You must teach what is in accord with sound doctrine. (Titus 2:1)

1
You must teach what is in accord with sound
doctrine. (Titus 21)
2
What were the things Paul urged Titus to preach?

• Specific instructions to those who made up the
  church to possess an inward righteousness that
  adorns the gospel of Christ.

3
Evidence Before Information

• People need to see the evidence of Christianity
  in us before they will hear the information about
  Christianity from us!

4
Sound doctrine for older women (Titus 23-4)
5
Cultural Background

• The coming of Roman values in no way diminished
  the gains Cretan women had secured. The change
  in Rome with married women able to hold property
  provide the inhabitants of the imperial capital
  with one of the powerful levers that secured for
  them greater financial independence from the late
  Republic onwards, and hence a measure of social
  freedom. It will be suggest that the emergence
  of the new Roman women in the first century
  could only fortify the long-established legal
  gains that already provided a measure of
  independence for the women of Roman Crete
  (Winter, p. 144).

6
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.
Then they can train the younger women to love
their husbands and children, (Titus 23-4)
7
Characteristics of older women
8
Reverent in behavior

• katastemademeanor or describing a state of mind
• hieroprepesrelated to the Greek word for temple
  and means suited to a sacred character.
• Thus, the idea is that older women carry into
  daily life the demeanor of priestesses in a
  temple (Guthrie, quoting Dibelius)

9
Not slanderers or addicted to wine
10
Addicted to wine

• dulowto be enslaved to something
• polus--much
• oinoswine
• In view of our earlier study on wine in the NT,
  the idea is the use of wine for intoxication.

11
Not slanderers

• Diabolosa word reserved for the devil who is a
  slanderer of God to men and men to God.
• Athenaeus in the Learned Banquet quotes
  Epicharmus who observed the problems of gossip or
  slander at dinner parties But after drinking
  comes mockery, and after mockery filthy insults,
  and after insults a lawsuit (Deipnosophists,
  2.36 quoted by Winter in Roman wives, Roman
  widows,, p. 154.)

12
Teach what is good

• kalodidaskaloigood teachers
• inain order that
• Sophonizoto call one to his/her senses.
• Younger women need role models and guidance in
  the work of being a wife and mother.
• Older women should seek out opportunity to help
  those who are younger by giving them the wisdom
  of experience

13
Applying Pauls message in our contemporary
culture
14
More freedom and power..
more temptation

• Women and men who are not married are brought
  together in close working relationships that have
  fostered adulterous affairs.
• A womans freedom and power in secular life can
  carry over into spiritual life resulting in more
  assertive attitudes and occupation of roles
  forbidden to them by God.
• The obligations of work can take a heavy toll on
  the relationship of a woman with her husband and
  her children.
• Privileges of public life can lead to involvement
  in the sins of alcoholism and slander.

15
Exhortations to older women

• Show the younger women how to participate in the
  Lords work meaningfully while respecting the
  leadership limitations God has placed upon you.
• Be a good teacher ready to call the younger
  women to their senses when they lose sight of
  the divinely given priorities.