As I look around and think about how everyone seems to be doing their own thing, and yet floundering to figure things out, I wonder why we don’t follow the pattern God set before us. In Titus 2:3-5, God gives us His design for knowing how to live as a godly woman.
Titus 2:3-5 “The aged women likewise, that they be in behavior as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.”
God instructs older women to teach younger women. Some teaching should be done by “telling” those younger women how God instructs us to handle certain situations. We are also to teach by example. However, sometimes the greatest teacher is the one who has made mistakes, realized they didn’t do it God’s way, and is now right with God. Don’t discount the woman who has wayward children or is divorced, if she understands where she went wrong.
However, God’s perfect plan is for Christian women to live a successful godly life, and pass it on to the next generation. Older women are to teach younger women to love their husbands in a biblical way. Loving them sacrificially by putting their needs above their own. Too many marriages are defined by selfishness. This happens often when one or the other feels they have been neglected. They take the attitude of “what about me?” Instead of seeking to understand their mate, they want to be understood. The world will give you plenty of information on how to love your husband, but it’s based on the world’s philosophy that promotes giving to get. It’s not about serving out of love. You can see how the world’s way works out by looking at the divorce rate in America.
Older women are instructed to teach the younger how to love their children. You may think you don’t need any help in that area. After all, any normal woman loves her children better than she loves herself. Yet, there is a biblical way to love our children. Unless we follow God’s pattern, we can love our children foolishly. Many loved children turn out to be spoiled, selfish adults. That is not best for anyone.
Titus also instructs older women to teach younger to be sober. That word means to have control of our passions and desires. This would include controlling our emotions by not flying off the handle and speaking without thinking. We should not be passing out “zingers” if there is a chance feelings will be hurt.
The next instruction is to be discreet. This is simply being careful in our speech and actions. Paying attention to details and knowing what’s going on around us. This woman is especially careful to avoid offending someone. They want to serve but don’t want to draw attention to themselves.
Following being discreet, is being chaste. This means to be pure in their heart and in their lifestyle.
Next, they are to be a keeper at home. This alone could be many devotionals, but to keep it basic, it refers to a woman putting her home first. It is our responsibility to make sure things run smoothly and the basic needs of the family are met. Many women work outside the home today but that does not change God’s word. We are responsible to make sure the home comes first.
Older women are to teach the younger to be good. This would embody all the qualities we have mentioned. We are to live our lives to the best of our ability so as to not give others a bad opinion of ourselves. Good includes being morally pure, taking care of her family, not being a busy body, a gossip, but seeking to please her husband and obey God.
The last one mentioned is being obedient to her own husband. This one is a tough one for many women to follow, mostly because they have bought into the world’s philosophy of independence and selfishness. God’s plan is for the man to be the head of the home. He is not to be a tyrant, but a loving husband and father. However, if you think he is wrong in his opinion you are still not to defy him and do your own thing unless he is asking you to sin. God must always come first in our actions and beliefs. However, you must remember that God holds him responsible for what goes on in your home. He answers to God for what he allows. If you don’t agree with his decision on something, take it to God first. If you feel you need to discuss it, do it privately, not in front of the children. If you do, you are setting your home up for divisions and children learning to play one parent against the other. This will only lead to eventual destruction.
So, how do we pass on, or learn these important tasks? We do it by finding women who exhibit these qualities and allowing them to become our mentors. We watch, we ask questions, we become friends with them. We all should become Titus 2 women. No matter how young you are, there is someone younger. The perfect pattern would be for each generation to teach the next generation. It is all our responsibility to be, or become, a Titus 2 woman. This is the only way to biblically have a continuation of generation to generation.
