Titus 2:5-15

5The young women will control themselves well and be pure in how they live. They will be good housewives who are kind to other people. They will respect their husbands. If they live in a good way like that, nobody will be able to say bad things about God's message.

6As for the young men, tell them also to control themselves wisely in how they live.

7You yourself must always do good things too. In that way, you will show the young men how they should live. When you teach the believers, be honest and serious.

8Teach a message that is correct, so that nobody can say anything against it. Then our enemies will be ashamed, because they cannot say anything bad about us.

9As for slaves, tell them to obey their masters always. They must not argue with their masters. Instead, they should work well to please their masters.

10Slaves must not take things that belong to their masters. Their masters must be able to trust them completely. Then people will respect the message that we teach about God, our Saviour.

11God has shown us clearly how very kind he is. He has come to save all people.

12Because God is kind, he teaches us to stop living in a bad way. We no longer do the bad things that do not make God happy. We turn away from the bad things that belong to this world. God teaches us to control ourselves wisely while we live in this world. He teaches us to do what is right. He teaches us to please him in the way that we live.

13Remember this: We are waiting for Jesus Christ to return to this world. When he comes, that will make us very happy. Everyone will see how great Jesus Christ is. He is our great God. He is the one who saves us from our sins.

14He gave himself as a sacrifice on our behalf. He did that to make us free from every kind of bad thing. As a result, we can be completely good and clean inside ourselves. We can become his own special people, who want to do good things.

15You must teach these things to the believers. Help them to live in a good way. Warn them when they do wrong things. Use all the authority that you have as a leader in the church. Make sure that everyone respects you properly.