Latest / Pastor John Piper's answers / One Wife, Faithful Children Titus 1:5–9, Part 3

Transcript

One Wife, Faithful Children Titus 1:5–9, Part 3 · Pastor John Piper's answers

• 0:06
  Speaker 1: This is part three on Titus one five to nine.
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: And both of the issues we address in this session
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: are very difficult. I'll show you where we are in
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: just a second. On account of this, I left you
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: in crete. I Paul left you Titus there when my
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: work was unfinished, so you could finish it, so that
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: you might fully set right what is lacking and appoint elders.
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: That's what this is about the qualification of elders in
• 0:40
  Speaker 1: every town, as I directed you, and here they come.
• 0:44
  Speaker 1: If anyone is above above, reproach the husband of one wife.
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: So that's the first difficult issue. And his children, I
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: translate it faithful, not open to the charge of debauchery
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: or insubordination. So this is the first one, and this
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: is the second one. And remember what we've focused on
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: last time was to say that the surprising repetition of
• 1:22
  Speaker 1: above reproach here and here puts this in a very
• 1:28
  Speaker 1: peculiar light. So above reproach. And the first thing he
• 1:33
  Speaker 1: mentions is a certain kind of husband. Second thing he
• 1:37
  Speaker 1: mentions is is a certain kind of father of these children.
• 1:42
  Speaker 1: And then he repeats, because I want you to be
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: that kind of husband, that kind of father, because it's
• 1:48
  Speaker 1: necessary for an overseer, as God's household manager, to be
• 1:52
  Speaker 1: above reproach. So he starts it with above reproach, he
• 1:55
  Speaker 1: ends it with above approach. And in the middle a
• 1:58
  Speaker 1: certain kind of husband, certain kind of father. And the
• 2:00
  Speaker 1: issue is how the world is seeing this elder candidate. So, Father,
• 2:06
  Speaker 1: as we try to understand the kind of husband, the
• 2:10
  Speaker 1: kind of father we pastors are to be, give us
• 2:16
  Speaker 1: light and humility, wisdom. I pray in Jesus' name. Amen.
• 2:21
  Speaker 1: Let's take husband of one wife first. Several possibilities, right, polygamy.
• 2:31
  Speaker 1: What about that husband of one wife don't have two
• 2:34
  Speaker 1: or three wives at one time. That's probably not what
• 2:39
  Speaker 1: is in view, because that very same phrase husband of
• 2:43
  Speaker 1: one wife is used of wife of one husband. Here
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: that the widow is his first Timothy five nine. Let
• 2:50
  Speaker 1: the widow be enrolled if she's not less than sixty
• 2:52
  Speaker 1: years of age, having been the wife of one husband.
• 2:56
  Speaker 1: Very same structure, and since it's the very same structure,
• 3:00
  Speaker 1: you expect it to have pretty much the same meaning.
• 3:02
  Speaker 1: And that means if it has the meaning of polygamy,
• 3:06
  Speaker 1: this would have the meaning of polyandry. In other words,
• 3:09
  Speaker 1: a wife should have not two or three husbands at once,
• 3:11
  Speaker 1: but only one. But polyandry and polygamy were not common,
• 3:16
  Speaker 1: and therefore I doubt that that's what Paul means when
• 3:21
  Speaker 1: he says husband of one wife. Of course polygamy's out,
• 3:26
  Speaker 1: but that's not what he's focusing on. I would argue
• 3:30
  Speaker 1: second possibility, what about you can't remarry after your wife dies,
• 3:38
  Speaker 1: so you shouldn't have two wives, husband of one wife,
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: meaning if your wife dies, you don't remarry if you're
• 3:45
  Speaker 1: an elder. Some people really take it that way. But
• 3:49
  Speaker 1: the fact that Paul commends remarriage after death several times,
• 3:54
  Speaker 1: once in Roman seven and here in one seventy five fourteen,
• 3:58
  Speaker 1: So I would have the younger widows marry bear children.
• 4:03
  Speaker 1: Now I know it's it's the widows here, not the men.
• 4:06
  Speaker 1: But the principle is remarriage after the death of a
• 4:11
  Speaker 1: spouse is universally accepted in the Bible and not put
• 4:17
  Speaker 1: in any negative light, and therefore I doubt that's what
• 4:21
  Speaker 1: he has in mind here. And the third possibility then,
• 4:25
  Speaker 1: and this is probably the right one, don't be an adulterer,
• 4:31
  Speaker 1: don't be a philanderer, don't be known in the community.
• 4:35
  Speaker 1: That is the issue is above reproach, don't be known
• 4:39
  Speaker 1: in the community as somebody who's going to bring reproach
• 4:43
  Speaker 1: upon the church because he's unfaithful to his wife. And
• 4:47
  Speaker 1: the second meaning would be, well, what about divorce and remarriage?
• 4:51
  Speaker 1: And there the answer is going to depend on what
• 4:54
  Speaker 1: the view of the church is that we're talking about
• 4:58
  Speaker 1: the view of the elders is about what divorces or
• 5:02
  Speaker 1: remarriages are legitimate, and it would include then don't put
• 5:09
  Speaker 1: in the eldership a man who has thrown his wife away,
• 5:14
  Speaker 1: gotten a legal sanctioned for it, and got another wife
• 5:18
  Speaker 1: in any kind of unbiblical way. So, husband of one wife,
• 5:25
  Speaker 1: faithful to your commitments to your wife. The whole community
• 5:30
  Speaker 1: knows this man is rock solid faithful to his wife. Second,
• 5:39
  Speaker 1: what does it mean that his children are pista? Now
• 5:48
  Speaker 1: here's what poses the question pista or pistas been on
• 5:55
  Speaker 1: the gender of the noun. It's agreeing with can mean believing,
• 6:01
  Speaker 1: that is, your children must be believers, or it can
• 6:05
  Speaker 1: mean faithful in that they keep their responsibilities, they're respectful,
• 6:11
  Speaker 1: their discipline, their orderly, they're under the authority of their father,
• 6:16
  Speaker 1: and they faithfully do what the father says to do.
• 6:21
  Speaker 1: Which of those is the meaning? And we know it
• 6:26
  Speaker 1: can have both of those meanings, because, for example, here
• 6:29
  Speaker 1: in one Timothy six, those who have believing masters must
• 6:34
  Speaker 1: not be disrespectful on the ground that they are brothers.
• 6:38
  Speaker 1: Now this means they're Christians. So does it have that meaning?
• 6:42
  Speaker 1: Must your children be Christians? Same word? Or here's another
• 6:45
  Speaker 1: example of the use of the word pistos. Moreover, it
• 6:49
  Speaker 1: is it is required of stewards that they be found faithful.
• 6:54
  Speaker 1: Meaning if that's your job as a household manager, your
• 6:57
  Speaker 1: job is to fulfill all your responsible abilities, that's what
• 7:01
  Speaker 1: faithfulness means. So the word itself doesn't settle the issue. Well,
• 7:08
  Speaker 1: what might settle the issue? And I'll just draw four
• 7:12
  Speaker 1: observations out so that you can consider this, because there
• 7:18
  Speaker 1: are points here that are extremely controversial and very very difficult.
• 7:24
  Speaker 1: The first observation I would make is that in the
• 7:29
  Speaker 1: parallel in One Timothy III, the focus is on the
• 7:37
  Speaker 1: father's being a responsible husband and to keep his children
• 7:40
  Speaker 1: submissive and respectful. There's no focus here on the children
• 7:43
  Speaker 1: being believers. He the overseer, must manage his household well
• 7:48
  Speaker 1: with all dignity, keeping his children submissive. For if someone
• 7:54
  Speaker 1: does not know how to manage his own household and
• 7:57
  Speaker 1: keeping his children in time? How will he care for
• 8:02
  Speaker 1: the Church of God. So the rearing of the children
• 8:06
  Speaker 1: as obedient to the fathers. In other words, a consistent, loving,
• 8:10
  Speaker 1: caring discipline that keeps the children in order is what
• 8:14
  Speaker 1: will give an indication that this person could manage the
• 8:17
  Speaker 1: household of God. So the first, my first observation is
• 8:23
  Speaker 1: the parallel to this in Firs. Timothy doesn't point towards
• 8:28
  Speaker 1: having believing children, but submissive children because of the father's
• 8:32
  Speaker 1: competent discipline. Here's the second observation. There's no nd here
• 8:40
  Speaker 1: in the original. This continues as a further elucidation of faithful.
• 8:47
  Speaker 1: So his children are to be faithful that is not
• 8:53
  Speaker 1: open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination. In other words,
• 8:57
  Speaker 1: the focus there is on number one, how public it
• 9:03
  Speaker 1: is open to the charge flows from this idea. Here,
• 9:08
  Speaker 1: the idea is that the man is to be above
• 9:12
  Speaker 1: reproach because his children are not in the community charged
• 9:18
  Speaker 1: with debauchery. Now, debauchery and insubordination insubordination are very strong words.
• 9:26
  Speaker 1: Debauchery here here's the picture of debauchery. Same word here
• 9:31
  Speaker 1: for the time, that is past suffices for doing what
• 9:34
  Speaker 1: the gentiles want to do, living in sensuality, passions, drunkenness, orgies,
• 9:40
  Speaker 1: drinking parties, lawless idolatry. With respect to these, they're surprised
• 9:44
  Speaker 1: you don't run with them into the same flood of
• 9:46
  Speaker 1: Debauchery's that's debauchery here, and here's a picture of insubordination.
• 9:52
  Speaker 1: On Timothy one nine. The law is not laid down
• 9:54
  Speaker 1: for the just, but for the lawless and insubordinate, for
• 9:59
  Speaker 1: the ungod sinners, unholy profane. So it appears that the
• 10:06
  Speaker 1: focus here is on does this man have children who
• 10:11
  Speaker 1: are hell raisers at school and they're known by everybody
• 10:15
  Speaker 1: to be the problem children, and they're out of control
• 10:19
  Speaker 1: in the worst kind of debauchery and in subordination, thus
• 10:23
  Speaker 1: bringing reproach upon the father. Because if people said, oh,
• 10:29
  Speaker 1: here's the pastor of this church, his kids are the
• 10:33
  Speaker 1: absolute worst kids in the neighborhood, in the school, everywhere
• 10:37
  Speaker 1: they go. They're a problem. Now, that would be a
• 10:40
  Speaker 1: problem for the pastor, it seems to me. And that's
• 10:44
  Speaker 1: what the focus seems to be on here, because it's
• 10:49
  Speaker 1: a lack of discipline in any consistent way from the father.
• 10:56
  Speaker 1: One more, well, maybe two more questions. What if an
• 11:02
  Speaker 1: elder grows up in a Jewish home, he's now in
• 11:06
  Speaker 1: his forties late forties, and he's got four children, and
• 11:12
  Speaker 1: when he's converted out of his Jewish situation, one child
• 11:16
  Speaker 1: is ten, one's twelve, one's fourteen, one's sixteen. Two years later,
• 11:21
  Speaker 1: after deep devotion, this Jewish man, who grew up on
• 11:25
  Speaker 1: the Old Testament scriptures has become a very mature and
• 11:28
  Speaker 1: wise and loving elder candidate in the church. His kids
• 11:32
  Speaker 1: are now twelve and fourteen and sixteen and eighteen, and
• 11:38
  Speaker 1: he's now putting himself to be considered as an elder.
• 11:42
  Speaker 1: And suppose these two have been converted to their father's
• 11:48
  Speaker 1: faith as young Jewish boys, and these two have not.
• 11:54
  Speaker 1: All of these children are respectful, honest, kind kids that
• 12:02
  Speaker 1: bear witness to a father's consistent, firm, loving discipline, but
• 12:08
  Speaker 1: only two have been converted to their father's faith. Is
• 12:11
  Speaker 1: that what's in view as disqualifying or is it the
• 12:17
  Speaker 1: fact that all of them are not under the charge
• 12:21
  Speaker 1: of debauchery and insubordination but are faithful. And then my
• 12:29
  Speaker 1: final question would be, what about twenty years later, this
• 12:34
  Speaker 1: man becomes an elder, say, and twenty years later, say
• 12:38
  Speaker 1: all of these young people become Christians, and twenty years
• 12:43
  Speaker 1: later two of them go off the rails. The father
• 12:47
  Speaker 1: is now sixty years old, he's in the prime of
• 12:49
  Speaker 1: his eldership, he's got another ten years or so of
• 12:53
  Speaker 1: being a wise, loving pastor, and two of his adult
• 12:57
  Speaker 1: children have fallen away from the faith. Is that what's
• 13:02
  Speaker 1: in view? Those are very difficult things. In other words,
• 13:06
  Speaker 1: you would ask, I suppose, okay, since the issue is
• 13:11
  Speaker 1: above reproach above reproach, would the world look upon a
• 13:18
  Speaker 1: thirty five year old son of a sixty year old
• 13:22
  Speaker 1: pastor who has been a law abiding, responsible father, and now,
• 13:28
  Speaker 1: at age thirty five, he has lost his faith. Perhaps
• 13:32
  Speaker 1: he divorced his wife, he's flown off to some island.
• 13:36
  Speaker 1: Would that be disqualifying for the father who's proved himself
• 13:40
  Speaker 1: now for twenty years as a worthy elder. Those are
• 13:45
  Speaker 1: the kind of questions that give you pause in how
• 13:49
  Speaker 1: to apply this text. But I think basically my own
• 13:53
  Speaker 1: opinion would be that this means, do the children bear
• 13:58
  Speaker 1: witness in their non debauchery, non insubordination, responsible, respectful faithfulness
• 14:08
  Speaker 1: to their father's expectations in the home. Do they bear
• 14:12
  Speaker 1: witness to the man? This man is not going to
• 14:15
  Speaker 1: be a problem in the community when the when the
• 14:18
  Speaker 1: community finds out he's been made an elder.