Amy Harris, Author at FBC Spur

Leadership Matters – part 1 (Titus 1:5-9 (5))

February 16, 2025 By Amy Harris

Leadership Matters – part 1
Titus 1:5-9 (5)
February 16, 2025

This morning we now come to Paul’s stated purpose for Titus.

There is really no debate to this for in verse 5
We read the phrase, “For this reason I left you in Crete…”

This letter is Titus’ marching orders.

IT IS CLEAR THAT
• He and Paul had already discussed the needs of Crete.
• Paul had already told Titus what to do.
• We actually see verse 5 end with the phrase, “as I directed you,”

What we have in the letter of Titus is Paul putting in writing
The verbal instruction that had already been given to Titus.

Before leaving Titus in Crete Paul had told him what to do.

NOW PAUL IS GONE,
• But to reinforce that conversation
• And to supply Titus with the written authority he needed to fulfill his mission,
• Paul wrote a letter back to remind and clarify why he was there.

We are grateful because we have access to the letter Paul wrote.

We get a direct view into the heart of the apostle
Regarding his expectation for the reform of the church.
We have God’s word regarding His expectation for the church.

So let’s begin examining this chief issue of the book.

I would remind you that there is a problem on the island of Crete.
That problem is what we might call “Crooked Churches”.

(1:10-14) “For there are many rebellious men, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, who must be silenced because they are upsetting whole families, teaching things they should not teach for the sake of sordid gain. One of themselves, a prophet of their own, said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.” This testimony is true. For this reason reprove them severely so that they may be sound in the faith, not paying attention to Jewish myths and commandments of men who turn away from the truth.”

We know
• There has been a corrupt Jewish influence that has affected the church.
• Crete is an island of gluttonous evil beasts.
• One of Paul’s chief points is that the church must engage in good deeds.

THE REAL PROBLEM SEEMS TO BECOME CLEAR.

• Instead of standing against the culture…
• Instead of being a light in the darkness…
• Instead of walking in good deeds as a condemnation of the evil deeds of the people…

The churches in Crete have instead been influenced by their culture.
They don’t stand out anymore.
They don’t look different.

Adrian Rodgers said:
“Men are like rivers, they grow crooked from following the path of least resistance.”

That is what has happened on Crete.
• The churches look like the world.
• They have lost their distinctiveness.
• They have lost their moral high ground.
• They have lost their testimony to practical righteousness.

That should never happen, but let’s be honest…it does.

We should look, talk, and act different. We should pursue different things,
But there are times when the church backslides and fails to be different.

Titus was left on Crete because of this problem.

Let’s see the plan to fix it.

#1 THE PURPOSE
Titus 1:5a

“For this reason I left you in Crete, that you would set in order what remains…”

Titus was left there to “set in order what remains”

“set in order” is EPI-DEE-OR-THO-O

EPI and DI are both prepositions. (intensify)
ORTHOS is a word that means “straight or upright”

It is where we get our word orthodontics (straightening of teeth)
Or orthopedics (straightening the bones)

Titus was to totally, emphatically, thoroughly
Straighten out what was crooked among the churches of Crete.

We see the various commands given to Titus:

(1:10-11) “For there are many rebellious men, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, who must be silenced because they are upsetting whole families, teaching things they should not teach for the sake of sordid gain.”

(2:1) “But as for you, speak the things which are fitting for sound doctrine.”

(2:15) “These things speak and exhort and reprove with all authority. Let no one disregard you.”

(3:1) “Remind them to be subject to rulers, to authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good deed,”

And we could add to that the instruction Titus received regarding old men, old women, younger women, younger men, slaves, and citizens.

Titus was to correct their crooked living.
• He was to correct their crooked theology.
• He was to straighten out the churches and get them back on track.
• His job was to make them straight.

You can’t help but think of a ministry like John the Baptist:
John 1:23 “He said, “I am A VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS, ‘MAKE STRAIGHT THE WAY OF THE LORD,’ as Isaiah the prophet said.”

There is a sense in which this is just basic ministry.

We see the same calling in the life of Timothy to the church at Ephesus.

1 Timothy 1:3 “As I urged you upon my departure for Macedonia, remain on at Ephesus so that you may instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines,”

Timothy was supposed to clean up the doctrinal errors of the church.

1 Timothy 2:1 “First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men,”

Timothy was supposed to create the prayer ministry of the church.

1 Timothy 2:8 “Therefore I want the men in every place to pray, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and dissension.”

1 Timothy 2:9-10 “Likewise, I want women to adorn themselves with proper clothing, modestly and discreetly, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly garments, but rather by means of good works, as is proper for women making a claim to godliness.”

Timothy was supposed to instruct women in regard to their adornment and walk in the world.

And we could go on.
• 1 Timothy 3 he is supposed to reform the offices of overseer and deacon.
• 1 Timothy 5 he is supposed to reform the churches ministry to widows.
• 1 Timothy 6 he is supposed to reform the mentality of slaves.
• 1 Timothy 6 he is supposed to reform the thinking of the rich.

1 Timothy 6:17-19 “Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed.”

THAT IS SORT OF WHAT MINISTRY IS.
It is a calling to straighten out what is crooked.

TITUS is called to do the same things.
• He is called to reform the church.
• He is called to straighten the church.
• He is called to “set in order what remains”

Titus was a spiritual chiropractor; he was a spiritual orthodontist.

And needless to say, this would be A DIFFICULT JOB.

We know people well enough to know that
Most people don’t like it when an outsider comes in
And tries to change the way you have grown accustomed to doing things.

Titus would have to travel throughout Crete.
• An island about 160 miles long and anywhere from 7 to 35 miles wide.
• One historian claimed there were over 100 cities on Crete
• Which could potentially mean there were 100 churches.

Titus is going to have to travel to them with Paul’s letter in hand.
• He is going to have to confront them.
• He is going to have to examine them.
• He is going to have to ask a lot of questions.
• He is going to have to correct their thinking.

• There’s going to be some personnel changes.
• There’s going to be some behavioral changes.
• There’s going to be reform in their ministries.

• There is going to be a refocus on areas like godliness, doctrinal truth, prayer,
and evangelism.

I just don’t think you can overstate the difficulty of the job
Titus is being asked to complete.

And I might also point out
He won’t have an enormous amount of time to complete it.

Paul writes at the end of this letter:
Titus 3:12 “When I send Artemas or Tychicus to you, make every effort to come to me at Nicopolis, for I have decided to spend the winter there.”

• Paul notified Titus that he would be at Nicopolis until spring and Titus is
expected to join him there before he would leave.

There is not a lot of time for one man to cover an island
And all of those churches and set them in order.

He’s going to have to enter those churches
• With the authoritative word of God
• With a focus to straighten out what is crooked
• And convince the churches to submit to his leadership.

Just ponder that a moment.
Think about what Titus is about to try to do.

We know in Scripture that sometimes jobs like this went really well.
We all love the letter Paul wrote to the Thessalonians.

1 Thessalonians 2:13 “For this reason we also constantly thank God that when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but for what it really is, the word of God, which also performs its work in you who believe.”

But it doesn’t always happen like this.
We remember some of the statements he made to the churches in Galatia:

Galatians 4:11 “I fear for you, that perhaps I have labored over you in vain.”

Galatians 4:19-20 “My children, with whom I am again in labor until Christ is formed in you— but I could wish to be present with you now and to change my tone, for I am perplexed about you.”

Even in Paul’s ministry, some churches were a blessing of submission
And others were compared to being in labor pains.

I’m sure Titus would experience both extremes
And just about everything in between.
It was going to be difficult.

I think such a reality sort of requires us to wonder
How we’re going to accept such a letter from Paul through Titus to us?

It’s easy to sit in judgment of the churches on Crete for listening or not
But in reality this letter is for us too.

We have to wonder if we would be the type of congregation
That will resist the straightening out
That Titus was commissioned to bring.

Hebrews 13:17 “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with grief, for this would be unprofitable for you.”

We certainly would rather be a Thessalonica and a blessing
Than some stubborn congregation resisting the words of God.

What is occurring here is REFORMATION WORK

One of the phrases that came out of the Reformation was:
“Ecclesia Reformata, Semper Reformanda”

It means, “The Church Reformed, always Reforming”

One of the truths learned from the reformation is that
The church will always be a work in progress.

We are, after all, comprised of fallen men and women.
• While we have been justified in the sight of God,
• While we are in the process of being conformed into the image of Christ,
• WE ARE NOT THERE YET.

We sing the song, “Prone to wander, Lord I feel it, prone to leave the God I love.”

WE KNOW WHAT WE ARE.
And so we are in constant need of reformation,
Both personally and corporately.

We are in need of Jesus to continually wash our feet with the water of His word and cleanse that worldly dust off of us.

We are need of continual correction and training.
We are in need of continual examination and leadership.

Paul told Timothy:
2 Timothy 3:16-17 “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.”

• Paul knew that Timothy would need the word to teach men, reprove men, correct men, and train men.

It would be the word that would reform the church.

And then Paul commissioned Timothy:
2 Timothy 4:1-5 “I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.”

• Timothy didn’t just need to possess the word, he needed to preach it.
• He needed to actually “reprove, rebuke, [and] exhort”

There is a straightening work that must continually occur
In our lives and in the lives of the church.

Sometimes the church has to go to the orthodontist
And get her teeth straightened.

Well, that is what Titus is told to do.
HE WAS A REFORMER on the island of Crete.

That was His Purpose

#2 THE DIRECTIVE
Titus 1:5b-9

Let’s just begin with the remainder of verse 5.

“and appoint elders in every city as I directed you,”

Well there it is.
That infamous six-letter word “elders”.

• If we understand the necessity of leadership in the church…and we do.
• If we believe that God has outlined the leadership in the church…and we do.
• If we are interested in knowing what God has to say about it…and we are.

Then we’ve got to address that word.

Let’s talk about it.

1) THE TITLE

“elders”

It is the Greek word PRES-BOOT-ER-OS
And it simply means “an older man”

It was certainly quite common and understandable that
The leadership of a society was comprised of older men.

It is a title that came to be used of those in leadership in the church.
It is where we get our word for “Presbytery”

And we see this word used many many times in Scripture.
• All the way back in the Old Testament as those selected to help Moses with the leadership of Israel.
• In the gospels we see them as Jewish leaders, though almost exclusively in a negative light with the Pharisees and Sadducees.

But even when the church was born and began to develop her structure
We see this office of “elders” emerge.

• It was NOT a discarded title in the church.
• It was NOT an office that the New Testament church abandoned.
• It was an office that the New Testament church EMBRACED.

Paul actually tells Titus here to “appoint elders in every city”.

Peter references them in:
1 Peter 5:1 “Therefore, I exhort the elders among you, as your fellow elder and witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed,”

Luke, writing the book of Acts, references Paul’s meeting with the leaders at the church in Ephesus and he writes:
Acts 20:17 “From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called to him the elders of the church.”

SO FIRST WE RECOGNIZE
That the title “elders” is NOT an obsolete Title.
• It is not a rejected Title in the New Testament.
• It is an approved, God-ordained office.

And the office shows up frequently.

Acts 11:30 “And this they did, sending it in charge of Barnabas and Saul to the elders.”

Acts 14:23 “When they had appointed elders for them in every church, having prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed.”

Acts 15:2-6 “And when Paul and Barnabas had great dissension and debate with them, the brethren determined that Paul and Barnabas and some others of them should go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders concerning this issue. Therefore, being sent on their way by the church, they were passing through both Phoenicia and Samaria, describing in detail the conversion of the Gentiles, and were bringing great joy to all the brethren. When they arrived at Jerusalem, they were received by the church and the apostles and the elders, and they reported all that God had done with them. But some of the sect of the Pharisees who had believed stood up, saying, “It is necessary to circumcise them and to direct them to observe the Law of Moses.” The apostles and the elders came together to look into this matter.”

Acts 15:22 “Then it seemed good to the apostles and the elders, with the whole church, to choose men from among them to send to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas—Judas called Barsabbas, and Silas, leading men among the brethren,”

1 Timothy 5:17 “The elders who rule well are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching.”

James 5:14 “Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord;”

1 Peter 5:5 “You younger men, likewise, be subject to your elders; and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for GOD IS OPPOSED TO THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE.”

Clearly the office remained.
Clearly the office remains today.

We see men in the role of elders who are literally leading the church.
It is still a valid office and title.

I think sometimes titles get a negative connotation

Because they become more synonymous with certain denominations,
But this is a New Testament title, not a denominational one.

Now, what we do also recognize in the New Testament is that
Those who served as “elders” were not only called “elders”.

Those same men in that same office are also referred to by other titles.

For example, they are also referred to as “OVERSEERS”

1 Timothy 3:1 “It is a trustworthy statement: if any man aspires to the office of overseer, it is a fine work he desires to do.”

Philippians 1:1 “Paul and Timothy, bond-servants of Christ Jesus, To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, including the overseers and deacons:”

Even those men whom Luke referred to as elders of the Ephesian church,
Later we see in that same chapter in Acts that
These men who are called elders functioned as overseers.

Acts 20:28 “Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.”

This was the same office.
On one occasion called elders, on another occasion referred to as overseers.

The Greek word for “overseer” is E-PIS-KO-PAY
• We get our word “Episcopal” there.
• It is a word that speaks certainly of “oversight, direction, and correction.”

Twice that same word is translated as “visitation”
Luke 19:44 “and they will level you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.”

1 Peter 2:12 “Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation.”

So the word carries with it the connotation of like an inspector
Who shows up to visit and oversee the operation.

In many ways that is what Titus is doing on Crete.
He is going to visit the churches
To oversee their ministry and set them in order.

But that is a synonymous term with elders.

There is a third term that is also used synonymously and that is PASTOR or SHEPHERD.

The word “pastor” is only used once in the New Testament.
Ephesians 4:11 “And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers,”

It is the Greek word POY-MANE
Every other time that word is used it is translated as “shepherd”.

The interesting point is that men who are called elders
Are often commanded to oversee and also shepherd God’s flock.

FOR EXAMPLE:
Those Ephesian elders are told:
Acts 20:28 “Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.”

• So there you have men called “elders” back in verse 17,
• But in verse 28 as elders they have been made “overseers” and told to “shepherd”.

1 Peter 5:1-2 “Therefore, I exhort the elders among you, as your fellow elder and witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed, shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of God; and not for sordid gain, but with eagerness;”

• Peter addresses “the elders among you”
• And tells them to “shepherd the flock of God”

These are synonymous terms.

And yet, I do think it is important to embrace all 3 of them
And not to seek to push one aside, or elevate one above the rest.

Each of these terms or titles is given for a specific reason
They each teach us something vitally important about the office.

FOR EXAMPLE:
The term “elders” – is a term that speaks a great deal of MATURITY.

When leadership are understood through the title of “elders”
• We see that we are NOT looking for “hip” and “trendy”
• We are looking for “spiritually mature”.
• We are looking for men who know God and walk with God
• And who have known God for quite some time.

1 Timothy 3:6 “and not a new convert, so that he will not become conceited and fall into the condemnation incurred by the devil.”

Interesting that Paul doesn’t list that qualification in Titus,
Only in 1 Timothy.

But perhaps by telling Titus to “appoint elders”
The maturity level was understood.

So this is an important title to emphasize
The importance of spiritual maturity among those who lead the church.

The term “overseer” is also important as it denotes AUTHORITY.

We know that God is our ultimate authority
And that He delegates authority down from Him.

And as such He has given His authority
To those who lead the church over the churches they lead.

• Just as God gives civil magistrates authority over the people…
• Just as God gives husbands authority over their wives…
• Just as God gives parents authority over their children…
• So also God has given authority to leaders over their congregations…

It is an important title to emphasize that we are under God’s authority,
And that this authority is delegated through His appointed leadership.

And the term “shepherd” or “pastor” is important because it denotes MINISTRY OR CARE over the congregation.

• The church doesn’t just want a spiritually mature man to give advice.
• The church doesn’t just want an overseer to make decisions.
• The church wants a shepherd to guide and protect and care for the flock.

That title is also very important.

In a day when pastors want to be CEO’s
Or even remain only in the realm of theological debaters
It is good to remind them that they are shepherds.

John 21:16 “He said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Shepherd My sheep.”

Peter learned that.
• He was no longer a fisherman, he was a shepherd.
• His purpose was the care of the flock.

So I think you understand why the different titles are given
And why they are all important.

We are talking here about spiritually mature men
Who have been given authority to lead the flock
And the purpose of that authority is that they might care for the flock.

That is all bound up in the titles.

But that then leads us to a second point of discussion we need to have about elders and that is:

2) THE JOB

What is the job of an elder?

Well as we consider the point being made in the book of Titus
It is clear that Paul has in mind here
A man who will hold the church straight.

Years ago Hannah went to the orthodontist to get braces.
They straightened her teeth.

• But she was also told that if there was not a deliberate focus on keeping her
teeth straight that they would naturally return to the previous state.
• So, she has to wear a retainer every night when she sleeps.
• The retainer didn’t straighten the teeth, but it does keep them straight.

AND THIS IS WHY TITUS IS TOLD TO APPOINT ELDERS.

• Titus would come and “set in order what remains”
• And then “appoint elders in every city”
• So that the elders would then keep the church on her appointed path.

THERE IS CERTAINLY AN AUTHORITY ISSUE IN PLAY HERE.

Paul told Timothy about this:
1 Timothy 5:17 “The elders who rule well are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching.”

Paul there speaks of “elders who rule well”

That Greek word is PROYSTAY-ME
It can be translated “rule” or “manage” or “lead”

1 Thessalonians 5:12 “But we request of you, brethren, that you appreciate those who diligently labor among you, and have charge over you in the Lord and give you instruction,”

There it is translated “have charge”

1 Timothy 3:4 “He must be one who manages his own household well, keeping his children under control with all dignity”

There it is “manages”

AND THIS IS THE JOB.
As we said a moment ago,
• All authority trickles down from God and the church is no different.
• Everything God establishes He establishes under authority and this also goes for the church.

God has placed leaders in the church who have authority.
They rule, they manage, they lead, they have charge.

The church is called to submit to and honor such men.

1 Corinthians 16:15-16 “Now I urge you, brethren (you know the household of Stephanas, that they were the first fruits of Achaia, and that they have devoted themselves for ministry to the saints), that you also be in subjection to such men and to everyone who helps in the work and labors.”

AND LOOK, I AM AWARE
That just to read those verses of Scripture actually offends some people in the church who think it is a foolish notion.

The very idea that God would place leaders in the church
To whom the congregation is supposed to submit
IS AN UNPOPULAR TRUTH.

But it is not unpopular because it is wrong or unbiblical.
It is unpopular because we live in an individualistic culture
That hates the notion of submission.

Everywhere you look in our culture PEOPLE HATE SUBMISSION.

Tell people they are to submit to the governing authorities and see what kind of response you receive.
• They’ll start throwing up all sorts of examples of governmental waste and corruption and emphatically declare that I don’t have to do what they say.

Tell wives in our culture that they are supposed to submit to their husbands
• Women all over the place will rebel and right and kick and stomp.

Kids in our culture no longer feel the need to submit to their parents,
• They think their parents are idiots and don’t know what they are talking about.

Workers no longer feel the need to submit to their bosses,
• They just want a paycheck, but they don’t want their boss telling them what to do.

Our society doesn’t like to submit to the police,
• Instead they disdain them and mock them and rebel.

YOU SEE THE PATTERN EVERYWHERE.

The reason people hate submission is not because it is unbiblical,
But because we are sinful culture that rejects the authority of God.

This world is full of “liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons”

THE CHURCH IS CALLED TO BE DIFFERENT.

• God said we have to be in subjection to the governing authorities.
• God said that children have to obey and honor their parents.
• God said that wives have to submit to and honor their husbands.
• And God said that the church must submit to and honor their leaders.

Leadership is just part of it.
Authority is just part of it.
AND THE CHURCH SHOULD BE THE CHIEF EXAMPLE.

NOW CERTAINLY
We also understand God’s ordained form of leadership.

When God gave headship to husbands
Over their wives he also commanded them to “love their wives as Christ loved the church”

When God gave authority to parents
Over their children he also commanded them to not “provoke their children to anger but to bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.”

When God gave the government authority
Over the society he also commanded them to “reward good behavior and punish evil behavior”

And this is also true among elders
Who rule or manage or oversee the church.

1 Peter 5:1-3 “Therefore, I exhort the elders among you, as your fellow elder and witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed, shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of God; and not for sordid gain, but with eagerness; nor yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock.”

The leadership of an elder is not a dominating type leadership.
• Just like a husband is told not to dominate his wife.
• Just like a father does not provoke his children.
• So an elder does not lord his authority over the congregation.

He IS in a leadership position.
He DOES have authority from God.
He IS to oversee and to manage.
And he will stand before God and give an account of his leadership.

Elders are called to shepherd.
The church is called to submit.
And that very relationship is a testimony to the world.

We’ve obviously got a lot more to say on this subject,
But we’ll have to leave it there for this morning.

But hopefully you’re beginning to see
God’s revealed plan for elders in the church.

The Ministry – part 5 (Titus 1:1-4 (3c-4))

February 11, 2025 By Amy Harris

download here

The Ministry – part 5
Titus 1:1-4 (3c-4)
February 9, 2025

Back to our discussion regarding the ministry.

We are looking at Paul’s ministry
As a model for what our ministry should look like.

#1 HIS CREDENTIALS
Titus 1:1a

He was “a bond-servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ”

This was his authority and the letter he wrote now becomes our authority.

#2 HIS CALLING
Titus 1:1b-2a

“for the faith of those chosen of God and knowledge of the truth which is according to godliness, in the hope of eternal life”

His calling was:
• Evangelism
• Edification
• Encouragement

So is ours.

#3 HIS CONFIDENCE
Titus 1:2b-3a

“which God, who cannot lie, promised long ages ago, but at the proper time manifested, even His word”

He knew the sovereign God of the universe made a promise to His Son
And God keeps His promises.

Paul therefore was confident that his ministry would be successful.
And we are confident too.

#4 HIS COMMISSION
Titus 1:3b

“in the proclamation with which I was entrusted”

God commissioned Paul by entrusting him with the gospel
And commissioning him to proclaim it.

We understand that commission as well.

As part of the church we are “the pillar and support of the truth”
• We are stewards of the gospel
• We have been entrusted with true doctrine
• And we also have been commissioned to proclaim it.

His commission is our commission.

TONIGHT let’s move forward and see the 5th reality of Paul’s ministry.

#5 HIS COMMANDER
Titus 1:3c

“according to the commandment of God our Savior”

Sort of like we did this morning, there are a couple of words (or phrases)
I want us to specifically focus on here as well.

1) “COMMANDMENT OF GOD”

We recognize very quickly that this is not a suggestion.
• This IS NOT a recommendation.
• This IS a commandment.

This is a commandment directly from God.

Matthew 28:18-20 “And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Acts 1:8 “but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

We have God who has issued us a command.

That really is just as simple and important as it sounds.

We have marveled during our Sunday night Scripture reading through Leviticus as we repeatedly see the phrase, “just as the LORD had commanded Moses”

• We have recognized all those intricate commands about anointing the priests, selecting the offering, and sacrificing the offering.

We know that these commands were so serious
That one’s life depended on it.

Leviticus 8:35 “At the doorway of the tent of meeting, moreover, you shall remain day and night for seven days and keep the charge of the LORD, so that you will not die, for so I have been commanded.”

And certainly that rang true in tonight’s Scripture reading
As we looked Nadab and Abihu who
“offered strange fire before the LORD”

And God incinerated them from the inside out.

And no sooner did God kill them
Then did a warning get issued to Aaron their father.

Leviticus 10:6 “Then Moses said to Aaron and to his sons Eleazar and Ithamar, “Do not uncover your heads nor tear your clothes, so that you will not die and that He will not become wrathful against all the congregation. But your kinsmen, the whole house of Israel, shall bewail the burning which the LORD has brought about.”

Leviticus 10:9-10 “Do not drink wine or strong drink, neither you nor your sons with you, when you come into the tent of meeting, so that you will not die—it is a perpetual statute throughout your generations— and so as to make a distinction between the holy and the profane, and between the unclean and the clean,”

Do you suppose that being careful to obey the LORD was a little more urgent after that?

You know it was.

I don’t know when this modern-day mindset of “optional obedience” became so popular, but it is extremely dangerous.

When God gives a command He expects obedience.

So look at that statement again:
“according to the commandment of God”

What if your boss gave you a piece of information and entrusted you to carry it to a client across town and told you to take it? Would you?

• Yes, because he’s my boss and I could get fired for not doing my job.

What if your spouse entrusted you with a check and told you to deliver to a certain person? Would you?

• Well yes, because that is my spouse and I certainly desire to please them.

What if your parent gave you an important document and asked you to deliver it? Would you?

• Well yes, because they are my parents and I am called to do what they say or honor them.

What if the government gave you a license and required you to present it publicly before you travel? Would you?

• Well yes, because they have the power to alter my plans if I don’t do what they say.

You are catching my point aren’t you.

AND YET
• This is not the commandment of your boss
• This is not the commandment of your spouse
• This is not the commandment of your parent
• This is not the commandment of the government

This is “the commandment of God”
• The One who sits enthroned above the circle of the earth.
• The One who calls the earth His footstool.
• The One in whom you live and move and exist.
• The One who ordains your days.
• The One who is responsible to meet your needs.
• The One who will judge the living and the dead.

We are talking about a commandment from God here.

As we consider this even further, I want to call your mind back
To one of the words we looked at this morning.

We finished off this morning sort of examining the issue
Of being “entrusted” with the gospel.

I want you to understand that being “entrusted” is no small thing to God.

Matthew 24:45-51 “Who then is the faithful and sensible slave whom his master put in charge of his household to give them their food at the proper time? “Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes. “Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions. “But if that evil slave says in his heart, ‘My master is not coming for a long time,’ and begins to beat his fellow slaves and eat and drink with drunkards; the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour which he does not know, and will cut him in pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

You see a reference to a man being commissioned to feed the household.
• If he does what he has been commanded then he will be rewarded.
• If he fails to do what he has been commanded he will be judged.

You ask what that has to do
With preaching or being entrusted with the gospel?

But that is precisely what Jesus is talking about.

Do you remember Matthew 13 and all the parables of the kingdom?
• The soils
• The wheat and the tares
• The leaven
• The mustard seed
• The treasure in the field
• The pearl of great value
• The dragnet

Jesus did all sorts of teaching to the disciples about the kingdom.
He enlightened to the truths of the kingdom.

And then He said:
Matthew 13:51-52 “Have you understood all these things?” They said to Him, “Yes.” And Jesus said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a head of a household, who brings out of his treasure things new and old.”

Do you understand the reference?
• You have been entrusted with the truth.
• He has given you the gospel.
• And you are commanded to be faithful by proclaiming it.

In Matthew 25 Jesus gave the parable of the talents.
Do you remember the outcome for those who obeyed versus those who disobeyed?

Matthew 25:21 “His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’”

But the one who disobeyed:
Matthew 25:26-30 “But his master answered and said to him, ‘You wicked, lazy slave, you knew that I reap where I did not sow and gather where I scattered no seed. ‘Then you ought to have put my money in the bank, and on my arrival I would have received my money back with interest. ‘Therefore take away the talent from him, and give it to the one who has the ten talents.’ “For to everyone who has, more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away. “Throw out the worthless slave into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

IT IS NOT A SMALL THING TO DISOBEY GOD.

We have here an expectation that we will be faithful to go and make disciples by proclaiming the truth He has entrusted to us.

Paul certainly understood that requirement.
We love his perspective in 2 Corinthians 5

2 Corinthians 5:18-21 “Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

That is tremendous perspective isn’t it?

Because God has entrusted us with the ministry of reconciliation.
Because God has commanded us to proclaim His gospel to the world.
WE DO IT.

This command for Paul was primary.
This was not some secondary or auxiliary ministry.

Paul knew why he was here.
• He was on a mission
• He was on a journey
• He was in a race
• He had a task

AND SO DO WE.
It is just imperative that we view our ministries in the same way.

Don’t treat your ministry from God
As some sort of optional, auxiliary, secondary ministry.

This is your ministry in your family.
This is your ministry at your work.
This is your ministry in the community.
This is your ministry in our church.

It is “the commandment of God”

The second phrase we want to pay attention to tonight here is:

2) “OUR SAVIOR”

And you have to love this from Paul.

When he mentions that God has given us a command
He doesn’t come at this with a threatening tone,

Though he most certainly could have
as the Scriptures we have read already have made clear.

Paul comes at this with an eye to obligation or perhaps even gratitude.
We are not being commissioned to serve a heartless tyrant.
We are not being commissioned to serve a ruthless dictator.

The One we are being commissioned to serve is “God our Savior”
• He is the One who took on human flesh and dwelt among us.
• He is the One who fulfilled the Law on our behalf.
• He is the One who laid down His life on a cross.
• He is the One who daily intercedes on our behalf.
• He is the One who is returning to rescue us from the present evil age.

That is who has entrusted us with the message of His gospel
That we might proclaim it to the world.

Do you sense an obligation there?

Romans 1:14-15 “I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. So, for my part, I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.”

Paul saw his ministry
Not only as one of submission to the God of the universe,
But also as a debt that he owed to the Savior of his soul.

Remember when Paul was warned not to go to Jerusalem?
Acts 21:8-14 “On the next day we left and came to Caesarea, and entering the house of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the seven, we stayed with him. Now this man had four virgin daughters who were prophetesses. As we were staying there for some days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. And coming to us, he took Paul’s belt and bound his own feet and hands, and said, “This is what the Holy Spirit says: ‘In this way the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’ ” When we had heard this, we as well as the local residents began begging him not to go up to Jerusalem. Then Paul answered, “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but even to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.” And since he would not be persuaded, we fell silent, remarking, “The will of the Lord be done!”

That was a man who felt an obligation to the One who saved him.
• Paul saw himself as enslaved to Christ.
• Paul saw his life as intertwined with Christ.
• Paul saw himself as a man owned by Christ and indebted to Christ.

Have you heard him reference being bought with a price?
He believed that.
Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.”

And in the book of Titus
This will be an appeal he will make to Titus and to us.

Titus 3:3-7 “For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”

And that brings up an entirely new set of motivations for us.

Certainly we are commanded, but we are also indebted.
We have been called to make known the One who saved us.

Jesus said it like this:
John 20:21 “So Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.”

Perhaps we would have a different feel
If our Lord had not first been a missionary in order to save us.

• Perhaps we would feel less obligated had He not left His home to come to ours.

• Perhaps we would feel less obligated had He not suffered among evil men to find us in their midst.

• Perhaps we would feel less obligated had He not died upon His mission field to save His own.

But Christ did come.
Christ did suffer.
Christ did die.
And Christ said that just like the Father sent Him, so He has sent us.

THIS IS THE MINISTRY.

And it is the ministry we all signed up for
When we agreed to deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Him.

Don’t make that secondary in your life.
THAT IS PRIMARY.
• Don’t abandon it.
• Don’t neglect it.
• Don’t retire from it.

You have a ministry, fulfill it.
You have “the commandment of God our Savior”

Paul’s Credentials, Paul’s Calling, Paul’s Confidence, Paul’s Commission, Paul’s Commander

#6 HIS COLLEAGUE
Titus 1:4

Here we address who the letter is written to.
• It helps us understand who Paul’s example is for.
• And we begin to understand why Paul wrote.

Paul was in the ministry.
• He was already traveling calling sinners to repentance.
• He was already teaching the saved to be like Christ.
• He was already encouraging the hearts of the weary.

• He was obeying the command
• He was valuing the treasure
• He was proclaiming the truth out of gratitude to Christ.

SO WHY THE LETTER?
Because Paul’s mission was not a one-man effort.
Paul was recruiting others to join him.

He writes “To Titus, my true child in a common faith;”
• He will go on to say, “For this reason I left you in Crete…”

Paul had an expectation for Titus.
He had a plan for him.
• It is a missionary strategy.
• It is a missionary cooperation.

Just like Paul had told Timothy:
2 Timothy 2:1-2 “You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.”

That is the goal isn’t it?

That is why we read this letter.
• Paul is calling out support.
• He is calling out those who will join the work.

• If Titus would go to Crete then Paul could go somewhere else.
• If Timothy would work in Ephesus then Paul could go somewhere else.

If you and I will work in Spur, others can work where they are.

So Paul recruits laborers to join.

SO WHY TITUS?

1) HE IS A “TRUE CHILD”

Titus was selected because
He is a genuine, fruit-bearing, believer.

Paul wasn’t interested in recruiting people who were not genuinely redeemed.
• He needed Spirit-filled men, not empty religious people.

IT IS ONE THING TO
• Attend church
• Sing songs
• Know how to be moral people in west Texas.

IT IS ANOTHER THING TO
• Ask people to get up out of the pew,
• Go out the doors,
• And proclaim Christ to the world.

You can do the first without a relationship with Christ,
But it’s hard to do the second without Him.

Titus was selected because he was “a true child”

I certainly can’t speak for anyone else, but I know this about myself.
• I grew up in church.
• I was raised in a believing family.
• I attended all the functions.
• I was baptized at 8 years old.

But it wasn’t until I was truly saved at 19 years old
That the Spirit of God moved in
And I had any inclination of sharing Christ with anyone.

And I know this.
True gospel ministry is not something that the flesh desires.
• The flesh doesn’t like evangelism
• The flesh doesn’t like exhorting a brother.
• The flesh doesn’t like dealing with others in their burdens.

IT TAKES A TRUE BELIEVER TO BE A TRUE MINISTER.

And if you are a true believer…the church needs you!

It matters.
Titus was also selected

2) HE HAD A “COMMON FAITH”

That is to say his doctrine was accurate.
Titus knew the gospel.
Titus understood the truth.

It did no good to commission a man
Who does not know the Lord to do mission work
And it does no good to commission a man
Who doesn’t know the truth.

We showed that Paul Washer video this morning as an example.

I am probably not quite as rigid as the point he makes in that video.
• I am eager for new believers to participate in missions.
• I know those recently converted can immediately go and share what they
learned.

However, I do whole-heartedly agree with the necessity of training as well.
• You must know the gospel if you are going to go.
• You must have an understanding of the truth.

If any of you ever end up going with me some day to Africa
To visit these churches in Tanzania or Kenya

You will immediately become aware of how hungry they are for the truth.

They will ask you question after question after question about the Scriptures and about true doctrine.

You must know it. You must understand it.

Titus was recruited by Paul because of his genuine conversion
And because of his understanding of the faith.

Now, don’t try to breathe a sigh of relief here.

DON’T SAY, “Well I guess I’m off the hook. Since I don’t really feel qualified with a knowledge of the truth, it’s probably best I don’t go.”

If you are unqualified because you don’t’ know the truth
THEN GET TO STUDYING.

Let me read it again:
Hebrews 5:12-13 “For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you have need again for someone to teach you the elementary principles of the oracles of God, and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the word of righteousness, for he is an infant.”

It is time to grow up and learn the truth.
• Have your senses trained to discern good and evil.
• Learn the gospel and the faith handed down.

When you stand before God on that final day
And He asks why you did not participate in His mandate to take the gospel to the world, “I didn’t know enough” will not be a valid excuse.

START LEARNING!

I’ve told you of several men in our church going through leadership training.
• We have it for men.
• We have it for women.
• We have it for those who want to be elders.

Those who have participated in it can tell you what it is.
IT IS SIMPLY LEARNING DOCTRINE.

• There are overviews of books of the bible.
• There are doctrinal truths to consider.
• There are qualifications to examine.

BECAUSE EVERY BELIEVER
NEEDS TO BE TRAINED TO BE A MISSIONARY.

You may not be an elder.
You may not be a deacon.
But God commissions us all to take the gospel to the lost.

We are accountable to learn it.

Titus was selected because he was truly redeemed
And because he knew the gospel accurately.

MAKE THAT YOUR AMBITION.

And then this opening section closes with a statement of grace to Titus.

“Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.”

Paul uses that phrase all the time.
He loves to offer both “grace and peace”.
We need and desire both.

Both of those are found in abundance
When you walk in obedience to Christ.

It is when we walk in disobedience
That “grace and peace” seem the farthest from us.

But when we obey the Lord,
Even to undertake the task of missions
HIS grace is sufficient & His peace passes all understanding.

Paul enjoyed it in his ministry.
• Paul offered it to Titus.
• And it is available to you as well.

So tonight, we just sort of wrap up this opening segment in Titus.

And we recognize what ministry is.
• Evangelism
• Edification
• Encouragement.

We know how to fulfill it.
• We proclaim the truth that has been entrusted to us.

We know who it is for.
• True believers who have an accurate understanding of the gospel.

We know why we do it.
• We are commanded by God and we obligated by our Savior.

We know why this letter has been preserved for us.
• Because it is expected that we will join in the mission.

I just encourage you to embrace your ministry.

The Ministry – part 4 (Titus 1:1-4 (3b))

February 9, 2025 By Amy Harris

download here

The Ministry – part 4
Titus 1:1-4 (3b)
February 9, 2025

As you know, we have started our study of the book of Titus
And we are dealing with the issue of ministry.

We are all ministers.
We all have a ministry.

It is true that our ministries may be diverse
In regard to size and scope and audience,
But we each have a ministry to which we are called to be faithful.

Here in the opening verses of Titus
We are gaining some clarity regarding the basics of ministry.

• We are certainly examining Paul’s ministry,
• But in reality his ministry was meant to be an example for Titus
• And ultimately us as well who now possess this great letter.

In this opening segment there are 6 main points that we take away from Paul’s ministry.

#1 HIS CREDENTIALS
Titus 1:1a

“Paul, a bond-servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ”

Paul identified himself as one with authority.
• Commonly the Old Testament prophets were recognized as God’s servants, a title that would have been recognizable to the Jews on Crete.
• And certainly the New Testament reveals to us the apostles as those endowed with God’s authority.

Paul didn’t just speak, he spoke the words of God
And as such this letter came with authority.

Titus was not a prophet, nor an apostle,
But he would stand upon Paul’s authority every time he read this letter.

WE DO THE SAME.

Our credentials are that we have the words of God
Preserved for us in the Bible
And the words of God deserve to be proclaimed and obeyed.

#2 HIS CALLING
Titus 1:1b-2a

“for the faith of those chosen of God and the knowledge of the truth which is according to godliness, in the hope of eternal life”

Paul’s ministry was clear.
• Evangelism
• Edification
• Encouragement

And as we said, that is our ministry too.
• It may not be behind a pulpit…
• It may not be on a foreign mission field…
• It may be primarily in your living room…
• It may be primarily amongst a co-worker…

But the ministry is the same.
• We seek to evangelize the lost.
• We seek to edify the redeemed.
• We seek to encourage the weary.

THAT IS THE CALLING.

#3 HIS CONFIDENCE
Titus 1:2b-3a

“which God, who cannot lie, promised long ages ago, but at the proper time manifested, even His word,”

We discussed this Sunday night as we recognized
How important confidence is in the ministry.

Those who have no confidence
Typically either neglect their ministry or they distort it.

• They either fail to participate out of fear of failure or reproach,
• Or they seek to twist what God has called them to do to try and be more successful by their own ingenuity.

A LACK OF CONFIDENCE IS A PROBLEM.

Self-confidence is also a problem
• Since it stinks of pride which comes before destruction,
• And it was Jesus who told us that “apart from Me, you can do nothing.”

So we don’t want self-confidence, but we do want confidence.

WHERE DOES TRUE CONFIDENCE COME FROM?
The sovereign character and promises of God.

Paul taught us that God “cannot lie”.
• It is totally against His nature to do so and therefore impossible.
• It cannot happen.

And that is good news
Because we know that God made an interesting promise.

God promised eternal life to those whom He had chosen.

And according to Paul, He made this promise “long ages ago”
• Literally that phrase means “before time began”

There were no humans there before time began.
There were no angels before time began.
But there was God and He was making a promise.
But if God was the only One who was He making a promise to?

The answer: HIMSELF

It was a promise from the Father to the Son before time began
Of a redeemed bride who would honor, worship, and adore Him
For all eternity.

You see Jesus reference this several times in both John 6 and John 17
As those whom the Father had given Him.

So before time began God promised Jesus a redeemed bride
And since God cannot lie, we have no doubt that it will occur.

And that promise was “manifested” to us in God’s word.

THIS WAS THE SOURCE OF PAUL’S CONFIDENCE.
• He knew that his preaching would result in the salvation of the lost,
• He knew his preaching would result in the sanctification of the saved,
• He knew his preaching would result in the satisfaction of the elect,

Not because he was such a good preacher, but because the Father had promised the Son that He would accomplish it.

Since God cannot lie, we know it will happen.

You can have confidence in that as well.
You can know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

Well THIS MORNING let’s move forward again.
It is about time we started talking about the methods
Paul would use to fulfill this ministry calling he had been given.

WE NEED TO KNOW THIS.
What method are we to use to fulfill the calling to evangelize the lost, edify the redeemed, and encourage the weary?

#4 HIS COMMISSION
Titus 1:3b

“His word, in the proclamation with which I was entrusted”

As we look at this commission, I want us to focus in on two words here:

1) “PROCLAMATION”

It is no surprise to us that Paul reveals the method
Through which he was to fulfill his calling was preaching.

Paul was commissioned to proclaim the word.

More specifically he would proclaim,
• The promise that God had made to the Son before time began…
• The promise to save a bride for His joy and glory…
• The promise to sanctify them and grant them eternal life…
• The promise which God had revealed through His word…

Paul was commissioned to go and proclaim that message.

I’M GOING TO HOLD BEFORE YOU THAT THIS IS OUR COMMISSION TOO

NOW,
No one is going to miss the fact that
The book of Titus talks a lot about methods.
And repeatedly laid before us is the call to “good deeds”

• We saw it in our intro to the book:
• 6 times in this letter Paul talks about the importance of “good deeds”.

No book in the New Testament concentrates more
On the importance of good works than Titus.

This letter hinges upon the command of Jesus:
Matthew 5:16 “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”

So it would be very easy to say, “No, the method in the book of Titus is not preaching, the method is good works!”

It would be very easy to say, “The method through which we are called to evangelize the lost, edify the saved, and encourage the weary is to do good deeds in their midst.”

Beyond that:
• We know that good works are vitally important.
• We are going to be called to participate in good works.
• A church without good works is in a terrible condition.

So obviously we are NOT SAYING that
Good works aren’t an important method of our ministry,
Or that we have not been commissioned to good works.

HOWEVER:
It is very important that we keep all things
In their proper order and for their proper purpose.

Paul will also be very clear in this letter to Titus
What is the purpose of those good deeds.

He says it several ways, but perhaps the most clear is when Paul speaks about young women, saying:
Titus 2:5 “[encourage the young women] to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored.”

The good deeds given as the responsibility of young women
Comes with a purpose and that purpose is
“so that the word of God will not be dishonored.”

That statement brings great clarity to the purpose of good deeds.

We might throw in what Paul says to bond-servants:
Titus 2:10 “not pilfering, but showing all good faith so that they will adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in every respect.”

Again, their good deeds come with a purpose and that purpose is to “adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in every respect.”

So we learn that good deeds are meant to
Protect and adorn our proclamation of the word of God.
Good deeds serve to supplement the doctrine we preach.

And in their role, they are very important.

BUT DO NOT REVERSE THE ROLE.

Your works are meant to adorn your preaching,
But they are not designed to supplant it.

People do not just need to see your good deeds,
They must hear the gospel and then see your good deeds.

And I fear much of the “humanitarian” type ministries of the church today miss this point.

I hear people say things like, “We do everything we do ‘In Jesus Name’”

But let’s be honest for a second about that.
What does that mean?

I know what it likely means to you.
• It means that you are doing the things you do for Jesus’ sake.
• You are doing them to highlight Christ’s love and compassion.
• You are seeking to emulate Christ’s behavior towards the least of these.
• In submission to Christ you are doing the things Christ called you to do.

And there is nothing in the world wrong with that.
In fact, that is a noble calling and a noble purpose and a noble motive.

BUT let’s consider the person you are doing the good deeds for.
Let’s consider the recipient of your generosity or compassion.

You go to some foreign country
• Where they may have never even heard the name of Jesus,
• And even if they have, they don’t really know anything about Him.

And you drill them a water well “in Jesus Name”.

What are they supposed to do with that?
They don’t even know who He is.

Or let’s bring it closer to home.

You go and pay a water bill for someone in Spur,
Or you go and mow someone’s yard
And you tell them you are doing it “In Jesus’ Name”

Surely they have heard about Jesus.
Surely they know who He is.

BUT DO THEY?
In America what version of Jesus do you suppose they’ve been told about?

Do you suppose they know the Biblical Jesus or one of the many distorted versions of Him?
• Have they been told about the Jesus of the gospels or the Jesus of
Catholicism?
• Have they been told about the Jesus who demanded righteousness and then
fulfilled righteousness?
• Have they been told about the Jesus whose greatest concern was not your
poverty, but your sin?
• Have they been told about the Jesus who paid the penalty for the unrighteous
on the cross? And who bids you leave sin and follow Him?

• OR do they only know about the Jesus who doesn’t care what you do so long
as you are true to yourself?
• OR the Jesus whose only goal is to make you healthy, wealthy, and happy?

DO YOU SEE MY POINT?

Doing good deeds, even “in Jesus Name”
Is not enough and it is not sufficient.
Those good deeds are only effective after the truth is proclaimed.

And so while Paul will certainly emphasize
The importance of good deeds throughout this letter,
It was NOT good deeds that he listed as his primary mission.

Paul’s primary mission is “proclamation”, good deeds come later.

People must hear the word of God.

Now think back for a moment to the calling that Paul revealed on his life.

Evangelism – “for the faith of those chosen of God.”
Edification – “the knowledge of the truth which is according to godliness”
Encouragement – “in the hope of eternal life”

But the question we are dealing with now is:
HOW DO YOU ACCOMPLISH THOSE GOALS?
What was he supposed to do?

Was he supposed to go out and feed the poor
And just hope that it motivated the lost to salvation, the redeemed to godliness, and gave the hope of eternal life to the weary?

It would have to be a pretty spectacular lasagna to accomplish all that.

No, Paul’s tool was God’s word, and Paul’s method was to preach it.

And listen, Scripture speaks volumes on this.

Consider the calling to EVANGELISM.
And consider the word as your tool.

Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”

1 Timothy 4:16 “Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will ensure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you.”

2 Timothy 4:1-5 “I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.”

And there are many many more texts we could reference to make this point,
But I think this is enough.

You see that if your calling is to evangelize the lost;
If your calling is to call out the chosen
Then the tool you want to use is the proclamation of God’s word.

Paul actually told Timothy that this would “ensure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you.”

He later told Timothy to “do the work of an evangelist”
And this was done by being faithful to “preach the word”.

If you want to be faithful in evangelism
Then you must be faithful to proclaim the words of God.

Consider the calling to EDIFICATION
And again consider the word as your tool.

What is it that works in those who believe?
It is “the word of God”

Remember what Peter taught?
2 Peter 1:2-3 “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.”

Peter said that God has given us everything we need “pertaining to life and godliness”
And this comes “through the true knowledge of Him who called us”

We teach the word to those who believe
Because it is the knowledge of Christ in His word
That will lead men to godliness.

Even the method of Jesus:
Ephesians 5:25-26 “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,”

How does Jesus sanctify His bride?
He washes her “by the washing of water with the word”

So how are you going to fulfill your ministry
Of taking the redeemed and pushing them to godliness?

What good work that you will do is going to accomplish that in someone’s life?

What benevolent gift are you going to give to make someone look more like Jesus?

And I might even throw one other thing in here.
• Even people who already have access to the word of God.
• Even people who you might be tempted just to attach a bible verse to your benevolent gift.

Consider this point:
Acts 8:26-31 “But an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip saying, “Get up and go south to the road that descends from Jerusalem to Gaza.” (This is a desert road.) So he got up and went; and there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure; and he had come to Jerusalem to worship, and he was returning and sitting in his chariot, and was reading the prophet Isaiah. Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go up and join this chariot.” Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet, and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?” And he said, “Well, how could I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.”

There was a man who had a bible and was reading it,
But still needed someone to explain it to him.

The Bible is meant to be proclaimed and explained
By those who know it and understand it.

Ephesians 4:11-12 “And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ;”

• If you want to see the lost saved…
• If you want to see the saved be sanctified…
Then God’s word must be proclaimed.

Or consider your calling to ENCOURAGEMENT
And again consider the word as your tool.

1 Thessalonians 5:9-11 “For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep, we will live together with Him. Therefore encourage one another and build up one another, just as you also are doing.”

Paul took the truth, revealed in Scripture and told the Thessalonians to use those words to “encourage one another and build up one another”.
• The Thessalonians were heavily persecuted
• They needed the hope of eternal life,
• Nothing could supply that like the revealed truth of God’s word.

And you know this:
Romans 15:4 “For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.”

It is through “the encouragement of the Scriptures”
That “we might have hope.”

Have you not seen the encouragement of the Scriptures in your own life?
Romans 8:1 “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

Romans 8:28 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”

This list could truly go on forever if we started down the path of quoting Bible verses that gave us hope in times of despair or uncertainty.

Now someone might say, “Yes, but don’t you think a good deeds is encouraging?”

Like when someone loses a loved one and you take them a meal?
Doesn’t that act of love lift their spirits?

IT ABSOLUTELY DOES.
• There is absolutely encouragement in knowing that people care about you.
• There is absolutely encouragement in having a temporal burden like food
removed from you.

We aren’t saying that good deeds can’t encourage.

But we’re not talking about just any old routine encouragement are we?
We are talking about “the hope of eternal life”.

We are talking about the type of encouragement
• That takes a person completely out of the burden of the moment
• And lifts their hopes to the reality that God has created something better for those who love Him.

Again, that better be a tremendous lasagna.

Only the truth of the word of God does that.

So while good deeds are important, necessary, and commanded,
Don’t misapply the purpose.

Good deeds adorn the gospel, they don’t replace it.

If Paul truly wanted to fulfill his calling
Of evangelism, edification, and encouragement

Then first and foremost he must be one
Who proclaimed the revealed truth of God.

God’s word is the power that is needed
To accomplish everything you have been called to do.

Isaiah 55:10-11 “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, And do not return there without watering the earth And making it bear and sprout, And furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater; So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.”

Jeremiah 23:29 “Is not My word like fire?” declares the LORD, “and like a hammer which shatters a rock?”

And nothing can stop it.
2 Timothy 2:8-9 “Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, descendant of David, according to my gospel, for which I suffer hardship even to imprisonment as a criminal; but the word of God is not imprisoned.”

We love the history of the Reformation and the great work which God did through simple men.

I love the quote of Luther regarding his work to reform the church.
“What is Luther? The teaching is not mine. Nor was I crucified for anyone … How did I, poor stinking bag of maggots that I am, come to the point where people call the children of Christ by my evil name? … I simply taught, preached, wrote God’s Word; otherwise I did nothing. And while I slept, or drank Wittenberg beer with my friends Philip and Amsdorf, the Word so greatly weakened the papacy that no prince or emperor ever inflicted such losses upon it. I did nothing; the Word did everything.”

Luther: 'The Word Did Everything'

He knew where the power came from.
• It was not his boldness or charisma
• It was not his charity or compassion
• It was not his good deeds or tireless efforts
• It was the word.

When Spurgeon spoke of missionaries he wrote:
“…there is not enough preaching by ministers and missionaries. They sit down interpreting, establishing schools, and doing this, that, and the other. We have nothing to find fault with this; but that it was not the labor to which they should devote themselves: their office is preaching, and, if they preached more, they might hope for more success.”
(Spurgeon, Charles Haddon: “Spurgeon’s Sermons – Volumes 1-2”; [Baker Books, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49516, Fifth Printing – October 2007] pg. 332)

He understood that the greatest power we possess
• To rescue sinners from bondage,
• And see men put aside the flesh in sanctification,
• And see men rescued from the pits of despair

Is to give them the power of the word.

Another famous saying by Spurgeon:
“Suppose a number of persons were to take it into their heads that they had to defend a lion, full-grown king of beasts! There he is in the cage, and here come all the soldiers of the army to fight for him. Well, I should suggest to them, if they would not object, and feel that it was humbling to them, that they should kindly stand back, and open the door, and let the lion out! I believe that would be the best way of defending him, for he would take care of himself; and the best ‘apology’ for the gospel is to let the gospel out.”

6 Quotes Spurgeon Didn’t Say

That is another way of speaking of the power of the word of God.
LET IT OUT.
• Proclaim it and see the lost saved.
• Proclaim it and see the saved be transformed into Christ-likeness.
• Proclaim it and see the weary encouraged.

If we are serious about our calling
Then we must acknowledge the tool that will fulfill it.

Romans 10:14 “How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher?”

So you see the importance of the word “proclamation”

There is one more word in this segment that I want us to focus upon.

2) “ENTRUSTED”

Paul said, “the proclamation with which I was entrusted”

The reason you need to grasp that word is because
It gives us great insight into the value of the word of God.

When Paul speaks of God’s word he speaks of it
As a precious treasure that must be guarded.

THAT IS TO SAY,
We don’t just proclaim God’s word,
But we defend it and make sure that it is proclaimed accurately.

A distorted proclamation of God’s word won’t help anyone.
We have plenty of that in our world already.

• We need those who will rightly divide the word of truth.
• We need those who will preach the whole counsel of the word of God.
• We need those who will study to show themselves approved.

Jude 1:3 “Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints.”

Most people today read that and think Jude wants you to go into apologetic training through scientific research, but that is not Jude’s point.

He wants you to study harder and learn more thoroughly
“the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints.”

He is not calling you to study science, philosophy, reason, and archaeology to better argue with a non-believer.

Jude is calling to you study the word even more
So that you can spot a distortion and correct those who malign it.

Wasn’t the one of Paul’s points to Titus?

Paul said elders must know the word for this reason:
Titus 1:9-11 “holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict. For there are many rebellious men, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, who must be silenced because they are upsetting whole families, teaching things they should not teach for the sake of sordid gain.”

Listen to how Paul spoke to Timothy:
1 Timothy 6:20-21 “O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called “knowledge”— which some have professed and thus gone astray from the faith. Grace be with you.”

2 Timothy 1:14 “Guard, through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us, the treasure which has been entrusted to you.”

And because Timothy had been entrusted with such a treasure,
He was to fight to preserve it.

2 Timothy 1:18 “This command I entrust to you, Timothy, my son, in accordance with the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you fight the good fight,”

2 Timothy 6:12 “Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.”

What we are discussing here is your perspective on the word of God.

Understanding this will help you better appreciate
Why Paul was so eager to proclaim it.

It was Paul’s love for the word that prompted his commitment to it.

He saw himself as one who had been entrusted with
The greatest treasure humanity had ever received, the very words of God.

1 Corinthians 4:1 “Let a man regard us in this manner, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.”

Colossians 1:25 “Of this church I was made a minister according to the stewardship from God bestowed on me for your benefit, so that I might fully carry out the preaching of the word of God,”

Ephesians 3:1-3 “For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles— if indeed you have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace which was given to me for you; that by revelation there was made known to me the mystery, as I wrote before in brief.”

Ephesians 3:8-10 “To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ, and to bring to light what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God who created all things; so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places.”

That is not nearly all, but again, you get the point.

It wasn’t just that Paul recognized the usefulness of the word,
He recognized the value of the word and the mandate to protect it.

Think about that word “entrusted” for a moment.
In the Greek it is PISTEUO, most familiarly translated as “believe”

It is the word we use when we talk about what you must do with Christ.
• You must believe in Him, more than that you must entrust yourself to Him.

When we call a sinner to salvation
We DON’T JUST ask him to believe that Jesus was real or that He really did die or that He really did rise from the dead.

Satan knows all of that.

What we are asking is for that sinner to entrust his soul to Christ’s care.
• We are asking him to forsake his own works and goodness in exchange for
Christ’s works and Christ’s goodness.
• We are asking him to trust in Christ’s atoning death.
• We are asking him to trust that Christ was successful as proven by His
resurrection.
• We are asking them to “deny themselves, take up their cross, and follow
Him”

1 Peter 4:19 “Therefore, those also who suffer according to the will of God shall entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right.”

That is the same word Paul uses here
Of what God did to Paul in regard to his word.

God entrusted His word to Paul.
• Paul understood His mission to defend it, preserve it, and to proclaim it so that he might fulfill his mission.

AND CHURCH WHAT A GREAT PICTURE FOR US.
God has commissioned us on a great mission.
• He has called us to the evangelization of the lost,
• The edification of the redeemed,
• And the encouragement of the weary.

For this mission God has entrusted us with the tool you will need
To penetrate the sinners heart, remove the saints filth, and uplift the weary soul.

That tool is the word of God.
• So cherish it.
• Protect it.
• Defend it.
• Adorn it with your good works.
• But most of all use it!

1 Corinthians 4:2 “In this case, moreover, it is required of stewards that one be found trustworthy.”

That is your encouragement this morning church.

You cannot fulfill your calling
Without a commitment to the proclamation of the word of God.

God has given it to you.
God has entrusted you with it.
He intends for the church to use it.

1 Timothy 3:14-15 “I am writing these things to you, hoping to come to you before long; but in case I am delayed, I write so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth.”

Here is your practical encouragement for the week.

When you go to the lost for evangelism,
• Don’t just tell them to believe in Jesus,
• Take the word and make sure they know who Jesus is.

When you call the redeemed to sanctification,
• Take the word and make sure they know what God’s word calls them to be.

When you go to encourage the weary,
• Give them the Scriptures so that their hope transcends the temporal
encouragements of this life.

You have this tool.
God has entrusted it to you.
Use it.

The Ministry – part 3 Titus 1:1-4 (2b-3a)

February 3, 2025 By Amy Harris

download here

The Ministry – part 3
Titus 1:1-4 (2b-3a)
February 2, 2025

We were just here this morning, so there’s no need for much recap.

We are talking about the ministry.
What is it?

To learn we are listening to Paul talk about his ministry,
And from him we are gaining an example of our ministry.

This is certainly a ministry in general, but we all have it.

6 realities about Paul’s ministry.

#1 HIS CREDENTIALS
Titus 1:1a

“Paul, a bond-servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ”

• He was both prophet and apostle.
• He spoke from God.

This was Paul’s authority and it is our authority too.
We are not prophets or apostles, but we have a letter written by one.

We take what Paul wrote here,
Understanding that it was inspired by the Holy Spirit
And is therefore the very words of God and we approach the people.

We say “Thus sayeth the Lord” and then we quote the Bible.

#2 HIS CALLING
Titus 1:1b-2a

“for the faith of those chosen of God and the knowledge of the truth which is according to godliness, in the hope of eternal life,”

This is the end game
This is the objective
• EVANGELISM
• EDIFICATION
• ENCOURAGEMENT

That is what he set out to do.
That is what we set out to do.

• We preach the gospel seeking the salvation of the lost.
• We teach the truth seeking the sanctification of the redeemed.
• We remind of eternal life seeking the encouragement of the saints.

Those things we have covered our last two times together.

Tonight let’s move forward.

#3 HIS CONFIDENCE
Titus 1:2b-3a

“which God, who cannot lie, promised long ages ago, but at the proper time manifested, even His word”

What we want to discuss tonight is
The necessary confidence that is required to do ministry.

Let me state it in sort of a negative way first:

Without proper confidence you will most likely neglect your ministry,
Or even worse, you will quite possibly distort your ministry.

What do I mean by that?
• Everyone knows that ministry is hard.
• Everyone knows that ministry can be discouraging.
• Everyone knows there can be seasons of dry spells where visible or measurable results seem few and far between.

We only have to think about people like
Chris and Meegan on the mission field in Papua New Guinea.

Living among a people who speak a foreign language
• Trying to learn the language
• Trying to learn the culture
• Trying to live in a primitive conditions
• Hoping to complete a Bible translation
• Hoping to eventually be able to communicate the gospel

And when they finally reach that point,
Then they have only arrived to a status that you and I already enjoy.

Having the Bible in the language of the people you are called to reach.

At that point they are called
• To take this new message as outsiders
• To confront decades if not millenniums of tradition and cultural superstition
and worldliness
• And call them to repent and change they way they are thinking in favor of the
words of God.

They will ask these people to abandon their gods, their religion,
Their practice, their traditions, their ideologies, their behaviors.

DISCOURGING?

YOU KNOW IT IS.
This is why confidence is necessary.
If you don’t have confidence in the ministry
It is very easy to neglect the ministry.

There must be a conviction that moves beyond minimal results.
There must be a conviction that knows it will eventually work.
Where there is no confidence ministry is often neglected.

But that is only half of the problem.
The other problem is that ministry gets DISTORTED.

WHAT DO I MEAN?
I MEAN THAT YOUR CONFIDENCE CANNOT BE IN YOUR SELF

Confidence in self is a fast track to failure.

John 15:4-5 “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.”

The belief that “you can do it” is a ministry killing belief.

It has actually led to one of the most destructive ministry ideologies
Ever conceived and that is PRAGMATISM.

Pragmatism is the belief that “the end justifies the means”
It doesn’t matter how you get there so long as you get there.

It is fueled by ministers who abandon God’s methods in favor of their own
In order to achieve a goal they have determined as success.

Men fueled by pragmatic thinking
Abandon their confidence in God’s plan
In favor of implementing their own quicker plan
And ultimately accomplish nothing.

CONFIDENCE IS ESSENTIAL,
BUT OUR CONFIDENCE MUST BE IN GOD.

I’m reminded of Paul speaking of a time
When God reinforced that truth to him.

2 Corinthians 1:8-9 “For we do not want you to be unaware, brethren, of our affliction which came to us in Asia, that we were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of life; indeed, we had the sentence of death within ourselves so that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead;”

Paul learned through great affliction not to trust in himself, but in God.

Later in that same letter
We get his famous statement about the thorn in the flesh:

2 Corinthians 12:9-10 “And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.”

CONFIDENCE MUST BE IN GOD.

In his final letter Paul told Timothy:
2 Timothy 1:12 “For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day.”

IT IS CONFIDENCE IN GOD.

We go into a hostile world;
• Preaching to those who are spiritually dead;
• With a goal of salvation,
• A transformation to godliness,
• And these sinners being welcomed into the very presence of God to live with
Him for all eternity.

And we have no ability to make any of that happen.

• We can’t speak to the dead.
• We can’t transform any lives.
• We certainly can’t grant eternal life or access into heaven.

And yet we go knowing that we will succeed.

We have confidence that our ministry will not fail.

Paul said:
2 Corinthians 2:14 “But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place.”

1 Corinthians 15:58 “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.”

He said:
2 Corinthians 4:8-14 “we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So death works in us, but life in you. But having the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, “I BELIEVED, THEREFORE I SPOKE,” we also believe, therefore we also speak, knowing that He who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and will present us with you.”

You notice the affliction but you also notice the unwavering confidence.
“we also believe, therefore we also speak”

• It doesn’t matter that we are afflicted in every way.
• It doesn’t matter that we are perplexed.
• It doesn’t matter that we are struck down.
• It doesn’t matter that we are carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus.
• It doesn’t matter that we are constantly being delivered over to death.

WE BELIEVE

It is the necessary confidence that a believer must have
To do ministry in this broken world
And the apostle Paul had it in spades.

WHAT WE WANT TO DO TONIGHT IS EXAMINE THAT CONFIDENCE.

And we see THE SOURCE of it in this statement:

“which God, who cannot lie, promised long ages go, but at the proper time manifested even His word,”

Paul had just said that
• His goal in ministry was the salvation of God’s chosen.
• His goal was also the sanctification of God’s redeemed.
• His goal was also the satisfaction or hope of those whom God saves.

But why is Paul so confident that the lost will be saved,
that the saved will be sanctified, and that the sanctified will be glorified?

Because “God, who cannot lie, promised [it] long ages ago, [and] at the proper time manifested [it in] His word.”

It didn’t matter if it felt like no one would ever be saved under his preaching,
• God promised that they would.

It didn’t matter if it felt like sanctification wasn’t occurring,
• God promised that it would.

It didn’t matter if eternal life in heaven with God felt like a dream that would never show up,
• God promised that it would.

AND PAUL WAS CONFIDENT.

Tonight let’s break down the 3 things Paul was confident in.

And as we do this,
Let this be the foundation of your confidence in ministry as well.

1) GOD’S CHARACTER

“which God, who cannot lie”

There’s a great truth that ought to be pondered a little more deeply.

God “cannot lie”
• It doesn’t say He will not lie, it says He “cannot lie”.

It is an immutable spiritual law
Based upon the very nature of who God is.

Numbers 23:19 “God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?”

1 Samuel 15:29 “Also the Glory of Israel will not lie or change His mind; for He is not a man that He should change His mind.”

Hebrews 6:18 “so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us.”

YOU GET THE POINT.

And certainly we contrast that to what Scripture says about the devil.
John 8:44 “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”

It is not in God’s nature to lie.
He cannot do it.

And we are reassured of this over and over throughout the Scriptures
As we examine the fundamental truths about the word of God.

Jesus said:
John 17:17 “Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.”

Or think of:
John 10:35 “If he called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken),”

Listen to:
Isaiah 40:8 “The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever.”

Or:
Isaiah 55:10-11 “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, And do not return there without watering the earth And making it bear and sprout, And furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater; So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.”

God’s word cannot fail.
It just can’t happen.

That means that every promise God ever made must be fulfilled.
It means that every prophecy God ever inspired must come to fruition.

That would include then not only God’s integrity but also HIS POWER.

You can promise to buy your wife a new car,
And then any number of circumstances can arise
That make that promise unfulfillable.

And you would say, “I didn’t lie, I had every intention of buying you a car, it’s just that circumstances changed.”

You understand that it still qualifies as a lie.
More than that it qualifies as A RECKLESS PROMISE
Because you promised something that is beyond your power to fulfill.

But that never happens to God.

When He promises something
He not only has the integrity to do it but also the power to do it.

IT IS A CERTAINTY.

And this confidence fuels Paul’s ministry.
And when we take it a step further WE SEE WHY.

God’s Character

2) GOD’S COMMITMENT

“Promised long ages ago”

It’s not just that God keeps His promises.
We also see that God makes promises.

Just because He can’t lie
Does not mean He is obligated to promise anything, but He has.

Now first let’s identify the promise.

What is the promise that Paul is referring to here?
It is the promise that
• God has chosen men for salvation,
• He will sanctify them
• And He will give them eternal life.

And Paul says that God promised this “long ages ago”

And that alone is worth examining.

The exact same phrase “long ages ago”
Is also used in the book of 2 Timothy, but there it is translated differently.

2 Timothy 1:9 “who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity,”

There the same phrase is translated “from all eternity”

It literally means “before time began”

John MacArthur stated:
“The plan of redemption for sinners did not come after men fell but before man was even created. The Father showed His perfect love to the Son (cf. John 17:23-24, 26) by promising Him a redeemed humanity who would serve and glorify Him forever.”
(MacArthur, John [The MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Titus; The Moody Bible Institute of Chicago, IL; 1996] pg. 11)

In short, you have God here making a promise before time began.

AND IT SORT OF BEGS THE QUESTION,
If the promise was made before time then who was the promise made to?

And there can only be one answer.
• Angels were not created yet.
• Men were not created yet.

The only possible answer is that it is an “inner-trinitarian” promise.
It is a promise that the Father made to the Son.

God made a promise to Christ in eternity past
That He would save a people, sanctify them,
And grant them eternal life to be with Him forever.

Now consider the references
That Jesus made to this very promise even in His earthly ministry.

John 6:37-40 “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out. “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. “This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day. “For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.”

Did you catch the references Jesus made?

There is a reference to those whom the Father has given to the Son.
• “All that the Father gives Me…”
• “of all that He has given Me…”

And that those God promised to give to Christ may be granted eternal life.
• “of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day.”
• “everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life…”

You see what is happening there.
Jesus is referencing that promise that Paul is referring to here.

That before time began the Father made a promise to the Son
To give Him a redeemed people
That would behold Him, trust Him, and glorify Him forever.

Look at the great high priestly prayer of Jesus.

John 17:6 “I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world; they were Yours and You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.

• There it is again: “they were Yours and You gave them to Me”

John 17:9-11 “I ask on their behalf; I do not ask on behalf of the world, but of those whom You have given Me; for they are Yours; and all things that are Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine; and I have been glorified in them. “I am no longer in the world; and yet they themselves are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep them in Your name, the name which You have given Me, that they may be one even as We are.

• “those whom You have given Me;”

And here the prayer is for their protection,
“keep them in Your name”

It is the prayer that God would preserve the promise
Of this redeemed people by keeping them for Christ.

John 17:23-24 “I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me. “Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.”

• “they also, whom You have given Me”
• And “for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.”

DO YOU SEE THE POINT BEING MADE HERE?

We are talking about the sovereign love of God
And it is a love that was first expressed from the Father to the Son.

The Father loves the Son.

John 3:35 “The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand.”

John 5:20 “For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing; and the Father will show Him greater works than these, so that you will marvel.”

And in that love the Father promised before time began
To give Him a redeemed bride for His enjoyment, honor, and glory.

This is one of the greatest encouragements
To our security and assurance that you can ever grab ahold of.

You are God’s gift to the Son whom He loves.
You are the fulfilment of God’s promise to His Son.

So that in the end we see:
Revelation 5:11-12 “Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.”

DOES THAT HELP IT COME INTO FOCUS?

1. There was a commitment made by God, “who cannot lie” to His Son whom He loves.

2. That commitment was to choose for Him a bride.

3. The Son would then be sent to redeem that bride through His own sacrifice.

4. And that bride would be given to the Son for His glory and honor.

AND PAUL KNOWS THAT
If God made such a promise then God will keep it.

There is no chance that those whom God has sovereignly chosen as a love gift to His Son will not be given to Him.

What God promised long ago will certainly be fulfilled.
God cannot and does not break His commitments.

We lean upon this. We trust in this.

Isaiah 25:1 “O LORD, You are my God; I will exalt You, I will give thanks to Your name; For You have worked wonders, Plans formed long ago, with perfect faithfulness.”

Isaiah 46:10 “Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, ‘My purpose will be established, And I will accomplish all My good pleasure’;”

Does that help you recognize the source of Paul’s confidence?

• He is going out into this world of hostility.
• He is going out as a sheep among wolves.
• He is going out into a world that hates and crucified Christ.
• He is going out in search of those whom God has chosen.

And Paul has every confidence that He will find them.
Paul has every confidence that they will respond to the gospel.

• He believes they will be saved.
• He believes they will be sanctified.
• He believes that God will in fact give them the eternal life He promised.

Because God does not break His promises.

What confidence you can have in that as well!

What confidence that gives me to stand before you week in and week out.

I have zero confidence
• That I am adequate in any way to save any lost person.
• That I am adequate in any way to lead a person to sanctification.
• That I am adequate in any way to preserve you in Christ until you enter the
glorious presence of God in heaven.

And you should have zero confidence in me that I can do that for you.

But, we have every confidence in God.
We know that God promised it and so it will happen.

To read it one more time.
John 6:37-40 “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out. “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. “This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day. “For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.”

There is no doubt.
• Regardless of the opposition.
• Regardless of the seemingly slow-moving process at times.

We are confident in God’s character
And we are confident in God’s commitment to His Son.

There is a third aspect that fuels our confidence.

3) GOD’S COMMUNICATION

(3) “but at the proper time manifested, even His word,”

SO
• The God who can always be trusted; the God who cannot lie;
• Made a promise before time began to His Son.

That is a good thing, but obviously we were not there,
And therefore that promise could not aid our confidence…

UNLESS God chose to reveal to us what that promise and plan was.

There are many times in this life that we are forced to accept
That God works in ways that we don’t understand.

There are many situations in life where we sort of walk in the dark,
At least in regard to the “why’s?” and the “how long’s?”.

WE DON’T ALWAYS KNOW WHAT GOD IS DOING.

We have confidence that He is good.
We have confidence that He is sovereign.
But we don’t really know what He is doing through our hardships.

However, in regard to salvation, sanctification, and the satisfaction of eternal life God has been very open and very clear.

HE HAS MADE HIS WILL KNOWN IN THAT ARENA.

We have no doubt what God’s will is in that area
Because He has revealed it to us in “His word”.

The kids taught us this during the Christmas play this year.

Matthew 13:16-17 “But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. “For truly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.”

1 Peter 1:10-12 “As to this salvation, the prophets who prophesied of the grace that would come to you made careful searches and inquiries, seeking to know what person or time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, in these things which now have been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things into which angels long to look.”

I don’t know
• Why every single thing that happens in my life actually happens.

I can’t typically explain
• Why you go through the things you go through.

Some things are a mystery to us.
BUT THE OVERALL PLAN IS NOT.

God’s general plan is crystal clear because God has made it clear.

Romans 8:28-30 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.”

God’s plan was to choose to redeem a people for His Son.
• They are people “who are called according to His purpose”
• He “foreknew” them before time began.
• And “those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren;”

God chose these people and set their destiny to meet Christ, to trust Christ, to know Christ, and to be sanctified by Christ until they look like Christ.

• And “these whom He predestined He also called” to salvation.
• And “these whom He called He also justified” through the shed blood of His Son.
• And “these whom He justified, He also glorified” that they would have eternal life and forever dwell with Christ where they would honor and worship Him for all eternity.

We don’t always know the little details of the plan, but we know the plan.
AND NOTHING WILL STOP THAT PLAN.

The Father loves the Son and you are a gift to the Son.
• You were chosen by the Father.
• You were redeemed by the Son.
• You are being sanctified into a vessel of glory.
• You will be taken to dwell with Him for all eternity where you will see His glory
and worship Him forever.

That is what is happening in your life.

God has commissioned us to labor in that plan.
• We preach the gospel to call out the chosen.
• We teach the truth to sanctify the redeemed.
• We encourage the redeemed not to quit because eternal life awaits.

AND WE KNOW WE WILL SUCCEED.
• We have been granted the promises of God.
• We have been granted the word of God.

Now NEXT TIME we’ll see that our work is to proclaim that word
As our power for accomplishing these promises.

BUT FOR TONIGHT I simply want you to understand that
There is no chance that your ministry or my ministry can fail.

We don’t get discouraged
• When we go out into this world and it feels like rejection.
• When we try to teach and the sanctification process seems to be taking forever.
• When our ministries feel small and insignificant.

And we certainly don’t abandon the ministry in favor of our own plans.

Instead we place our confidence in the revealed plan of God
• That all who the Father has given are coming.
• That all those who come will be conformed into the image of Christ.
• And those who are conformed will be granted eternal life which will never be ‘
taken from them.

The Father promised that to the Son.
And God doesn’t break His promises, and certainly not to His Son.

DOES THAT HELP YOUR CONFIDENCE IN MINISTRY?
BELOVED YOU CAN’T FAIL.

YES, you can neglect your ministry.
YES, you can disqualify yourself from ministry.
YES, you can discredit your ministry through sinful living.

And those are all things
Paul is going to encourage Titus to warn us about.

But if you will remain faithful to your ministry,
• If you will strive to walk in truth and perform the duty that you have been called to,
• If you will adorn the gospel you preach with the good works God determined…
• YOU CANNOT FAIL.

God will see to it that your ministry succeeds
Because it is fueled by His great promise, not your ability.

SO STAND upon the credentials and authority of God’s word.

RECOGNIZE that you have been called
• To the salvation of the lost,
• To the sanctification of the redeemed,
• To the satisfaction of the saved to obtain eternal life.

AND BE CONFIDENT that God will accomplish His what He has promised.

Ministry will get a whole lot easier when you do that.

The Ministry – part 2 Titus 1:1-4 (1b-2a)

February 3, 2025 By Amy Harris

download here

The Ministry – part 2
Titus 1:1-5 (1b-2a)
February 2, 2025

Last Sunday morning we began our study of the book of Titus.

We are calling the study “Adorning the Gospel”
Because that is what Paul is encouraging Titus to lead the church to do.

Certainly the gospel must be proclaimed,
But the thrust of the letter is that the gospel must also be lived.

Over and over we hear Paul stress the importance
Of God’s people engaging in good deeds
And living lives that did not detract from the gospel, but rather adorned it.

Last Sunday night we began working through the text of Titus.

We considered the fact that we are all ministers of the gospel.
• The ministry is NOT limited to those who are employed to do it.
• The ministry is for all believers.

Every one of us has a ministry
And we will either fulfill or neglect that ministry.

Certainly Paul will talk about elders to Titus and their requirements,
But he doesn’t stop there.

Consider:
Titus 2:3-5 “Older women likewise are to be reverent in their behavior, not malicious gossips nor enslaved to much wine, teaching what is good, so that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored.”

Paul there starts by encouraging “older women”

Did you catch their ministry?
• They are to teach “what is good”
• Specifically to the “young women”
• Namely that they should “love their husbands…love their children…be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind…subject to their own husbands” etc.

That is the basic ministry of an older woman.

That is just one example, but it makes the point.
EVERYONE HAS A MINISTRY.

• There are no jobless Christians in the kingdom.
• There is no retirement from kingdom responsibility.

It is true that your ministry may change or shift over the years,
But there is always a ministry that you are called to fulfill.

WE CAN EVEN RECOGNIZE THAT
There is a sense in which each person’s ministry may be UNIQUE.
• Your ministry may not look exactly like the ministry of the person sitting next to
you.

That is certainly ok too.
• All are not eyes, all are not ears, all are not hands, all are not feet.
• We are differing parts of the same body each with different functions,
responsibilities, even ministries to fulfill.

BUT YOU DO HAVE A MINISTRY.

And yet, at the same time there is also a sense
In which all of our MINISTRIES ARE THE SAME.

While we may fulfill different roles,
WE ARE ALL WORKING TO THE SAME BASIC END.

A father and a mother may fulfill different roles to their children,
But they are both working to raise godly children who fear the Lord and serve Him.

WELL THAT IS HOW THE BOOK OF TITUS BEGINS.

We begin by talking about
That basic ministry that we all have in common.

And we are discussing it by listening to Paul describe his ministry.

We started this text Sunday night as we said there are 6 elements here to Paul’s ministry.

#1 HIS CREDENTIALS
Titus 1:1a

“Paul, a bond-servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ”

You will remember that “bond-servant of God”
• Was a typical title for the prophets of the Old Testament.
• And by declaring himself as such Paul was gaining credibility among the Jews on Crete.
• Paul was one who spoke the words of God from God as a prophet of God.

The title “apostle”
• Certainly gave reference to Paul’s apostolic authority as one sent specifically by Jesus Christ to the Gentiles.
• An “apostle” in this sense was an eye-witness of the resurrected Lord and one commissioned with power to go and literally reveal the words of Christ to the people.

Those titles together spoke of Paul’s authority
As both Old Testament prophet and New Testament apostle.

Those credentials are what Titus would stand on as he labored in Crete.

When people would disagree with what Titus would tell them,
• He would pull this letter from his pocket
• And read that it was a direct command of Paul, the prophet of God and apostle of Jesus.

TITUS WOULD STAND ON PAUL’S AUTHORITY.

We do the same in our ministry when we open the Bible and preach it.

WE STAND UPON THE AUTHORITY OF PAUL.
The Scripture is now our authority
We have the right and the obligation to proclaim it everywhere.

So you saw Paul’s credentials.

#2 HIS CALLING
Titus 1:1b-2a

“for the faith of those chosen of God and the knowledge of the truth which is according to godliness, in the hope of eternal life,”

Here Paul describes the basic goals of his ministry.
This is the objective.
This is the end goal.

And we said he lists three here.
• EVANGELISM
• EDIFICATION
• ENCOURAGEMENT

1) EVANGELISM

“for the faith of those chosen of God”

Paul refers here to the fact that God, in His sovereign prerogative,
Before the foundation of the world, chose those who would be His.

Ephesians 1:4 “just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world…”

Paul would tell Timothy:
2 Timothy 2:10 “For this reason I endure all things for the sake of those who are chosen, so that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus and with it eternal glory.”

It is true that God has chosen who are His from the foundation of the world, but that does not render ministry unnecessary.

FOR EXAMPLE:
It is true that God has chosen those who are His from the foundation of the world,
• BUT in order for them to be His it was still necessary for Christ to come and die on the cross and pay for their sins.

Apart from His righteous life and atoning death
Those whom God has chosen could not be saved.

AND IN THE SAME WAY
It is also necessary that someone preach the gospel to them.

Romans 10:14 “How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher?”

The preaching of the gospel is the means
Through which God awakens the chosen sinner to new life
And grants them the faith to believe in Christ.

PAUL UNDERSTOOD THIS.
He did not know who the chosen were.
• But he knew that by preaching the gospel he would call out the chosen unto faith in Christ.

THIS WAS HIS MINISTRY, JUST AS IT IS OURS.

We engage in evangelism
As though we are out looking for God’s lost children,
Calling all men to salvation so that the chosen may hear and believe.

THAT IS YOUR MINISTRY.
• While the scope of our respective ministries may differ…
• While our audiences may differ…
• The ministry is still the same.

We are called to fulfill our ministry “for the faith of those chosen of God”

2) EDIFICATION

“and the knowledge of the truth which is according to godliness”

We started this one Sunday night, but there is more to discuss here.

Our ministry does not end when a sinner is saved.
• The final goal of our ministry is NOT repentance.
• The final goal of our ministry is NOT even saving faith in Christ.
• The final goal of our ministry is “godliness”.

And we know that “godliness”
Comes about through “knowledge of the truth”

I came across an article about 15 years ago
That I now keep in my desk and read periodically.

It is called “Practical Thought On An Enduring Ministry”
And it was written by John MacArthur.

He gave 10 pieces of advice, and they are all good,
But two of them really resonated with me.

The first was:
“Learn to be patient. Humble patience with people may be the most important virtue you’ll ever exercise. After all, your goal as a pastor should be to bring the convictions of your congregation into line with the full message of God’s Word, and their lives to spiritual maturity. And this is a process of sanctification that takes time (decades not just months or years). It only comes from trusting the Spirit’s power in using His Word as it is faithfully proclaimed week after week, year after year.”
https://www.gty.org/library/Articles/A223/Practical-Thoughts-on-an-Enduring-Ministry-Part-1

It is a great reminder that our ministry to the redeemed
Has REALLY ONE GOAL
That is to conform people into the image of Christ.

Consider the admonitions of Paul throughout the New Testament.

1 Thessalonians 4:3a “For this is the will of God, your sanctification…”

1 Thessalonians 5:23 “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Paul reminded the Romans that this was one of the primary purposes of their election by God.

Romans 8:28-29 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren;”

Paul instructed Timothy that godliness was more important than anything else.

1 Timothy 4:7-8 “But have nothing to do with worldly fables fit only for old women. On the other hand, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness; for bodily discipline is only of little profit, but godliness is profitable for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.”

And Paul encouraged Timothy to watch out for any would-be minister who ignores the importance of godliness.

1 Timothy 6:3-5 “If anyone advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing; but he has a morbid interest in controversial questions and disputes about words, out of which arise envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions, and constant friction between men of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain.”

This was Paul’s ultimate goal
To take those whom God had chosen and saved
And then to drive them on to spiritual maturity and godliness.

AND CONSIDER THE IMPORTANCE
Of achieving such godliness in your life.

Jesus outlined that brothers who fall into sin
• Are to be disciplined by the church and brought to repentance.
• Ultimately if they refuse to conform to godliness they are to be treated as a
gentile and a tax collector.

The writer of Hebrews warned:
Hebrews 12:14 “Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord.”

That is to say, if you aren’t sanctified, you aren’t saved.

Which is what Paul pointed out to the Romans
Romans 8:12-14 “So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh— for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.”

There believers are actually described as
• Those who are “being led by the Spirit of God”
• Which is explained in the previous verse as those who are “by the
Spirit…putting to death the deeds of the body.”

Sanctification and godliness matters.

Peter testified to the coming wrath of God which will fall on this sinful world and then he asked:
2 Peter 3:11 “Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness,”

YOU SEE IT.

Our objective IS NOT to just see someone get saved and then abandon them without any care to their sanctification.

We are called to patiently minister to them
Over and over and over and over for decades
Until Christ is formed in them.

And Paul saw this as part of his ministry.
He wasn’t just an evangelist, he was also a teacher.

BECAUSE THE MEANS
Through which we produce godliness in the lives of our fellow believers
Is “the knowledge of the truth”

How do you take a newly redeemed Christian and lead them on to Christian maturity?

• You faithfully teach them the whole counsel of God.
• You relentlessly saturate their lives with Scripture.
• You chisel away at their old man with the sword of the Spirit until nothing is left but the new man.

THAT IS THE GOAL.

IT IS WORK.

That is what Paul told the Galatians:
Galatians 4:19 “My children, with whom I am again in labor until Christ is formed in you”

We labor to teach God’s word
Because it is what produces godliness in the lives of a believer.

Peter said:
2 Peter 1:2-3 “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.”

• Peter said that God has granted us everything we need pertaining to godliness “through the true knowledge of Him”

In short, redeemed men are taught to be godly.
They are washed with the word.

Colossians 1:28-29 “We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ. For this purpose also I labor, striving according to His power, which mightily works within me.”

Ephesians 4:11-13 “And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.”

You get the point don’t you.

We are called to teach one another over and over
Until our lives are brought into conformity with the word of God
And we look like Christ.

I read that encouragement from John MacArthur regularly.

The second piece of information in that article that I also like is:

“Don’t lose sight of the priority. As a pastor, your duty is to shepherd your flock—this means nourishing them on the Word of God, leading them toward Christ-likeness in tender affection, while protecting them from error. You are a pastor. You are not primarily an event coordinator, a financial analyst, a vision-caster, or even a leader. Your ultimate responsibility is not to innovate or administrate but to disseminate divine truth. Only in that way will you be training up people within your congregation to live and serve effectively and obediently for the honor of God and the impact of the gospel. A church environment dominated by the Word and the Spirit will produce a congregation that will serve alongside you so that you will be able to concentrate on what you are called to do: teaching the Word while humbling yourself before God in dependent prayer.”
https://www.gty.org/library/Print/Articles/A224

That is what Paul was shooting for.
That is what he is modeling for Titus.
That is what we are called to do.

AGAIN,
Your sphere of ministry may be different than mine,
But it is still the same ministry.

You may be focused on leading your kids to Christ
• And then you teach them the word over and over until they look like Christ.

• It may be your Sunday school class…
• It may be your KFC kids…
• It may be friends or coworkers…

But you are called to be teaching someone
To help them be conformed to Christ.

So who are you teaching?
• Who are you discipling?
• Who are you patiently covering with the truth of God to help them become more like Christ?

Hebrews 5:12 “For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you have need again for someone to teach you the elementary principles of the oracles of God, and you have come to need milk and not solid food.”

THAT IS THE MINISTRY.
Evangelism
Edification

There is a third aspect to Paul’s calling
3) ENCOURAGEMENT

(2a) “in the hope of eternal life”

The ministry becomes real clear here
When you throw in this final piece of the puzzle.

It is SALVATION leading to SANCTIFICATION leading to SATISFACTION

Here Paul calls it “the hope of eternal life”

In Romans he calls it “the hope of glory”
Romans 5:1-2 “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God.”

It is what we studied Wednesday night as we talked about
THAT WHICH MAKES OUR SUFFERING WORTH IT.

Romans 8:18 “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”

Paul saying also:
2 Corinthians 4:16-18 “Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”

WHAT WE ARE TALKING ABOUT HERE IS
Producing the belief or hope in the minds and hearts of all believers
That their separation from the world will be totally worth it.

The call of sanctification is a call to separate yourself from the world.
• We call one another not to love the world.
• We call one another to put off sin.
• We call one another not to store up treasure here.
• We call one another to deny self and follow Christ.

And that is a hard call.
Necessary, but hard.

Where does the encouragement to do that come from?
It comes from “the hope of eternal life”

Namely that there is something better waiting for us.

AND IT IS ESSENTIAL that we instill this hope
Into the lives of those who are striving to follow Christ.

I don’t think you can overstate
The importance of hope in the life of a believer.

What is it that allows you to face trials?
What is it that allows you to endure persecution?
What is it that allows you even to return to God after a failure?

IT IS HOPE.

You might also refer to it as assurance.

It is the absolute confidence that your life is hidden in Christ,
Cannot be separated from Him and will one day end with Him in glory.

• This is where a believer finds his courage.
• This is where a believer finds his endurance.
• This is where a believer finds his joy.
• This is where a believer finds his contentment.

And it is the goal of our ministry to impart that to one another.

1 John 5:13 “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.”

When Peter wrote to persecuted believers he said:
1 Peter 1:3-5 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”

The writer of Hebrews wrote to Jews who were being cut off from the synagogue:
Hebrews 6:17-20 “In the same way God, desiring even more to show to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of His purpose, interposed with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us. This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil, where Jesus has entered as a forerunner for us, having become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.”

Paul wrote to believers who faced suffering for Christ:
Romans 8:24 “For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees?”

He also wrote to Timothy when Timothy wanted to quit:
2 Timothy 1:12 “For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day.”

And again:
2 Timothy 4:6-8 “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.”

That is Paul actually speaking of facing his impending death,
But he has nothing but anticipation for what is coming.

This is why we are so adamant about
• Doctrines like security of the believer.
• Doctrines like the sufficiency of Jesus’ atoning work.

WE DO NOT bring a new believer into the church,
Call them to sanctification, and then say,
“Now you better not slip up or you’re out of here!”

How can you ask someone like that to risk their life for the gospel?

How can you expect someone to go on the mission field like Christ and Meegan have done and fact unknown threats?

If there is no confidence that their eternity is secure?

A believer with no hope is paralyzed.
A believer with no security has no confidence for obedience.

Why would a believer let go of this world if you cannot assure him that he is gaining the next one?

WOULD WE DARE SAY;
Give up this world, deny yourself, lose it all for Christ, and who knows, if you do it well enough there might even be a reward for you?

NO!, that is not what we preach.

We preach “the hope of eternal life”

• Hope is what drives a believer to obedience, for the reward is coming.
• Hope is what drives a believer to endurance, for the reward is coming.
• Hope is what drives a believer to forsake the world, for the reward is coming.
• Hope is what drives a believer to long for Christ’s appearing.
• Hope is what drives a believer to fix their eyes on things above.

It is almost impossible to lead a believer to an obedient life for Christ
If they do not have the hope of eternal life.

We tell them what Jesus said:
John 3:14-16 “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”

John 5:24 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.”

John 6:40 “For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.”

John 10:27-28 “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.”

We remind them of Jesus’ promise:
John 14:2-3 “In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. “If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.”

That message is not simply an evangelistic one,
That message is for the redeemed.

Our ministry must not stop with the message of sanctification,
We must press on to make sure those we teach know the reward.

We tell sinners to believe in Christ.
We push one another to godliness.
But we also remind one another that our toil in the Lord is not in vain.

We remind one another that it will be worth it all.

THAT WAS PAUL’S MINISTRY CALLING.

And by example he was showing Titus that this would be his ministry.

And through this letter that has been preserved for us,
We are taught that this is our ministry as well.

THIS IS OUR CALLING.

EVANGELISM – EDIFICATION – ENCOURAGEMENT

We go to men,
• Standing on the authority of the word of God which came to us through this
apostle.
• And we call those men to faith in Christ with full assurance that those who are
chosen will come.

We then take those who have believed
• And we wash them relentlessly with the Scriptures until they look like Christ.

And as we do,
• We remind them of the hope of eternal life which will make their separation
from the world totally worth it.

Your ministry may have varying specifics
Regarding numbers and ages and location and what not,
But regardless of you minister to, or where you minister,
THIS IS YOUR MINISTRY.

THIS IS MY MINISTRY.

We are called
“for the faith of those chosen of God and the knowledge of the truth which is according to godliness, in the hope of eternal life…”

ARE YOU DOING THAT?

IF NOT, LET ME ENCOURAGE YOU A LITTLE THIS MORNING.

No one is asking you to go to China this weekend
Or to get a microphone and start street preaching.

I believe in starting simple.

Look at those 3

• EVANGELISM
• EDIFICATION
• ENCOURAGEMENT

Make it your goal to do one of each of those this week.
Pray and ask God for the opportunity and for help.

MAKE IT YOUR AMBITION
1. To share the gospel with 1 person this week.
2. To teach one person something that will aid in their sanctification.
3. To encourage one believer to endure because of the hope of eternal life.

Have a conversation, mail a card, even take advantage of social media,
But take a step towards fulfilling your ministry this week.

And as you grow ask God to grow your ministry
And to grow your opportunity for those things.

You are in the ministry, don’t neglect it, seek to fulfill it.

Titus 3:8 “This is a trustworthy statement; and concerning these things I want you to speak confidently, so that those who have believed God will be careful to engage in good deeds. These things are good and profitable for men.”

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Leadership Matters – part 1 (Titus 1:5-9 (5))

The Ministry – part 5 (Titus 1:1-4 (3c-4))

The Ministry – part 4 (Titus 1:1-4 (3b))

The Ministry – part 3 Titus 1:1-4 (2b-3a)

The Ministry – part 2 Titus 1:1-4 (1b-2a)

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