Titus 2:4-5 (KJV) Teach “To”

Titus 2:4-5 (KJV)
That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children,To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.

The lesson here is of course to the aged or more spiritually mature women. The encouragement is that they would conduct themselves in such a way that they may teach the younger women.

I notice that they are not told to teach these younger women “how to” but “to.” This is not a classroom setting. We miss the point when we picture a mature woman leading a course lecture entitled “How to love your husband”. She teaches “to” and not “how to.”

The distinction is important because the manner of teaching is different for each. In order to teach “how to” the instructor provided books, class notes lectures and facilitates discussion. In order to teach “to” the instructor provides example.

Maybe the most dramatic illustration of the difference is that of the medical professional advising the patient to stop smoking while the odor of their own clothes betrays that they had just left the doctor’s smoking lounge. It is possible to tell a person they should quit smoking, give them information about the dangers of smoking and provide them with methods on how to stop smoking while at the same time they smoke.

Teaching “to” is an entirely different sort. It likely had no class and surely will not pass out literature. It uses a much more powerful teacher’s aide; example. This teacher has no scheduled course time. There will never be an assembly of students. The teacher doesn’t advertise the program and no grade are issued when it is finished. The teacher probably won’t think of themself as teachers and likely very few view themselves as their student. They are learning nonetheless.

This is the biblical and most powerful way to teach.

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Titus 2:4-5 (KJV) Teach “To”

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