How to live as Christians

(Titus 2:2-6 – How to live as Christians)

These scriptures today, and the ones that follow, give great examples of how to live as Christians.

Each of the examples in these few verses provide insights into how to live as Christians. We are called to behave, not as the world does, but as Christ did.

Our behaviour and our words define who we are. By following the examples set forth here, we show that we are members of Christ’s body. When we learn how to live as Christians, we prove that we belong to Him and are seeking the ways of God.

Behaviours and how to live as Christians

These scriptures define the types of behaviours we are aiming for. This is what the verses today tell us.

2 Bid the older men be temperate, serious, sensible, sound in faith, in love, and in steadfastness. 3 Bid the older women likewise to be reverent in behaviour, not to be slanderers or slaves to drink; they are to teach what is good, 4 and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, 5 to be sensible, chaste, domestic, kind, and submissive to their husbands, that the word of God may not be discredited. 6 Likewise urge the younger men to control themselves. (Titus 2:2-6)

Paul was exhorting Titus to encourage the people he was with to live a certain way. He was in effect saying that if you call yourself a Christian, then you need to know how to live as Christians.

These things are not hard to do either. It is not a call to behave in a “super-spiritual” way, as some do. Instead, it is a call to basically just be sensible, well-mannered, and faithful to the Lord.

He speaks about being temperate. That is, to be even tempered and not prone to being angry or hot-headed. This aligns with scriptures that say:

19 Know this, my beloved brethren. Let every man be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger, 20 for the anger of man does not work the righteousness of God. (James 1:19-20)

He also tells the people not to be slaves to drink. Alcohol is a destructive thing and it takes away peoples inhibitions and sensibilities. Consider some of the wisdom in Proverbs.

Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler; and whoever is led astray by it is not wise. (Proverbs 20:1)

Nobody can live appropriately if they are led astray by any form of substance abuse. Alcohol was a problem in bible times, as it is today. And today we have many other forms of substance and mental abuse that are not appropriate if we want to know how to live as Christians.

What we say

Behaviours are one thing, but the words that come out of our mouth are important to control also. Throughout the scriptures we are warned about the words we speak.

36 I tell you, on the day of judgement men will render account for every careless word they utter; 37 for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” (Matthew 12:36-37)

It is imperative that we always speak graciously. We must not slander others or put others down. The old adage that if you can’t say something good, then don’t say anything is probably fitting. And after all, God judges the evil according to their deeds and words.

Our speech as Christians should be thoughtful and considered. We should speak as if we were speaking in the presence of the Lord at all times, because…we are. Every word we speak, God hears. Everything we do, God sees. So, we need to live and act accordingly.

What we say marks who we are as people. If we want to know how to live as Christians, then we need to speak as Christ spoke. We need to follow His example.

10 And he called the people to him and said to them, “Hear and understand: 11 not what goes into the mouth defiles a man, but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man.” (Matthew 15:10-11)

Under Jewish law there were many foods that they were not permitted to eat. Pig meats, offal meats, crustaceans, shellfish, birds of prey, fish that did not have fins and scales, and so on. The Jews believed that they would be defiled spiritually if they ate these things.

But Jesus told them it was not what goes into their mouth that was a problem. When you consider all of the foods above, it is these that most often cause people to be ill. If there is an outbreak of botulinum or food poisoning, you can be sure it is generally one of these foods at the root cause.

The food laws were given for our benefit as a health protection. It was especially needed in Biblical times when they did not have good refrigeration or food preservation technologies.

But Jesus made the point that what came out of our mouths is what defiled us. We are spiritually defiled when we speak evil. When the evil in a person’s heart is spoken, it is that which defiles them in the sight of God.

So, if we want to know how to live as Christians, we must learn to control our tongue. What we say is critically important to showing who we are in our heart and mind.

Be an example of how to live as Christians

The final point worth mentioning from the verses today, is to be an example to others. Paul talks about the older women training the younger women how to behave. And it is the same for men too.

In Christ, there are many times where we are told to imitate the good behaviours of those who were in Christ before us. If we want to learn how to live as Christians, then we can imitate other Christians in the good behaviours they exhibit.

And while you may think that imitating is “faking it,” this is not the case. It is by imitating that we learn. Just as a child imitates their parents and so they learn and grow, we imitate our elders in Christ to learn and grow in the Spirit.

We imitate the good behaviours of Christ we see in others and in time and through the Holy Spirit they become our behaviours. When that happens, we become an example to others who follow after us.

These scriptures today are good examples of how to live as Christians. They can and should be imitated as they give good instruction for us to follow.

You might also like:

Whoever Loses His Life For My Sake Will Find It
The Baptism Of Jesus
Call Of The First Disciples
Conditions To Receive Eternal Life
Seek The Lord And Never Ever Give Up
Serving Jesus
Follow Me
Imitate Christ
Imitate Christ 2
In Christ It Is Always Yes
Be Imitators Of God