Moments in the life of a Pastor

Walking with God

Monthly Archives: July 2025


by Leave a comment

14. Mentoring matters – Part 1

Titus 2:1-8

“As for you, Titus, promote the kind of living that reflects wholesome teaching. 2 Teach the older men to exercise self-control, to be worthy of respect, and to live wisely. They must have sound faith and be filled with love and patience. 3 Similarly, teach the older women to live in a way that honors God. They must not slander others or be heavy drinkers.[a] Instead, they should teach others what is good. 4 These older women must train the younger women to love their husbands and their children, 5 to live wisely and be pure, to work in their homes, to do good, and to be submissive to their husbands. Then they will not bring shame on the word of God. 6 In the same way, encourage the young men to live wisely. 7 And you yourself must be an example to them by doing good works of every kind. Let everything you do reflect the integrity and seriousness of your teaching.8 Teach the truth so that your teaching can’t be criticized. Then those who oppose us will be ashamed and have nothing bad to say about us.”

Last time we saw Paul calling Elders to deal with the disobedient, those who claimed to be Christians but are actually living carnal lives. We were confronted with a challenging question are we really Christians or are we counterfeits? Now as we turn to Titus chapter 2, we see the focus change from the elders to everybody, as we see Paul’s passion for people to live out the transforming power of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It’s here that Paul draws a sharp contrast between the life of a Christian and that of the culture. The culture in which Titus was called to live out Christ was much like ours. Crete was a major cesspool filled with people who were focused on following the flesh not God the Father. They were not driven by a desire for righteousness, instead life revolved around self and the pursuit of personal success. This was the culture in which Titus was called to live out his Christian faith. We need to remember that the church has always been called to live out Christ in a corrupt culture. Morality is like the tides of the sea it ebbs and flows, sometimes it swallows up much of the sand while at other times it leaves it mostly exposed. We can kid ourselves into thinking that we are living in a Christian nation but the truth is most people are practicing a pagan life not a pure one. The people of Crete were known for getting drunk, and having a lack of self-control. The challenge of living in this culture is that it’s easy to fall away from your faith and start to participate in pagan practices. When you’re surrounded by people who are tell dirty jokes, it’s easy to fudge your faith, to laugh and join in. When you’re struggling in your marriage and you are around people who bash and belittle their spouse, it could be tempting to join in and trash the very person God has called you to treasure. It’s called peer pressure, and its attacks at every age. We live in a pagan world and we need to be careful that we are not drawn into its carnal culture. Because in the midst of this pagan world, one the most powerful forces for God are the words and walk of Godly people. We are not called to be chameleon Christians trying to blend our beliefs with the world so we can fit in. Real faith is a lot like oil it’s never going to mix well with water. As Paul challenges Christians to live out their faith he starts first with men by calling those who are mature men to mentor those who are moldable. Paul is not picking on men here rather he is reminding us that we are called to be the spiritual leaders of our homes. Paul challenges us first because as men we set the spiritual temperature and tone of our homes. You set the thermostat of truth in your home, how hot or cold the climate is for Christ greatly revolves around the pace that you set.


by Leave a comment

13 Dealing with the Disobedient – Part 4

Titus 1:9-16

“9 He must have a strong belief in the trustworthy message he was taught; then he will be able to encourage others with wholesome teaching and show those who oppose it where they are wrong. 10 For there are many rebellious people who engage in useless talk and deceive others. This is especially true of those who insist on circumcision for salvation. 11 They must be silenced, because they are turning whole families away from the truth by their false teaching. And they do it only for money. 12 Even one of their own men, a prophet from Crete, has said about them, “The people of Crete are all liars, cruel animals, and lazy gluttons.” 13 This is true. So reprimand them sternly to make them strong in the faith. 14 They must stop listening to Jewish myths and the commands of people who have turned away from the truth.15 Everything is pure to those whose hearts are pure. But nothing is pure to those who are corrupt and unbelieving, because their minds and consciences are corrupted. 16 Such people claim they know God, but they deny him by the way they live. They are detestable and disobedient, worthless for doing anything good.”

It’s here that Paul reminds us of the goal which is to:

3.         Reconcile the Rebellious – Vs 15-16

The context here refers to those who are devoted to the rules but don’t have a relationship with Jesus. The word translated “pure” is the same word used to describe those who have been washed clean by Jesus Christ. Verse 16 reminds us that even though an individual may claim to know God, how they live can cancel out their confession. A changed character leads to changed conduct. Proper belief must express itself in proper behavior. Isaiah 29:13: “These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men.” What Paul is saying here is that people do what they do because of what is in their hearts. Just because they speak about spiritual things doesn’t mean that they are saved. Its here that Paul uses some strong words.

Detestable. This comes from a word that means, “to emit a foul odor” and was used to describe that which is an abomination to God.

Disobedient. This word literally refers to one who refuses to be persuaded. There are those who don’t believe not because of insufficient evidence but because of proud hearts.

Worthless. Meaning that their lives don’t stand the test, it was used of metals that were rejected by refiners because of impurities.

So let me ask you a challenging question, are you a Christian or a counterfeit. Are you a follower of Jesus Christ or a fake? There are those who have convinced themselves that they are a Christian, but in reality you’re not. Paul gave a very serious challenge to church people in 2 Corinthians 13:5: “Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith.” Have you ever really examined yourself?

There are people who profess Christ but don’t possess Christ. Some of you claim to be a Christian with your words but you prove that you are carnal with your walk. What about you are you a professor of faith or a possessor of faith? For many years John Wesley professed to be a believer and yet when he took the time to examine himself, he came to the conclusion that he was not a Christian. This is what he said in his sermon called, “The Almost Christian.”

“I did go thus for many years, as many of this place can testify; using diligence to eschew all evil, and to have a conscience void of offence; redeeming the time; buying up every opportunity of doing all good to all men; constantly and carefully using all the public and all the private means of grace; endeavoring, after a steady seriousness of behavior, at all times, and in all places: and God is my record, before whom I stand, doing all this in sincerity; having a real design to serve God; a hearty desire to do his will in all things; to please him who had called me to ‘fight the good fight,’ and to ‘lay hold on eternal life.’ Yet my own conscience bears me witness, in the Holy Ghost, that all this time I was but almost a Christian”

What about you are you a child of the King or a counterfeit?