You must teach what is in accord with sound doctrine. (Titus 2:1, NIV)
The relationship between a golfer and her teaching professional requires a measure of give-and-take. The player must trust that the pro knows what she is doing, offering sound advice according to proven fundamentals. And the pro expects the player to make application of what is being taught—that is, to practice. When there is a breakdown in either side of this arrangement, the golfer simply won’t get better.
The Bible offers us an array of teaching, too. From the historic accounts to the legal prescriptions to the wisdom offerings to the prophetic revelations to the doctrinal treatises, all of Scripture lays out what we need to know about God and how he would have us live.
Not all of it is easy to understand, but no worries there, for you can easily spend a lifetime learning and applying what is quite plain!
We recognize, too, that we should have no trust issues with God as the dispenser of all this insight. Never has there been a “pro” who knew his business so well! We can count on the veracity of his instruction.
The question for most of us, then, is this: how well are we learning?
In Paul’s brief pastoral letter to Titus, the apostle listed a number of items that Titus needed to emphasize with the brothers and sisters in his care: for older men and younger men, for older women and younger women, and for those working under masters. All needed to be instructed regarding matters of Christ-honoring character and integrity.
These lessons are still vital for Jesus’ men and women today. We are to live lives “worthy of respect, self-controlled, and sound in faith, in love, and in endurance” (Titus 2:2). In order to do this, we must not only seek good teachers, but we must make the commitments of good learners, listening to what is taught and applying it in our interaction with others as ambassadors of Christ as well as in those private moments that only God sees. When we do this, we demonstrate the growth that the Holy Spirit is working in us.
—
Jeff Hopper
October 4, 2013
Copyright 2013 Links Players International
The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.