A “sober mind”

1) Most of us in this room have played baseball.

2) In either a league or just for fun, we have picked up a bat and swung at a ball.

a) At one time or another we have probably swung at a ball and missed it.

b) Other times we may have “nicked” the ball.

c) Then there were times when we had a “solid” hit.

d) In the case of a solid hit a bat makes direct contact with the ball and away it goes.

3) I want us to imagine a “solid hit” using the imagery of baseball.

4) A bat and a ball come together in exactly the right place at the right time and away flies the ball.

5) If we can fix this image in our mind, we are prepared to learn about a very special New Testament word.

a) This word is a composite term (it is actually composed of two separate words)

b) The first part of our composite word has the sense of “solid” or “sound.”

c) Just as a batter may make a solid connection with a baseball, so half of the word we are looking at means “solid.”

d) The remaining part of our word means “mindset.”

6) When each part of the composite term is combined, it forms the concept of a “firm (solid) mind-set.”

7) This term is used in the New Testament to say that God want His people to have a “solid-mind.”

a) We find this point coming through in several places

b) We first find this term in Mk. 5:15.

c) There was a man who had been possessed.

d) In this instance the possession was not from a single demon; the man was inhabited by several demons.

e) A spokes-demon said (Mk. 5:9) that the force inside the man consisted of “many” evil spirits.

f) The actions of the possessed man are described in verses 3-5 - READ.

8) Here is a man who did not have a “solid-mind.”

9) His mind had been corrupted; his thinking process had been so skewed he was hurting himself.

10) Knowing this readies us for the information in verse 15 – READ.

a) The Bible says Jesus healed this man and after the healing he was in his “right mind.”

b) Right mind is the composite word described earlier.

c) After being freed from the evil spirit this man had a solid mindset.

11) When Paul wrote to Christians in Rome (Rom. 12:3) he used this same word.

a) He told Christians to “think soberly.”

b) When we hear the word “sober,” we may think about our own definition for the word.

c) A sober person is someone who has not ingested enough booze to be legally intoxicated.

d) That would be one definition.

e) Another definition might be one who does not drink at all.

f) An alcoholic may say, “I have been sober for 6 years.”

g) Sober in Rom. 12 has little to do with alcohol.

h) It has the sense of moderation, self-control, a sound and solid mind.

12) A long time ago there was a group of people known as the “stoics.”

13) They took they word we are looking at and expanded it into some “subordinate virtues.”

14) That is, they look at this word and said, “here are some of the things that it implies.”

a) Their list of things this word involves was seven points long:

b) They said this word was linked with:

c) Discipline, obedience, decency, propriety, modesty, temperance, self-control.

15) All these qualities are found within the life of Jesus. He had a solid mind.

16) What we see in the Lord’s life is important to today’s world.

a) Our culture puts a lot of emphasis on direction.

b) People are often considered to be either “on the right” or “on the left.”

c) The world has their own definitions for these two places.

d) God’s has His definition for “right” and “left.”

e) Our compound word tells us that we do not want to be to the left and we do not want to be on the right.

f) We want to be right where the truth is—in the midst of two extremes.

g) We do not want a “left” mind or a “right” mind we want the “solid” mind.

h) The word we are looking at means “sane, sensible, right-minded, well-balanced, reasonable.”

i) Such a person has life under control and things are in their proper place.

j) This was why Paul told Christians to pursue this type of thinking in Rom. 12:3.

17) Living in a world that some days seems to be out of control makes this word a key term.

18) Not everyone takes a gun and has a shootout at the local post office, but many do not control themselves.

19) We find examples of people who have minds that seem to be incapable of sensible thought.

a) The Word of God say to these people, “be sober-minded.”

b) Have a mind that is settled, solid, and grounded.

c) Not only does God say this, He specifically directs this information to the “younger” people.

d) My next reference is Tit. 2:6.

e) As people age things usually change.

20) We may have watched someone use bad judgment in their early years but they changed..

21) We have probably seen cases where people had a nasty temper but began to outgrow it.

22) Certain sins and failures can be especially strong in the early years of life.

a) One passage that indicates this is found in Tit. 2.

b) Here our composite word being used again and it is once more translated “sober-minded.”

c) To the younger men the apostle said, “be of a sound-mind. Use good judgment. Be sensible.”

d) Tit. 2:6 – READ.

23) This verse is easy to hear and perhaps even to agree to.

24) The challenge is living up to what this single word means.

25) How many people have we seen who have used bad judgment on the job or somewhere else?

26) Most of us have seen that.

a) No one will be right every single time. No one always makes perfect judgments.

b) There are workers who do not use good judgment time and time again.

c) How many times have there been young people who failed to use good judgment at school?

d) Think of how many principals said to students, “what were you thinking”?

e) This word can be also applied to homes.

f) Parents can use bad judgment with their children.

g) Year after year and time after time mothers and fathers can make terrible choices.

h) Even in the church this is possible.

i) Teachers can make bad choices in their classes week after week.

j) A congregation can become involved in actions that reflect bad thinking and judgment.

k) Preachers, elders, and even deacons can fall prey to this same problem.

27) Perhaps this is why Peter (1 Pet. 4:7) joins this compound word with prayer.

28) The word we are looking at calls God’s people to be thoughtful as they go through life.

a) If you have kept your Bible open to Tit. 2, I want to back up one verse.

b) Sometimes in the New Testament a word may be used in various forms.

c) For instance, let’s say there is a noun that is used 25 times.

d) We could study all 25 of these places but then our study could be expanded.

e) We might look at verses which use this same basic word only it is an adjective, verb or adverb.

f) The compound word we are looking at occurs in other forms.

g) One of these other forms is found in Tit. 2:5 – READ.

29) One form of this word is used in Tit. 2:6 and applied to young men.

30) Here in verse 5, another form of the word is used and now applied to young women.

31) God says young women are to be taught how to be “sober-minded” (how to use good judgment).

a) Why would God say that?

b) We are not specifically told, but common a common sense answer is this: such is often a struggle for them.

c) We ought not expect that good judgment among young women just happens. It needs to be taught.

d) When we look around in today’s world, it seems clear that not much instruction is being given.

e) Notice that young men are to be “exhorted” to do this in verse 6 and women are to be “taught.”

32) In the context these “young women” are old enough to be married.

33) This fact brings to light an important consideration.

34) If women old enough to be married need instruction in this area, what about younger ladies?

a) Paul’s instruction is to teach ladies good, sensible judgment.

b) From what they say to what they wear do and go, this passage has application.

c) Since the day this passage was written it has been practical.

d) It is certainly appropriate for our day and time.

e) With tools like the Internet, there are daily opportunities for people to use bad judgment.

f) Now things are to the point where bad judgment can lead to some instant and serious consequences.

g) People engage in acts that are criminal, they get caught, and then they are prosecuted.

h) Again and again these people say something like, “I do not know what I was thinking.”

35) God calls people to a mindset to where they will think correctly.

36) From the youngest to the oldest this instruction is found in the Bible.

a) Another form of this word is used in the previous book - 2 Tim. 1:7.

b) There Paul told a young preacher about self-discipline.

c) Timothy was to have a solid mind, especially as it related to fear.

d) Timothy was to be confident about his work and his service to God.

e) Not having confidence in the Christian faith and life is like nicking a baseball.

f) God wants His people to be on solid ground.

37) Still another form of this word is found in Tit. 2:12.

a) Here the term is expressed pretty well explained by what surrounds it.

b) Paul listed activities that are not associated with a “sound-mind.”

c) Here is what he wrote – READ.

d) When people are not godly, they have an unsound mind.

e) People may not want to hear that fact and it may make them angry. It is true.

f) In this verse Paul spoke about “worldly lusts.”

g) We have all kinds of examples of what people do in the world.

h) Sit down one night and watch COPS or talk to a policeman.

i) We can literally see what life in the world of sin is like and the consequences that come from it.

j) People are shot, stabbed, beaten, mugged and killed.

k) People are carted off to jail, and some head off to prison.

l) Is it not true that engaging in actions that lead to hurt or incarceration is unwise and not prudent?

38) Most good parents want their children to have solid minds and lives.

39) The Bible tells us how that is accomplished: right teaching and encouraging godly living.

40) Our compound word is later applied to elders in 1 Tim. 3:2 and Tit. 1:8.

41) God wants those who help guide His people to be of a solid-mind.

a) They take their work seriously and they are firmly committed to the Scriptures.

b) Jesus once told a story about two men who built houses.

c) One man had a solid-mind; he built his house upon a rock.

d) Another had a mind that was not solid; he built his house upon a rock.

42) A solid mind can only be built upon Christ and living the Christian life.

43) Every other method will fail in the end. Is this the choice we have made?

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