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Titus 1

Ryan Provines
07/09/23 - Podcast

And now, a minute with the Word…

In Titus Chapter 1, Paul mentioned that Titus was a fellow believer in the Word of Christ and wished him grace and mercy. In addition, Paul hoped that the epistle would help the churches in Crete follow the Word of the Lord. Titus would then have the knowledge to select leaders and pastors that would be able to resist the temptations that would come before them. Titus was left in Crete to help restore order and choose elders that had the proper qualifications in order to lead. Paul explained in Titus Chapter 1 specifically how to select the best leaders for the church. During this time, many false teachers were infiltrating churches in order to gain riches and power. This initial section of Paul’s letter to Titus warned of these men. Paul told Titus that an elder must be without a conviction on his record. In addition, a bishop or elder must be a man that is warm and welcoming to all, including strangers. He must also be well-versed in the Word of God.  This knowledge he possessed must be able to be taught to others in a manner that they can comprehend. Another qualification that Paul instructed Titus to look for in an elder was his faithful acts and that he was true to his word. One of the major qualifications of an elder was the ability to charge those that did not follow the Scripture. These elders were required to get rid of the men that still held beliefs of false prophets and that negatively influenced the minds of common people.

True elders of the church also had to have a discerning eye to recognize these deceitful men that brought with them selfish ways and ancient fables that disrespected the power of the one true God. These fake priests claimed to know God, but their sinful acts showed otherwise.