DAILY REMINDER – Today, December 17’s Bible reading is Titus-Philemon.
NEXT DAY REMINDER – Tomorrow, December 18’s Bible reading is Hebrews
1-6. May God bless you with the reading of His WORD.
TITUS Introduction
Titus was with the Apostle Paul when he discussed the gospel of salvation
by grace through faith with the Jewish leaders. It is believed by biblical
scholars that Titus worked alongside Paul during his third missionary trip at
Ephesus. After which, Titus was sent to Corinth to help the church there. Paul
and Titus worked for a short time while in Crete after his first imprisonment
in Rome, and Titus was commissioned to stay in Crete to complete much needed
work in the church there.
This letter was written to Titus around 64 A.D.
by Paul as he gave him spiritual guidance as to dealing with opposition, false
teachers, Christian conduct, and matters about faith.
PHILEMON Introduction
Philemon was a Christian slaveowner in Colosse who owned a slave named Onesimus.
Onesimus had stolen from him and run away but ended up meeting Paul during his
first imprisonment in Rome and became a Christian. The penalty for a runaway
slave was death, but Paul wrote Philemon and asked that upon Onesimus’ return if
he would be merciful and treat him as a Christian brother rather than a slave. He
had been very helpful to Paul while there and lived up to the meaning of his
name – useful. Paul offered to pay the debt that Onesimus owed his
master and he sent Tychicus back with him to carry his letter to the Colossian
church.
Some Bible critics attack Paul for what they believe was his
endorsement of slavery. This, however, was not Paul’s fight with regards to changing
the law at the time but more so to help Christians know how to treat all people
rather slave or free. 1/3 of Rome’s labor came from slaves in all types of
fields. Slaves were not legally considered as people and their masters had free
reign to do with them as they pleased, but many began to realize that mistreated
slaves did not promote their morale, so some slave owners treated their slaves more
humanely and developed friendships with them.
TITUS MOMENT – (17DEC19)
Paul’s Charge to Titus
Paul left Titus in Crete after his
first Roman imprisonment to appoint elders and be in charge of the missionary
work there.[1]
There were false leaders who were circling around with the teaching there as
well, but it was more prominent where Timothy was in Ephesus.[2] Paul needed Titus
to bring order to the church in Crete by appointing elders in the towns and
teaching them to live good Christian lives for the Cretans were not known to be
of good character. Titus, nevertheless, was to teach them to live a life that
brought glory and honor to God, even while there were those false teachers who
sought to bring chaos amongst them with the debates and foolish teachings.[3]
The Cretans were not known to be a
people of good moral character so Paul’s instructions to Titus was to nurture
them and help teach them the basic concepts of Godly behavior. Unlike Timothy,
Paul advised Titus to rebuke them sharply because these were a different type
of people in order for them to stand firm in the faith.[4] Paul advised Titus that the false
teachers thought that they were wise and knew God, but they were good for
nothing and were deceptive in their practices.[5] As with Timothy,
Paul warned Titus to avoid the arguments and foolish debates about the law that
the false teachers loved to have because they were unproductive.[6] Such things caused a
division in the church and Paul desired for the church to be nourished in the
ways of the Lord so that they could help others come to the knowledge of
Christ.
Duties of Christian
Leaders
The Apostle Paul acknowledged that
the behavior of Christian leaders should be exemplary and that their character
should be one of great integrity. He focused on leaders being totally devoted
in their walk with Christ throughout their personal life and to be of a good
reputation amongst both believers and nonbelievers.[7] As Paul did with
Timothy, he was descriptive of the false teachers and their heretical teachings
when he encouraged Titus to definitively oppose them.[8] Timothy and Titus
were to be apologists, defenders of the Gospel, and as a result, effectively
solidifying believers in their faith. Only then could the believers be
fortified against doubts that would possibly arise from the false teachers who
sought to conquer and divide.[9]
Timothy and Titus were to be
shepherds of Christ’s flock and were to appoint other leaders who were God
chasers instead of wealth makers.[10] They were to be
models after Christ who were to be spirit-filled and anointed to lead the
church as future generations would follow. One of the main duties of a shepherd
is to protect the sheep from wolves and robbers who may come to do the sheep
harm. Unfortunately, many leaders were irresponsible and did not lead the flock
correctly.[11]
Therefore, Timothy and Titus were fulfilling their duties as shepherds to
ensure that the false teachers who were disguised as sheep but were actually
wolves would not spiritually harm the sheep. Jesus said that His sheep would
know His voice and would not answer the call of a stranger.[12] The false teachers
were heretical strangers that had woven themselves into the fabric of the
church but were to be called out by Paul’s workers as they were the servants
and representatives of Christ.
Application for Modern
Christians
The Apostle Paul wanted the Ephesian
Christians and those in Crete to be mindful that they were members of God’s
household and were to live as such to avoid worldly dysfunction.[13] His goal was to be
that of encouragement so that they would live contrary to the immoral leaders
that were in their midst.[14] It is important
for Christians even more so today to follow Paul’s instructions for the church
has many leaders who are covetous, self-seeking, narcissistic, and greedy – preaching
in many pulpits every week. Paul wrote about the dangers of this which centers on
pride and is a trap from the enemy in his Pastoral Epistles.[15] Paul sought to
remind those in leadership and the church as a whole to behave themselves as
God’s household for which they are to represent truth and righteousness to the
world.[16] Those who are in
leadership are to be imitators of Christ with moral modeling and rightly
dividing the Word of God so that the rest of the church will follow.[17]
There are too many self-professed
Christians who are compromising the word of God and leading others to do the
same. Such heresies such as the Theory of Evolution was allowed to be
introduced in the Church of England which is a prime example of evil compromise
that encompassed the whole world in children’s schoolbooks, colleges and
universities.[18]
Many Christian leaders are infatuated with their flattering titles but fail to
live up to the office of which they are called because they are more concerned
with popularity, earthly prosperity and fame, rather than ensuring that souls
are being fed the unadulterated word of God.[19] Sadly, a variety
of Christian musical artists have also fallen into the trap and have watered
down God’s truth in their lyrics where they will not even mention the name of
Jesus. They shy away from speaking His truth when being interviewed by secular
radio and television hosts for fear of being shunned by the world.[20] Countless churches
have just as much sin and debauchery taking place within their four-walls as
the unbelieving world. The danger is that the church is held up to a higher
standard than the world and will be judged accordingly if they do not repent
and turn back to doing what’s right.[21]
The
Bible lets one know that the house of God will be judged first, so believers
must not make the grave mistake of thinking that they will not be held
accountable for what they failed to teach and how they slacked in their daily
living.[22] Scripture also
says, “To much is given, much is required.” Because the church has been
afforded the true knowledge of who Christ is, it is her job to be a witness to
the world so that they can come to know Him as well.[23] Therefore, it is
important for every believer to have a relationship with Christ for themselves
so that they will not be deceived by those who wish to walk down the broader
path that leads to destruction, but will remain focused on Christ for narrow is
the gate.[24]
Conclusion
The Pastoral
Epistles had much to say concerning false teachers and their heretical
teachings. Whenever the devil can cause contention in the body of Christ, he
will do so if there is an opening for him to get in. False teachers are
effective operatives for the kingdom of darkness only if believers are not
knowledgeable as to what to look out for regarding their false doctrines. Daily
study in the Word of God and prayer for discernment is the only way to stay
alert as to such people and their deceptions. Paul’s desire was to unify the
body of Christ and prevent them from being scattered by wolves. This is why he
gave detailed instructions to Timothy and Titus so that they could help the
body of Christ grow in their knowledge of God and understand Christ’s love for
them as the bride that He will one day return for.
Salvation can never be earned
through the philosophies and traditions of men, but it is only by faith through
Jesus Christ that believers are able to be saved. Anyone who teaches anything
contrary to this is not of God. Just as the Christians during Paul’s day had to
be mindful of false teachers and strange doctrines in their midst, the church
today has to be on the alert as well. The devil is using them to do the same
tricks but at a much larger scale due to the advanced age of technology. He has
more access now to reach the masses and is playing it like a fiddle.
Nevertheless, God’s word never expires and what was written in Paul’s writings
and throughout the whole Bible regarding apostate leaders and their fallacies
can still be applied today. Jesus gives discernment to those who seek Him so
that they will not be fooled by the enemy’s schemes. Timothy and Titus followed
Paul’s instructions and were leaders after God’s own heart and Christians can model
their lives accordingly so that the body of Christ can be the shining bride who
is ready for His return.
[1]
Martin Luther, Luther's Works (St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House,
1968), Vol 29, p.3.
[2]
Lea and Black, The New Testament, 473.
[3]
Carson and Moo, Introduction to New
Testament, 581-584.
[4]
Titus 1:10-14 (New International Version).
[5]
Titus 1:16 (New International Version).
[6]
Titus 3:9-11 (New International Version).
[7]
Lea and Black, The New Testament, 473.
[8]
Lea and Black, The New Testament, 476-477.
[9]
Douglas R Groothuis, Christian Apologetics: A Comprehensive Case for
Biblical Faith (Downers Grove, Ill: IVP Academic, 2011), 23-25.
[10] Thomas D. Lea
and David A. Black, The New Testament Its Background And Message
(Nashville: B&H Publishing Group, 2003), 484-488.
[11] Andreas J
Köstenberger, Encountering John: The Gospel in Historical, Literary, and
Theological Perspective (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2013), 106-109.
[12] John 10:1-10 (New
International Version).
[13] Lea and Black, The
New Testament, 473.
[14] Ibid.
[15] LeRoy Eims, Be
The Leader You Were Meant To Be (Wheaton: Victor Books, 1996), 119-127.
[16] Kestenberger and
Wilder, Entrusted With The Gospel, 198.
[17] MacArthur, Pastoral
Ministry, 221.
[18] John D.
Morris, "Compromise in the Pulpit," Home | The Institute for Creation
Research, last modified February 1, 2009,
https://www.icr.org/article/compromise-pulpit/.
[19] Rick Henderson, "The False Promise Of The
Prosperity Gospel: Why I Called Out Joel Osteen And Joyce Meyer,"
HuffPost, last modified August 29, 2017,
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/pastor-rick-henderson/osteen-meyer-prosperity-gospel_b_3790384.html.
[20] Charity Gibson,
"Lauren Daigle on Homosexuality: I Can't Say One Way or the Other if It's
a Sin, 'I'm Not God?," The Christian Post,Christian News, last modified
December 1, 2018, https://www.christianpost.com/news/lauren-daigle-homosexuality-sin-im-not-god.html.
[21] Rev. 2:5 (New
International Version).
[22] 1 Pet. 4:17 (New
International Version).
[23] Luke 12:48 (New
International Version).
[24] Matt. 7:13 (New
International Version).
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