Daily Dose 28: The Keys 4: Key Priorities for Women

Titus 2: 3-5 is such an intriguing passage.

• First, the words are intended to inform church leaders about God’s way women would make a powerful spiritual impact on the church and, ultimately, the world. The church leadership was to facilitate its happening.
• Second, it provides all women long-range priorities since the challenges are not for a particular season of womanhood, but for all women to aspire to, achieving their prime contributions to Christ’s Cause when older.
• Third, many of the words used in the passage are used nowhere else in the New Testament. Truly, women were being given unique responsibilities as part of Christ’s cause.
• Fourth, while the passage is home-centered, it is not home-bound; the world would be impacted by the work product He has in mind.
• Fifth, the outline is bursting with creative options to bring the goals to fruition. What is there not to like?

A Key Character Emphasis

First, the Lord explains the key character quality biblical women should develop is holiness. Perfect. He is holy, and he wants us to concentrate on being just like Him. Plus, this heightens (if possible) the value all the spiritual relationship activities like prayer, Bible study, meditation, personal witnessing, and shunning wickedness because their very purpose is to do what He wants to have happen in each of us: live a life that makes holiness attractive, approachable, and engaging.

It seems a little ridiculous to say that the Lord had an inspired idea, so let’s just say His insight seems especially obvious when He chose to lay out the sweeping challenge for holiness before He listed more tangible assignments. Aren’t most of us are quick to let practical needs become our overriding focus (think Mary and Martha)?  Instead of letting us hide behind the busy bee smokescreen, the Lord puts us (and the men who are to be watching out for us) on notice that He wants to see honest humble holiness from any woman who is His.

A Lifelong Career

Then the Lord lays out a one-size fits all women’s career as teachers of good things (literally, teachers of the right/teachers of good). I find this absolutely exciting! So many avenues open because of the career. Some may even follow other professional work, as the Lord leads.

Thinking about how to teach good means learning what good is in thousands of different areas, studying how to impart good effectively (lesson plans!), creatively evaluating what has been taught, and planning how to improve the next time around. Again, when we are talking about the home (private, nobody seeing what I do), the challenge to prepare teaching materials provides an added incentive to be professional with routines, plans, experiments and notes, partly to do the job right, and partly to be preparing while “young” to have something worthwhile to share when “old.”

A Lifelong Curriculum Scope and Sequence

Next, the Lord lists the curriculum we are to first master, then be prepared to teach. This is the scope and sequence that became the skeleton priorities for priority stewardship. You’ll be amazed at how much territory the list covers.

A Sobering Consequence for Failing in the Task

Lastly, lest we think our little private homes and what happens inside of them, does not make much difference in the big scope of things, the Lord ends with a very clear declaration of how devastating the results are when individual women fail, home by home, in this career. Failure leads to God’s Word and  Christ’s reputation being mocked and hated by the world.

Does any of this make the home sound like a place where the most important thing we can do is make beds, and prepare meals on time? Does it sound like a challenge that can be met with part-time effort and indifferent attention? Does it sound demeaning or limiting?