Today's reading: Titus 2:1-15

'For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age.' - Titus 2:11-12 ESV

In the fifteen verses of this chapter, Paul uses the same-ish word (sophron X2, sophroneo, sophronos) four times. Any time we see this kind of repetition in scripture, we need to lean in a little closer to see why. In each instance, the words are translated as "self-controlled" in the ESV. These words are not anywhere close to the word that Paul uses for "self-control" (enktrateia) in the fruit of the Spirit list (Galatians 5:22).

So why this word here? What's the purpose behind the repetition to Titus as he talks through the different ages of church members in Crete?

The word Paul uses for self-controlled here in Titus 2 has to do with being "sensible" or "of sound mind." It's almost like he's saying, "May they use the minds God's given them in the right way."

In Mark 5:15, we see the same word used when describing the demon-possessed man Jesus had healed:

"And they came to Jesus and saw the demon-possessed man, the one who had the legion, sitting there, clothed and IN HIS RIGHT MIND, and they were afraid."

Let's get into our right minds and make more decisions that glorify Jesus every day.

Todays reading: Titus 1:1-16

“This truth gives them confidence that they have eternal life, which God—who does not lie—promised them before the world began.” - Titus‬ ‭1:2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Paul opens this letter to Titus by declaring that he is a slave of God and an apostle (one who has been sent) of Jesus Christ.

He viewed his job as a slave in two ways:

1) Bring faith to others. Lead them to trust Jesus.

2) Teach them to know the truth. It won’t come about naturally, even given enough time.

Now, in Romans 1:19, we see that we can get a general picture of truth via God’s creation. This is a setup for us sharing the specific reality of the gospel.

As we see in verses 15-16, the truth isn’t something that needs to be improved upon or requires any amendments. It is perfect and life-giving throughout all generations, and was so before God said, “Let there be light.”

Jesus said that we would know the truth, and it will set us free (see John 8:32). May we continue to walk in that freedom today, experiencing it as pure.

Today's reading: 2 Timothy 4:1-22

'I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.' - 2 Timothy 4:1-2 ESV

Have you watched any videos or listened to any podcasts from The Bible Project? If not, you should! Something they have been saying lately that is really profound is that "God will give us what we want." If we want to be close to Him, doing things His way, He will give us abundant life. If we want to go the way of the crowd, He will let us do that.

Paul is encouraging Timothy to be ready, at all times, to share the word of God. The reason? Some need to be saved from eternal death, and some need to grow. We can do this by 1) Patiently Correcting, 2) Rebuking, and 3) Encouraging.

Telling people the truth is the best gift we could ever give them. Yet the majority will not appreciate this, though they need it.

Polycarp, one of our early Church Fathers (AD 65 to AD 155), encouraged himself and those in Philippi to "let us leave behind the worthless speculation of the crowd."

May we move from speculation to concrete truth from Jesus!

Today's reading: 2 Timothy 2:22-26, 3:1-16

'So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil.' - 2 Timothy 2:22-24 ESV

Over the past two days, we've been on a broken record of how to invest our limited time and energy that God has given all of us. Here in this passage, we see Paul giving us some excellent advice about what day-to-day should look like for those who claim to be "servants" or "slaves" of Jesus. Our Savior is the one who is our Lord and our Owner.

As Christians, it is time for us to stop running toward that which we know will hurt us and start running toward the best life possible to live in a fallen and broken world.

I think the reason people get so fired up about politics is that we want to live in a better world. Praying through these verses, and putting them into practice, will set us on that path.

Today's reading: 2 Timothy 2:1-21

'Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel, for which I am suffering, bound with chains as a criminal. But the word of God is not bound!' - 2 Timothy 2:8-9 ESV

Limits are frustrating. They are a constant reminder of what we CANNOT do. You cannot go without sleep for 48 hours and function well. You cannot refuse to drink water for over 3 days and survive. You cannot, in our present world, go a day without making a mistake.

Paul's limit toward the end of his life was literally being incarcerated. No more wild tangles with the beasts in Ephesus. No more sailing to contend with those in Corinth. All he had were his friends in Rome to keep him alive and a Scribe to write down letters on his behalf.

Paul became a Christian in AD 33 or 34 and was killed around the time of AD 64. For the last seven years of his life, he was in chains.

Yet churches continued to grow, and the foundation we are standing on today was being laid.

Feel limited? God still wants to move!

Today's reading: 2 Timothy 1:1-18

'I remember your genuine faith, for you share the faith that first filled your grandmother Lois and your mother, Eunice. And I know that same faith continues strong in you. This is why I remind you to fan into flames the spiritual gift God gave you when I laid my hands on you.' - 2 Timothy 1:5-6

I think many times we downplay the significance of one interaction and what God can set it in motion as a result of it.

Do you think Grandma Lois knew what would become of Timothy as she prayed over him while changing his diapers? Do you think Momma Eunice knew of her son's future when she had to discipline him as a pre-teen or make him attend worship (at someone's home) when he didn't want to?

Probably not. Yet these women invested into Timothy's life, and that investment compounded into a "genuine" faith. The word for genuine can also be translated as "without hypocrisy." This kind of faith is only reproduced by seeing other Christians who are the real deal.

By the time Paul ends up on the scene, his job was relatively easy. He was laying his hands on a young man who was readied by strong women of faith.

Today’s reading: 1 Timothy 6:1-21

“Teach those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which is so unreliable. Their trust should be in God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment.” - ‭‭1 Timothy‬ ‭6:17‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Knofel Staton wrote, “Someone has said that the wisest investors are those who invest in what outlasts life. Investing in kingdom work outlasts life on earth.”

What are your financial goals? I recently saw an article that was saying that most of us will need around a million dollars in retirement to live comfortably for the final 29 years of our lives. Do we really think that having this kind of money saved will bring us the security we are looking for in this life?

The acquisition of wealth seems to be a trap. Once we acquire it, we crave more; we set another goal. Trusting in money is like drinking saltwater. It doesn’t satisfy, and it only intensifies our thirst.

Trusting Jesus deeply satisfies.

Give generously.

Let God show you the right way to think about money. It leads to freedom.

Today's reading: 1 Timothy 5:1-25

'Remember, the sins of some people are obvious, leading them to certain judgment. But there are others whose sins will not be revealed until later. In the same way, the good deeds of some people are obvious. And the good deeds done in secret will someday come to light.' - 1 Timothy 5:24-25

It is so wild to see some of the things people post to social media, even if their name is attached to it. Something about firing off a comment or a hateful email to someone makes it feel like it's being done in anonymity.

As we see in these two verses, nothing is actually being done in anonymity. God is paying attention to everything, both heroic and horrific.

Solomon wrote this in Proverbs 15:3:

"The eyes of the LORD are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good."

So whatever evil you've left unconfessed and has yet to be discovered by someone else has actually already been seen by your Creator.

Have you done something good that has gone unnoticed? God knows and cares. He sees you.

Today’s reading: 1 Timothy 4:1-16

“Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.” - 1 Timothy‬ ‭4:12‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Being young and unproven is not a disadvantage; it’s an opportunity.

The word used in this verse for “youth” can describe anyone up to the age of 40. So many young people (under 40) say, “I can’t wait till I’m older, and people take me more seriously.” In contrast, so many older people (over 40) say, “I wish I were younger. I need a do-over. I would use my energy differently (see verse 7).”

Donald Gutherie gives us some great insight on this verse:

“The first two, speech and life (i.e. manner of life, or behaviour) apply to Timothy’s public life, while the other three are concerned with inner qualities (love, faith and purity) which nevertheless have a public manifestation.”

Our public lives will always be driven by our private lives, and not the other way around.

Young or old, let’s change how we use our time and energy. God only gives us so much. Once we use it, we aren’t getting it back.

Today’s reading: 1 Timothy 3:1-16

“He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church? ... Let deacons each be the husband of one wife, managing their children and their own households well.” - ‭‭1 Timothy‬ ‭3:4-5, 12‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Amid all these qualifications for elders and deacons (lead servants of the church), we see these descriptions toward the end of each list.

A real test of any leader is how they treat their family and what they act like in their safest space. Do we treat everyone at work and school with kindness but disrespect the ones who seemingly are “stuck with us?”

The word for “manage” is proistēmi, and Jesus used a version of this word when he said in Luke 22:26:

“Let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and  the leader as one who serves.”

So to “manage” your family is “serve” them. It is to guide them to Jesus with your words and your life. No days off. No excuses.