September 25, 2023 | Be On Mission
Solid Leadership for a Sound Faith
Scripture: Titus 1(NIV)
1 Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ to further the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness— 2 in the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time, 3 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,
4 To Titus, my true son in our common faith:
Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.
5 The reason I left you in Crete was that you might put in order what was left unfinished and appoint elders in every town, as I directed you. 6 An elder must be blameless, faithful to his wife, a man whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient. 7 Since an overseer manages God’s household, he must be blameless—not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain. 8 Rather, he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined. 9 He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.
10 For there are many rebellious people, full of meaningless talk and deception, especially those of the circumcision group. 11 They must be silenced, because they are disrupting whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach—and that for the sake of dishonest gain. 12 One of Crete’s own prophets has said it: “Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons.” 13 This saying is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, so that they will be sound in the faith 14 and will pay no attention to Jewish myths or to the merely human commands of those who reject the truth. 15 To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted. 16 They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.
Devotional
This “Be on Mission” study of the New Testament is presented in a “chrono-geo-bio-logical” flow, following the chronology of Acts, then diverting to the geographical places or biographical people or theological topics mentioned. The next three days is one of those diversions, as we explore the book of Titus.
When we last left the narrative in the Book of Acts, Paul was on a storm-beaten prison ship off the coast of the island nation of Crete. A half dozen years later, Paul wrote this letter to Titus, who was supervising the Christian churches on Crete.
Titus was one of Paul’s traveling companions and ministry partners on his missionary journeys. In this letter he addressed Titus as his true son in their common faith. Paul had traveled with Titus to Jerusalem at the beginning of his ministry, sent him on special missions to Corinth in the middle of his journeys, and wrote him this letter toward the end of his life.
It is understandable that Paul trusted Titus for the tasks assigned to him in this first chapter of the letter: to appoint godly leadership to govern the network of house churches on the large island, and to rebuke those who were corrupting the gospel of Christ with false teachings. This letter from the apostle Paul would have given Titus added credibility for such daunting responsibilities.
Look again at the qualifications of a godly leader that Titus was tasked with finding. Why were these important for giving good oversight to the churches in Crete? Now review the corrupt teachings and practices that Titus was challenged to rebuke. Why were these dangerous to the health of the Christian faith?
How can you pray for your pastors, as they appoint spiritual leaders and refute false words and ways in your church’s ministry?
Poem
Pure
A glass full of water
All crystally clear
Can be quite deceptive
No toxins appear
‘Til put to the test
By an expert or two
The leaders you trust
To make drink pure for you
An elder or leader
With smiles, Bible quotes
Can be quite deceptive
Impurity cloaked
‘Til put to the test
Of Christ’s holiness, light
The leaders you trust--
Humble, truthful, pure, bright
