THE RESOURCE OF OBLIGATION-1—Titus 1:1-4
Paul saw his spiritual obligation as a resource for Titus’ ministry.
Spiritual obligation is a resource for the ministry of others.
How is one’s obligation a resource for the ministry of others?
A Resource—something others can rely on, turn to & learn from.
My Obligation becomes a resource for others when it aligns/correlates with Christian....
Parallel:
2Pet. 1:2-4—“Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”
1—My Obligation is a resource for others when it correlates with Christian....
OWNERSHIP(:1)
Explanation:(:1) “Bondservant”
:1—“Paul, a bondservant of God & an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect & the acknowledgment of the truth which accords with godliness,”
This is the only instance of his calling himself a “bondservant of God” rather than a bondservant of Christ as elsewhere. On 5 occasions, Moses is called the “servant of God.”
He is thus bound, by virtue of commitment(voluntary ownership), to perform all which God compels Paul to put his hands to.
*“Paul had no life that he called his own, no will of his own, purpose of his own, or plan of his own. All was subject to his Lord.”—MacArthur
“Bondservant/Servant”—doulov—1) A slave, bondman, man of servile condition—1a) A slave, 1b) Metaph., one who gives himself up to another’s will those whose service is used by Christ in extending & advancing his cause among men, 1c) Devoted to another to the disregard of one’s own interests; 2) A servant, attendant. The usual word for slave, one who is permanently in servitude, in subjection to a master.
Indentured, not forced—‘An agreement binding an apprentice to a master.’
Both Individual choice/decision, yet compelled to belong.
Argumentation:
Mal. 1:6—““A son honors his father, And a servant his master. If then I am the Father, Where is My honor? And if I am a Master, Where is My reverence? Says the LORD of hosts To you priests who despise My name. Yet you say, ‘In what way have we despised Your name?’”
Deut. 11:13—“‘....love the LORD your God & serve Him with all your heart & with all your soul,”
Ps. 100:2-4—“Serve the LORD with gladness; Come before His presence with singing. Know that the LORD, He is God; It is He who has made us, & not we ourselves; We are His people & the sheep of His pasture. Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, & bless His name.”
Lk. 12:37-38—““Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching. Assuredly, I say to you that he will gird himself & have them sit down to eat, & will come & serve them. “And if he should come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, & find them so, blessed are those servants.”
1Cor. 6:15—“Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ & make them members of a harlot? Certainly not!”
*1Cor. 6:19-20—“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, & you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body & in your spirit, which are God’s.”
Rom. 14:7-8—“For none of us lives to himself, & no one dies to himself. For if we live, we live to the Lord; & if we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s.”
2Cor. 5:15—“& He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them & rose again.”
Illustration:
Bank still owns my house/Can call in the loan at any time/I can commit myself to Monthly payments, a Lump-sum payment or No payment/OWNERSHIP
My dog “Mollie”/Escaped & returned/Broken leg/We couldn’t afford treatment/Gave her up to United Yorkie Rescue/Solution was our choice, not hers/OWNERSHIP
Leased car/Return in excellent condition/No scratches, dents, stains, dirt/Why?/Car dealer still ownes it!/OWNERSHIP
Application:
?Your Obligation to Christ correlate with Christian OWNERSHIP?
?Your Obligation to Christ a Resource for others?
2—My Obligation is a resource for others when it correlates with Christian....
REPRESENTATION(:1)
Explanation:(:1) “Apostle”
:1—“Paul, a bondservant of God & an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect & the acknowledgment of the truth which accords with godliness,”
Paul was a messenger, delegate or ambassador & was thus under compulsion to represent Jesus who is the Christ of the God to whom Paul had given himself as an indentured servant. The message therefore did not originate with Paul, but with Christ, the Sender.
“Apostle”—apostolov—A delegate, messenger, one sent forth with orders. specifically applied to the 12 & also to Paul, Barnabas, Timothy & Sylvanus.
Argumentation:
Mat. 28:18-20—“And Jesus came & spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven & on earth. “Go therefore & make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father & of the Son & of the Holy Spirit, “teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; & lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.”
Acts 16:16-18—“Now it happened, as we went to prayer, that a certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much profit by fortune-telling. This girl followed Paul & us, & cried out, saying, “These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation.” And this she did for many days. But Paul, greatly annoyed, turned & said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And he came out that very hour.”
*Right words, but wrong spirit!
Acts 17:22-23—“Then Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus & said, “Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious; “for as I was passing through & considering the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Therefore, the One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you:”
Acts 20:16-21—“For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus, so that he would not have to spend time in Asia; for he was hurrying to be at Jerusalem, if possible, on the Day of Pentecost. From Miletus he sent to Ephesus & called for the elders of the church. And when they had come to him, he said to them: “You know, from the first day that I came to Asia, in what manner I always lived among you, “serving the Lord with all humility, with many tears & trials which happened to me by the plotting of the Jews; “how I kept back nothing that was helpful, but proclaimed it to you, & taught you publicly & from house to house, “testifying to Jews, & also to Greeks, repentance toward God & faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.”
1Pet. 2:9—“But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;”
2Cor. 5:20—“Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God.”
Eph. 6:18-20—“praying always with all prayer & supplication in the Spirit, ....for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.”
Illustration:
My going to Akron,OH for Carolina Rubber hose, Co./I was a poor representative of the company/My heart wasn’t in it/No passion for it/REPRESENTATION
Skidaway Institute/Occasionally salesmen or consultants/Japanese scientists arrived/Spoke for their research institutes/Employed by their company or country as knowledgeable REPRESENTATIVES
Application:
?Your Obligation to Christ correlate with Christian REPRESENTATION?
?Your Obligation to Christ a Resource for others?
3—My Obligation is a resource for others when it correlates with Christian....
ELECTION by FAITH(:1)
Explanation:(:1) “the Faith of God’s elect”
:1—“Paul, a bondservant of God & an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect & the acknowledgment of the truth which accords with godliness,”
How are the “Elect” elected? Chosen of God because of their faith in Him. & they choose God because of their need for Him exercised thru faith in Christ Jesus. When you place faith in Christ, you can rest assured that you are of the elect.
Same thought, worded differently:
2Tim. 2:10—“Therefore I endure all things for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.”
Argumentation:
Jn. 6:44-48—““No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; & I will raise him up at the last day. “It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Therefore everyone who has heard & learned from the Father comes to Me. “Not that anyone has seen the Father, except He who is from God; He has seen the Father. “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life. “I am the bread of life.”
Acts 13:46-48—“Then Paul & Barnabas grew bold & said, “It was necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you[Israel] first; but since you reject it, & judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles. “For so the Lord has commanded us: ‘I have set you as a light to the Gentiles, That you should be for salvation to the ends of the earth.’” Now when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad & glorified the word of the Lord. And as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.”
Eph. 1:4-5—“....He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy & without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,”
*Rom. 11:5-6—“Even so then, at this present time there is a remnant according to the election of grace. And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace. But if it is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work.”
1Thes. 1:2-4—“We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers, remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, & patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God & Father, knowing, beloved brethren, your election by God.”
1Pet. 1:1-2—“Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To the pilgrims of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, & Bithynia, elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience & sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace to you & peace be multiplied.”
*2Pet. 1:10-11—“Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call & election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ.”
Again, If you are at the point where you’re thinking to yourself, “‘God didn’t choose me,” OR I’m beyond saving,” then think again.
No one can know God’s choice & You cannot know God’s choice, except thru faith.
*God knows, & has always known, who will trust the cleansing blood of His Son, Jesus.
Illustration:
Before I was saved/Profligate, selfish, dissolute(morally worldly) person... as a child, teen & young adult/I reached a point where I questioned the meaning of life/Later, after hearing of salvation by faith in Christ alone, I did question, “Why can’t I come into your heaven, God?” & “Why am I not good enough?”/I found that I could not enter in & I was not good enough because I am only declared acceptable thru faith in Christ alone!/ELECTION by Faith
Application:
?Your Obligation to Christ correlate with Christian ELECTION by Faith?
?Your Obligation to Christ a Resource for others?
CONCLUSION:
Action:
My Obligation is a resource for others,
when it correlates with Christian....
1. OWNERSHIP(:1) “Bondservant”
2. REPRESENTATION(:1) “Apostle”
3. ELECTION by FAITH(:1) “the Faith of God’s elect”
Presented 01/10/2010am to:
Needmore Baptist Church
1620 Mt. Vernon Rd.
Woodleaf NC 27054
