Sermon | Grace Bible Church | Hollidaysburg
Scripture: Titus 1:1-4
Originally Preached: November 29, 2020

MAIN IDEA: God works through the gospel to shape his people for his mission.

The Good Life

Can we just take a breath for a second…what a year this has been! Jerelyn and I were talking the other day about how this year has gone. In some ways, it feels like it flew by. In other ways, it feels like it has dragged on. Here we are on the first Sunday of Advent. Only three more Sundays until Christmas. If I asked you to send me the best meme to describe 2020, I’m willing to bet most of you already know which one you’d send. I know which one I’d send.

The rest of you are still trying to figure out what a meme is. We’ve all likely encountered things that we never thought we would experience this year. We’ve probably also been faced with questions we never thought we’d have to answer.

I think we have this idea about living the good life. Having the things that we want, in a comfortable place to live, with a good job and our family safe. It’s typically characterized by comfort, which sure has been disrupted in 2020. But is that really the good life? In this year of unprecedented happenings, I’m going to do something that I’ve never done at GBC before, and that is start a series without knowing when I will finish it. I’ve sketched out a 6-week series in the book of Titus, but I have no idea when I will preach the second section, or any other sections after that. Hopefully, when the next one rolls around, you can watch this one on our website for a refresh.

In Titus, Paul is laying out a model for living the truly good life—a life characterized by everyday belief in the gospel which shows up in our actions and flows out in a missional way to those around us. I chose this book because it addresses some questions that I think probably resonate with all of us. How do we live as Christians in a culture that is centered around selfishness and what’s best for me? How do we function in a world that would rather be dishonest to get ahead than live with integrity? How can we guard against becoming like the culture around us?

Overview of Titus

Our passage today acts as a condensed version of the whole letter. Key themes are introduced here and then unpacked as we go. Let’s take a look at a quick overview. Titus is short. Only three chapters. 46 verses in the ESV. Titus is 1 of the 3 books known as the Pastoral Epistles (along with the letters to Timothy). There are a lot of connections between the three books, and they constitute the most detailed account of how the church was supposed to operate moving forward. 

What’s interesting about Titus is you don’t find a lot about leadership structures or institutional processes. Instead you find a focus on the gospel as the central focus of the life and mission of the church, especially in the life of its leaders. Paul is writing to ensure that the gospel stays at the center of the church’s everyday life, so that the world can know about this gospel and believe in Jesus.

The primary way that Titus is to ensure that the gospel stays central is to appoint solid, gospel-saturated leaders who will be able to teach the Word and refute false teachers. And then to ensure that both he and they are teaching sound doctrine. That’s the gist of Titus’ mission. Appoint good leaders who will teach sound doctrine, and teach sound doctrine yourself. 

I summed up the whole letter of Titus this way: God’s grace revealed in the gospel leads to godliness in the lives of his people. As we walk through the book, you’ll see this idea time and time again. You’ll almost get tired of it, but then again, that is Paul’s point. He wants his audience, and us, to understand that godliness is a big deal, and it flows from belief in the gospel. So let me remind you of the main idea of Titus 1:1-4: God works through the gospel to shape his people for his mission.

What does it mean to be people that are shaped by the gospel? In these verses, Paul highlights 5 characteristics of gospel-shaped people.

Gospel-Shaped People:

1. Serve God by serving others
2. Understand that obedience matters
3. Rest their hope in God’s character
4. Carry the message of the gospel to everyone
5. Form relationships that are centered on Jesus

Serve God by Serving Others

Titus 1:1a (ESV)
¹ Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the sake of the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth 

Paul as Servant

Paul refers to himself as both a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ. So, a couple things on this. In several places, he refers to himself as a “servant of Christ” (Romans; Galatians; Philippians), but this is the only place where he uses “servant of God.” He is emphasizing his continuity with OT servants such as Abraham, Moses, and David that have gone before, and setting his ministry and message in the context of the story of the covenant God! The word “servant” is the Greek word for slave. I realize that the term slave has an incredibly negative connotation. And for good reason. Slavery is evil. When Paul uses the word “slave” or “servant,” he is comparing our former enslavement to sin and our present relationship with Jesus. 

We’ll see later in Titus (3:3) that we are all enslaved to sin by nature. We don’t have a choice. But those who have been redeemed by Jesus are now joyfully slaves of King Jesus, which accounts for the positive tone that is communicated by “servant of God” or “slave of God.” Paul is emphasizing that the entire livelihood and purpose of the slave was determined by the master. Everything that Paul is doing has been determined by God.

Paul as Apostle

Which brings us to his next descriptor—apostle. One who is sent. Since Paul is an apostle of Jesus Christ, it means that Jesus is the Lord of the mission that Paul has been sent on. What exactly is that mission? Paul will explain in the rest of this passage.

Because he is a “servant of God” and an “apostle of Jesus Christ,” Paul has the authority to write this letter. This isn’t just for Titus. It’s for the churches he leads, and for us. The model is Paul’s example, Titus’ task, and the church that is shaped by the gospel. We said that gospel-shaped people serve God by serving others. Why did we say that? Look at v. 1 again…

Titus 1:1a (ESV)
¹ Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the sake of the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth

Why is Paul a servant and an apostle? For the sake of the faith of God’s elect. So that God’s chosen people will believe the gospel! Since we believe that apostles no longer exist in the same form that they once did, it is significant that Paul lists servant first. Yes, he is an apostle, but his primary identity is not defined by his mission. His primary identity is who the gospel has made him to be…a slave of God. If we are in Christ, then we are servants of God. We are slaves of God. Everything we do has been determined by our master. Man, that grates against our American independence, doesn’t it?

In the context here, serving others is so that they will believe in the truth of the gospel. What kind of things do you fill your day with? What kind of things do you spend your time and your money on? What kind of things do you reorient your life around? Who would people say that you are a servant of? Friend, do you tend to do things for others only when it benefits you? Gospel-shaped people serve for the good of others, not themselves. 

Us as Servants

So, what does that look like? Husbands, what if we love our wives like Christ loved the church, and gave himself up for it? You show the gospel by listening to and loving your wife, and looking for ways to serve her. Wives, what if you submit to your husband the way the church submits to Christ? You show the gospel by looking for ways to honor and respect your husband in speech and action. Biblical marriage relationships point people to the gospel. Employees, what if you honored your boss by working hard and being honest? Employers, what if you treated your employees like they matter? A life of integrity provides credibility to your message. Are we willing to inconvenience ourselves so that others can see it’s not about us?

Understand that Obedience Matters 

Titus 1:1b (ESV)
^1b for the sake of the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth, which accords with godliness,

Notice the connections here—faith to knowledge of the truth to godliness. NIV says “truth that leads to godliness.” Paul has already said that he is a servant and an apostle to further the faith of God’s elect. But not just for the sake of faith itself—faith in the gospel that leads to godliness. Faith is meant to result in action. It’s meant to change the way we live. It reminds me of what James says in his letter…

James 2:17 (ESV)
¹⁷ So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

Imagine one of my kids is sitting on the couch and I ask them to clean their room because it’s a mess. I come back an hour later and nothing has changed. They’re still sitting on the couch. I say to them…hey, I thought I asked you to clean your room? And their response is…yeah, I know. They know that they should clean their room, but it hasn’t resulted in action. They don’t believe that my request matters, so they haven’t obeyed. A lack of belief led to pointless knowledge that didn’t result in obedience. If they get up and clean the room, that was evidence that they believed my request mattered, and obedience flowed from that knowledge. The point is that knowledge by itself didn’t do anything.

Knowledge of the gospel that doesn’t flow from genuine faith won’t result in godliness. There is such a thing as knowledge that is not rooted in genuine faith. We who are in these seats most often are in danger of this kind of knowledge. It is knowledge that puffs up, but doesn’t lead to godliness. We can know our Bibles inside and out, and not follow Jesus. Does obedience matter to you? If you’re not concerned with obeying Jesus in all of life, then what are you concerned with? What matters to you?

Do you fall into the trap of grace-based negligence? I can do whatever I want, because God is gracious and he will forgive me. Paul addressed this idea in his letter to the Romans (6:1) Should we go on sinning so that we can get even more grace? OF COURSE NOT! Obedience matters. Holiness matters. The latter half of Titus 1:1 raises two questions that I want to briefly address here to help us understand this passage.

Who are God’s Elect?

Election refers to the idea in Scripture that those who have come to faith have been chosen by God to do so; therefore, they are God’s people by his choosing. They are God’s elect. “Elect” is a common description of Israel in the OT and refers to God choosing Israel to be his people. “Elect” continues to be used in the NT to describe believers. Paul (Rom. 8:33; Col. 3:12), Peter (1 Peter 1:1; 2:9);  and John (2 John; Rev. 17:14) all use the term. Jesus uses this term to refer to his people (Matthew 22:14; 24:22, 24, 31).

Election is evident in God’s choice of both Israel and the church. The doctrine of divine election specifically calls attention to God’s activity in our salvation. It doesn’t negate our human response in faith; it makes it possible. The doctrine of election tends to create tension, especially when it comes to “free will” in our salvation, and the biblical passages that reflect God’s desire for all to be saved. One of these passages shows up later in Titus (2:11). But as Lea and Griffin note in their commentary…“balanced biblical theology requires that such tensions remain. Rejecting clear biblical teaching because of limited human understanding is dangerously shortsighted.”¹ 

The doctrine of election leads us to worship as we realize that God’s sovereign grace in choosing his people is how he highlights his glory in human salvation. Election is rooted in God’s love, grace and mercy; not in us. It eradicates pride and leads to true humility, as we realize that our salvation is God’s work alone. We don’t have time to get into all of the nuances here and all of the different ways that election matters for us, but suffice it to say that it is a central theme of God’s interaction with his people.

I echo what Robert Yarbrough said in his commentary on Titus…“in broad biblical perspective, few concepts are more basic to the identity of God’s people than being chosen by God.”² Being chosen by God is part of our identity as Christians. We are God’s people, or God’s elect. Election really is good news for us. If it were solely up to us, we would never choose God on our own. When you see the word “elect” in Scripture, think “chosen.”

What Does Paul Mean by Godliness?

If godliness is the result of faith and the right understanding of the gospel, then what is it? Godliness is ultimately right living that flows from right believing.It refers to the total commitment of one’s life to God, both in belief and action. It emphasizes the practical outworking of our faith. Godliness is the evidence of divine election (check out 2 Peter 1). Godliness is the good life. Godliness is knowledge of the truth that makes a difference for your life. Rooted in a right understanding of God as he has revealed himself to us in Jesus (that’s the gospel), and showing up in the practical everyday outworking of our life together as the church and our life on mission to those who don’t yet know Jesus. 

Speaking of those who don’t know Jesus, what would they say matters most to us? Caring for our community? Orienting our lives around others? Obeying what Jesus says? Or would it be…the size of our building? The amount of money that comes in? Is who we define ourselves to be and what we do as a church the fruit of our faith in Jesus, or the fruit of what makes us feel good and safe and comfortable?

Rest their Hope in God’s Character

Titus 1:2–3a (ESV)
² in hope of eternal life, which God, who never lies, promised before the ages began ^3a and at the proper time manifested in his word

Paul’s purpose was making sure that the faith of God’s people would show up in their actions. What was promised and manifested? The hope of eternal life! Not just any eternal life, but the eternal life promised by the God who never lies. Anyone ever ordered something online, and when you finally got it and opened it up, it wasn’t the correct item? My daughter Addie turned 4 in July, so we decided to get her a bike. We ended up ordering it from Amazon, and after searching for a bit, finally found one that seemed like it would be a good fit. Right size. Right colors. Everything was good. I think it arrived a day or two before her birthday. 

So that night, I open up the box to put it together and it’s the wrong bike! Are you kidding me? Not enough time to send it back. It was the next size up, and a different theme than the one we picked. I’m like…I don’t even know if this will fit her. It turns out…bike is a little big, but she loves it, and she’ll grow into it. At least, that’s what I’m telling myself. The point is this…God never sends the wrong bike. God doesn’t promise eternal life and then go back on his promise

Why? Because God never lies. It’s against his character. This is in stark contrast to the Cretans, who were known for lying. In fact, lying was an acceptable way of life in Crete. The term “kretizo” meant “to play the Cretan” or “to lie.” Later in the chapter (1:12), Paul quotes one of their own prophets in saying that “Cretans are always liars.” Surely Paul is pointing this out to highlight the truthfulness of God and the credibility of his message over against the false narrative of the Cretan false teachers

This is eternal life that has been promised in eternity past and revealed (manifested) in the present through the proclamation of the gospel. We’re still living in that time. How do we know God can be trusted? Because the unfolding story of redemption has proven over and over that God is for his people and his promises are trustworthy. It is on the basis of this trustworthy hope in an always truthful God that Paul builds his life and ministry

What kind of things do you put your hope in? Is it the outcome of this crazy presidential election? Is your hope resting in who sits in the White House? Or Congress? Or on the Supreme Court? Maybe your hope is in the return of things to normal after this unprecedented year. What happens when normal isn’t as good as you thought, and you find yourself unsatisfied?

Church, let me ask us this…what would our community say that our hope is in? Do they see us getting caught up in this election mess? Do they see us worried about the current situation because we don’t know how it will turn out? Do they see evidence that our hope is in our jobs, our money, or our personal freedoms? Or do they know by the way we live our lives and the way we function as the church and the conversations that we have with them that our only hope is in Jesus?!

Christians should rest their hope in God who never lies. He is trustworthy. He is steadfast. He is unshakeable. This results in confidence, strength, and security because God doesn’t change. Remember divine election? Eternal security only flows from God’s choice of us, not our choice of him. Without divine election, we have no security and our hope is in ourselves to keep us saved. Friend, if you don’t know Jesus, you won’t find lasting confidence, strength, or security anywhere. Sure, it may last for a time. But all of the places that we search for satisfaction are designed to let us down. Only Jesus brings lasting satisfaction!

Carry the Message of the Gospel to Everyone

Titus 1:3 (ESV)
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;

This hope of eternal life that God has promised before the ages began and is now revealed—he chose to reveal it through the proclamation of his word. The proclamation of this message requires messengers. Someone has to speak this message. Imagine scrolling on your phone and trying to watch a video with no sound and no subtitles. Maybe some of you are doing that right now. How hard is it to tell what is going on if you can’t hear it?  If there are no subtitles, you can easily misunderstand the video. If we go on living our life without ever speaking the truth of the gospel, that would be like someone watching a video of our life with no sound and no subtitles. Sure, they might pick up on things here and there, but there is no way they will know the truth about Jesus unless we speak it

Paul was entrusted by God with this message and commanded to carry it to the Gentiles. Which basically meant everyone! Titus would have been proof of this—he was a Gentile, not a Jew. So how does the truth that the gospel is for everyone coincide with divine election? I don’t know. Bit of a let down, right? Truth is, we don’t know who God has chosen to be his people, so we proclaim the gospel to everyone without discrimination. Our job is not to decide who to proclaim the gospel to. Our job is to carry the message and proclaim it to everyone, trusting that God will save his people. (Acts 13:48) Christian, are you concerned for those who don’t know Jesus?

If you’re not a Christian here today, God desires that you would respond to the gospel. God is holy and cannot tolerate sin. When Adam and Eve rebelled against God in the garden, it separated them from God and plunged the entire human race into sin. We are all sinners. We cannot save ourselves from our situation. Because of his love, God sent Jesus to live the perfect life we could never live, die the death we deserved to die, and conquer sin and death through his resurrection. Through his death on the cross he purchased salvation for his people. Eternal life with God, rather than eternal punishment separated from God. This is what makes God the Savior! This church is a means of carrying the gospel message to you! This right here could be your call from God to turn from your sin and turn to Jesus! Will you respond to this offer of eternal life today?

Form Relationships that are Centered on Jesus

Titus 1:4 (ESV)
⁴ To Titus, my true child in a common faith: Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.

Forty-six Greek words later, Paul finally gets to the name of the person to whom he is writing. The language depicts Paul and Titus in a father-son type of relationship. Most likely this is some kind of spiritual connection, but we’re not sure. Grace and peace was Paul’s customary greeting (usually with a little mercy thrown in). The source of grace and peace is God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior. Paul has already referred to God as the Savior, and now he connects Jesus as our Savior. This highlights Jesus as God and sets up salvation as one of the predominant themes of the letter. In Titus, “Savior” is used 6 times—3 for God (1:3; 2:10; 3:4) and 3 for Jesus (1:4; 2:13; 3:6). Every time “Savior” refers to God, it is followed closely by “Savior” referring to Jesus!

What is this common faith? Paul has summarized it pretty well in this passage. It’s the faith that rightly understands the truth of the gospel, which leads to godliness. Paul the Jew and Titus the Gentile. United by a common faith in a common Savior—Jesus. Anyone ever belong to a club? When I was a kid, I always wanted to be part of the Lego club. Deep down, I probably still do. Maybe your thing is club soccer, or chess club, or a photography club, or a fitness club, or Sam’s club. A club is an organization dedicated to a particular interest or activity. Your relationship with the people in the club is based on a common interest.As Christians, we have more than just a common interest in a club. We have a common faith in a common Savior. Our relationships are based on Jesus! What do your relationships revolve around? Do we talk more about the weather and the Steelers than we do about Jesus? Are our relationships built around this place, or are they centered on a PERSON? Gospel-shaped people form relationships that are centered on Jesus.

So these are the 5 Characteristics of Gospel-Shaped People that Paul highlights in these verses…

1. Serve God by serving others
2. Understand that obedience matters
3. Rest their hope in God’s character
4. Carry the message of the gospel to everyone
5. Form relationships that are centered on Jesus

Are these 5 characteristics present in your life? Are they present in our life together as Grace Bible Church? Our lives are being shaped by something. Our church is being shaped by something. 

Is it the gospel, or is it something else?

______________________

¹Lea, Thomas D., and Hayne P. Griffin. 1, 2 Timothy, Titus. Vol. 34. The New American Commentary. Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1992.

²Yarbrough, Robert W. The Letters to Timothy and Titus. Edited by D. A. Carson. Pillar New Testament Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI; London: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company; Apollos, 2018.