Titus 1:1-16

[Jim Watt]

“*TWO ARE BETTER THAN ONE” MINISTRIES*

*Jim & Marie Watt*

*Tel: 253-517-9195 - Email: jmbetter at gmail.com*

*Web: www.2rbetter.org*

*March 30, 2010
<http://www.2rbetter.org/>*



    *TITUS SUMMARY: SCRIPTURAL ELDERS ENSURE GOSPEL FREEDOM*


 *A. 1:1-4 THE AUTHORITY OF APOSTOLIC TEACHING*

PAUlos, DOUlos [1401] TheOU, aPOsto-los [652] de 'I*e*SOU ChrisTOU,

*Paul, God's bondman, and Jesus Christ's apostle,*

kaTA PIstin e-klekT*O*N [1588] TheOU

*according to the faith of God's elect*

kai ePIGn*o*-sin [1922] a-l*e*THEIas [225] t*e*s kat' euSEbei-an [2150]

*and knowledge of truth :according to godliness*

ep' elPIdi [1680] z*o*-*E*s [2222] ai-*o*NIou [166], h*e*n e-p*e*gGEIla-to
[1861],

*2 in hope of eternal life, which God,*

ho a-pseuD*E*S [893], TheOS, pro CHROn*o*n [5550] ai-*o*NI*o*n;

*who lies not, promised before agetimes;*

e-phaNEr*o*-sen [5319] de' kaiROIS [2540] iDIois ton LOgon auTOU

*3 but in his own seasons manifested his :word*

en k*e*RUGma-ti [2782], ho e-piSTEUth*e*n [4100] eG*O*

*in a proclamation, with which I was entrusted*

kat' e-pi-taG*E*N [2003] tou s*o*T*E*ros [4990] huM*O*N TheOU;

*according to the commandment of :God our Savior;*

TIt*o*, gn*e*SI*o* [1103] TEKn*o* [5043] kaTA koiN*E*N [3839] PIstin:

*4 to Titus, my genuine child after a common faith:*

CHAris kai eiR*E*n*e* aPO TheOU paTROS

*Grace and peace from God the Father*

kai ChrisTOU 'I*e*SOU tou s*o*T*E*ros [4990] h*e*M*O*N.

*and Christ Jesus our :Savior.*



 *B. 1:5-16 PURPOSE OF QUALIFIED ELDERS*

*1. 1:5-9 QUALIFICATION AND FUNCTION OF ELDERS*

*a. 1:5-6 ELDERS*

TOUtou CHArin [5484] aPEleiPON [2641] se en KR*E*t*e*,

*For this cause I left you in Crete, *

HIna ta LEIpon-ta [3007] e-pi-di-orTH*O*s*e* [1930],

*that you should set in order the things wanting,*

kai ka-taST*E*s*e*s [2525] kaTA POlin pres-buTErous [4245], h*o*s eG*O* soi
di-e-taXAm*e*n [1299];

*and appoint elders in every city, as I gave you charge;*

EI tis esTIN eNEGkl*e*-tos [410], miAS gu-naiKOS [1135] aN*E*R [435],

*6 if any is blameless, husband of one wife,*

TEKna [5043] Ech*o*n piSTA [4103] m*e* en ka-t*e*-goRIa [2724] a-s*o*TIas
[810] *e* a-nuPOtak-ta [506].

*having believing children not accused of riot or unruly.*


 *b. 1:7-9 OVERSEERS*

dei gar ton ePIsko-pon [1985] eNEGkl*e*ton [410] EInai, h*o*s TheOU
oi-koNOmon [3623];

*For the overseer must be blameless, as God's steward;*

m*e* auTHAd*e* [829], m*e* orGIlon [3711],

*not self-willed, not soon angry,*

m*e* PAroi-non [3943], m*e* PL*E*Kt*e*n [4131], m*e* ais-chro-kerD*E* [146];

*no brawler, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre;*

alLA phiLOxenon [5382], phiLAga-thon [5358],

*8 but a lover of strangers, lover of good,*

S*O*phro-na [4998], DIkai-on [1342], HOsi-on [3741], eg-kraT*E* [1468];

*sober-minded, just, holy, self-controlled;*

an-teCHOme-non [472] tou kaTA t*e*n di-daCH*E*N [1322] piSTOU LOgou,

*9 holding to the faithful word which is according to the teaching,*

HIna du-naTOS *e* kai pa-ra-kaLEIN [3870] en t*e* di-da-skaLIa [1319]
t*e*hu-gi-aiNOUs
*e* [5198],

*that he be able both to exhort in the :sound teaching,*

kia tous an-tiLEgon-tas [483] eLEGchein [1651].

*and to convict the gainsayers.*


 *2. 1:10-16 REPROOF OF JUDAIZERS COMMANDED*

*a. 1:10-11 UNRULY TALKERS*

EiSIN gar polLOI a-nuPOtak-toi [506], ma-tai-oLOgoi [3151] kai phre-naPAtai
[5423],

*For many are unruly, vain talkers and deceivers,*

MAli-sta [3122] hoi ek pe-ri-toM*E*S [4061],

*specially they of the circumcision,*

hous dei e-pi-stoMIzein [1993]; HOIti-nes HOlous OIkous a-naTREpou-sin [396]
,

*11 whose mouths must be stopped; the which overthrow whole houses,*

diDAskon-tes [1321] ha m*e* dei, aiSCHROU [150] KERdous [2771] CHArin [5484]
.

*teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's sake.*


 *b. 1:12 CRETANS*

EI-PEN tis ex auT*O*N, Idi-os auT*O*N proPH*E*t*e*s [4396],

*One of them, a prophet of their own, said,*

KR*E*tes aEI PSEUstai [5583], kaKA [2556] th*e*RIa [2342], gaSTEres [1064]arGAI
[692].

*Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, idle bellies.*


 *c. 1:13a TESTIMONY CONFIRMED*

h*e* mar-tuRIa [3141] HAUt*e* esTIN a-l*e*TH*E*S.

*This :testimony is true.*


 *d. 1:13b-14 APPROPRIATE ACTION*

di' h*e*n aiTIan [156] Eleg-che [1651] auTOUS a-poTOm*o*s [664],

*For which cause reprove them sharply, *

HIna hu-giAIn*o*-sin [5198] en t*e* PIstei,

*that they be sound in the faith,*

m*e* proSEchon-tes [4337] 'Iou-da-iKOIS [2451] MUthois [3454],

*14 not giving heed to Jewish fables,*

kai en-toLAIS [1785] anTHR*O*p*o*n a-po-stre-phoMEn*o*n [654] t*e*n aL*E*
thei-an.

*and commandments of men who turn away from the truth.*


 *e. 1:15 THE PURE AND THE DEFILED*

PANta ka-thaRA [2513] tois ka-thaROIS:

*To the pure all things are pure:*

tois de me-mi-amMEnois [3392] kai aPIstois [571] ouDEN ka-thaRON [2513];

*but to the defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure;*

alLA meMIan-tai [3392] auT*O*N kai ho nous [3563] kai h*e* suNEId*e*-sis
[4893].

*but both their :mind and :conscience are defiled.*


 *f. 1:16 PROFESSION VERSUS POSSESSION*

TheON ho-mo-loGOUsin [3670] eiDEnai; tois de ERgois arNOUNtai [720],

*They profess to know God; but by their works they deny him,*

bde-lukTOI [947] ONtes, kai a-peiTHEIS [545],

*being abominable, and disobedient,*

kai pros pan ERgon a-gaTHON aDOki-moi [96].

*and unto every good work disapproved.*



 *NOTE**: *What Paul gives to Titus to form city churches throughout Crete,
is very parallel to what he gave Timothy in the preceding two letters. This
word to Titus is more abbreviated however, and where there are different
points made, they are well worth considering.


 A. 1:1-4 lays out the Qualification and function of elders or overseers
(bishops). There was no distinction between these offices in those days -
all were synonyms for the same person. Man's traditions are like mollusks -
they gather on a ship's hull slowly but surely, and eventually the speed of
the ship is so compromised, that it must be taken into dry dock, scraped and
repainted, and then it returns to its original speed. The church is like a
ship. Slowly man's traditions gather, contrary to the clear teaching of
God's Word. Sadly the church fails to go into dry dock like a ship, and
becomes more and more ineffective. Perhaps the greatest departure is leaving
the “city church concept”, and forming denominations and fellowships, that
make it almost impossible for local churches in the city to move into the
unity originally practiced in the first century. It is so long since we have
seen a truly functioning city church, that we read the NT in the light of
what we see operating today, and can scarcely see what it really says.
Imagine only having 7 deacons for an entire city church like Jerusalem,
serving all the local churches! Imagine having a city Eldership composed of
but one leading elder in each church of the home, meeting regularly with the
5-fold ministry to solve problems such as in Acts 15; and commission and
send forth missionaries such as in Acts 13:1-3.


 The Reformation of 1517 really didn't make that much of a change.
Justification by faith instead of works for the basic doctrine? Yes - Martin
Luther led in that. Church government in the NT sense? Not really. All of
this might well require the return of our Lord to see such radical
restoration changes back to NT standards.


 It does seem that it is at the time of our Lord's return that Israel will
be born again in a day, according to the last chapters of Zechariah. If this
be true for Israel, it may well be necessary for the church too!


 Revival, Renewal, Restoration, Reformation. We speak of these for the
church, and they *do* have an effect. But it is often like revival in Israel
in centuries of old. Of the 20 Kings of Judah following the disruption of
Solomon's Kingdom into Israel to the North with 10 tribes, and Judah and
Jerusalem with Benjamin and the Levites - only 9 of these kings were good.
But only two of these 9, Hezekiah and Josiah were *very good* - *they*removed
*the high places*, a chief concern of God. These high places represent 2
Corinthians 10:3-5, where God desires *every thought* to be brought into
captivity to *His thinking*! *This* today is rarely done. Oswald Chambers
agrees with this conclusion. Rees Howells demonstrates what such a
reformation is like: It involves *complete possession* of the individual by
the Holy Spirit of Christ (chapter 5 of his biography). Chapter 32 tells how
120 corporately, some 30 years later in 1937 entered into this also,
defeated Hitler and Nazism through “Intercession”, and stopped the 1000
years Third Reich to but 12 years! What results - when God's ways are truly
followed!


 2: 1:10-16 - The great danger of the Judaizers: Galatians and Acts 15 spell
out this danger. Titus had to face up to this, and *deal* with it
courageously and *sharply*. See verse 1:16. Their state is seemingly
hopeless. “Political Correctness” will *never* “cut the mustard”.


 May God raise up Timothy's and Titus's who will hear the words of Paul and
follow through. Ezra and Nehemiah were of this caliber in their day. How the
Religious Modernists of today *hate* these two for causing Israel to make
serious and drastic adjustments to return to God's standards! - J.A.W.



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