"We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. . . . if it is teaching, let him teach." -- Romans 12:6, 7

 

"For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say 'No' to ungodliness and worldly passions and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age."

         The Holy Spirit brings the structuring grace of God into our lives. Some are gifted to teach in a way that shapes our character, so that we live in a way that is purposeful and that honors God. Ultimately our teacher is Jesus Christ himself.

         What we notice first of all is that this teaching begins with the old, and not the young. It begins, "Teach the older men." There are two things to be kept in mind with the word "older." The first is that life expectancy in the Roman Empire was about 45 years. "Older" did not refer to people who were 80 and above. We need to think much more of what we might consider "middle age." The other thing to keep in mind is that the Baby Boomer generation, those born after World War II, will never admit to being old. There is this persistent youth culture in our land that builds a wall around this text.

         There are a few things that men need to keep in mind as they move past their 40's, and especially as their children finish school and move out on their own. The primary task for men in this age group is to move from developing competence to developing wisdom, and from dwelling on accomplishments to dwelling on loving relationships. I think there is a line in King Lear that says "you have grown old before you have grown wise." Older men need to seek wisdom, not success.

The other task is that older men need to let go of who they thought they were when they were young. You need to accept and embrace who you are now. This can free older men to become men of encouragement and blessing across generations.

         The other night Chuck Johnson told the Fireside Friends group to think about Jesus' words, "You are the light of the world." Older men, those moving out of their 40's and on up, can truly become helpful, guiding beacons of light – perhaps lighthouses is a good image – for those coming behind them.

         But first, Paul writes to Titus, the older men themselves need to be taught. They need to be taught to be temperate, worthy of respect, self-controlled and sound in faith, in love and in endurance. When you hit about 50, endurance in life becomes very important. The problem most men have has to do with fading energy and depletion. The world offers energy in quick bursts, usually in forms that are harmful and leave men even more isolated, anxious and tired. The world offers alcohol, pornography, money, and luxury.

Paul says, "Teach the older men to be temperate" – not given to alcohol; "to be self-controlled" – the word refers to taming passions, especially sexual desire. In Galatians 5, the fruit of the Spirit is set against fornication, impurity, debauchery and idolatry. Older men need to find life giving ways to deal with their depletion, so they can indeed be worthy of respect and filled with sound faith, love and endurance.

         How do we do that? How do we deal with the questions that haunt us:

• Did all my hard work through the years really amount to anything?
• Does anyone care about what I had to go through?
• Does anyone know how to help me finish well, and not just get run over by the next generation?

These are the classes we need. Not how to make more money, how to preach a better sermon, how to look younger. The classes we need have to do with how to truly befriend younger men, how to share our accumulated wisdom, the treasure of our hearts, in a way that affirms and blesses; how to apply our wisdom to the good of the community, or of the church. We who are growing older, in a culture that denies "older," need to be learning how to pray in a new way.

         I have really enjoyed reading the book "The Preacher and the Presidents" about Billy Graham's relationship with a series of Presidents. When Lyndon Johnson completed his term of office, he retired to his ranch in Texas. Because of the deep unrest concerning the Viet Nam war, he really could not go anywhere, because he would surely meet demonstrations against him. So he was alone, and it was a difficult time for him. Billy Graham would go to visit him at the ranch and that is when Johnson came to understand the assurance of his salvation.

        "Teach the older men to be wise, worthy of respect, sound in faith, in love and in endurance."

         Teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live. There were two things going on among the older women in the church in Crete. These were the women whose children were grown. They were no longer overwhelmed with the myriad of tasks and expectations and pressures of family life. They maybe had some free time. They had problems with what one translation calls "nasty gossiping" and "addiction to alcohol." Betty Ford helped us to understand what can happen to women sometimes as they move out of one primary role as mothers and search for another.

         "Teach the older women to be reverent." The word means "a hushed awe, like standing in a cathedral." If life gets quiet, don't just fill it right away with all that the world offers. But sit before God for a time; wait on the Lord, like Anna in the temple. And then it says, "Teach what is good." What a great opportunity it is for women who have been through those overwhelming, hectic, exhausting days to simply come alongside the younger ones who are busy with babies and toddlers and say "You are going to be fine." "I trust you. Let me share a little of my life with you."

        Teach the older women to be teachers of what is good.

         Then there is the teaching of the grace of God that appeared to us in Jesus Christ. He is the one who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness. It is the cross of Jesus that is our greatest, most powerful teacher. Through the cross we are forgiven, we become God's people; we are renewed so that we are eager to do what is good. It is the cross, in its severity, but also in its love, that teaches us, empowers us, to say "no to ungodliness and worldly passions." Eugene Peterson, in "The Message," puts it this way, to reject "a godless, indulgent life." That is where our struggle is. How do we say "no" to worldly passions?

        What is the world passionate about?

        Where is the strength to say "no?"

        How can we stand up to a world that is so passionate about what it has to offer, and moves so fast, moves too fast for us to pray, too fast for us to read God's Word, too fast for us to serve God? It is not in our own strength that we can say "no."

         Yet the grace of God, the power of the cross, teaches us, empowers us, even to obey everything that Christ commands.

        Amen.