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Titus Chapter One
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THE VACUUM produced when a strong leader departs
can devastate a movement, organization, or institution. Having been dependent on
his or her skill, style, and personality, associates and subordinates flounder
or vie for control. Soon efficiency and vitality are lost, and decline and
demise follow. Often this pattern is repeated in churches. Great speakers and
teachers gather a following, and soon a church is flourishing. It is alive,
vital, and effective. Lives are being changed and people led into the kingdom.
But when this catalyst leaves or dies, with him or her goes the drive and the
heart of the organization.
People flocked to hear Paul's teaching. Educated, articulate, motivated, and
filled with the Holy Spirit, this man of faith faithfully proclaimed the Good
News throughout the Roman empire-lives were changed and churches begun. But Paul
knew that the church must be built on Christ, not on a person. And he knew that
eventually he would not be there to build, encourage, discipline, and teach. So
he trained young pastors to assume leadership in the church after he was gone.
Paul urged them to center their lives and preaching on the Word of God (2Timothy
3:16, 17) and to train others to carry on the ministry (2Timothy 2:2).
Titus was a Greek believer. Taught and nurtured by Paul, he stood before the
leaders of the church in Jerusalem as a living example of what Christ was doing
among the Gentiles (Galatians 2:1-3). Like Timothy, he was one of Paul's trusted
traveling companions and closest friends. Later he became Paul's special
ambassador (2Corinthians 7:5-16) and eventually the overseer of the churches on
Crete (Titus 1:5). Slowly and carefully, Paul developed Titus into a mature
Christian and a responsible leader. The letter to Titus was a step in this
discipleship process. As with Timothy, Paul told Titus how to organize and lead
churches.
Paul begins with a longer than usual greeting and introduction, outlining
the leadership progression-Paul's ministry (1:1-3), Titus's responsibilities
(1:4, 5), and those leaders whom Titus would appoint and train (1:5). Paul then
lists pastoral qualifications (1:6-9) and contrasts faithful overseers with the
false leaders and teachers (1:10-16).
Next Paul emphasizes the importance of good deeds in the life of the
Christian, telling Titus how to relate to the various age groups in the church
(2:2-6). He urges Titus to be a good example of a mature believer (2:7, 8) and
to teach with courage and conviction (2:9-15). He then discusses the general
responsibilities of Christian in society-Titus should remind people of these
(3:1-8), and he should avoid divisive arguments (3:9-11). Paul concludes with a
few matters of itinerary and personal greetings (3:12-15).
Paul's letter to Titus is brief, but it is an important link in the
discipleship process-helping a young man grow into a leadership in the church.
As you read this pastoral letter, you will gain insight into the organization
and life of the early church, and you will find principles for structuring
contemporary churches. But you should also see how to be a responsible Christian
leader. Read the letter to Titus and determine, like Paul, to train men and
women to lead and teach others.
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VITAL STATISTICS
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PURPOSE:
To advise Titus in his responsibility of supervising the churches on the
Island of Crete
AUTHOR:
Paul
TO WHOM WRITTEN:
Titus, a Greek, probably converted to Christ through Paul's ministry (he
had become Paul's special representative to the island of Crete), and all
believers everywhere
DATE WRITTEN:
About A.D. 64, around the same time 1Timothy was written; probably from
Macedonia when Paul traveled between his Roman imprisonments
SETTING:
Paul sent Titus to organize and oversee the churches on Crete. This
letter tells Titus how to do this job.
KEY VERSE:
"The reason I left you in Crete was that you might straighten out what
was left unfinished and appoint elders in every town, as I directed you" (1:5).
KEY PEOPLE:
Paul, Titus
KEY PLACES:
Crete, Nicopolis
SPECIAL FEATURES:
Titus is very similar to 1Timothy with its instructions to church
leaders.
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THE BLUEPRINT
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1) Leadership in the church (1:1-16)
2) Right living in the church (2:1-15)
3) Right living in society (3:1-15)
Paul calls for church order and right living on
an island known for laziness, gluttony, lying, and evil. The Christians are to
be self-disciplined as individuals, and they must be orderly as people who form
one body, the church. We need to obey this message in our day when discipline is
not respected or rewarded by our society. Although others may not appreciate our
efforts, we must live upright lives, obey the government, and control our
speech. We should live together peacefully in the church and be living examples
of our faith to contemporary society.
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MEGATHEMES
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THEME:
A Good Life
EXPLANATION:
The Good News of salvation is that we can't be saved by living a good
life; we are saved only by faith in Jesus Christ. But the gospel transforms
people's lives, so that they eventually perform good deeds. Our service won't
save us, but we are saved to serve.
IMPORTANCE:
A good life is a witness to the gospel's power. As Christians, we must
have commitment and discipline to serve. Are you putting your faith into action
by serving others?
THEME:
Character
EXPLANATION:
Titus's responsibility in Crete was to appoint elders to maintain proper
organization and discipline, so Paul listed the qualities needed for the
eldership. Their conduct in their homes revealed their fitness for service in
the church.
IMPORTANCE:
It's not enough to be educated or to have a loyal following to be
Christ's kind of leader. You must have self-control, spiritual and moral
fitness, and Christian character. Who you are is just as important as what you
can do.
THEME:
Church Relationships
EXPLANATION:
Church teaching must relate to various groups. Older Christians were to
teach and to be examples to younger men and women. People of every age and group
have a lesson to learn and a role to play.
IMPORTANCE:
Right living and right relationship go along with right doctrine. Treat
relationships with other believers as an out growth of your faith.
THEME:
Citizenship
EXPLANATION:
Christians must be good citizens in society, not just in church.
Believers must obey the government and work honestly.
IMPORTANCE:
How you fulfill your civic duties is a witness to the watching world.
Your community life should reflect Christ's love as much as your church life
does.
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Paul's Profile
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No person, apart from Jesus himself, shaped
the history of Christianity like the apostle Paul. Even before he was a
believer, his actions were significant. His frenzied persecution of Christians
following Stephen's death got the church started in obeying Christ's final
command to take the gospel worldwide. Paul's personal encounter with Jesus
changed his life. He never lost his fierce intensity, but from then on it was
channeled for the gospel.
Paul was very religious. His training under Gamaliel was the finest
available. His intentions and efforts were sincere. He was a good Pharisee, who
knew the Bible and sincerely believed that this Christian movement was dangerous
to Judaism. Thus Paul hasted the Christian faith and persecuted Christians
without mercy.
Paul got permission to travel to Damascus to capture Christians and bring
them back to Jerusalem. But God stopped him in his hurried tracks on the
Damascus road. Paul personally met Jesus Christ, and his life was never again
the same.
Until Paul's conversion, little had been done about carrying the gospel to
non-Jews. Philip had preached in Samaria and to an Ethiopian man; Cornelius, a
Gentile, was converted under Peter, and in Antioch in Syria, some Greeks had
joined the believers. When Barnabas was sent from Jerusalem to check on this
situation, he went to Tarsus to find Paul and bring him to Antioch, and together
they worked among the believers there. They were then sent on a missionary
journey, the first of three Paul would take, that would carry the gospel across
the Roman empire.
The thorny issue of whether Gentile believers had to obey Jewish laws before
they could become Christians caused many problems in the early church. Paul
worked hard to convince the Jews that Gentiles were acceptable to God, but he
spent even more time convincing the Gentiles that they were acceptable to God.
The lives Paul touched were changed and challenged by meeting Christ through
him.
God did not waste any part of Paul-his background, his training, his
citizenship, his mind, or even his weaknesses. Are you willing to let God do the
same for you? You will never know all he can do with you until you allow him to
have all that you are!
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Paul's Strengths and Accomplishments
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1) Transformed by God from a persecutor of
Christians to a preacher for Christ
2) Preached for Christ throughout the Roman empire on three missionary journeys
3) Wrote letters to various churches, which became part of the New Testament
4) Was never afraid to face an issue head-on and deal with it
5) Was sensitive to God's leading and, despite his strong personality, always
did as God directed
6) Is often called the apostle to the Gentiles
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Paul's Weaknesses and Mistakes
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1) Witnessed and approved of Stephen's stoning
2) Set out to destroy Christianity by persecuting Christians
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Lessons from Paul's Life
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1) The Good News is that forgiveness and eternal
life are a gift of God's grace received through faith in Christ and available to
all people
2) Obedience results from a relationship with God, but obedience will never
create or earn that relationship
3) Real freedom doesn't come until we no longer have to prove our freedom
4) God does not waste our time-he will use our past and present so we may serve
him with our future
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Paul's Vital Statistics
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1) Where: Born in Tarsus, but became a world
traveler for Christ
2) Occupation: Trained as a Pharisee, learned the tent making trade, served as a
missionary
3) Contemporaries: Gamaliel, Stephen, the apostles, Luke, Barnabas, Timothy
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Key Verses
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"For to me, to live is Christ and to die gain. If
I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what
shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and
be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I
remain in the body" (Philippians 1:21-24).
Paul's story is told in Acts 7:58-28:31 and
through his New Testament letters.
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(1) Leadership in the church
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1) Who did Paul say he is a servant to, who
did Paul say he is an apostle of, what does the faith of God's elect and the
knowledge of truth lead to, what does this faith and knowledge rest on, what did
Paul say God does not do, when did God make this promise, when did God bring his
word to light, and how did God bring his word to light?
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Paul wrote this letter between his first and
second imprisonment in Rome (before he wrote 2Timothy) to guide Titus in working
with the churches on the island of Crete. Paul had visited Crete with Titus and
had left him there to minister (1:5). There was a strong pagan influence on this
small island because Crete may have been a training center for Roman soldiers.
Therefore, the church in Crete needed strong Christian leadership.
In one short phrase, Paul gives us insight into his reason for living. He
calls himself a servant of God-that is, one who was committed to obeying God.
This obedience led him to spend his life telling others about Christ. How would
you describe your purpose in life? To what are you devoted?
Paul called himself "an apostle." Even though Paul was not one of the 12, he
was specially called by God to bring the Good News to the Gentiles (see Acts
9:1-16 for an account of his call). The word apostle means messenger or
missionary. "God's elect" refers to God's choice of his people, the church.
Apparently lying was commonplace in Crete (1:12). Paul made it clear at the
start that God does not lie. The foundation of our faith is trust in God's
character. Because God is truth, he is the source of all truth,
and he cannot lie. Believing in him leads to godliness, living a
God-honoring lifestyle (1:1). The eternal life that God has promised will be
ours, because he keeps his promises. Build your faith on the foundation of a
trustworthy God who never lies.
God is called "our Savior," as is Jesus Christ (1:4). "God" here refers to
the Father. Jesus did the work of salvation by dying for our sins and,
therefore, he is our Savior. God planned the work of salvation, and he forgives
our sins. Both the Father and the Son acted to save us from our sins.
2) Who did Paul write this letter to, what does Paul call Titus, and who did Paul say grace and peace in from?
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Titus, a Greek, was one of Paul's most
trusted and dependable co-workers. Paul sent Titus to Corinth on several special
missions to help the church in its troubles (2Corinthians 7; 8). Paul and Titus
also traveled together to Jerusalem (Galatians 2:3) and Crete (1:5). Paul left
Titus in Crete to lead the new churches springing up on the island. Titus is
last mentioned by Paul in 2Timothy 4:10, Paul's last recorded letter. Titus had
leadership ability, so Paul gave him leadership responsibility, urging him to
use his abilities well.
3) What was the reason Paul left Titus in
Crete, what must an elder be, what is an overseer entrusted with, what must an overseer not be, what must an overseer be, and for what reason must an overseer hold to
the trustworthy message as it has been taught?
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Crete, a small island in the Mediterranean
Sea, had a large population of Jews. The churches there were probably founded by
Cretan Jews who had been in Jerusalem at Pentecost (Acts 2:11) more than 30
years before Paul wrote this letter. The unfinished work refers to establishing
correct teaching and appointing elders in various churches during his journeys
(Acts 14:23). He could not stay in each church, but he knew that these new
churches needed strong spiritual leadership. The men chosen were to lead the
churches by teaching sound doctrine, helping believers mature spiritually, and
equipping them to live for Jesus Christ despite opposition.
Paul briefly described some qualifications that the elders or overseers
should have. Paul had given Timothy a similar set of instructions for the church
in Ephesus (see 1Timothy 3:1-7; 5:22). Notice that most of the qualifications
involve character, not knowledge or skill. A person's life-style and
relationships provides a window into his or her character. Consider these
qualifications as you evaluate a person for a position of leadership in your
church. It is important to have leaders who can effectively preach God's Word,
but it is even more important to have those who can live out God's Word and be
examples for others to follow.
4) What kind of people did Paul say the
circumcision group has?
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"The circumcision group" were the
Judaizers, Jews who taught that the Gentiles had to obey all the Jewish laws
before they could become Christians. This regulation confused new Christians and
caused problems in many churches where Paul had preached the Good News. Paul
wrote letters to several churches to help them understand that Gentile believers
did not have to become Jews first in order to be Christians-God accepts anyone
who comes to him in faith (see Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:2-7). Although the
Jerusalem council had dealt with this issue (see Acts 15), devout Jews who
refused to believe in Jesus still tried to cause problems in the Christian
churches. Church leaders must be alert and take action on anything that divides
Christians.
5) For what reason did Paul say this group of
people must be silenced, for what reason should these people be silenced, what did one of their own prophets say, what did Paul say this testimony is, and for what reason did Paul tell Titus to
rebuke them sharply?
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Paul warned Titus to be on the lookout for
people who teach wrong doctrines and lead others into error. Some false teachers
are simply confused-they speak their misguided opinions without checking them
against the Bible. Others have evil motives-they pretend to be Christians only
because they can get more money ("dishonest gain"), additional business, or a
feeling of power from being a leader in the church. Jesus and the apostles
repeatedly warned against false teachers (see Mark 13:22; Acts 20:29;
2Thessalonians 2:3-12; 2Peter 3:3-7) because their teachings attack the
foundations of truth and integrity upon which the Christian faith is built. You
can recognize false teachers because they will (1) focus more attention on
themselves than on Christ; (2) ask you to do something that will compromise or
dilute your faith; (3) de-emphasize the divine nature of Christ or the
inspiration of the Bible; or (4) urge believers to make decisions based more on
human judgment than on prayer and Biblical guidelines.
6) What are all things to the pure, to whom is nothing pure, what are both their minds and consciences, who do they claim to know, what do they do by their actions, and what did Paul say they were?
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Some people see good all around them, while
others see nothing but evil. What is the difference? Our souls become filters
through which we perceive goodness or evil. The pure (those who have Christ in
control of their lives) learn to see goodness and purity even in this evil
world. But corrupt and unbelieving people find evil in everything because their
evil minds and hearts color even the good they see and hear. Whatever you choose
to fill your mind with will affect the way you think and act. Turn your thoughts
to God and his Word, and you will discover more and more goodness, even in this
evil world. A mind filled with good has little room for what is evil. (see
Philippians 4:8)
Many people claim to know God. How can we know if they really do? We will
not know for certain in this life, but a glance at their life-styles will
quickly tell us what they value and whether they have ordered their lives around
kingdom priorities. Our conduct speaks volumes about what we believe (see 1John
2:4-6). What do people know about God and about your faith by watching your
life?
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Answers Titus Chapter One
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1) God...Jesus Christ...godliness...the hope of
eternal life...lie...before the beginning of time...at his appointed
season...through the preaching entrusted to him by the command of God our Savior
2) Titus...his true son in our common faith...God the Father and Christ Jesus
their Savior
3) that he might straighten out what was left
unfinished and appoint elders in every town...blameless, the husband of but one wife, a man
whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and
disobedient...God's work...not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to
drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain...blameless, hospitable,
one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and
disciplined...so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine
and refute those who oppose it
4) rebellious, mere talkers and deceivers
5) because they are ruining whole households by
teaching things they ought not to teach...the sake of dishonest gain..."Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy
gluttons."...true...so that they will be sound in the faith and will
pay no attention to Jewish myths or to the commands of those who reject the
truth
6) pure...to those who are corrupted and do not believe...corrupted...God...deny him...detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing
anything good
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Taken from the NIV Life Application Study
Bible, Zondervan Publishers
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