Sermon Notes

1:1-3 I, Paul, am God’s slave and Christ’s agent for promoting the faith among God’s chosen people, getting out the accurate word on God and how to respond rightly to it. My aim is to raise hopes by pointing the way to life without end. This is the life God promised long ago—and He doesn’t break promises! And then when the time was ripe, He went public with His truth. I’ve been entrusted to proclaim this Message by order of our Savior, God Himself… 2:11-14 God’s readiness to give and forgive is now public. Salvation’s available for everyone! We’re being shown how to turn our backs on a godless, indulgent life, and how to take on a God-filled, God-honoring life. This new life is starting right now, and is whetting our appetites for the glorious day when our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, appears. He offered Himself as a sacrifice to free us from a dark, rebellious life into this good, pure life, making us a people he can be proud of, energetic in goodness. 15 Tell them all this. Build up their courage, and discipline them if they get out of line. You’re in charge. Don’t let anyone put you down.

Along with I and II Timothy, Paul’s epistle to Titus is generally listed as a “Pastoral Epistle,” because of their strong bearing on the life of the Church. The epistle deals with Church polity, policies, and practice.

Titus was a leader in the early Church and a trusted companion of Paul. He was a non-Jew who was led to faith in Jesus by Paul, becoming a co-worker with him and Barnabas. Titus was proof that circumcision was unnecessary for salvation (Galatians 2:3).
Later, Titus would serve the Church at Corinth (II Corinthians 8:6, 16, 17). Titus joined Paul in Philippi and gave him a good report of the ministry in Corinth (II Corinthians 7:6, 7, 13, 14). When Titus returned to Corinth, he hand-delivered the letter we know as II Corinthians to the Church and he organized a collection for needy saints in Jerusalem.
Several years later, Titus and Paul traveled to the island of Crete, where Titus was left behind to continue and strengthen the work. Titus’s task was primarily administrative: maintain sound doctrine and “straighten out what was left unfinished and appoint elders in every town (Titus 1:5).”
When Artemas and Tychicus arrived in Crete to direct the ministry, Paul summoned Titus to join him in Nicopolis, a city in the province of Achaia in western Greece (Titus 3:12).
Titus was with Paul during Paul’s final Roman imprisonment. From Rome, Titus was sent to evangelize Dalmatia (II Timothy 4:10), which is modern-day Serbia and Montenegro.
Titus was a faithful servant of Christ and a dedicated aide to Paul. Paul appointed him to lead works in Corinth, Crete, and Dalmatia. Knowing the difficult situations in those assignments, we can infer that Titus was an insightful man who could handle problems with grace. Paul says that, in returning to Corinth, Titus went “with much enthusiasm and on his own initiative (II Corinthians 8:16, 17).”

A purpose of the letter, contained in the portion that serves as our lesson, was to encourage and strengthen Titus in the fulfillment of the Pastoral Commission from Paul. Paul knew the Titus would face opposition. So, the letter is aimed at reinforcing Titus’ authority in working among the Churches in Crete; it was proof to them that Titus was working in accordance with Paul’s own instructions.

1:1-3 I, Paul, am God’s slave and Christ’s agent for promoting the faith among God’s chosen people, getting out the accurate word on God and how to respond rightly to it. My aim is to raise hopes by pointing the way to life without end. This is the life God promised long ago—and He doesn’t break promises! And then when the time was ripe, He went public with His truth. I’ve been entrusted to proclaim this Message by order of our Savior, God Himself.
The salutation of this letter is lengthier than in most of Paul’s epistles (only Romans contains a longer salutation). It is also substantive and not just perfunctory.
To his name, Paul adds two credentials—“God’s slave and Christ’s agent for promoting the faith…”. Taken together, Paul makes it clear that he no longer considers himself as an independent con-ductor of his life-affairs.
“God’s slave” means that Paul identifies himself as belonging to God. As such, Paul’s goal is to please God in every aspect of his life. Implied is that this commitment is not by constraint, but choice. Paul is affirming that the purpose for his life is tied to Paul’s yielding to God’s Lordship.
“Christ’s agent” means that Paul acknowledges that he does not represent himself but represents Jesus in all aspects of his person.
To tie the two together as Paul’s credentials is to model for Titus what it means to lead God’s people.
*Our goal as Christ’s disciples is to move self out of the way so that people hear, see and respond to the divine that not only indwells us, but in-fills us. Self-aggrandizement has no place in the work of Christian ministry.
The remainder of the salutation reasserts God’s plan of salvation, but it is strengthened by the testimony that “God never lies!” This is never explicitly said of God anywhere else in the New Testament, though it is a thought underlying the notion of prophecy and fulfill-ment throughout entirety of the New Testament canon.
God’s plan of salvation includes God’s promises in the past and their fulfillment in the person and work of Christ. It is in this truth that we have the hope of eternal life. And Paul reasserts that it is this message that he has been charged to convey with all divine power at his disposal. He implies to Titus that this is his charge, as well.
*While we are free to use the unique gifts of our personalities to add flavor, texture and appeal to our presentation, we must be certain that the meat of our presentation to others is the simple truth of God’s plan of salvation. It is that truth that has the power to transform.
2:11-14 God’s readiness to give and forgive is now public. Salvation’s available for everyone! We’re being shown how to turn our backs on a godless, indulgent life, and how to take on a God-filled, God-honoring life. This new life is starting right now, and is whetting our appetites for the glorious day when our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, appears. He offered Himself as a sacrifice to free us from a dark, rebellious life into this good, pure life, making us a people He can be proud of, energetic in goodness.
These verses contain a typical Pauline doctrinal statement that is interrupted by an ethical exhortation.
The doctrinal statement is that “Salvation is available to everyone!” This is good news, particularly to the non-Jewish Church that Titus is serving. But the ethical exhortation is most important: To receive this salvation, we must submit to a transformation that debases self and elevates God to the highest heights.
Moreover, this salvation is not merely a future hope, but a present reality. It starts now at the point of our surrender. It works change in us incrementally, resulting in our being less human-driven and displaying more of the divine day by day.
The close relationship between the death of Christ and the removal of sin is expressed very clearly here. The incarnation of Christ and His sacrifice are linked with the hope and expectation of His future coming.
15 Tell them all this. Build up their courage, and discipline them if they get out of line. You’re in charge. Don’t let anyone put you down.
The final charge in our printed lesson from Paul to Titus has to do with his Pastoral duty:
1. Tell. Evangelize. Share the Gospel with all you can.
2. Instruct. Discipleship training involves both cultivating good habits and eliminating bad habits. Good Pastors seek to do both.
3. Lead. Don’t do so arrogantly or selfishly, but don’t be timid about exercising the authority that God has given. Godly leaders represent the God who called them to lead. Disrespect of the leader is a reflection of disrespect aimed at God. It should not be tolerated.