed or
burned his bedding after they were wed.
Men don’t make good homemakers on average.
Again, this isn’t to say that women are not to ever work
outside the home, and it is necessary for many in our current economy. This also isn’t to say men shouldn’t help
with the chores — we certainly can and should.
However, just as men have the primary responsibility to work and provide,
she has the primary responsibility of the work of the home. In fact, men should strive to ensure wives can
live out the Word of God to the best of their abilities.
That isn’t all. She
should work on her personal deportment.
That brings us to the next point:
V.
Younger women should be taught to be kind (v. 5d)
kind,
This word, “kind,” It could be read as going with the
previous word — “kind workers at home.”
However, many of the other traits listed here are single words, so this
is not a required reading. Moreover, if they
are to be kind in general, than this word applies to all categories, including “workers
at home.” This means that they should
also learn to be kind to others outside of their family, choosing their words
with tact and discretion.
Christian women are to be generally tenderhearted, which
comes from this place of having right thinking and right love in place. The loving mother “opens her mouth with
wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue” (Prov. 31:26). This is difficult for some women who, perhaps
like Martha, are more task-oriented than people-oriented. But a Christ-exalting love for others leads
to kind and tenderhearted dealings.
This is why discipleship is so essential. Husbands can help in this area, too. Yet, the stress and of life may tempt younger
women to want to rebel. That’s why she
must also learn this point:
VI.
Younger women should be taught to be subject (v.
5e)
being subject to
their own husbands,
What does this mean, though?
It’s important to note there is nothing “in Scripture suggests that
women are less competent than men, even in ruling or teaching.”[6] Some believe that, because Eve was deceived, women
are more gullible, but Paul simply uses this fact to state that women are to
remain within their roles (cf. 1 Tim. 2:14–15).
If she really needed guidance like a child, then all these verses would
say she is to be subject to all men rather than to her own husband. This is simply referring to how the dynamics
of decision-making would take place within a typical marriage.
Of course, that won’t make the feminists and egalitarians happy,
but oh well. There’s nothing inherently
degrading in her subjection to her husband.
After all, Eve was to be in submission to Adam as his equal before the
fall, and God the Son came to earth and practiced subjection to the Father as
His equal.[7] This is the difference between ontological
and functional subordination; a wife is a partner with her husband who follows
his lead. There’s nothing new in modern
feminism,[8] and
Scripture rejects that regressive notion and replaces it with a better way.
Does this mean that women should obey their husbands without
question? Of course not! Only God is owed our unquestioning
submission, not husbands or even governing authorities. There’s a long tradition of godly civil
disobedience in Scripture, so a wife would do well to lovingly but firmly tell
her husband no when he demands
something sinful of her. Keep in mind
that she submits “as to the Lord,” and that the point of her submission is
“that the word of God may not be reviled.”
Therefore, there is a godly and worshipful manner in which a woman
submits to her husband.
That brings us to the final point:
VII.
Younger women should be taught to honor God’s
Word (v. 5f)
so that the word
of God will not be dishonored.
A young woman’s life should be framed in such a way as to
not bring harm or injury to the Bible’s reputation. The submission of women was important to
Grecian and Roman societies, though they often misapplied it. If women in the church showed no love or
respect for their husbands and children in the name of newfound Christian
freedom, they would invite ridicule upon God’s Word.
VIII.
Conclusion
Considering the controversy today, I thought it best to stop
there and save talking about young men until next week. For now, we’re just considering the way in
which younger women are to be encouraged in the church. They are a precious and invaluable part of
our fellowship.
Hopefully, the Word of God is our highest priority. Still, all Christians need help in seeing how
it addresses every area of our lives. We
need help understanding how it can apply to the particulars of our lives,
especially in the gray areas. This is
where discipleship comes into play.
I hope all the younger women of our church will welcome
discipleship in their lives. I also hope
the older women will take up that cause.
And, of course, I hope the same for the men of the church, with the
older teaching the younger. May we all
be dedicated to improving our Christian lives, for the glory of God.
[1] Wuest, K. S. (1997). Wuest’s word studies from the Greek New Testament: for the English
reader (Tt 2:3). Grand Rapids: Eerdmans.
[2] John MacArthur Jr., Ed., The MacArthur Study Bible, electronic ed., (Nashville, TN: Word
Pub., 1997), 1886.
[3] Earl D. Radmacher, Ronald Barclay Allen, and H. Wayne
House, The Nelson Study Bible: New King
James Version, (Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers, 1997), Tt 2:4.
[4] A. T. Robertson, Word
Pictures in the New Testament, (Nashville, TN: Broadman Press, 1933), Tt
2:4.
[5] Thomas D. Lea and Hayne P. Griffin, 1, 2 Timothy, Titus, The New American
Commentary, (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1992), 34:301.
[6] John M. Frame, Salvation
Belongs to the Lord: An Introduction to Systematic Theology, (Phillipsburg,
NJ: P&R Publishing, 2006), 91.
[7] Ibid., 92.
[8] MacArthur, 1886–1887.