Titus 2:1-4 “But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine: That the aged men be . . . The aged women likewise, that they be . . . That they may teach. . . .”
Living with Purpose
I read a story some time ago about a man whose job it was to stand and watch the staircase in Parliament. For years, no one knew why he was doing this until someone discovered that his grandfather had done the very same job. His job was literally “grandfathered” in! Well, the story goes that years before this time, the grandfather watched the staircase when it had been freshly repainted. He was put there to make sure people didn’t mess up the wet paint. The paint dried up, but the job never did!
Sometimes we can feel like that man standing guard at the staircase, knowing what we are doing but not why we are doing it. The book of Titus reminds us that there is a big difference between knowing what and knowing why. There is a reason and purpose for what God has asked us to do. Titus was to teach the “aged” men and women how they were to “be in behavior.” Why was that important? They were to live godly in order that they could teach the younger men and women. Living with purpose demands asking why before answering how.
You cannot afford to live the Christian life without knowing why you are doing what you are doing. Knowing how and what are important, but you will not know how and what to do with any discernible purpose without knowing why. You don’t have to always know why in order to obey, but don’t simply look for the list of do’s and don’ts. Success is not accomplishing the “what”; success is reaching the “why.”