SOULJournal

Titus 3

SCRIPTURE: Titus 3:3-7: 3At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. 4 But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.

OBSERVATION: ( What does it say?)

We are new creations in Christ. The old has passed away and the new has come. (2 Corinthians 2:17.) When Jesus saved/saves us from our sins, there is an inward rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit. We no longer desire to live for the flesh, but for the Lord. It wasn't a result of our works so that we could boast (Eph. 2:8-9), but rather because of His kindness, love and mercy. Salvation is a gift and His Spirit dwelling inside of us is also a gift.

UNDERSTANDING: (What does it mean?)

Jesus saved us from our sins so that we could live for Him. In our own strength, it is impossible to do good works and live for Jesus. I guarantee that's a set up for failure. However, the Holy Spirit living inside of us enables us to do good works. We must choose to call out to Him daily, be obedient to Him and not neglect His power.

LIFE APPLICATION:

Why were we saved? Was it to enjoy the benefits of living a forgiven life, while being foolish, disobedient and slaves to sin in the meantime? NO! That would completely contradict the purpose of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit. When I am tempted to act out of character, I go back to why Christ chose to save me. He saved me to work for His Kingdom purposes here on Earth until He decides to call me to my eternal dwelling place with Him. He didn't die for me in order for me to continue to be deceived and enslaved by sin. He died, resurrected and gave me His Holy Spirit so that I could live a new life in Him. As a Body, let's remember that we have the Holy Spirit living inside each of us so we must not neglect Him. Just like salvation, He is also a free gift that God has poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior (vs. 6). Thank You Lord for Your free gift of salvation and the Holy Spirit. May we not neglect or take for granted either one. Amen.

Titus 2

SCRIPTURE:
Titus 2:11-14-11 For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. 12 It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled,upright and godly lives in this present age, 13 while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own,eager to do what is good.

OBSERVATION: (What does it say?)

In this section of the chapter, the Apostle Paul gives Titus the reason for why they (the Church) must choose to be set apart from the world. The reason and purpose for living self controlled, pure, and godly lives is Jesus.

UNDERSTANDING: (What does it mean?)

Jesus is our eternal hope. We are motivated to live for Him because we know He will return. We put our hope in our eternal home with Him. This present life will pass away, but our hope for eternity will never pass away.

LIFE APPLICATION:
Where have we placed our hope? Is it in this passing life or in our life eternal with our Triune God? The way we live our everyday lives is motivated by what we place our hope in. Dear Jesus, I pray that we would live our lives with the hope of eternity. You promise You will return. We do not know the day or hour, but You promise You will take us to be with You eternally. Please forgive us for the times we have lived our lives apart from that blessed hope. Holy Spirit, restore our faith and hope in You. Amen.

Titus 1

SCRIPTURE:

Titus 1:16 They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him.

OBSERVATION: ( What does it say?)

We just finished reading through the books of 1 & 2 Timothy, which were written by the Apostle Paul to his apprentice/disciplee Timothy. This book of Titus was also written by the Apostle Paul, but addressed to another disciplee of his, Titus. Titus is a leader of one of the churches that Paul had planted during one of his missionary journeys. In this chapter, Paul is instructing Titus on the qualities to look for when appointing elders/ leaders of the church. His instructions to Titus are very similar to what he wrote to Timothy in 1 Timothy 3:1-7. However, another similarity I noticed was Paul's focus on the importance of staying pure and undefiled by the ways of the world. Basically, walk the talk. If you claim to be a Christ follower, let your actions prove it. I love Matthew Henry's commentary on christnotes.org about this issue:
"Many profess to know God, yet in their lives deny and reject him. See the miserable state of hypocrites, such as have a form of godliness, but are without the power; yet let us not be so ready to fix this charge on others, as careful that it does not apply to ourselves."

UNDERSTANDING: (What does it mean?)
See observation above.

LIFE APPLICATION:
The reading for today is so fitting for what we discussed in church yesterday. During our time of prayer before service, Pastor spoke about all of us being called to repentance ( recognizing, confessing and turning away from sin). He spoke about it starting with us first, praying that the Holy Spirit reveal any areas that we need to turn from in ourselves and then praying for others as well. Then Pastor Levi preached about how purity precedes power. We cannot expect God to work mightily through us if we continue to allow the sin in our lives to take over. We must be willing to break free from it even if it hurts (like the picture in Scripture of gouging out an eye). Do our actions prove that we know God intimately? Or are we like the people the Apostle Paul talked about who claim to know God, but their actions deny him? What needs to be gouged out of our lives (movies/shows, certain people, jobs, computers, etc.) in order for this to happen? Dear Jesus, I pray that we would be willing to turn from WHATever and WHOever is keeping us from fully experiencing You. I pray that through our actions and not just our words, that the world will know we belong to You and You alone. Amen.

References: gotquestions.org/Titus, christnotes.com (Matthew Henry commentary), Pastor Gary Khan and Pastor Levi

Titus 3

Vs 8:  This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.

Time and again the Bible reminds us that we have been saved by grace.  It is only because of the mercy of God and not because we have earned our salvation and righteousness through good deeds.  However having reminded us that we are not saved by good works we are told to devote ourselves to doing what is good.  Doctrine followed by duty.  Truth followed by behavior.  They are connected.

So once again Paul uses this formula of doctrine first then the call of duty.  You who have been saved by grace; you who were once foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved; you who hated one another; yes you...now that you have been saved it is time to live differently.  No more of this kind of behavior.  Be obedient to those in authority, be ready to do whatever is good even if they are not doing anything nice to you.  Don't talk badly about people and be nice to everyone.  This kind of living is productive for the kingdom of heaven.  It is this radical kind of living that leads to people wanting to hear the gospel of Christ and so experience salvation.  This kind of living is every believer's responsibility, not just for pastors and church leaders.  

Is the overflow of God's grace in your life evident to the world around you?
Is the conduct of your life leading you to be able to share the gospel with others?

Titus 2

Titus 2:1 (TLB) 1  But as for you, speak up for the right living that goes along with true Christianity.

In this chapter Paul changes gears in talking to Titus.  He begins to instruct Titus on how the people Titus is leading should be living.  Paul's underlying statement is that the way that Christ-followers live should have an evangelistic impact on those who are not Christ-followers.  Christ-followers, Paul says, should be showing the impact of the gospel in the way that they live and in so doing point others to Christ Jesus.

Paul has encouraged Titus to teach sound doctrine, now he is encouraging Titus to stand up and challenge those who have been taugh right doctrine to live it out.  Truth and behavior, doctrine and duty goes together, they are not separate.  There is a hierarchy - doctrine first, truth first before behavior; but the reality remains that we must put the two together.  There are too many believers who take one or the other on both sides.  Some are all about doctrine but the doctrine is all head knowledge and never affects their lives, and there are those who are all about the outward actions but there has been no real understanding of what is the truth.  Others put the actions before doctrien and that also becomes a dangerous recipe.

God wants you to believe with faith like a child that He loves you, He wants you to enjoy it, He wants you to receive it, and He wants you to live out of the overflow of His pleasure in your life. And then, He wants you to live and construct the rest of your life as a response to what He's given you as your way of saying, "God, because you loved me first, with my life I love you too."

A church that is grounded in spiritual truth should be healthy and that health is reflected in the way that those believers live.  That kind of living will naturally lead to opportunities to share the gospel with others.

Titus 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,

Paul in a nutshell gives us his mission statement:

He is a servant of God who has been sent by Christ to further the faith of God’s people.
He has been entrusted with the responsibility to pass on the knowledge of God that shows people how to live godly lives.
He was called to proclaim the Gospel.

When you look at what we know of Paul’s life we see that he fulfilled his mission.  It was why he could say with conviction, “I have fought the fight, I have finished the race…”

How about you?  What is your God-given mission?  Are you living on purpose for Christ or are you just reacting to the circumstances of each day?

Let us be purposeful for Christ in this life.  God has created us for a purpose and a plan and we need to discover it and then live it out for His glory and honor.

Titus 3

Paul tells us that those of us who have experienced and understand God's grace will demonstrate a lifestyle of godly living.  In our reading today he gives us examples of this behavior in our role as citizens.

Paul listed seven qualities expected of Christian citizens: 

1. to be subject to rulers and authorities; 
2. to be obedient 
3. to be ready to do whatever is good 
4. to slander no one
5. to be peaceable 
6. considerate
7. to show true humility toward all men. 

 A Christian citizen should be an influence for good in the community, demonstrating the loveliness of Christ to all through courteous and gracious behavior.  

 

Titus 2

Paul tells Titus that an elder must be blameless and then repeats this in verse 6. The reason this quality is so important is that an overseer serves as a steward of God. Damage to a church leader’s reputation is damage to God’s reputation. He also says that leaders in the church should be people who have their household in order, carrying the understanding of not just discipline in the household but having a positive spiritual influence as well.  Leaders in God’s household should not be overbearing (arrogant and self-willed, not easily angered and flying off the handle, not given to much wine and certainly not pursuing dishonest gain.  Men of integrity who are hospitable, holy and disciplined.  Leaders in the church should be people who are knowledgeable about what we believe and able to teach it and defend the Word of God as well.  Wow, being a leader in the church is something that should not be entered into lightly.

 

Titus

Titus was a Gentile convert (Gal. 2:3) who had served and traveled with the Apostle Paul (Gal. 2:1-3). Titus had also functioned as a faithful emissary to the troubled church in Corinth (2 Cor 7:6-7; 8:6, 16).

In approximately a.d. 63-64, sometime after they left Timothy behind in Ephesus, Paul and Titus traveled on to Crete. After a brief visit Paul then left Titus behind to help provide leadership for the Cretan churches (Titus 1:5). Subsequently the apostle wrote this epistle and had it delivered to Titus. The exact time and place of writing is unknown.

The purpose of the epistle to Titus was to instruct him about what he should do and teach in the Cretan churches. A special theme of the letter is the role of grace in promoting good works among God’s people (Titus 2:11-3:8).

Paul hoped to join Titus again in Nicopolis for the winter (3:12), but there is no way of knowing whether that meeting ever took place. Titus was last mentioned by Paul (2 Tim. 4:10) as having gone to Dalmatia (Yugoslavia). Tradition has it that Titus later returned to Crete and there served out the rest of his life.

The Bible Knowledge Commentary

 

Titus 3

Shaun McLaughlin

Titus 3:1-2:  Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do what is good, 2 to slander no one, to be peacable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men.

 Titus 3:4-5: But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.

 Titus 3:9:  But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless.

 Titus 3:14:  Our people must devote themselves to doing what is good.

 

The first two verses in this chapter are a reminded of where we live and where our place is in this world. We are not God(aint that the truth!!!) but we are here on earth and we have to follow not only the rules that God himself laid out for us, but also the rules that the world has to live by. Even if we do not like the authority figures put in charge of us, we still must abide by the guidelines that they set out.

In verse 3 it talks about how everyone was foolish and disobedient at some point in their lives. But we of course are saved by the grace  of God. No matter what we as humans have done in the past, God is going to forgive us. But we aren't forgiven for praying for four hours straight, or by raising our hands in worship, or even reading our bibles. We could be the greatest Christian on the face of the earth, but without the grace and mercy of God, we are nothing. Yet again, we are given a guide book directly from God through Paul, that tells us how to live our lives. We need to stay away from fools and foolish controversies, and obey the law and do not fight it because getting into fights about it is useless.

God wants us to devote ourselves to doing what is good.