In the Country of the Blind

You see, authority is a dirty word in a country filled with blind people. Authority stands in our way. Authority stops us from doing what we want to do.

Authority interrupts our quest for personal freedom. Do you dare suggest that that's right and that's wrong? That that's godly and that's sinful?

Don't you know that we here in the country of the blind are much more comfortable with opinions than ultimatums? When was the last time you talked with an unbeliever about Jesus? As Christians, we're regularly in contact with people who don't believe. It's God's desire that we as his church would take initiative in talking about the things of the Lord. In Titus 2.15, the Apostle Paul reminds us that evangelism should be part of our everyday lives. In this final message of his series, Family Talk, Stephen Davies shows you practically how to be a better witness for Jesus Christ. This message is called, In the Country of the Blind. It occurs to me as I study the Word of God and certainly what it must have been like on the island of Crete for Titus in a very real way, he is living in a country of the blind.

Enslaved to sin, given over as a culture to drunkenness, debauchery with sexual immorality as its chief religion. The answer comes, and if you have that letter, turn and look at chapter 2. The game plan involves a living, dynamic, unified, gospel-saturated, God-exalting body of believers. I find it fascinating and have since studying this letter that the solution to the country of the blind is not just putting shepherds in place that are qualified and committed to teaching the Word of God.

But also putting the rest of the church family on assignment. The solution is not going to be sudden. It will not be countrywide. It will take a lifetime of daily influence as salt and light. But you see, the difference between us and that young man in Wells' novel is that we do not run away and escape with our lives. Neither do we accept the surgery. We give our lives. We invest our lives in the darkness around us where we shine as lights and we tell people of another world and things they cannot see.

We are ambassadors of the King of Light who dwell among a people, Paul wrote, who are blinded by the God of this world and we pray that their eyes will be opened to the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ, 2 Corinthians 4 verse 4. It's not going to be easy because you're going to be surrounded by people who think you're insane. People who assume more and more you're not a very good citizen. You don't really fit in. You've lost your mind.

You're making it up. In fact, we're living in a world in our generation that is determined to silence any revelation of another world out there, right? They're determined to remove any semblance of spiritual sight. I read a few days ago of only one more illustration of our country's fascination with removing anything of Christianity from sight. One US District Court judge proposed a solution to the case brought before him by the American Civil Liberties Union, a case bringing suit against a high school in Southwest Virginia that was persisting on hanging a copy of the Ten Commandments and had so for the last 10 years on one of the buildings on the school grounds. The judge ruled this most interesting proposition. He ruled that the school could continue to display the Ten Commandments only if they removed the four commandments that explicitly referred to God.

He ordered the school in the mediation with the ACLU to work up a compromise. You see, we don't want anybody to see a reference to our Creator. Let's surgically remove from our culture, and we have more and more illustrations of that all the time, don't we? Any reference to God.

And then you will be a good citizen in the country of the blind. Paul provides an answer in his letter to Titus, and he begins, you remember in chapter two at verse one, a rather serious family talk, and he says, but you Titus, but as for you speak the things which are fitting for sound doctrine. In other words, continue to tell the truth, and you start with the church. Now you'll notice the last verse of chapter two ends as a bookend to his thoughts here with the same verb. These things speak, and then he amplifies it there in the rest of this verse that we'll look at as our text for today as we complete this series.

The chapter begins and ends with the same command. You could circle that word speak and draw a line down as I have to the verb speak in verse 15. Paul is using what we call the imperative, the exclamation point in the Greek language. You could take those three verbs in verse 15 and write in your Bibles an exclamation point after each one. These things speak, exclamation point, and exhort, exclamation point, and reprove, exclamation point. So you immediately get the idea these are not suggestions.

These are not options. These are the commands. In fact, they are the commands to the shepherds and the flocks that will make a difference. They actually form the game plan for the church at large.

So today, let's take a closer look at this plan for the church on the island of Crete and certainly for any country. We'll call the first initiative conversation, conversation. Paul writes in verse 15, these things speak. He uses a word that can be translated these things announce. These things reveal.

These things disclose. It can be used for careful teaching, certainly, but it can also be used to refer to ordinary conversation. He's not just talking about sermon manuscripts and apologetic discourses and theological dissertations. He's talking about conversations that take place on your back deck, conversations in the hallway, conversations across the fence in the backyard, conversations with children as you sit with them on the edge of their bed before you tuck them in at night.

Paul is saying, and I can just anticipate his thoughts. I know it sounds simplistic and not all that strategic, but I just want you to talk about Jesus Christ. Bring him into your conversations. Make him the object of your discussions. Bring him in as you're going around that course in that golf cart looking for your lost ball.

Bring him in at that restaurant as you're sitting with friends or coworkers. When you sit on an airplane and you have somebody there that can't get away, bring it in. It's a wonderful way, by the way, not only delivering the gospel to unbelievers, but finding family members you never knew around the world. My wife and I had the privilege of being helped with our bags by two sky caps, one coming and one going. And we stood by them for at least five minutes, which gave us an opportunity to drop the seat of the gospel. And both of them responded with that look of, I know exactly what you're talking about and I'm with you 100%. And we ended up meeting brothers. We had no idea we're part of our family.

Only problem with that is you got to tip them, you know, now they know who you are. My wife gave me that look of love and affection like, get your wallet out, honey, be very generous. And of course I obeyed. This verb refers to the ordinary conversations of life. Now notice specifically Paul writes, these things speak.

What are these things? Paul is referring to speaking the things he referred to in verse one and following the things which fit with sound doctrine. He's effectively saying, speak the things that I've just been talking about with you for the previous 14 verses.

So I just kind of went back in the chapter. Okay. He wants us to talk about what it means to be a dignified older man, have that conversation, men with other men. What does it mean to be a man? Talk about among women, what it means to be committed to sobriety and control and teaching those things that are good. Talk about what it means to be a young mother and that role. Talk about what it means to be maturing and responsibility and the acceptance of hard work as a young man. Talk about what it means to have the ethics of an honest employee. Talk about what it means to be a man or woman of your word. Talk about that kind of stuff and not just in here.

Take it out there. Shed some light on the subjects, these subjects for the sake of your world that is wandering around in view of these subjects without a rudder in the water. They're in the dark.

Talk about this with those who are citizens in the country of the blind. The subjects then are not to be reserved for Sunday. Make them a part of your conversation. Secondly, not only are we to be involved in conversation, but we're to be involved in what I'm going to call motivation, and you'll understand why in a minute. Look at the second initiative. Paul writes in verse 15, these things speak, exclamation point, now notice. And exhort. Now this verb is a little more intense, in fact all three verbs get more intense. You can take the church and just see how people peel away as we get past these verbs. It'd be wonderful if the whole church would be involved in daily conversation, and that's wonderful and that's a great point to begin with.

But you move now to this one, exhort. It's a favorite word of the apostle Paul. He used it nine times in writing to Timothy and Titus' young sons who were pastors in the faith.

Then he used it 64 more times in the rest of his letters. He loves this word. Depending on the context, you can translate it with a nuance of encouraging or counseling or commending or admonishing. Again it's a stronger word than just talking or speaking. It carries the idea of emotion. It carries the idea of inviting, entreating, pleading. There's something that I know is true and I want you to do it too. Is there any possible way I could motivate you to consider this? We do that all the time in the world. We got a product and we don't just want to talk about it, we want to sell it, right? Let me tell you why you've got to have it.

Same thing here. It's not just conversation, it's an invitation. It's like the difference between casually informing someone there's a forest fire in California and telling them the back of their shirts on fire.

You're talking about fire in both instances, but one of them is you got to do something about it right now. This is important. So we, in this particular culture, are passionate that they understand these are things they must see. There is another world out there.

There are elements in chapter 2 as I thought about it and looked back through the chapter that you can't talk about, but with including a lot of emotion. For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, bringing the offer of salvation to all men, is what he's saying. God's grace is offering you salvation. I want to invite you to accept it, believe it, join me in it. He says, further from verse 11 on to verse 13, he says, we are all looking, we're waiting, we're longing for, we're looking for that blessed hope.

It is the appearing of the glory of our great God and savior, Jesus Christ, he's coming. See there's an idea of, we want to invite you to be ready with us. He says a little later on in verse 14, Titus, tell them to be zealous of good deeds. I mean not just, let's do some good deeds, I mean be zealous for good deeds. Do you know the difference between being available for good deeds and being zealous for good deeds? Being available creates a list of good intentions. Being zealous means we're going to tackle them and check those boxes off.

We must do it, that's zeal. As I thought about the distinction between conversation and motivation, it just occurred to me that you can talk about something without ever becoming personally involved, but you can't motivate someone. You can't plead with someone, you can't counsel someone, you can't commend someone without becoming personally involved. There's a third initiative, the game plan for the church is not only involvement in conversation and motivation, but alteration. This is where it really gets interesting, alteration, the word Paul uses here is a word that could be rendered correct, convict, oh wait, I'd just rather talk about it. Well that's good, that's a great starting place, but then you want to motivate them to believe the gospel and the things that he's discussed.

Eventually it's going to lead you to say, well you know what, the path you're on is wrong and this one's right, what are you telling me? That's where conviction occurs, alteration, and by the way it begins with us. Seek these things, this is the job description, effectively verse 15 is, of the pastor, teacher, elder, those who shepherd the flock, so which are to do. These things delivered in chapter 2 which convict and cut and reprove and correct.

So it might be good for us to have the image when we come as an assembly unto the word of God and the singing of the word of God and the praying of the word of God. It might help to just kind of consider this place like a tailor's shop. You take your dress or your pair of trousers to the tailor's because something's not right, it doesn't fit, you might need to have it taken in an inch, you might need to have it taken out an inch, but we won't talk about that, but something's got to be changed. That is, you wouldn't go back to that tailor if they didn't take what you brought in and alter it. You brought it to them for alterations, it's going to be different than when you dropped it off. Can you imagine the tailor saying to you when you come back a few days later, listen, I appreciate you so much, I would never want to offend you by suggesting that anything you owned needed changing, so all I did was iron it, it looks great.

We haven't come in here to look better, maybe get ironed a bit, we've come to be altered. And genuine worship corrects and convicts in my studies and reading this summer, one Puritan defined good worship a few centuries ago this way, listen to this definition of good worship. Good worship is that which enlivens our conscience by the holiness of God, feeds our minds with the truth of God, purges our imagination by the beauty of God, opens our heart to the love of God, and causes us to devote our will to the purpose of God. Hey how was worship this morning? Oh man, we didn't sing any of my favorites.

I didn't get to see all of my friends. The sermon was way too short. Oh but was your imagination purged? Was your conscience enlivened through song and message and prayer and fellowship? Did you sense the beauty and the love and the grace and the holiness of God?

What kind of church do you go to? Really our worship of God should be like going to a tailor which works in us insofar as we allow it to make alterations. You see authority is a dirty word in a country filled with blind people. Authority stands in our way. Authority stops us from doing what we want to do. Authority interrupts our quest for personal freedom and that's what it's all about. Authority is a bad word. Pastors today refuse to deliver the truth of sin or judgment for fear of losing their influence or their popularity. Parents today have become guilted into thinking that if they act with any authority, if they speak with any authority, they will lose their children.

Authority is a bad word and you may be embarrassed today as a parent or a teacher or a young person or a leader to represent yourself in a way where people suddenly realize, wait, you're coming across as an authority. You dare suggest that that's right and that's wrong? That's godly and that's sinful? Don't you know that we here in the country of the blind are much more comfortable with opinions than ultimatums? And here's what the enemy is ultimately going after to silence the church. It is your authoritative message from God where you tell your world this is the way to heaven and that is the way to hell. Titus Paul writes, this is not an option. Get yourself in gear to talk about it, to invite people about it or to it and to confront regarding it, but get the congregation involved as well. This is our game plan in reaching this country of the blind. Get involved in conversation, motivation and alteration and don't expect rose petals along the way. The church is experiencing so much heartburn today with the fact that the world doesn't seem to respect the truths it holds.

We were never told it would. In fact, having aired now for several years the programs I mentioned here just in the English world and about 300 radio stations, it has just opened the door to all kinds of response that I get that I rarely if ever tell you about. Some have written demanding apologies for what I have said that I should go on the air and demand or they demand that I go on the air and apologize for what I've taught. Others attempt to get me to try to change my doctrine.

I get books in the mail to read this and then you'll see it right. Others claim their doctrine and their church has been maligned by me and I need to get on the air and just tell everybody how wrong I was and please forgive me. Others have written to me to tell me in general to take a hike only in more colorful language than that. Perhaps that's why Paul concludes by telling Titus and everyone else who will stand for the truth of God's word here at the end of verse 15, look, let no one disregard you.

That's how he ends the discussion. Let no one disregard you. That word disregard appears only here in the entire New Testament. Fascinating word. It's a compound word that literally translated means to think around something. We would use it in our vernacular today about someone who's running circles around us.

Which isn't a good thing, that means we're lagging, right? That's the idea here. He says, Titus, don't let anybody run circles around you. Don't let anybody get loose on a loophole. Make sure your teaching is clear and biblical.

In fact, Paul uses the second person pronoun, you, emphasizing you, Titus. Make sure you do not let people get off the hook so easily. Which means do your homework, study, prepare. And for the church body at large, God places you in that hallway and there's somebody next to you that believes something and you go, my goodness, I've never heard of that before.

Well, that's not the end of it. Go home, study, get out of your Bible, prepare to go back, get involved in conversations, make it a little more emotional as God gives an opportunity and then say, you know what, I believe God's word says that that's not true and here's why. This is the game plan, not just for the shepherds, but for the flock. Here's the way to daily impact the lives of people on the island of Crete or in Cary or Raleigh or Holly Springs or Chapel Hill or Don or wherever you live or work or play. Here it is, make Jesus Christ a part of your daily conversation. Make Christianity a motivating invitation to join you. Make the truth of Scripture the basis for what you challenge your world in ways they are to alter their thinking as they come to Christ and their living. And by the way, I want to encourage you today, Paul writes these three initiatives in the present tense. In other words, he says to tie this first into the body, oh, by the way, don't stop, don't quit, keep on doing it, keep on talking, keep on inviting, keep on challenging, keep on talking, keep on inviting, pleading, counseling, keep on confronting. Don't stop, don't stop, stay the course, don't ever forget, ladies and gentlemen, we are in the country of the blind, but we have the truth of God's word that we are heading for another country of joy and love and perfection and glory and color, oh, what glorious creations await us and endless, endless worship. And I want you to know, and I'm about done, I am certain of it, I am sure of it, why? Because God has spoken.

It's true that the world resists the authority of God's word, but as believers, we're still called to speak it faithfully and consistently. This is wisdom for the heart. With today's message, Stephen Davey concludes his series entitled Family Talk. Our number here is 866-48-BIBLE. That's 866-48-BIBLE or 866-482-4253. Our website is wisdomonline.org. By the way, when you get to the website, please use the comment form and tell us how God is using this ministry to encourage you.

That would really encourage us. We'd love to hear from you. You can also send us a card or letter in the mail. Our address is wisdom for the heart, PO Box 37297, Raleigh, North Carolina, 27627. I'll say that one more time so that you can get it down. That's wisdom for the heart, PO Box 37297, Raleigh, North Carolina, 27627. Tomorrow we begin a brand new series from the Gospel of Luke. Join us as we begin that study right here on Wisdom for the Heart.