The book of Titus was a letter written by Paul to his disciple, Titus, in about the year 66 AD. Paul had left Titus in charge of the churches on the island of Crete. Crete was inhabited by natives of the island as well as Jews who didn’t know the truth of Jesus Christ. The purpose of the letter was to exhort Titus of the importance of finding, discipling and training elders in every city there, so that they, in turn, could become Godly leaders and ministers, teaching the people to live righteous, Godly lives.
We can glean some good information regarding the situation in Crete from Titus 1. It seems many of the people there were living lives of debauchery. They were bigamists, drunkards, unruly, sexually depraved, deceivers, and money hungry. Paul warned Titus about those who gave heed to Jewish fables and commandments of men, that cause them to turn from the truth. In Titus 1:12, Paul quotes a Cretan poet, stating basically, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.” In Titus 1:16, we read: “They profess that they know God, but in works they deny Him, being abominable, disobedient and unto every good work, reprobate.”
So, in Titus Chapter 2, Paul gives instruction on what to do. “…speak thou the things which become sound doctrine; That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience. 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.
“Young men, likewise, exhort to be sober-minded. In all things showing thyself a pattern of good works: in doctrine showing uncorruptness, gravity, sincerity, sound speech that cannot be condemned…”
And Titus 2:11 & 12 reads, “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world.”
History tells us that while Titus was leading the churches on Crete, righteousness increased. And while Scripture doesn’t give us any follow-up on how the churches did there long-term, tradition suggests Crete had lasting Christian roots… for a while. Today, the people of Crete are just like people everywhere. Some are righteous, most are not. But the instructions Paul gave to Titus remain sound teaching for all of us today.
Now, let’s talk about our nation. If Paul were alive today, you can bet the Church in America would be getting a letter — and it wouldn’t be a pleasant one. Americans today could easily be labeled with the infamous title of “Cretans.” Today, as we’ve largely forgotten and dismissed God, a lot of us could easily be described in a paraphrase of Titus 1:12, “Americans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.”
Even many of our elderly population have no fear or reverence for God anymore. I suppose that’s the natural human condition that the unregenerate man always reverts to, but in a nation built upon the commands and statutes of God, we’ve certainly fallen far from our Christian roots. I’m thankful for those older folks who do know and reverence the Lord, walking with Him daily.
But imagine if more of our older men were sober, grave (meaning serious and dignified), temperate (meaning calm and level-headed), sound in faith, in charity, in patience. Imagine if more of our older women valued holiness, didn’t gossip, didn’t indulge in alcohol and taught others good things. What if they were to teach the young women of today to be sober, to love their husbands and children? What if they were discreet, modest, homemakers — and allowed and encouraged their husbands to lead?
And imagine if our young men were sober-minded, sought always to do good works, yearned for sound biblical doctrine, were uncorrupted, sincere and spoke with sound speech. Imagine if we all denied ungodliness and worldly lusts and instead lived soberly, righteously and godly every day.
Yes, we can learn a lot from the book of Titus, as we can from all of Scripture. We need more Godly men and women — righteous elders who are willing to teach the younger generations, mentor them, disciple them. And we need the younger generation to value and esteem their righteous, Godly elders, who can share lifetimes of learned wisdom.
Many years ago, when I was an elder at the church we were attending, the question came up at a board meeting about what to do with our youth group. The youth group was shrinking. The kids weren’t serious and only attended meetings infrequently. Meanwhile, I had always made it a point to honor and respect the older people in church — the “senior saints,” if you will. Many of them were widows or widowers and attended church alone. It seemed to me they were marginalized, viewed as “irrelevant” and their Godly wisdom was just as ignored as they were, so I made it a point to engage with them and let them know they were valued.
In the board meeting with the other elders, I suggested something radical: why don’t we ask the older people to lead the youth group? Why don’t we team up older men with the teenage
boys and the older women with the teenage girls, for mentorship? Would not these “senior saints” have lifetimes of Godly wisdom to share? Did they not have valuable lessons they could teach the young people? And this would also bridge the gap between the generations — so they could bless one another!
My idea was quickly shot down. “The kids want more fun activities,” I was told. “We need to appeal to the things they’re interested in.” The result? More pizza parties, more game nights, “field trips” to the skateboard park and the movie theater. And so, instead of teaching the young people to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts, the church simply indulged the kids’ carnal desires.
I’m greatly concerned for our younger generations today. I know there are a lot of “good” kids out there. But many more of them are lost, confused and feeling hopeless and helpless. Boys and girls alike, but today I want to focus on the boys. Because boys have always had a lot of unique challenges growing up, but nothing like what they’re facing today.
Many are confused about their gender because they’re brainwashed from kindergarten on, that “good boys” should act more like girls. That their natural masculine traits are “toxic.” And in 1980, they were slapped with a new “mental illness,” called “Attention Deficit Disorder,” later renamed “Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.” And of course, Big Pharma provided the solution. Today, two-thirds of public school students (mostly all boys) are on some type of medication for their ADHD.
Parents go along, because they trust those in authority, and they believe they know best. But children — and especially boys — are being drugged into a stupor to control behaviors that are natural and normal for young, growing children. The drugs keep them quiet, compliant and susceptible to suggestions of the teachers and the radical Leftist mindset most of them have.
When boys are brought up in this environment, and with little to no biblical instruction at home or at church, it’s impossible for them to become sober-minded, interested in doing “good works,” grounded in solid biblical doctrine, and with sound speech. Most today don’t know anything about God’s Word; they move on from the ADHD “gateway drugs” to more mind-altering self-medication; they aren’t interested — and many are incapable — in doing anything significant for others. They just want their phones and screens. And as for “sound speech,” all they know is the language of the public school hallways — filth and profanity.
As they become young men, their developing minds become twisted. They don’t understand what real “manhood” is. They lack discipline, self-control, integrity, and honor. Instead of becoming Godly warriors forged with conviction, courage and Christlike strength, they find themselves simply lost, clueless and without direction. And if they attend college, their worldviews only get worse.
Suicide rates in young men remain disproportionately high as they deal with mental health issues, loneliness and delayed adulthood milestones. And not understanding what true masculinity is, has caused many of them to choose to be feminine instead. “Femininity” and “Feminism” is much more culturally acceptable — and preferable — to “toxic masculinity” now. So, it’s no surprise that studies show a 500% increase in young people, ages 16-24, coming out as “transgender” just in the past eight years… and there’s a much higher percentage of boys trying to become girls than the other way around.
Overall, 25% — (one in four) — of children today grow up with no father in the home. Among black people, that number more than doubles to nearly 60%. God designed the family to have both a mother and a father. Each contribute essential training, nurturing and guidance that children so desperately need. When there’s no
Dad in the house, there are higher rates of anxiety, depression and low self-esteem. There’s also a marked increase in behavioral problems, mood disorders and suicidal thoughts.
These children also grow up with greater family stress, and often live below the poverty line. Studies also show that a majority of jail and prison inmates grew up in a home without a father…or with an abusive father.
The problem is that men today no longer know how to be men, because today’s men have grown up with no knowledge of God and they’ve been taught to be ashamed of themselves, just because they’re male. The Bible tells us that men are to be accountable to God for the physical and spiritual welfare of their families. They’re to be servant leaders, protectors and providers, they’re to raise their children in the fear and admonition of the Lord and love their wives as Christ loved the Church.
Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Without a knowledge and reverence for God, they can’t possibly train up their children in the way they should go. The children become lost and confused young adults, and in their quest for belonging and purpose, instead of seeking God and His righteousness, they follow the path of least resistance, and so they indulge carnal pleasures, give in to wicked enticements and support evil without even knowing it’s evil.
When I was young, boys wanted to grow up to be firemen, policemen, astronauts or soldiers. Current studies show that today, the number one thing boys want to be when they grow up is a “Content Creator.” In other words, making silly videos for social media. Atheists tell us, “you can be good without God.” I disagree, and so do the facts.
Rob Pue
Photo: ChatAI
To read more articles by Rob Pue click here.
Read More About: Moral Decline | Family
