This was one of Paul’s Gentile converts. He probably worked with Paul during his time in Ephesus on his third missionary journey. Later he also worked in Corinth and this letter indicates that Paul is commissioning him to work on the island of Crete. Paul wrote this letter about AD 63, perhaps from Corinth, taking advantage of the journey of Zenas and Apollos (3:13), whose destination would take them by way of Crete.
Key verses: Titus 1:3. 1:15; 2:2, 3, 7; 2:11-13; 3:5-7
Theme: Paul’s instructions to Titus are similar to those he gives to Timothy. He gives him instructions about the leadership and organization of the church and guidance in dealing with the opposition of those who would contradict his teaching. His tone is that of a seasoned leader passing on the essential instructions to a valued disciple.
Salutation
1:1 Paul who is an apostle (special messenger, personally chosen representative) of Jesus Christ, for the faith of God’s chosen ones and [to lead and encourage them to recognize and pursue] the knowledge of truth which leads to godliness
1:2 based on the hope and divine guarantee of eternal life, [the life] which God, who is ever truthful and without deceit, promised before the ages of time began We Can Trust God– Often Christians will doubt our position with God simple because we do not feel saved. We don’t understand that the basis for our standing is the promise of God and not emotional feelings. One helpful way is to see these promises is in relation to the Trinity. The promise and work of the father-He has promised to graciously accept in Christ all repenting sinners (Eph 1:6 and Col 3:3). This means a Christian has the right to be in heaven someday, for he is in Christ. God guarantees us that He will work out all things for our ultimate good. (Rom 8:28). The promise and work of the son—He has promised us eternal life. (Jn 5:24) and abundant life (Jn 10:10). This covers both our final destiny in heaven and also our Christian service on earth. And Jesus as our intercessor is praying for us and ministering to us at the right hand of the Father. The promise and the work of the Holy Spirit—the Holy Spirit indwells in the believer (Jn 14:6). In addition, He places all believing sinners into the body of Christ, thus assuring us of union with God’s family (1 Cor 12:13).
1:3 and at the appointed time has made known His word and revealed it as His message, through preaching, which was entrusted to me according to the command of God our Savior–[preaching—Paul places the emphasis on the message, not on the messenger. Christ is the center of our faith, not any on preacher [1Cor 9:16, 2 Cor 4:5].
Qualification of Elders
1:5 For this reason I left you behind in Crete so you would set right what remains unfinished, and appoint elders in every city as I directed you. [appoint elders—The Greek words for “elder” and “overseer” have been used interchangeably by Paul (1:7) “Elder speaks more of the office and its authority, while “overseer” refers to the person’s function and the ministry of oversight. (Ac 20:17)
1:6 namely, a man of unquestionable integrity, the husband of one wife, having children who believe, not accused of being immoral or rebellious. [husband of one wife—the application of this phrase has been debated. Some believe it forbids polygamy, while others believe it also prohibits a man who is divorced to remarry. In either case, it emphasizes marital faithfulness. Children who believe—an elder should have children who demonstrate faithfulness to God. If they are rebellious it reflects on the father’s inability to control them and hence his inability to lead others outside his home.
1:9 He must hold firmly to the trustworthy word [of God] as it was taught to him, so that he will be able to both give accurate instruction in sound reliable, error-free doctrine and to refute those who contradict [it by explaining their error].
Refute—this word in verse 9 means to rebuke in such a way as to produce repentance and confession of sin. (Jn 16:8) A rebuke can have the positive results of producing change in a person’s life.
1:10 For there are many rebellious men who are empty talkers and deceivers especially those of the circumcision [those Jews who insist that Gentile believers must be circumcised and keep the Law in order to be saved]. Those of the circumcision—There were Jewish Christians in the churches of Crete who attempted to limit the Christian freedom of the Gentile Christians by requiring them to adhere to Jewish laws (Gal 3).
1:15 To the pure, all things are pure; but to the corrupt and unbelieving, nothing is pure; both their mind and their conscience are corrupted. To the pure…to the corrupt and unbelieving—Paul exposes false Cretan teachings where they identified certain things as being defiled when in reality it was their minds that were defiled and unbelieving. On the other hand, to the pure, all things are pure. The Cretan believers had placed their trust in Christ, focusing their minds on Him, and therefore, they would be empowered by God’s spirit to lead pure lives. Jesus taught the same principle in Mat. 15:11. Physical objects or external practices do not define a person, but a mind focused on evil thoroughly corrupts.
1:16 They profess to know God but by their actions they deny and disown Him. They are detestable, disobedient, and worthless for any good work.
Duties of the Older and Younger
2:1 But as for you, teach the things which are in agreement with sound doctrine [which produces men and women of good character whose lifestyle identifies them as true Christians]. Sound doctrine— “Sound” means “healthy.” (Rom 12:2; Prov 23:7; Ps 119:11); Our actions will naturally reveal the direction of our thoughts.
2:2 Older men are to be temperate, dignified, sensible, sound in faith, in love, in steadfastness [Christlike in character]. Older men—Maturity is not determined simply by age or even by how much a person knows; it is determined by how skilled a person is in applying the truth to life and in distinguishing good from evil [Heb. 5:13-14]
2:3 Older women are to be reverent in their behavior, not malicious gossips nor addicted to much wine, teaching what is right and good,
2:4 so they may encourage the young women to tenderly love their husbands and their children, love their husbands and children—this is not just a romantic or emotional love, but the commitment of a woman to the welfare of her husband and children.
2:5 to be sensible, pure, makers of a home [where God is honored], good-natured, being subject to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored. Being subject to their own husbands—Women are not under the authority of men in general, but rather under the authority of their own husbands.
Will not be dishonored—The older women are to teach younger women so that their actions will glorify God, build His kingdom, and strengthen the family. Failure to follow Paul’s instruction will cause the word of God to be maligned.
2:6 In a similar way, the young men are to be sensible and self-controlled and behave wisely [taking life seriously]. Young men—young men are to pursue the character qualities that the older men should have.
2:7 And in all things show yourself to be an example of good works, with purity in doctrine [having the strictest regard for integrity and truth], dignified. Example of good works—More people will learn from our daily actions than from what we say.
2:11 For [the remarkable, undeserved, grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. Appeared—Christ came the first time in grace to save men from their sins; the second time He will come in glory to reign (v:13)
2:12 It teaches us to reject ungodliness and worldly (immoral) desires, and to live sensible, upright, and godly lives in this present age.
2:13 awaiting and confidently expecting [fulfillment of our] blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus. Awaiting and confidently expecting the fulfillment of our] blessed hope—Paul reminded Timothy that there’s a special crown awaiting all “who have loved…His appearing” (2 Tim 4:8), our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus—This is one of the strongest statements of the deity of Christ in the New Testament.
2:14 who [willingly] gave Himself [to be crucified] on our behalf to redeem us and purchase our freedom to redeem us and purchase our freedom from all wickedness, and to purify for Himself a chosen and very special people to be His own possession, who are enthusiastic for doing what is good. Redeem— “redeem” means “to purchase.” With His death on the cross Christ paid the price to release us from the bondage of sin. (Rom 6:6-7, 17, 20. Eph 1:7) God’s purpose in redeeming us is not only to save us from hell; He also wants to free us from sin so that we can produce good works that glorify Him. (Eph. 2:8-10)
Godly Living
3:1 Remind people to be subject to rulers and authorities to be obedient, to be ready and willing to do good. Remind people—the Cretans notoriously lacked the virtue of good citizenship. Disobedience permeated the Cretan’s lifestyle, both in the church and in government. Believers who got along with civil authorities and who lived peacefully with their neighbors would reflect positively on their faith and would glorify God.
3:5 He saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we have done, but because of His own compassion and mercy, by the cleansing of the new birth (spiritual transformation, regeneration) and renewing by the Holy Spirit. Not because of any works of righteousness—Paul has been telling Titus to emphasize good works in his ministry but want to make it clear that such good works have no value in saving a person. It is solely on the basis of God’s mercy that we are delivered from the penalty of our sin. Cleansing of the new birth—This phrase refers to the work of the Holy Spirit, in whom we are “born again” (Jn 3:3,6), given a new nature and cleansed from old sin. Renewing by the Holy Spirit—There are 3 works performed by the Holy Spirit in preparing nonbelievers to become Christians—(1) The Holy Spirit restrains, (2) The Holy Spirit convicts, and (3) The Holy Spirit regenerates.
3:7 so we would be justified [made free of the guilt of sin] by His [compassionate and undeserved] grace, and that we would be [acknowledged as acceptable to Him and [made heirs of eternal life [actually experiencing it] according to our hope (His guarantee). We would be [acknowledged as acceptable to Him and] made heirs—God justifies believers so that they might become co-heirs with Jesus Christ in His coming reign (Rom 8:17; 2 Tim 2:12)
3:10 After a first and second warning reject a divisive man [who promotes heresy and causes dissention]—ban him from your fellowship and have nothing more to do with him. Reject a divisive man—A sinner must always be given ample opportunity to repent, but if he insists on continuing to sin, the church is required to let him go (Mt. 18:15-17; 2 Th 3:14-15)
Personal Concerns
3:13 Do your best to help Zenas the lawyer and Apollos on their way. See that they are supplied and lack nothing. Apollos–Apollos was a fellow worker of Paul’s
An Alexandrian who had been taught by priscilla and Aquila and who had eloquently preached the gospel at Ephesus and Corinth, (Ac 18:24-19:1)
3:14 Our people must learn to do good deeds to meet necessary demands [whatever the occasion may require], so that they will not be unproductive. Not to be unproductive–Justification is a free gift from God, but we will be rewarded according to what we do on this earth. (Rev 22:12) We do not want to stand ashamed at Christ’s return (1 John 2:28).
CONCLUSION
Paul gives Titus instructions about the leadership and organization of the church and guidance in dealing with the opposition of those who would contradict his teaching. His has the tone of a seasoned leader passing on the essential instructions to a valued disciple.
Have you prayed about pursuing an office in the church leadership? Have you received a call from God to pursue something? If so, have you responded? If you have, feel free to share your thoughts.