Bible Study Titus Part 2 ( Titus 1:10-16 )

For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

picture from biblepic.com

We are now ready to enter Part 2 of our Bible study in the book of Titus. Today we are going to be discussing Titus 1:10 -16. Some of these verses in today's study are somewhat hard to understand, but we are confident that God is willing to speak to us through every book of the Bible and every portion of Scripture. So let's begin with verse 10.

Titus 1:10 For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision:

In our previous study, we learned about the character qualities that God requires in Bishops and elders. We learned how the Bishop and elder must be a man who is faithful to his wife in marriage and faithful to his family, he must not be a drunkard or violent, and he must be pure in all areas of his life.

Now in verse 10 we read that there are many people who deceive others, people who speak untruth and whose conversation is typically useless and does not center on the things of the Lord. We are warned that these kinds of people are those of the "circumcision".  There were people in Biblical times those who taught that the Gentiles should follow the Jewish customs in order to please God.  We know that what God requires of us is that we repent of our sins and come to Jesus and accept Him as our personal Lord and Savior. Jesus is the One who took our sin upon Himself there on the cross, and He suffered and died in our place. What we must do is to receive Him as Savior and make Him the Lord of our lives. When we give our hearts and life to Him, He becomes our Lord and Savior and therefore we surrender our will to His will and we choose to live according to His ways. We no longer have any desire to live the sinful life of pleasures and worldliness.

Verse 11 - Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's sake.

The mouth of those who speak lies must be stopped. That is why it is so important that our local church pastor regularly inform the congregation he serves of the false teachers that we all encounter through various forms of media, on the internet, radio and TV. The health and wealth preachers of our day, those who distort the Bible or leave out passages of the Bible, passages of the Bible that warn us of the sin of homosexuality and immorality. Please everyone who is reading this, be warned that the Bible is very clear that homosexuality and any sexual activity outside of marriage is a sin against God and will be punished by God Himself. God created marriage - one man and one woman married for life, that is God's original plan. God in His great mercy and compassion has made a way of escape for that man or woman who finds himself/herself suddenly trapped in a marriage where their spouse has broken the marriage covenant and has went outside the marriage for sexual experiences. In a case such as this God does allow for divorce.
Many of the false teachers are very hungry for money and request you give them money while they live in luxury and riches and boost their own egos. Sooner or later God brings them down to destruction.

Verse 12 - One of themselves, even a prophet of their own, said, the Cretians are alway liars, evil beasts, slow bellies.
These people are lazy and live like animals, living a lie. They say they are Christian but deny Christ by their lives and actions.


Verse 13 - This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith;
We need to focus our attention on becoming sound in faith. How does one do this you ask? By spending time with the Lord in Bible reading and prayer. This needs to be a regular routine, something that you do every day. God will speak to you as you read the Bible. Take time to pray and listen to what He is telling you, be willing to do what He tells you. 
Rebuke those who are leading others astray. Stand up for truth and righteousness. Take a stand for the Lord even if it costs you something. Take a stand for the Lord at work or school, in your family and with your friends. The Lord rewards those who are faithful to Him.




Verse 14 -  Not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth.

As you take a step of faith and be that witness for the Lord, and take a stand for righteousness, you will be a help to those around you. It will become clear who is truly on the Lord's side and who is in it for themselves. Others will become more bold to take a stand for Jesus, and they too will oppose the sin and darkness that is so prevalent. In this way the Lord will be glorified and honored. You will be glorifying the Lord in your work or school, and in your family and among friends.

Verse 15 -  Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.
Here is a very important verse. When our heart has been cleansed by the blood of the Lord Jesus, we can live lives of purity. The opposite is also true - If a person has not been cleansed by the blood of the Lord Jesus, he or she is living in darkness and will normally gravitate to the dark side, and to live for the devil. Such a person's heart is filled with lust and greed. Such men will look at every woman with lust in their hearts, imagining the unthinkable. Their minds are filled with all sexual perversions. As the verse says "their mind and conscience is defiled". Women who live with these  defiled hearts lure men into immoral relationships and try to be sexy in their revealing clothing and dress showing their breasts with no shame. These people know no other way to live and believe that the life they are living is normal and yet if they would speak honestly, they would tell you that deep inside they are in turmoil, they are not happy and they are unfulfilled. Their heart is empty as they seek for that next thrill. If you are reading this and it describes you or someone you love, please turn your heart over to the Lord Jesus. Seek Him sincerely, repent of your sin, believe that Jesus is the only Savior and that He died for you. Ask Jesus to save you today. For further information on how to be saved please go to this link How to be saved
also I wrote a blog post on Repentance and I highly recommend you check it out.
Also for prayer for healing from your broken heart please contact the ministry of John Mcternan at Luke4.18Heal@gmail.com  and visit his website Jesus Christ Came to Heal the Brokenhearted  where he shares how his own broken heart was healed and there are testimonies of others who have prayed and received healing.

Verse 16 They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.

This verse warns us to beware of those who profess to know the Lord but in their actions they deny Him. Our lives are a living testimony to those around us. If the fruit of our lives does not line up with what the Bible teaches, then it is time to examine our hearts to see if we are really Christians. If you are a Christian then you will be living according to the commandments of God as he has given in the Bible. 
There are people who say they know God, that they are Christians  but the evil things they do show that they don’t accept him. They refuse to obey God and because they are not lead by the Holy Spirit ( who indwells the heart and life of every true believer ) and because the Holy Spirit is not in them, they are not capable of doing anything good.

Galatians 5 clearly describes the fruits of those who know Christ and the fruits of those who do not know Him. In which camp are you?


Those who are saved and know Christ -
Galatians 5:22-25

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.  And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.



Those who are not truly saved - Galatians 5:19 -21

  Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies,  envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Titus 1:10-16

10 For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision:

11 Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's sake.

12 One of themselves, even a prophet of their own, said, the Cretians are alway liars, evil beasts, slow bellies.

13 This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith;

14 Not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth.

15 Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.

16 They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.

Bible Study - Titus 1:1-9

I have wanted to do a study on the book of Titus for some time now. It is a short book - only three chapters but packed with wonderful truths that the Lord would have us know and live by. So my plan here is to go verse by verse and see what it says. Please feel free to leave comments if there is something on your mind - just keeping in mind that I delete comments that are bitter or if a comment is with malice and looking to be argumentative.
So let's begin with Titus chapter 1.
I have posted the verses we are studying at the bottom of the page - Titus 1:1-9

picture from rgbstock.com

Verse 1 - Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God's elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness;
Paul regards himself to be a servant of God. A servant is not above his master. A servant is willing to be obedient to the instructions that his master gives him. So also, we should consider ourselves to be servants of the Lord Jesus and ready to do our Master's will!  God has chosen every person on the planet to be one of His own, but He knows that many will not choose to follow Jesus. To become a part of the family of God we must accept Jesus as our personal Saviour and put all our faith and trust in Him. OnlyJesus can save - no one except Jesus! Jesus is the way, the truth and the life as it says in John 14: 6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Verse 2 - In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;
God's goal for each of us is to have eternal life with Him in heaven. This verse reminds us that God does not lie. He will always keep His promises!! God is faithful to us always. 2 Timothy 2:13 If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.


Verse 3  But hath in due times manifested his word through preaching, which is committed unto me according to the commandment of God our Saviour;
It is so amazing to think that God has entrusted us humans to carry forward His Word to our friends and family and to the coming generations. Yet we always must keep our focus on the message of the cross, focus on the message of the Bible and not on the messenger who is preaching the sermon to us. I have looked up to many preachers in my lifetime already, Some have failed to live up to God's standards but the message of the Bible does not fail us. I would encourage anyone who is looking for some good preaching to google James MacDonald or Levi Lusko, or Dr J Vernon McGee, or John Munroe. These are all good teachers of God's Word. We can learn much from their teachings.

Verse 4 - To Titus, mine own son after the common faith: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ our Saviour.
Paul is writing this book to Titus. He is referring to him as his son. This means that Paul has been instrumental in helping Titus come to faith in the Lord Jesus. Grace, mercy and peace is given to us by God our heavenly Father and our Lord Jesus Christ.

Verse 5 - For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee:

Paul is now getting in the business of the day. He says that he has left Titus in Crete for a purpose. Titus needs to help set things in order in the churches here. There is some work here that needs getting done!  Paul wants Titus to ordain elders in every city. We can also use the word bishop here in place of elder. In verse 7 the word bishop is used. It would appear that Paul had previously given these instructions and now is reminding him to get the job done.


Verse 6  If any be blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of riot or unruly.
Verse 6 begins to tell us what characteristics are required for a man to possess in order for him to qualify to become an elder or bishop. The church that I grew up in did have a bishop. He was the one who would officiate at baptism services and also Communion services. He held a special role in the church. Now a days it is uncommon for a church to have elders or bishops. I don't know why as it seems to be an important role in the church. Where there is no bishop, the role of bishop would fall on the lead pastor or group of pastors in the church.  A bishop needs to be blameless, this means to have no evil behavior in his conduct. There would be nothing you could find in his lifestyle that you could accuse him of. He is living a good, God honoring life in his private and public life - no hidden dark secrets. He is to be the husband of one wife - this means he is faithful to his wife, he must have only one woman in his life and that is his wife. This indicates sexual purity in all it's fullness. The elder or bishop must have faithful children, if a man is not in good relationship with his children, there is something wrong in the family. A father must first lead his own family in the ways of the Lord before God will call him to lead a church. 


Verse 7 - For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre;
 Here we see again that a bishop must be blameless, a repeat of verse 6. So what does it mean to be blameless? We have already pointed out that this means this man would be living a pure God honoring life both in public and in his private life. I looked up the word "blameless" in my dictionary and it means there is no fault in the person. So in the work the bishop is doing there will be only uprightness and he will remember that all he does is done to and for the Lord. Not selfwilled, not soon angry, and not given to wine are self explainitory I think. No striker mean he is not a violent person. He will not physically hurt anyone. Not given to filthy lucre - lucre is money or profits. The bishop is not going to cheat or nor will he be greedy or accept bribes or bets, or gamble etc.


Verse 8 - But a lover of hospitality, a lover of good men, sober, just, holy, temperate;
Basically to be a lover of hospitality means you love people, you enjoy engaging people in deeper conversations and topics over a cup of coffee, you enjoy having people over to your house and try to communicate of the things of the Lord with your guests. As the next part of our verse says, a lover of good men - you love good people.  To be sober means to be sensible and discreet and are able to see the serious side of situations. The word just  means that you are fair, you are going to be fair in dealing with people, not take the side of a person just because he or she is has a likeable character or is beautiful to the eye. You will be fair and kind as you counsel people.  Holy - set apart to the Lord, we are to be pure and holy in all mind, thoughts, attitudes and conduct. Hate the evil and cling to what is good and right in the sight of God.
Temperate - a temperate person is a person who is free from extremes - in food and drink, and also calm and restrained in character. 


Verse 9 - Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.
The elder or bishop  will know the Bible - He will have the Word of God in his heart. He knows the truth of the Word. And since the Holy Word of God is in his heart and mind constantly, he is able to teach and give instruction and encouragement  to anyone who is opposing  the truth of the Bible. He will not hesitate to challenge the one who is speaking  lies or teaching heresy. He can show the the backsliding person the error of his ways and lead him or her back to faith in the Lord. There are many voices out there today who like to contradict Scripture or say that this or that portion should not be in the Bible. God calls the elders and bishops of the church to silence these critics. 


That concludes the first of our studies in the book of Titus. Be blessed as you study the book of Titus with me. 



For further study on this topic please read my blog post Standards for Shepherds  



Titus 1: 1-9 

 Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God's elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness;

2 In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;

3 But hath in due times manifested his word through preaching, which is committed unto me according to the commandment of God our Saviour;

4 To Titus, mine own son after the common faith: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ our Saviour.

5 For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee:

6 If any be blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of riot or unruly.

7 For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre;

8 But a lover of hospitality, a lover of good men, sober, just, holy, temperate;

9 Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.

Contentment in Our Daily Life

1 Timothy 6: 6-8  For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.

We can all testify to the truth of the words spoken by Job of the Bible where in Job 1:21 he says Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.
All of us come into this world with nothing and when we die we can take absolutely no material thing with us. We hear of people trying to take their possessions with them but in reality our "stuff" stays on the earth. I heard of a man who loved his violin so much he requested at the time of his death that he be buried together with his violin.
So the question we ask is this - If we cannot take any of our money and possessions with us, why do we stress ourselves to become rich here? Why not be content with the simple things of life. Many people will give up almost anything to earn  more money that they will ever use. People give up the opportunity to spend time with their spouse or children, give up their health due to their workload  and workaholism, unwilling to give up the day of rest for the Lord, etc for the sake of money.

Now the Bible does teach us that we ought to work, to put in a good day of work for the wages we earn but I am talking about the life that takes the desire to become rich to a point where discontentment sets in.

 2 Thessalonians 3:10 For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.

We need to focus on living a life of contentment. The basic needs of life are food and clothing, and a place to lay our head at night. Above and beyond this is an "extra" from the Lord for our enjoyment.

But in 1 Timothy 6: 6 it says But godliness with contentment is great gain. So we see that we need both together - godliness and contentment. This is best described as having a good understanding of the passing nature of life. We are born, the Lord gives us time here to live life, some get many years and others only a few but we all move on to death sooner or later. The things of this world are here when we arrive and we leave them behind when we pass away. We cannot find godliness nor contentment in accumulating things.

We desire that God work his character in us -  through the things that we experience in our lives. We accept God's will for our lives with the continuing thought in our life that as the old songs goes " This World is not my Home - I'm just a passing through. My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue." (that is heaven).  

Living in godly contentment gives peace in our hearts and a calmness. We sense this peace and calmness within our spirit when we see others around us searching for happiness in various unproductive ways - we see peope stressing with working overtime, buying a newer boat, or acquiring more land, or new farm machines, or going on that next vacation or whatever it is, you fill in the blank. We need to pray for them. We need to pray that the Lord continue to fill our hearts with contentment and also pray that the Lord open their eyes to see that the life they are living will never satisfy. That longing deep within the heart can only be filled by the Lord Jesus. More money or acquiring stuff will not satisfy or bring contentment. Only a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus will satisfy the longings of our heart. 

We keep our eyes on Jesus! We set our eyes on things above, looking and waiting for the appearing of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

1 Timothy 6 11-14 But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.
 Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.
 I give thee charge in the sight of God, who quickeneth all things, and before Christ Jesus, who before Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession;
That thou keep this commandment without spot, unrebukable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ:

Betrayed with a kiss

Friday

Judas betrays Jesus with a kiss
( picture from solliday.org ) 

 And immediately, while he yet spake, cometh Judas, one of the twelve, and with him a great multitude with swords and staves, from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders.

 And he that betrayed him had given them a token, saying, Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he; take him, and lead him away safely.
 And as soon as he was come, he goeth straightway to him, and saith, Master, master; and kissed him.

 And they laid their hands on him, and took him.

Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane

Thursday

Jesus prays in the Garden
( picture from childrenschurch.wordpress )

And they came to a place which was named Gethsemane: and he saith to his disciples, Sit ye here, while I shall pray.

 And he taketh with him Peter and James and John, and began to be sore amazed, and to be very heavy;

 And saith unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death: tarry ye here, and watch.

And he went forward a little, and fell on the ground, and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him.

 And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt.

 And he cometh, and findeth them sleeping, and saith unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? couldest not thou watch one hour?

 Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak.

 And again he went away, and prayed, and spake the same words.

 And when he returned, he found them asleep again, (for their eyes were heavy,) neither wist they what to answer him.

The disciples sleep as Jesus prays
( picture from biblessonsite.org )

And he cometh the third time, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough, the hour is come; behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.

 Rise up, let us go; lo, he that betrayeth me is at hand.

The Passover is Celebrated

Thursday

The Passover is Celebrated

And in the evening he cometh with the twelve.

 And as they sat and did eat, Jesus said, Verily I say unto you, One of you which eateth with me shall betray me.

 And they began to be sorrowful, and to say unto him one by one, Is it I? and another said, Is it I?

 And he answered and said unto them, It is one of the twelve, that dippeth with me in the dish.

Jesus Last Supper
( picture from turnbacktogod.com )

Jesus Last Supper
(picture from lamblion.com )

 The Son of man indeed goeth, as it is written of him: but woe to that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! good were it for that man if he had never been born.

 And as they did eat, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and brake it, and gave to them, and said, Take, eat: this is my body.

 And he took the cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them: and they all drank of it.

 And he said unto them, This is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many.

 Verily I say unto you, I will drink no more of the fruit of the vine, until that day that I drink it new in the kingdom of God.

Jesus answered, He it is, to whom I shall give a sop, when I have dipped it. And when he had dipped the sop, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon.
 And after the sop Satan entered into him. Then said Jesus unto him, That thou doest, do quickly.

Judas Iscariot went out into the night
( picture from jesuspassion.com )

 Now no man at the table knew for what intent he spake this unto him.

For some of them thought, because Judas had the bag, that Jesus had said unto him, Buy those things that we have need of against the feast; or, that he should give something to the poor.

He then having received the sop went immediately out: and it was night.