If you would, go ahead and take your Bibles and turn with me to the NT book of Titus. For the next few weeks, we are taking a break from the book of Acts. We will return to that book and that series at the end of the summer. 

But today, we are beginning a new series. This series will be team-taught by myself and the other elders here at VBVF. My job is to introduce this book and cover the first four verses that the Apostle Paul wrote. 

Titus is, just so you know, a short, pithy, potent, preachy book. It’s the kind of book that a preacher, like myself, can really sink his teeth into. The four main characters of this book are (1) Paul, the author, (2) Titus, his young, impressionable leader who Paul is coaching up, (3) The churches in Crete (more on that later), and (4) God. 

The tone of this book is pastoral and authoritative. Paul is like Bill Belichick in this book, and Titus is his Tom Brady. And Paul is coaching him up. And as we listen in on Paul’s conversation with Titus, we’re going to get coached up too. We’re going to learn how a church should operate, how leaders should operate, and how a life transformed by Jesus Christ should evidence that transformation before the watching world.

The title for this series through Titus is “Framework for a Healthy Church.”

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Let’s get started with some introductory matters. First this…

1) Who wrote Titus, and to whom was it written? 

The answers to those questions are found in verses 1–4. The answer to the first question is as follows:

Authors: The Apostle Paul and the Holy Spirit (Titus 1:1; 2 Tim 3:16–17)

Paul says, in verse 1. 

Titus 1:1 Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, 

That’s a great way to self-identify here. Paul says, “I’m a servant. But I’m also an apostle. I’ve got authority, yes, but my authority comes only from Jesus… and by the way, I’m a slave.”

Now, we know, because we are Bible-believing, evangelical Christians, that Paul is not the only author of the Scriptures. There is both a human and a divine component to Scripture. The human author is Paul. And we will say from time to time through our study of Titus that “Paul wrote this” or “Paul wrote that.” Those statements are true. And there are elements, on a human level, of Paul’s personality, writing style, vocabulary, etcetera in the text. 

But keep in mind that the Holy Spirit is always a co-author of the Scriptures. That’s true of Titus. And that’s true of all of the Holy Scripture that you hold in your hands. 

In terms of the recipient or recipients of this book, we see that in verse 4. 

4 To Titus, my true child in a common faith

So Titus is the clear recipient of this letter. But it’s not quite that simple. Yes, Paul wrote this book to Titus. Titus was a young leader in the church and one of Paul’s understudies. But it’s not as if Titus was supposed to hoard this letter for himself. 

Paul actually wrote this letter with the intent that Titus would read it out loud to the church body. We know that from the way that Paul uses pronouns at the end of this book (the same is true with 1 and 2 Timothy).

Paul says in Titus 3:15,

3:15 Grace be with you all.

The “you” in that verse is plural, and so is the “all.” Paul is saying, “Grace be with y’all.” Who’s the y’all? It’s the churches and the people listening in on this conversation between Paul and his understudy. And it was understood that Titus would read this letter aloud to them. They need coaching from the Apostle Paul too! 

And let me add this. One of the implications of the dual-authorship of Scripture is that the audience of the letter is more than just the original, historical recipient(s) of that ancient document. Yes, there is an immediate context within which Paul wrote. There was a historical situation that he wanted to address two-thousand years ago. And there was an actual historical person, Titus, whom he was addressing. 

But since we believe in the dual-authorship of Scripture, we know that the Holy Spirit has preserved this letter in such a way that it would address a broader context including the church here today, twenty centuries later. So we should think of the recipients of this book as Titus, the churches where Titus served on Crete, and also all of God’s people throughout church history including us here in San Antonio, Texas.

Recipients: Titus and all of God’s people (Titus 1:4; 2 Tim 3:16–17)

Just as a reminder, 2 Timothy suggests as much when it says, 

2 Timothy 3:16–17 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. 

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Here’s a second question we want to answer. 

2) What is Titus?

The answer to this question, very simply put, is that Titus is Scripture. It is part of our Christian Bible. More particularly it is a letter. We use the term “epistle” sometimes, but that simply means a letter. And the fact that this book of the Bible is a letter from Paul to Titus is clearly presented in the actual writing. This epistle has an author, a recipient, and a greeting at the beginning (1:1–4), and it has final instructions and greetings at the end (3:12–15). 

So, this is a letter. And it is…

One of Paul’s 13 letters canonized as Christian Scripture (2 Pet 3:15–16)

Paul wrote thirteen books of the NT. And Titus is probably the twelfth of those thirteen letters (2 Timothy is the thirteenth). 

Canonization is an important concept. The early church affirmed Paul’s writing as Scripture as well as Peter’s and the other books of the Old and New Testament in the first few centuries after Christ. These Scriptures are self-authenticating. They don’t have authority because the church acknowledged them. Instead, they are inherently authoritative, and the church recognized them as such.

So Titus is one of Paul’s thirteen letters. Also it is…

One of the 66 books of the Bible inspired by the Holy Spirit (2 Tim 3:16–17; 2 Pet 1:21)

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Here’s a harder question.

3) When was Titus written?

It’s not possible to be exact about this. But the best historical reconstruction for the date of this work is A.D. 64 or thereabouts. 

Approximately A.D. 62–64 before Paul’s final imprisonment and death in A.D. 67 

The book of Acts ends with Paul in prison in Rome. More than likely, Paul was released from prison around A.D. 62. And after that, he travelled to cities both east and west of Rome. It was during this time that he sent the epistle of Titus to Titus, and the epistle of 1 Timothy to Timothy.

But after all that, Paul was imprisoned in Rome again. And this time was the last time for him. Because he was executed by the Roman Emperor Nero around A.D. 67. It was during that last imprisonment and shortly before his death, that he wrote the last of his letters, 2 Timothy. 

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Here’s a fourth question for us.

4) Where did Paul send the book of Titus, and where was Paul when he wrote it?

The answer to both of these questions is clearly stated in the text. 

Titus was in Crete when Paul wrote this letter to him (Titus 1:5)

Titus 1:5 says, 

5 This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into order

You might say, “What does that mean? … ‘put what remained into order’… what’s that about?” Come back next week and we’ll tell you. What this verse indicates is that both Paul and Titus were in Crete for some time. And then Paul left him there to move on to another location.

If you look towards the end of this letter, you can see where Paul was when he wrote this book. It says in Titus 3:12.

12 When I send Artemas or Tychicus to you, do your best to come to me at Nicopolis, for I have decided to spend the winter there. 

Paul wrote from the city of Nicopolis (Titus 3:12)

Let me show you where these places are found on the map. 

Major first century sites on the Mediterranean

You can see Rome and Jerusalem on opposite ends of this map and opposite ends of the Mediterranean Sea. You can see Antioch as well. Antioch was Paul’s sending church. And Crete is that island right in the middle of those locales. 

In fact, Paul stopped at Crete on his way to Jerusalem in Acts 27 when he was sent to Rome as a prisoner. Later, after Paul was released from prison, he travelled to Crete with Titus and left him there. Paul continued all the way to Nicopolis, just northwest of Crete in what is today, Greece. And that’s where Paul wrote to Titus. 

Crete, just so you know was famous for its depravity. Cretans were well-known for their sexual immorality and violence. Many Cretans were hired as mercenaries for other countries. They were guns-for-hire to the highest bidder. 

Also they were infamous for being deceitful and gluttonous. The ancient Greek word κρητίζω (kretízō) literally meant “to act like a Cretan.” It was derived from Κρής (Krēs), meaning “a Cretan” (a person from the island of Crete). In ancient usage, κρητίζω came to mean “to lie or be deceitful,” because of the stereotype that Cretans were untrustworthy. Paul confirms this stereotype by quoting a famous Cretan proverb, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons” (1:12). Paul says shockingly that this testimony is true (1:13)! When it came to sin, Paul didn’t care about cultural sensitivity or cultural appropriation. 

And Paul basically tells Titus to stay in Crete and fix all the churches there. Not an easy job for a young leader like Titus! But Paul had a lot of confidence in him. 

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And that leads to a fifth question. 

5) Why did Paul write Titus?

I’ll give you three reasons why. These are the main themes of the book. First of all, Paul wanted to…

To strengthen the churches with good leaders 

Titus is similar to 1 and 2 Timothy (the other so-called pastoral epistles), but it’s also different. 1 and 2 Timothy are written to Timothy while he’s leading the church in one locale, namely Ephesus. Titus, on the other hand, was kind of a roving missionary on the island of Crete. And there were several churches that he was overseeing. 

So, Paul tells Titus in 1:5 to appoint elders in every town. 

5 This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into order, and appoint elders in every town as I directed you.

And after that, Paul details the qualifications for elders that parallel what he told Timothy in 1 Timothy 3. So Paul wrote this book to strengthen the churches with good leaders. That’s something that the book of Titus has been doing for churches for two-thousand years. 

The title of our series through Titus is “Framework for a Healthy Church.” A healthy church requires many things, but one of the most important things it requires is good leadership. As the leaders of the church go, so goes the church. It’s not an accident that as Paul is coaching up Titus to strengthen the churches, he begins by telling Titus to find principled and upstanding elders and put them over the churches. If you want a healthy church, you’ve got to have that! More on that next week!

But this book is not just about church leadership. Paul also wanted…

To encourage godliness among God’s people

One of the key arguments of this book is that the proof is in the pudding. The proof (of your commitment to God) is in the pudding (of your godliness). And Crete was a tough place to be a godly Christian. But Paul is not letting Titus or these churches off the hook. He’s not allowing them to live compromised lives. He wants them to be godly. 

Paul says this in Titus 2:11… I can’t wait to get to this passage: 

11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, 12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age. 

God wants godliness among his people. And a life that has been filled with the Holy Spirit will be transformed by the Holy Spirit. Full-stop! 

And there’s a third theme in this book as well. And it’s intimately connected to the other two. Paul wrote this book to Titus… 

To reinforce sound doctrine

 Now Paul does that in most of his letters. But for whatever reason, his focus upon doctrine is particularly acute in this book, especially Paul’s focus on the nature of God and the deity of Christ Jesus. That’s something that shines forth even in the first four verses of introduction. 

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So let’s turn our attention now to those four verses. And let’s see how Paul opens this book. 

In the next few minutes I want to show you five things: (1) God’s servant (1:1a), (2) God’s promise (1:2), (3) God’s gospel (1:3), (4) God’s family (1:4a) and (5) God’s grace and peace (1:4b). 

Let’s start with #1. 

1) God’s servant (1:1a)

Paul writes, 

1 Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, 

Paul says, “I’m a servant. But I’m also an apostle.” Now the first of those statements is true of all of us. We are all “slaves of Christ” (1 Cor 7:22; Eph 6:6). He bought us with his blood; we belong to him. And if the Apostle Paul called himself a servant/slave of Jesus, how much more should we see ourselves that way! 

Now just to be clear, the first of those two terms applies to us. We are servants of Christ Jesus. But we are not apostles. Not in the way that Paul means it here. Apostles are those who saw Christ and were commissioned by Christ. They wrote Scripture. They passed down the apostolic doctrines for us to embrace. So this opening statement is equal parts authoritative and humble. It’s equal parts commanding (I’m an apostle) and self-abnegating (I’m a servant). 

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Now this is where this letter gets interesting. This is where Titus is quite different from some of Paul’s other letters. Because the first few words have parallels in other letters. Paul calls himself a servant and an apostle elsewhere. But the amount of content between the addressor (Paul) and the addressee (Titus) in this letter is considerable. 

Here’s what I mean. Paul mentions Titus by name in verse 4. But in verses 1b–3, Paul goes on this elaborate statement about his calling and the gospel that he was entrusted with. And Paul just stacks clause after clause together in a way that would make your English teacher in high school pull her hair out. 

But in that densely packed section of text, there is gold to mine. There are statements about God and his goodness that we can ruminate on. 

For example, write this down as #2. After a description of God’s servant, we get a description of…

2) God’s promise (1:1b–2)

Paul writes, 

1b … for the sake of the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth, which accords with godliness, 2 in hope of eternal life, which God, who never lies, promised before the ages began

Wow, that’s not your typical statement about God. What Paul is saying here is that he was called as a servant and as an apostle for the sake of Christians who were promised a promise. And that promise was promised before time began. Before the world was even created, God had a plan. And his plan involved election. It involved an eternal hope. It involved the gospel and godliness and knowledge of the truth. 

And that promise that God promised, which we call the gospel, is so rock solid… it’s so unchanging and unchangeable, that we can count on it even more than the air we breathe. It is more trustworthy and reliable than the earth beneath our feet. Why? Because God promised it, and God never lies. 

By the way, there are some things that God cannot do. Did you know that? We believe in omnipotence, and the Bible affirms that. But built into that biblical presentation of God’s omnipotence is an understanding that there are things God can’t do. He can’t sin. He can’t deny himself. He can’t lie. He can’t break his promises. It’s not in his nature. It’s not possible for him. 

Can God create a rock so big he can’t move it? I don’t know, and I don’t care. That’s a ridiculous and unimportant question. People ask that question to get you to say that there are things that God can’t do. But I concede the point. The Bible already says that God can’t do stuff. This is one of them. He can’t lie. And he can’t break his promise. 

And what is his promise? Let’s be crystal clear about this. What is the promise that was promised before the ages began? The hope of eternal life? The promise is this—that Jesus Christ, God’s Son, would die on the cross as payment for our sin. And after his resurrection, he would ascend to God the Father and intercede on our behalf. So those who put their faith in Jesus have salvation. Those who put their faith in Jesus have their sins forgiven. Those who put their faith in Jesus have eternal life! And after death, we will enter into the presence of God forever and never have to deal with sin and death again. 

This is the promise of eternal life. This is the gospel that we believe and embrace. God promised it. God is unable to lie. His promises are true. Believe them. Hold fast to them.

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Notice also, in verse 3, 

3) God’s gospel (1:3)

Paul writes, 

3 and at the proper time manifested in his word through the preaching with which I have been entrusted by the command of God our Savior; 

The promise of God predates time and space. God promised it before the ages began. But at the proper time, it was manifested in our world. It was manifested in his word (the logos) and through Paul’s preaching. 

When Jesus called Paul on that road to Damascus, he called him to preach. He entrusted him with the gospel and commanded him to preach it (see Acts 9:15; Acts 22:21; 26:16–18; Gal 1:15–16). Jesus told Ananias in Acts 9 that “he [Paul] is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel.” This was Paul’s calling. This was God’s command to Paul. This is what God entrusted to him. 

And notice too the ambiguity with which Paul ends this sentence. 

 3 … through the preaching with which I have been entrusted by the command of God our Savior;

I say ambiguity because Paul doesn’t specify here whether he’s referring to God the Father or God the Son at the end of verse 3. Which is it? Is Paul referencing “God [the Father] our Savior” or “God [the Son] our Savior”? Or maybe both? 

Listen, this is a bit technical. But stay with me. I’m inclined to say God the Son for two reasons. First of all, it was God the Son who explicitly appeared to Paul on the Road to Damascus in Acts 9 and called him to preach. Secondly, Paul calls him “God our Savior.” That reference to a Savior is more particularly suited for God the Son in the context than God the Father. 

And just to add a little evidence to that supposition, look at verse 4 where Paul says, 

4 … Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior. 

So in the very next verse, Paul calls Jesus “our Savior.” I think that’s supporting evidence that the reference to God our Savior in verse 3 is a reference to Jesus. 

Some of you might ask, “Why are you making such a big deal about this, Pastor Tony? We believe in God the Son and God the Father. We believe in the deity of Christ.” Well there are some theologians who suggest that the Pauline Epistles never explicitly confirm the deity of Christ. They say that that’s more a Johannine position than a Pauline position. To that, I reply, “Not so fast! Look at the book of Titus. Paul does some serious theologizing for us in this little book. And at least part of that “theologizing” is an affirmation of Christ’s deity.”

The best evidence of that in this book is Titus 2:13. Paul says there that we are, 

13 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the deity of Christ affirmed clearly in a Pauline Epistle. And what Paul makes explicit in Titus 2:13 is at least hinted at in the introduction, in Titus 1:3. 

3 and at the proper time manifested in his word through the preaching with which I have been entrusted by the command of God our Savior [i.e., “Jesus”]; 

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Look at verse 4.

4 To Titus, my true child in a common faith 

Okay, now finally Paul addresses his letter to the recipient. You can barely stop for a breath in verses 1–3. But now we see, “O, this is addressed to Titus. Good. I was wondering about that.”  

Write this down as #4 in your notes. Paul now gives us a statement about…

4) God’s family (1:4a)

4 To Titus, my true child in a common faith: 

Why does Paul say, “my true child?” What in the world does that mean? Just so you know, Titus was not Paul’s biological son. Titus was a Gentile (Gal 2:3). And Paul was a Jew. In fact, Paul was the Michael Jordan of Judaism… a Pharisee from the tribe of Benjamin (Phil 3:4–6). So how could Paul—a Jew—call Titus—a Gentile—his “true child”?  

Well, the key to understanding that statement is found in the prepositional phrase. Titus was Paul’s “true child”… “in a common faith.” In other words, Paul led Titus to Christ. Paul was his spiritual father. Paul even talks at one time about being a spiritual mother to others whom he breastfeeds like his own young children (see 1 Thes 2:7). That’s a striking metaphor!

No, Paul was not Titus’s biological father (or his biological mother for that matter). He was his spiritual father. He led him to Christ, and he paternally mentored him throughout his life. 

You see, we who are Christians are family in a common faith. And our Christian kinship supersedes and transcends biological kinship. Because we’re God’s family. And church is a family dinner, not a restaurant. We are committed to one another and we are linked to one another in a way that goes beyond biological connection. 

Now let me just ask an applicational question of you as we consider this verse. Paul had a “true child” in the faith—Titus. Who’s your “child” in the faith? Who have you led to Christ? Who are you mentoring? Who are you discipling? Who are you coaching up like Paul coached up Titus?   

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Finally, look at the end of verse 4.

4 To Titus, my true child in a common faith: Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior. 

Write this down as #5 in your notes. In this introduction, we see (1) God’s servant (1:1a), (2) God’s promise (1:2), (3) God’s gospel (1:3), (4) God’s family (1:4a) and finally…

5) God’s grace and peace (1:4b)

What is grace? Grace is God’s undeserved favor. How did we receive it? As a gift from God. What is peace? Peace in this context means “peace with God.” How do we have peace with God? We have peace with God as a result of having our sins removed by the blood of Jesus. 

Formerly, we were enemies of God. There was separation due to our unholiness. The wrath of God abided over us. But now, because of what Christ has done, we have peace with God. We are credited with a righteousness that is not our own. And so now, we have peace “from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.”  

By the way, the words “grace” and “peace” are repeatedly paired together in the NT. In all thirteen of Paul’s letters these words are used in the opening introduction. And they are beautiful words: χάρις and εἰρήνη in Greek. But you should note that it’s always in that sequence in the NT. It’s always “grace” and then “peace.” It’s never “peace” and then “grace.” Why is that?

I don’t know why exactly. Maybe it’s just part of the figure of speech. But I might just argue for something chronological that’s intrinsic to that statement. In other words, there’s no such thing as peace, not really, before or without God’s grace. In other words, first comes God’s grace, and then what follows is God’s peace. 

There’s an old adage that goes like this, “If you want to give someone peace, start by giving them grace.” Well, that’s exactly what God did. God offers us peace. But there’s no such thing as peace without the offer of God’s grace first. In fact, without God’s grace, we have no peace. We have no peace with God, and we have no peace inside of ourselves. 

And that’s why Paul can say to Titus, as one Christian to another… as mentor to mentee… 

4 … Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior. 

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I’ll close with this. I’ve tried to emphasize, in this message, the focus upon “God” in Paul’s introduction to Titus. God is mentioned four times in the first four verses, and that doesn’t even count the references to Christ Jesus our Savior. It is an understatement to say that Paul’s first four verses in this book are God-centered not man-centered.   

And it harks back to something that Moses said in the OT. In the book of Deuteronomy, there’s a fascinating statement about God. Moses, writing on behalf of the Lord, says, “Did any people ever hear the voice of a god speaking out of the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and still live? Or has any god ever attempted to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs, by wonders, and by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and by great deeds of terror, all of which the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes?” (Deut 4:33–34). 

Those rhetorical questions are striking. The answer, of course, is no! No god ever did that or ever could do that. And that’s why Moses follows by writing, “To you it was shown, that you might know that the Lord is God; there is no other besides him” (Deut 4:35).  

In the book of Titus, Paul captures the same kind of tone as Moses did in Deuteronomy. Paul communicates the originality and the exclusivity of the God of the Israelites, with the added gospel truth that this God, Yahweh, sent his son to die on the cross to save us from our sins. Did any other “god” do that for his people? No! Can any other “god” do that? No! He’s “God our Savior.” And there is “no other besides him.”