One of the needs of the church today, is for young ministers to recognize the need to work with a seasoned pastor and learn as much from him as they can.
Illus: Just because a young person graduates from college and has a college diploma in his hands, the business world does not hire them as a CEO of a large corporation.
But yet in the religious world, a young person can graduate from seminary with very little on-the-job training, and immediately be placed as the OVERSEER of the flock of God.
The business world is much smarter than some churches. They would not think of doing such a thing.
Illus: Before you can become a licensed contractor, many counties require that you work as an apprentice with an experienced contractor before they will issue you a general contractors license.
This is the same thing that is done with doctors, nurses, plumbers, and electricians.
WHY DO THEY REQUIRE THIS?
Because the things that these people do affect people’s lives greatly, and they want to make sure they are qualified before they are thrust out into these careers.
Paul had wisdom, so when a young man was called into the ministry, he would take him under his spiritual wings and train him.
Many pastors would like to help young pastors like this.
But often, Christians who mean well, literally destroy the lives of some young ministers before they get started.
For example, a pastor might take a young pastor under his watch care to train him. As time goes on, the pastor will give him opportunities to preach. Once he preaches a few times and shows signs of progress, a lot of well-meaning Christians will come up to that young minister and tell him what an outstanding job he did.
They know that is what he wants to hear and they pour the compliments on him heavy.
Not being a seasoned pastor, he does not know that compliments are like chewing gum; they are to be chewed, not swallowed.
He swallows all the compliments and gets a big head, and launches out into the ministry before he is ready, because several people paid him a few insincere compliments.
Paul took Timothy and Titus under his spiritual wings, and he kept a tight rein on them. These young men were submissive to his leadership.
Look at verse 5, we read, “For this cause left I thee in Crete…”
Notice, these words let us know that Paul was in charge and that they recognized it. Paul said I, “…left thee in Crete…” In other words, it was his decision; he was in charge.
But if you remember from the previous message in this series, we mentioned that the Cretians were the “Scum” of the earth.
That is, if you wanted to insult someone during this time all you had to do was call them a “Cretian”. These were fighting words.
But why did Paul leave Titus in Crete? For two reasons:
Look at verse 5 again. We read, “For this cause left I thee in Crete, THAT THOU SHOULDEST SET IN ORDER THE THINGS THAT ARE WANTING…”
Paul said the first reason he left him there was to-
I. ORDAIN SOME MINISTERS
Look at the last part of verse 5. We read, “…And ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee.”
But he wanted to let this young minister know that he was not to ordain just anyone. IT MUST BE A PERSON WHO MEETS BIBLE REQUIREMENTS.
It is amazing how many churches today, that call themselves Bible-preaching churches, will ordain anyone that will step up to the plate. I mean ANYONE! Today some churches are ordaining homosexuals!
Look at the instructions God gave this young minister as to who should be ordained.
Look at verses 6-9. We read, “If any be blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of riot or unruly. For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre; But a lover of hospitality, a lover of good men, sober, just, holy, temperate; Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.”
These verses told Titus who was qualified to be ordained into the ministry.
• Verse 6 alone is grounds for not ordaining a homosexual as a minister of the gospel. Why? Because the command is that he is to be the “Husband of one wife”, and a homosexual cannot fulfill that command.
• Also, this would disqualify every catholic priest in the nation, because God’s Word states they should be the “Husbands of one wife.”
• This would disqualify every woman, because God’s Word states they should be the “Husbands of one wife.”
• This would disqualify a man who has been married and divorced and remarried. God’s Word says they should be the “Husbands of one wife.”
These are simple instructions, for anyone who can read, to understand.
But many of the churches today are disobeying this passage of scripture, NOT because they do not understand this passage, but because God’s Word does not govern the life of the churches, or the lives of the members of those churches.
Paul is saying to Titus, “This is why I left you on the island of Crete.”
Look at verse 5 again. We read, “For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee:”
Paul talked to him about the ORDAINING OF SOME MINISTERS. But also he said that THERE WAS SOMETHING THAT NEEDED TO BE SET IN ORDER.
WHAT WOULD THAT BE?
He is to ORDAIN SOME MINISTERS but also he is to-
II. OSTRACIZE SOME MINISTERS
Look at verses 13-16. We read, “This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith; Not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth. Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled. They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.”
What Paul is saying to Titus up to this point is this:
• There are some ministers we need to GET INTO the pulpit.
• There are some ministers we need to GET OUT OF the pulpit.
WHO ARE THE MINISTERS TITUS WAS TO GET OUT OF THE PULPIT?
Look at verses 10-11. “For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision: Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's sake.”
Notice, the firmness that Paul uses in verse 11 as he talks to Titus. He said, “WHOSE MOUTHS MUST BE STOPPED…”
Why is Paul so firm about these false teachers? Because he knows the damage they can do. Look at verse 11 in its entirety. We read, “Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert WHOLE HOUSES, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's sake.”
Notice, he says, they “Subvert whole houses.”
One of the sad things in this nation is that no matter where you go, you can find JEHOVAH WITNESSES and MORMONS going from door to door peddling their damnable religions.
And many times the reason they are doing this is because perhaps twenty five or fifty years ago their great grandparents got caught up in this deception, and ever since then, generation after generation has been deceived by these same damnable religions that will send the entire family to a devil’s hell.
Why do these ministers do this? Many times because of money. Look at verse 11. The Bible says, because of filthy “Lucre” (money). Make no mistake about it, today some of the richest men on this earth are false ministers that are in the ministry for the money.
This is the same thing that Paul wrote to Timothy about in 1 Tim. chapter six. He told him in 1 Tim. 6:10, “For the love of money is the root of all evil...”
We must remember that Paul left Titus to deal with the Cretians, and they were drunkards, insolent, and liars.
Look at verse 12. We read, “One of themselves, even a prophet of their own, said, The Cretians are alway liars, evil beasts, slow bellies.”
Paul is telling Titus that these men stand before the people of God and tell them one lie after another. THEY MUST BE STOPPED!
Verse 12 tell us two reasons; they are referred to as:
• LIARS
• EVIL BEASTS
That is, like a beast, they are savagely attacking the church, trying to consume it with their false teachings.
Paul said to Titus, in verse 13, “Rebuke them sharply…”. Paul knew that Titus was a young man. He also knew that a young man might not have the courage to stand up to these false teachers.
He told him to REBUKE THEM SHARPLY. That is, come down hard on them.
Why? Look at verse 13 again. “This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, THAT THEY MAY BE SOUND IN THE FAITH.”
We do not reach a lost world today by compromising with them. We have many today that believe that in order to reach the lost we have to become like them.
• We have churches today that bring bingo into the church.
• We have churches today that bring worldly songs into the worship services.
• We have churches today that think that the way to reach the lost world is to let them come to church in t-shirts and blue jeans.
We have churches that are doing everything that the lost world does, because they feel this is the way you reach them for Christ.
WHATEVER HAPPENED TO TAKING A STAND FOR THE TRUTH?
When false teaching sticks its ugly head up, we need to stand up and say, “According to the Word of God you are wrong!”
During the 50’s, you could hear Bible preachers warning people about false religions, but today you hear very little of that. Why? Because in this wicked society it is not popular.
Illus: Look at the trouble Bob Jones University got into because they took a stand against Catholicism and Mormonism.
We do not have to believe everything this university teaches and stands for, and I do not. But when it comes to their stand against these two cults, they are right!
Why do I say that? Because when you take what they teach and compare it to the Word of God, these organizations prove to be cults.
Paul said to REBUKE THEM SHARPLY. Why? If we are ever going to win the cults to Christ, we are NOT going to win them by compromising the Word of God.
He said in verse 14, “Not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth.”
These false teachers are IMPURE. These ungodly Cretians were very difficult for Titus to deal with.
Look at verse 15. We read, “Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.”
What does that mean?
Illus: Did you know that:
• A liar thinks everyone else is a liar
• A gossip thinks everyone else is a gossip
• An adulterer thinks everyone else is an adulterer
• A cheat thinks everyone else is a cheat
Why? Because they judge others by their own actions.
Because they are IMPURE, they assume that everyone else is IMPURE also.
The Bible says, “…Even their mind and conscience is defiled.”
But look at what else he says about the IMPURE. Look at verse 16. We read, “They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.”
They can TALK IT, but they cannot WALK IT!
Conclusion:
Paul said he left Titus in Crete to:
I. ORDAIN SOME MINISTERS
II. OSTRACIZE SOME MINISTERS
