Titus: Building a Healthy Church
Titus 1:1-5
Pastor Jefferson M. Williams
Chenoa Baptist Church
01-24-2021
A Feast in Three Chapters
[Charlie and the Chocolate Factory clip-stop at 1:34]
Today, we begin our study of the book of Titus. Just like that little piece of gum that contained a three course meal, this small letter to Titus (three chapters/46 verses) is a feast of doctrine, church leadership, and directions for practical living. it won’t turn you into a blueberry at the end!
Background for Titus
Titus is part of what we call the “pastoral epistles” - I Timothy, 2 Timothy, Philemon, and Titus.
These were personal letters to individuals but they were not meant to be private. They were to be read out loud to the congregations that these men represented.
Paul’s missionary journeys took him to the island of Crete where he planted multiple churches.
Crete is in the Mediterranean Sea and is the largest of the Greek Isles. At one point, it was the center of the ancient Minoan civilization.
Paul left Titus in Crete to supervise the churches and later wrote this letter (sometime in the mid 60s) to encourage and strengthen him for the task ahead.
While it seems that Timothy was lacking self-confidence, Titus was Paul’s troubleshooter. If there was a hard assignment, Paul knew he could trust Titus to pull it off.
In Paul’s day, it was inundated with cults and temples and the inhabitants claimed that Zeus was born on Crete.
The island was mountainous and there were no road systems. But more importantly, the people of Crete were known as “liars, evil brutes, and gluttons.” (Titus 1:12)
It was a place filled with idol worship and immorality and out of these Cretans, Titus was to train and ordain leaders for the church.
Titus had his work cut out for him.
Why Study Titus?
Pastor Paul Apple gives us five reasons to study the book of Titus:
1. To learn the qualifications for God ordained leaders in the local assembly
2. To grasp the essential connection between sound doctrine and good works
3. To gain the fortitude to strongly reprove false teachers who profess to know God but are exposed by their deeds
4. To understand the distinctive role of gender/age specific groups in the church
5. To live with the sense of hope and expectation that the grace of God is intended to nurture.
Titus can be summarized:
Chapter one - love what is good
Chapter two - teach what is good
Chapter three - do what is good
For the four verses that we will look at this morning, I took 14 pages of notes this week! There is so much meat in this little book.
Turn with me to the book of Titus. ?
Prayer.
Grab your fork and let’s dive in!
1. Paul’s Position
“Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ…” (Titus 1:1a)
The author of this letter is Paul. That is the name that God gave him. Before that, he was known as Saul.
He was born into a Jewish family from the tribe of Benjamin. He grew up in Tarsus and was educated under the famous Rabbi Gamaliel. He was also a Roman citizen.
He was a strict Pharisee who persecuted the church. In fact, we first meet him in the Bible as he is holding the coats of the men who were stoning Stephen, one of the first “deacons “ of the church.
He hated Christians and even went from town to town rounding up followers of Jesus. It was on one of these missions, that he had an experience that changed his life and direction forever.
One the road to the city of Damascus, he had an encounter with the risen Jesus.
He was blinded by the light and was led by the hand into Damascus with the help of his companions.
The persecutor became the preacher! He would be the one to take the Gospel to the Gentiles on multiple successful missionary journeys, would do miracles, would be beaten, stoned, and nearly killed multiple times, would go on to write 2/3 of the New Testament, and would have his head cut off as a martyr in Rome.
Interestingly, Paul doesn’t begin the letter with, “Paul, the highly educated famous brilliant theologian.”
He simply states that he is a “servant of God.” Your translation may say “bond servant.” The word he uses is actually uses is slave.
In Paul’s day, being a slave was usually a temporary status. At a certain age or after a debt was paid off, they would be set free.
But if a slave decided that he didn’t want to leave, the master would pierce his ear and that would represent his willing servitude.
Pastor John MacArthur writes, “Paul was in complete but willing bondage to God. He had no life to call his own, no will of his own, no purpose of his own, or plan of his own.”
This title was one of humility but also harkened back to Old Testament heroes like Moses and Joshua, who were both described as “servants of God.”
Paul wanted to Titus to follow his example of complete surrender to Jesus to serve as an example in an immoral and lost culture.
While the term slave of God projected Old Testament authority, Paul also describes himself as an “apostle of Jesus Christ.”
An apostle is simply one who is sent.
Paul wasn’t one of the twelve apostles that Jesus commissioned. They had seen the risen Christ and had been taught by him. But so had Paul.
He later writes that Christ appeared to him “as one abnormally born” and describes himself as “the least of the Apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the Church of God.” (I Cor 15:8-9)
One commentator wrote: “If slavery meant obligation, apostleship meant authority,, but both meant responsibility.”
Isn’t it strange that Paul would say these things to Titus, someone who knew him well? Paul is near the end of his life, the other apostles are dying off. Titus is one of leaders that will carry the church forward without them. And a church can only go as far as their leaders.
Point to Ponder:
What is your main identity? How do you describe yourself? Would you be okay simply being known as a “bond servant of God?”
A healthy church is full of people who understand that it’s not their preferences, desires, or plans but it’s all about Jesus and His plan to redeem a lost and dying world.
How are we doing? What grade would you give us as a church?
2. Paul’s Purpose
“…to further the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness— in the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time…(Titus 1:1a-2)
What was Paul’s purpose as a slave and an apostle?
* Fanning the Flames of Faith
First, his mission was to “further the faith of God’s elect.”
When we study the book of Ephesians next year, we will dive into the deep end of the concepts election and predestination.
“For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.” (Eph 1:4-5)
?But here in Titus Paul’s focus is more on connecting the Christians in Crete with the Old Testament “elect” - Israel, God’s chosen.”
Paul may have written most of the New Testament but that was a very small part of his ministry. Paul was a church planting theologian evangelist.
Remember that this letter to Titus was personal but not private. Paul was not shy about the Gospel.
In Paul’s last letter he reminded Timothy:
"Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel, for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God’s word is not chained. Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory.” (2 Tim 2:8-10)
His main purpose was to see people come to faith in Christ. And on Crete people coming to faith in Christ was nothing less than a miracle. These were not good people. Their character was suspect, their morals in the gutter, and they enjoyed their life of sin.
But, in the midst of all that moral chaos, Paul and Titus preached the Gospel, the power of God unto salvation, and these Cretan placed their faith in Christ for the forgiveness of their sins.
Point to Ponder:
Paul wrote to the Romans;
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.” (Romans 1:16)
Is there anyone in your life that you would consider too far gone to ever become a Christian?
A healthy church is full of people who are passionate about being coming to faith in Christ and are willing to do anything short of sin to share the Gospel with them.
How are we doing?
* Growing in Godliness
But Paul didn’t just want people to walk an aisle or say a prayer, he wanted them to come to faith (justification) then grow in their faith.
“…to further the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness…"
Not only did Paul want the Cretans to come to faith in Christ but he wanted them to grow in their knowledge of the truth.
Saving faith should lead to sanctification, which simply means how we “grow up” in Christ.
It’s possible to have a lot of knowledge and have no life transformation.
In his second letter to Timothy, Paul says that there are people who are “always learning but never able to come to a knowledge of the truth.” ( 2 Tim 3:7)
Not only was Titus to identify and train leaders for each church, he was responsible for their discipleship.
But we need to remember where Titus is laboring. One historian noted, “It was almost impossible to find person conduct more treacherous and public policy more unjust than on the island of Crete.”
Paul’s charge to Titus is to teach sound doctrine because this will affect the way the Christians live in their culture.
Salvation will lead to sanctification which will lead to godly living. These ?Cretan Christians would be salt and light to their culture.
Peter writes:
“His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.” ( I Peter 1:3)
We are going to met Titus’ opponents in a couple of weeks. These false teachers had infiltrated the churches and were leading these new Christians astray.
But the tell-tell sign of false teaching is that it doesn’t lead to godly living.
Point to Ponder:
If we are believers in Jesus Christ, then we are to be growing in our knowledge of the truth. Jesus said in John 17 that “His Word is truth.”
The way we grow in our faith is through eating our Bibles each day. How are you doing in that area? Let’s spend the next 30 days reading the book of Titus all the way through. It takes last than 5 minutes.
A healthy church is full of people who are on a faith journey. For the ones that claim Christ as Savior, they are always growing always changing. They are different than they were 5 days ago, 5 months ago, 5 years ago.
How are we doing?
The Hope of Heaven
Titus is to share the Gospel and disciple new converts in a culture that celebrated wickedness. Paul gives Titus the motivation that will keep him going in the hard times.
“…in the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time…”
I was talking to my dear friend Elnor who has cancer this week and her white blood cells are down and the doctors are worried. But she’s not. She has been confined to a body that has betrayed her and she is so encouraged that her short time on earth will one day come to an end. (Although I’m not ready for that)
There is a real heaven, their salvation is secure, and Jesus is coming back.
What drove Paul? What was to drive Titus? What was to give encouragement to the new Christians on Crete? The hope of eternal life!
Jesus said:
“Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” (John 17:3)
What if I told you that at the end of ten years, I’ll write you a check for 10 billion dollars? Do you think you could deal with whatever came your way in that decade?
Christians live in perpetual hope because we are just travelers through this world headed toward our heavenly home.
And remember that eternal life doesn’t start when you die but when you become a born again Christian!
Jesus said:
“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand.” (John 10:27-28)
Why can we trust this promise? Because, unlike the Cretans, God doesn’t lie. In fact, the Greek says He is the “unlying God.” Hebrews 6:18 says that “it is impossible for God to lie.”
This faithful God’s promises can be trusted.
Psalm 145:13:
“The Lord is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all he does.”
And this has been God’s plan from before the beginning of time. He’s not making this up on the fly, He’s not improvising, this isn’t plan B.
Paul wrote to Timothy:
“He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.” (2 Timothy 1:8-9)
Let me stop for a minute and focus on one particular promise.
Throughout the years, I’ve asked people, “Are you 100% sure that you are going to heaven?” More times than not, the response goes something like this, “I hope so…maybe…you never know.”
Can I give you some good news? You can know for absolutely sure that you are going to heaven!
Remember you’re not saved by praying someone else’s prayer or walking down an aisle.
Many people who have done these religious rituals, including myself, were not born again.
Listen to Jesus’ words:
“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.” (John 3:36)
“Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.” (John 5:24)
One commentator writes, “the Bible promises that when a sinner believes in Jesus Christ as Savior, he or she is immediately forgiven for sins, justified by faith alone, and granted eternal life.”
Point to Ponder:
It’s been said that some people are so heavenly minded that they are no earthly good. But the opposite can also be the case.
Where is your hope? Is it in politics? Is it in success? Or money? Or is your hope in the fact that heaven is waiting after this short blip of earthly life?
Have you been transformed from a caterpillar to a butterfly? Are you sure? Do you live in anticipation of spending eternity with God? Does that drive you to live in such a way to highlight God’s amazing promises?
A healthy church is full of people who want to make a difference in this life but also realize this life is just the prologue to eternity. Their hope is in heaven and nowhere else.
How are we doing?
3. Paul’s Preaching
…and which now at his appointed season he has brought to light through the preaching entrusted to me by the command of God our Savior…
You ever wondered why Jesus came 2,000 years instead of today? If He came today, he would have a podcast and billions of Instagram followers.
But He didn’t come now because it was not the “appointed time.”
Paul wrote to the Christians in Galatia:
“But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship.” (Gal 4:4-5)
At that time, there was a common language, a system of roads, and a peace (Pax Romana) that helped the Gospel spread rapidly. There was also an anticipation that the Messiah would come soon.
Paul was entrusted by God to be a proclaimer of this Gospel. In fact, Paul wrote:
"For when I preach the gospel, I cannot boast, since I am compelled to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!” (I Cor 9:16)
Titus had the same charge.
Paul wrote to the church at Corinth, where Titus served as well:
“For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.” (I Cor 1:21)
Preaching is the means by which the Gospel is made manifest, made visible to the world.
You may have a question about preaching and election. If people are chosen then what’s the use of preaching?
Because preaching is the means by which the elect come to faith in Christ.
You’ve seen the giant magnets that are used in junk yards. They only attract metal, everything else is not affected.
I remember a pastor teaching on this that said that since we don’t know who the elect are, we preach Christ to everyone and anyone.
And as we preach, we say “Baaaaa?” And through the work of the Holy ?Spirit and the Word, people that are being called to Christ find themselves saying, “Baaaaaa!” back.
I recently had a conversation with a person who told me that the way I preach is out of style. I should sit on a stool and “have a conversation” with the congregation. Less proclamation and more advice giving.
That will work for a Sunday school class but that’s not what I’m called to do.
“How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?” (Romans 10:17)
At Chenoa Baptist Church, we believe it is the Word of God that changes hearts from the inside out.
One pastor put it this way:
“We believe that anointed teaching is the primary catalyst for transformation in the lives of individuals and the church…from preparation to presentation…it can change sinners into saints. Danger lurks whenever we depend on anything else”
I promised the search committee that if I was called here, I would preach the cover off the Bible.
Point to Ponder:
I’m called to reach from the pulpit. But we are all called to manifest the Gospel with our words and lives. When’s the last time you shared the Gospel with someone at school or work or the gym?
A healthy church is full of people that understand that the preaching of the Gospel is the most important thing we do as a church. They wake up on a Sunday morning with a holy anticipation that God is going to do miracles through His Word.
How are we doing?
4. Paul’s Protege
“To Titus, my true son in our common faith: Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.” (v 4)
Paul spent his entire ministry life pouring into younger guys and preparing them to take over for him when he was gone.
The pastoral letters are to two of those young men - Timothy and Titus.
We don’t know a lot about Titus. He was Greek and Paul had obviously lead him to faith in Jesus.
In Galatians, we met Titus when Paul took him to Jerusalem as a circumcision test case.
In Corinthians, Paul calls Titus a “brother” (2 Cor 2:13) and “partner.” (2 Cor 8:23)
Titus had ministered in Ephesus and Corinth on behalf of Paul.
Titus was like a Navy Seal - he went where no one else would go. He ministered in Corinth where the churches were in disarray. And Paul left him in Crete in order to “put in order what was let unfinished.” (V6)
Paul calls him “my true son.” Marie asked a wonderful question this week at Bible study - was Paul Titus’ dad?
Biologically no. Paul was Titus’s spiritual father. Shiann is not my biological daughter but she’s my spiritual daughter.
Titus was his true son in the “common faith.” Paul was a Jewish man. Titus was a Greek Gentile. But they had be coworkers for over 20 years.
No matter how different they were, it was the life, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ that bonded them together.
Paul ends this section with a blessing very common to his letters:
“Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.” (v 4)
Grace is a Greek blessing and peace is a Hebrew blessing. Both of these only come through God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.
Point to Ponder:
Pastor Robby Gallaty writes:
“When the church becomes an end in itself, it ends. When Sunday school, as great as it is, becomes an end in itself, it ends. When small groups ministry becomes an end in itself, it ends. When the worship service becomes an end in itself, it ends. What we need is for discipleship to become the goal, and then the process never ends. The process is fluid. It is moving. It is active. It is a living thing. It must continue to go on. Every disciple must make disciples.”
If you have been a Christian more than a year, you are currently discipling?
If you have been a Christian for decades, could you fit the people you have discipled on one page or would it take more?
As disciples we should be making other disciples. It’s our marching orders from Jesus :
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” (Matthew 28:19-20)
Richard Sterns of World Vision tweeted this yesterday:
“I’m not sure that the average Christian even thinks about the Great Commission anymore. I feel like politics and fighting against the culture have replaced the Great Commission. We’ve traded our witness for attempts at power and control.”
A healthy church is full of people who are disciples of Jesus who make other disciples of Jesus. It’s not an option. It’s a command.
How are we doing as a church?
I want to end where we began. The Island of Crete was a mess. Rome exiled criminals there. It was a place of immorality. If Las Vegas is sin city, then Crete was sin island!
And in the middle of all that darkness were churches that were little points of light. These Cretans, who were just terrible human beings, were being saved and the church was growing. Why? Because the Gospel was being proclaimed and people were getting saved. They were different. They stood out.
I want to end today with a video of a man who would have been right at home on Crete but ran head long into the love of a church and ultimately Jesus Christ.
[Video - The Church Saved my Life]
