Titus 2
June’s Topic: Not Given to Much Wine, Pt.1
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Titus 2:3-5 “…the older women likewise, that they be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things–that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed.”
Titus was told to look for women who were “not given to much wine”. I recognize that most of us may not struggle with an over indulgence of wine or alcohol. So what can we glean from this recommendation? The women Paul was recommending knew how to practice self-control. Rather than being drunk with wine, they were filled with the Spirit.
self-control - the ability to say no; to stop at a proper time; to moderate activities; to regulate passions and appetites by using sound judgment and a conscience enlightened by the Holy Spirit
(emphasis is mine — I love that definition!)
We learn from scripture that self-control is a fruit of the Spirit. It is not something we can muster up on our own. Some of you may already understand this, having tried to exercise self-control over bad habits, only to end up frustrated and discouraged. So what’s a girl to do? How does one practice self-control? Can we battle the flesh on our own? No! We must learn to walk by the Spirit. Galatians 5:24,25 “And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” NKJV
Walking is a form of movement. It is accomplished one step at a time, one foot in front of the other, repeatedly. All day long we must walk in the Spirit; we must choose our steps, following His direction, His voice, His leading and guiding.
1 Peter 2:16 “Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God.” NIV
Day after day, step by step, we choose to live as servants, honoring Christ as our master, not our flesh, considering His ways and considering others above ourselves. What do we choose? We choose love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance. Instead of indulging ourselves in reading a magazine we choose to listen to our toddler’s concern; we calm our frenzied soul before greeting our husband as he returns home from work; we prepare a nutritious meal even though we are tired; we rest our weary bodies instead of staying up late watching that movie so that we aren’t as tired tomorrow when it is time to prepare dinner.
Every day is a journey, but don’t fret about all the steps you will need to take in a given day. Just consider the one directly before you. And then choose His way.
When you fail to walk in the Spirit, simply kneel in repentance, then stand up and begin to walk again. One step at a time. If you fail again, repent again. I have found repentance to be an integral part of healing, growth, and bearing fruit. Repent. Repent often. Repent to God, and be sure to repent to those effected by your sin. It is humbling, but it is key to progress. It is essential.
“But we have liberty!” I hear the cry even as I write these words. Absolutely! Galatians 5:13 guarantees such liberty! It also provides important instruction for the use of such freedom.
“For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.” NKJV
We should choose to use our freedom from the rule of the flesh for His purposes. And it is a choice. Some scriptures declare who and what we are — “You are the righteousness of God in Christ.” “All things have become new.” “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.”
Other scriptures are an imperative statement, a command. These imply a will to choose. Galatians 5:25 is one such verse.
“If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” NKJV
Let us this day choose, step after step, to walk in the Spirit. It is a choice. It is a dying to self. And it yields the fruit of self-control in our lives. There is no better freedom known to mankind.
Discussion
5 comments for “June’s Topic: Not Given to Much Wine, Pt.1”
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I am so thankful that you chose to spend time discussing this passage of scripture. This very verse has hung in the bathroom at my parents house for years, one day a young woman was spending the day with us and she came out of the bathroom totally frazzled, “I need a Bible! New King James or something, Titus can’t possibly say that in any normal translation!” Upon reading it she was so stunned, “This just must be culturally speaking, it certainly can’t apply to us now.” It opened up a very good conversation and my mom, being the wise woman that she is, gently let her know just how relevant it is to every woman of every culture and every decade. I think that because of the cry to be politically correct streaming out of so many congregations, verses such as these have been completely omitted from the pulpit.
What an interesting look at “not given to much wine” you’re right, it’s not so much a focus on not getting drunk (although certainly including that) but more on self-control. I always sort of brushed past that part thinking, “well, I don’t have an issue with drinking too much…” and I never took the time to look further into how it did indeed apply to me. Thanks for bringing that to my attention, God has been moving on my heart in the way of self-control within my household duties, this is so encouraging!
You stated that,”most of us may not struggle with over indulgence of wine or alcohol,” but trust me out here in the community I live in, this is still a big issue with many christian men and women as well. Do you believe that scripture states not to drink or drink in moderation? I Know of alot of christians who drink. Honestly I admire you and your family and your Christian values….but just for the record,do you or any one in your family drink wine or alcohol? If iam being too personal forgive me. but your answere will put alot of issues to rest. Thank You.
@Sue
I just published a second post that may answer some of your questions along these lines of alcohol.
While the members of my household (and children who have now established households of their own) do not usually indulge in alcohol, we recognize no clear violation of scripture in having alcohol in moderation. We do, however, maintain the privilege of exercising non-participation for the sake of a clear testimony and also for the sake of other brothers and sisters who struggle in this area. If this does not help in a concrete way, please feel free to ask further questions!
Darlene, Thank you for your reply. I just finished reading your second post and replyed there as well. My husband and I feel we have the same priviege as your family of non-participation as part of our testimony, but was trying to convince other christians as well. I see now this was and is an error on our behalf. Since I read your new article I realize that this is the Holy Spirit’s work not ours.I have always wondered if Jesus turned the water into wine(as we think of wine)at the wedding feast,especially where He knew there would be pregnant women. We know today that drinking during pregnancy can cause damage to the unborn child. I don’t think they had this information or knowledge back then. What do you think about this?
My co-worker printed this lesson out for herself. I saw it on her desk and saw that the lesson on self-control was exactly the one I could use to delicately discuss financial issues with a family member. The words are gracious; the scriptures effective and to the point; the concept of “repent and walk on” opens a door to the habit of making wiser, godly, healthier choices. The family member is guilt ridden and discouraged about making poor decisions that resulted in “bad fruit”, but I hope that by learning the good things about self-control, tapping into God’s mercy and forgiveness, and aiming to “sin no more” might bring hope and recovery. Thank you for your teaching ministry! :^)