Month: March 2021

Titus 1.1; 2.1, 11-14; 3.4-7

During these reflections on Paul’s letter to Titus we have picked out key themes as they are developed through the text. Arguably, that the gospel produces godliness in the lives of believers, is the dominant concept. In the middle of a pandemic we see the impact on credibility where what is said conflicts with the behaviour of the speaker.  It destroys confidence, creates division and promotes harmful behaviour.  These things equally apply to the teaching of the gospel and Christian leadership.

Paul opens his letter with the statement that it is, ‘the knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness’. ^{Titus 1.1} He is making the teaching of this knowledge central to his calling as an apostle and also the work of Titus and other church leaders.  The importance of teaching the gospel is repeated throughout the letter. Elders of churches, ‘must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught,’ and ‘be able to give instruction in sound doctrine’. ^V1.9

Titus is instructed to teach older men, ^v2.2 older women, ^v2.3 who then should teach younger women. ^v2.4 He is to urge (ESV) or encourage (NIV) younger men to be self-controlled ^v2.6 and teach slaves.  All of this teaching, in the context of the letter, relates to personal conduct.  Titus’ own conduct is to be a model for his teaching. ^{v 2.8} In contrast teaching that does not accord to the gospel is associated with behaviour Paul defines as detestable, disobedient and unfit for any good work. ^v1.16 Paul gives some indications about how to discern such teachers, he describes their motivation as being for shameful gain, ^v1.11 although he doesn’t say whether that is personal esteem or monetary advantage. Their teachings are ones that stir up division ^v3.10 and so their focus will be on controversies, genealogies, dissentions, and quarrels about the law. ^v3.9 In context this seems to connect with the circumcision party but similar warnings could be taken about contemporary teaching that is designed to divide a fellowship.

Gospel teaching is only effective if it is partnered with the Holy Spirit. Jesus told his disciples, ‘But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.’ ^{John 14.26} The gospel is applied to our lives through the grace of God, ‘training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passion, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age’. ^v2,12 The sanctification process is by the Holy Spirit.  Paul terms it, ‘the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Saviour’. ^{v 3.6} The Holy Spirit first teaches and then applies that teaching to our lives training us in godliness.

How then could we pray?

We could pray that the Holy Spirit will make us aware of those things in our lives that diverge from gospel living.

We could pray that the Holy Spirit would train us in godly living.

We could pray for our teachers that their teaching and lives will continue to accord with the gospel.

Lord I need you – Chris Tomlin

Titus 2.5, 8, 10

Philip said, ‘Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.’ Jesus answered: ‘Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, “Show us the Father”? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. ^{John 14.8-10}

The reason Jesus was such an attractive person to so many was that he revealed God the Father through his character.  It was also the reason people were hostile towards him because their hearts were hostile to God and godliness. Similarly, the transforming work of the grace of God in Christians lives is intended to be a means by which Jesus is revealed to those who do not yet have faith. ^{Titus 2.10} There are many scriptures that capture how as children of God we are to grow into Christ likeness.  An outcome of this process is to draw others into relationship with God that they also might be recipients of salvation. Jesus said, ‘Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven’. ^{Matthew 5.16}

In Crete the Christian life was in stark contrast to the surrounding culture where over indulgence and idolatry were the norm. Paul was insistent that the conduct of Christians’ private lives should not detract from the gospel.  His advice reflected life in Crete but it is not restricted to that time and place. He wanted older women to be reverent in their behaviour, careful in the way they speak and not addicted to alcohol. ^v2.3 The impact of excessive alcohol is to reduce self-control and therefore lead on to behaviour that is offensive to God.  The same advice is equally appropriate to all including older men who were taught to be dignified, sober-minded, self-controlled, sound in faith and in love. ^v2.2 The repeated message for all groups within the church whether they were older or younger, free or bondservants, was to be self-controlled, trustworthy, careful in their speech, loving in their relationships, full of good works.  All of this for the sake of the gospel. For young women it was, ‘that the word of God may not be reviled’. ^v2.5 In the case of young men it was, ‘So that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us’. ^v2.8 In regarding the relationship with bondservants and their masters it was, ‘so that in everything they may adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour’. ^v2.10

It is a false reading of chapter 2 if it is taken to advocate either the oppression of women in marriage or the endorsement of any form of slavery. Here the emphasis is on the ongoing saving work of the grace of God in believers’ lives and how that in itself is a witness to Jesus as the gospel.

What is it that you find attracts you to Jesus in other believers’  lives?

Is the Lord prompting you through the gospel to become more Christ like?

Are you in a relationship (e.g. sister, husband, friend) with an as yet non-believer and how can your life make Jesus more attractive to them?

How deep the Father’s love – Fernando Ortega

Titus 1.4, 2.3-4, 2.11-15

Warp and weft are the two basic components used in weaving to turn thread or yarn into fabric. The lengthwise or longitudinal warp yarns are held stationary in tension on a frame or loom while the transverse weft (sometimes woof) is drawn through and inserted over-and-under the warp. (Wikipedia)

One single thread cannot be separated from the whole material.  It adds to the whole and finds its place within it, enhancing its strength and beauty.

A silver thread running through Paul’s letter to Titus is the place of mentors in discipleship and growth in godliness.  Paul was himself a mentor to Titus.  Titus, a gentile, became a Christian through Paul’s ministry hence he terms him his true son. ‘To Titus, my true son in our common faith.’ ^{Titus 1.4} The term, true son, indicates that the relationship was more than simply one of preacher and convert.  Titus had grown up in the faith as a child grows up, under Paul’s guidance and in close relationship as a child does with a loving father.  For such a relationship to exist it had to be long standing, intimate and trusting. For such confidence to exist that Paul would leave the ordering of the churches in Crete and the appointment of elders ^{v 1.5} to Titus, he would have needed evidence of his reliability, which indeed he had.  Not only had Titus been Paul’s companion on missionary journeys he had shown independent reliability in taking Paul’s letter, known as 2 Corinthians, to Corinth and supervising the restoration of relationships and growth of the church in Corinth.  He then went on to raise a collection in Corinth, where they had previously been reluctant, for the Christians in Jerusalem that Paul personally delivered.

Paul was an older man to Titus’ young man and thus a model of the types of mentoring relationships he advocates to the church in Crete.  A key principle in Titus is that healthy doctrine should produce holiness and good works.  Titus was to teach what accords to sound doctrine, ^{v 2.1} but then what we discover as we read on is that what accords to sound doctrine is not a theological statement but a description of conduct and character. Mentoring is meant to impact the whole life of the Christian including family life, work life, our friendships and our conduct within the church.

It is clear that there is particular place for the mentor and mentee relationship to be between two people of the same gender.  ‘Older women like-wise are to be reverent in bahaviour, not slanderers or slaves to much wine.  They are to teach what is good, and so train the young women to love their husbands and children …’ ^{Titus 2.3,4} Mentoring is not only to be done by what is said it is to be by example.

A mentor’s credibility is established by the consistency of the example they set.  Thus, Paul urges Titus to, ‘urge the younger men to be self-controlled.  Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity, and sound speech that cannot be condemned, so that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us.

All of this is to be achieved through the grace of God.  It is an ongoing process and it has an eventual goal.  That goal is, ‘the appearing of the glory of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ.’ ^{Titus 2.13} Being both a mentor and a mentee is part of our training in godliness. ^{Titus 2.12}

Who has been a mentor to you and who have your mentored?

Do you actively seek to be in a mentoring relationship?

How can you encourage mentoring relationships in your church?

A valuable book if you are interested in the theme is –

Organic Discipleship: Mentoring Others Into Spiritual Maturity and Leadership (Revised Edition) by Dennis McCallum, Jessica Lowery

Oceans (Acoustic) – Hillsong United

Titus 1.10-16

George turned up to the house of his friend, Henry, to find him going through a clubbing routine on his back lawn.  ‘Henry,’ he said. ‘What are you doing?’  Henry was holding a magnificent two-handed whale bone club, beautifully weighted, intricately engraved, dressed in a bear skin.  Henry and the club seemed at one as he swung it in wide majestic moves.  ‘I am practising my mammoth hunting techniques,’ replied Henry.  ‘Why?’  George asked incredulously.  ‘When Marian and I were married, I promised I would defend and provide for her for the rest of my life.’  ‘But’ George said, ‘There are no mammoths left.’  ‘You don’t understand,’ Henry answered, ‘These skills have been passed down by my ancestors, they perfect balance, timing and centre the mind.  If I didn’t do them every day my marriage might collapse.’  Marian was looking out of the living room window gently shaking her head with despair in her eyes.

Comic as this image is it illustrates how one can be deceived into becoming trapped by ritual and tradition when they have ceased to have purpose.  Henry’s desire was to fulfil his marriage vows but the way he set about it was deeply misguided and was actually driving a wedge into the marriage.  In a modern phrase the ritual was no longer fit for purpose.

Paul was deeply disturbed that the young church in Cyprus had been infiltrated by people who taught practices that were worse than not fit for purpose, they lead people away from the truth and on into sin.  He termed them, ‘empty talkers and deceivers, especially those from the circumcision party.’ ^{Titus 1.10} For the disciple of Christ physical circumcision was neither right or wrong but reliance on it for salvation was a deception.  Paul addressed this directly in Galatians, ‘For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value.’ ^{Gal 5.6} Circumcision was a sign of God’s covenant with Abraham and his descendants ^{Genesis 17.10-13} and later enshrined in law. ^{Leviticus 12.3} It was an outward sign of what should have been an inward spiritual reality. ‘And the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live.’ ^{Deuteronomy 30.6}

If circumcision was part of God’s law, why then was Paul so condemning of those continuing to teach it?  It was because if one is relying on obedience to the law for salvation one has to perfectly obey the whole law, in spirit as well as in rituals, and that is not possible for sinful people. ‘I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law.’ ^{Galatians 5.3} At that point one is rejecting who Jesus is and what he did through his sacrifice on the cross.  It is a rejection of the grace of God, Paul terms it a, ‘falling away from the grace of God.’ ^{Gal 5.6} He describes the teaching of the circumcision party as, removing the offence of the cross. ^{Gal 5.11}

Paul wants to be clear, ‘By grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of your own works, so that no one may boast.’ ^{Ephesians 2.8-9} It is only through reliance on Jesus through faith that we receive the gift of salvation, ^{Colossians 2.11-14} any other teaching will lead us away from the freedom of the Spirit.

This provokes the question, what constructs in our life do we rely on that prevents us from trusting solely in the sacrificial death and resurrection of Jesus?

The heart of worship – Matt Redman

Titus 1.5-9

Angela opens the expected e mail and groans at the number of attachments.  She really wants this job but process and stress to get it seems almost too much. The first document is the glossy brochure telling the world how wonderful the company is, then there is the formidable application form, an interview schedule, a job description, a person specification and an online task all to be returned in the next three days.  How is she to convince the appointing committee that she is the ideal person?  If only they just truly knew her and her heart for an opportunity like this.

Paul’s preaching and teaching tour of Crete has left small scattered house churches across the island but now to continue to grow in their faith and mission they need some more formally established leadership.  Paul has given Titus the job of appointing these elders. ^{Titus 1.5} They are not jobs for the faint hearted, Cyprus is famous for its lax morals and prevalent dishonesty, ^v12 a place where the culture lays traps for the newly converted disciples of Jesus. The church has also come under the influence of Jewish groups that are adding to and distorting the apostolic gospel. ^v14 Surely then Titus must pay special attention to skills, organizational structures, eloquence of speech and commanding presence.  It appears these are not considered essential in the person specification although they may have been desirable.  Paul has one overriding priority and that is the character of the person.  He then subdivides it into three areas.

The fact that Paul did not appoint elders at the foundation of the churches is relevant.  It takes time to grow and assess Christian character.  In 1 Timothy, Paul counsels, ‘Do not be hasty in the laying on of hands.’ ^v5.22 He adds, ‘The sins of some are obvious … the sins of others trail behind them. In the same way, good deeds are obvious, and even those that are not obvious cannot remain hidden forever.’ ^vv5.24,25 The appointment of leaders is not to be rushed.

Public reputation is vital firstly expressed in their family life. What the neighbours see reflects on the standing of Christ in the community.  Twice Paul asserts an elder must be, ‘above reproach.’ ^vv6,7 The conduct of the family and the faithfulness of any marriage should give a positive testimony to the elder.

The individual conduct is also crucial, under the phrase self-controlled comes an absence of drunkenness, quick temper and violence. ^v7 Motivations are equally important, an elder should not be arrogant, a lover of good, holy in their inclinations and disciplined in their approach.  These things all bear strongly on how they will relate to the church and to the community as they reach out in mission.  They could well find their perfect expression through hospitality, ^v8 taking a lead from Jesus’ lifestyle where he delighted to spend time with ‘sinners,’ not to join in their activity but to lovingly share the gospel.  What will differentiate the sacrificial leader is the time they give to people beyond their own inner circle.

The final characteristic Paul emphasizes is the person’s understanding and sharing of the gospel.  This being the basis on which they relate to church members, ‘holding firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.’ ^v9 This implies the capacity to go beyond simply quoting scripture and includes wise and loving interpretation and application.

Word of God Speak