Titus: Transformed From the Inside Out

Overview of Titus: The two letters to Timothy and the one to Titus are called the “pastoral epistles” because they contain principles for the pastoral care of churches and qualifications for ministers.

Paul visited Ephesus, left Timothy there to supervise the churches, and went on to Macedonia. From there he wrote I Timothy.

He visited Crete, left Titus there to supervise those churches, and went to Nicopolis in Achaia. Either from Macedonia or Nicopolis, he wrote this letter to encourage Titus.

Topics discussed in the letter include qualifications for elders, instructions to various age groups, relationship to government and the relation of regeneration to human works and to the Spirit.

Key Verse

11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men,
12 instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age,
13 looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus,
Titus 2:11-13 (NASB)

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Content Outline

The Message of Titus

“In contrast to several of Paul’s letters, such as those to the churches in Rome and Galatia, the epistle of Titus does not focus on explaining or defending doctrine.

God and Christ are regularly referred to as Savior (1:3, 4; 2:10, 13; 3:4, 6), and the saving plan is so emphasized in 2:11-14 that it indicates a major thrust of the epistle is that of equipping the churches of Crete for effective evangelism.

In order to gain a hearing for the gospel among such people, the believers’ primary preparation for evangelization was to live among them with the unarguable testimony of righteous, loving, selfless, and godly lives (2:2-14) in marked contrast to the debauched lives of the false teachers (1:10-16).”
Dr. John MacArthur

“We do a lot of damage by taking the easy way out. In the book of Titus, the apostle Paul told his troubleshooter, Titus, how to minister to people who were converted from a culture filled with ‘liars, evil beasts, and lazy gluttons’ (Titus 1:12).

That sounds like a relevant subject, doesn’t it? How do we move from laziness to self-control and spiritual maturity?

The same grace that brought salvation, he wrote, teaches us to say ‘No’ to worldly passions, to deny laziness and lust, and to live soberly and righteously in this world.”
Dr. David Jeremiah

“Paul wrote this letter to Titus for two reasons. First, the younger pastor needed something to set him apart from any other man who would presume to exercise authority over Cretan churches.

Paul also wrote his letter to describe the nature of a genuine church and to define its mission and message. Notably, Paul does not diagram a specific organization of the church from which we can draw a chart.

It would seem that any means of organization and governing is acceptable, so long as the church accomplishes its primary purpose: to be the means by which the elect come to belief in Christ, to nurture their understanding of the truth so that it results in godly behavior, and to help them overcome challenges until they enter God’s presence for eternity (see 1:1-2).”
Dr. Charles R. Swindoll

“It does not require much imagination to sit down beside Titus and to read Paul’s letter as if it were addressed to us.

Here are at least three major themes, namely Christian elders, in contrast to the false teachers (chapter 1),
Christian homes, our duties to each being enforced by confidence in the first and second comings of Christ (chapter 2),
and Christian relationships in public life, which are the direct fruits of salvation (chapter 3).”
Dr. John R. W. Stott

“Paul wrote the book of Titus for his companion. Titus was to visit Crete, infamous for its sin, and restore order to house churches there. Part of his job was to replace corrupt teachers in the churches with godly leaders.

Paul also reminded Cretan believers that while they lived in a sinful culture, they could be transformed into a new humanity by the same grace that Jesus demonstrated when He died to redeem them.

As a new humanity, they could say no to a lifestyle that was inconsistent with God’s generous love.”
The Bible Project

Timeline of Titus

Who was Titus?

About the Author

References

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