December 15th~Practice What You Preach

1 Timothy 6:11-21

Titus 1:1-3:15
2

Timothy 1:1-18

We read parts of three letters of Paul, two to Timothy and one to Titus. Both of these young men were protégés of Paul, to whom he was preparing to pass the baton as future leaders of the early Church. His letters to both were similar in nature, charging each of them to preach the Gospel accurately, to be good examples of godly living and to encourage it in others, and to set in order each church by appointing officers.

At the heart of Paul’s letter to Titus was this challenge, “As for you, promote the kind of living that reflects right teaching” (2:1). Here Paul laid out a principle that is still true today — orthodoxy leads to orthopraxy. Right doctrine leads to right practice. Our words and actions stem from decisions that we’ve made, based on what our mind has been convinced is right or wrong. Our convictions of right and wrong are built on what we’ve been taught by others, including our parents, our teachers, our pastors, or what we’ve read in God’s Word or other resources.

Paul continued telling Titus, “You yourself must be an example to them (young men) by doing good deeds of every kind. Let everything you do reflect the integrity and seriousness of your teaching” (2:7). If I could summarize Paul’s words here, it would be to “practice what you preach.” Again, Paul wrote, “Jesus Christ gave His life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us His very own people, totally committed to doing what is right. You must teach these things and encourage your people to do them...” (2:14, 15).

However, there are those who do not practice what they preach. “Such people claim to know God, but they deny Him by the way they live. They are despicable and disobedient, worthless for doing anything good” (1:16). These are people who have not become convinced that what they’ve learned is true. They are “corrupt and unbelieving, because their minds and consciences are defiled” (1:15).

Daily Reflection

Do you know anyone who does not practice what they preach, who says one thing but does another? What message does that send?

Could others say the same of you? Do you practice what you preach? Have you ever said one thing and done another? Explain.

If right practice stems from right doctrine, how do you ensure that you are being taught right doctrine?

At the end of Paul’s letter to Titus, he wrote, “These things I have told you are all true. I want you to insist on them so that everyone who trusts in God will be careful to do good deeds all the time” (3:8). Evaluate what you have been taught in light of God’s Word. Evaluate your deeds in the same way.

BiAY.org | Day 349 — 16 Days to Go