Titus 1
Titus 1 New International Version (NIV)
1 Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ to further the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness— 2 in the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time,3 and which now at his appointed season he has brought to light through the preaching entrusted to me by the command of God our Savior,
4 To Titus, my true son in our common faith:
Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.
Appointing Elders Who Love What Is Good
5 The reason I left you in Crete was that you might put in order what was left unfinished and appoint[a] elders in every town, as I directed you. 6 An elder must be blameless, faithful to his wife, a man whose children believe[b] and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient. 7 Since an overseer manages God’s household, he must be blameless—not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain. 8 Rather, he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined. 9 He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.
Rebuking Those Who Fail to Do Good
10 For there are many rebellious people, full of meaningless talk and deception, especially those of the circumcision group. 11 They must be silenced, because they are disrupting whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach—and that for the sake of dishonest gain. 12 One of Crete’s own prophets has said it: “Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons.”[c] 13 This saying is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, so that they will be sound in the faith 14 and will pay no attention to Jewish myths or to the merely human commands of those who reject the truth. 15 To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted. 16 They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.
Footnotes:
- Titus 1:5 Or ordain
- Titus 1:6 Or children are trustworthy
- Titus 1:12 From the Cretan philosopher Epimenides
Observation Question
Who wrote this letter? (verse 1)
How does Paul refer to himself? (verse 1)
When has God brought to light the hope of eternal life? (verse 2-3)
How does Paul refer to Timothy? (verse 4)
Who does Paul extend grace and peace from? (verse 4)
Appointing Elders Who Love What Is Good
Why did Paul leave Titus at Crete? (verse 5)
What are the qualifications of an elder? (verse 6-9)
Must an elder's children believe and not be open to the charge of being wild and disobedient? (verse 6)
Must an elder be faithful to his wife?
Must and elder be blameless? (verse 6)
Why must this overseer be blameless? (verse 7)
What things would disqualify someone from being an elder? (verse 7)
What would mark someone as a good elder? (verse 8-9)
Must an elder be hospitable? (verse 8)
What must an elder love? (verse 8)
Must an elder be self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined? (verse 8)
What message must an elder hold firmly to? (verse 9)
Rebuking Those Who Fail to Do Good
Are there many rebellious people? (verse 10)
Are there many people full of meaningless talk and deception? (verse 10)
What group does Paul mention that has many people like this? (verse 10)
Why must people full of meaningless talk and deception be silenced? (verse 11)
Why are these people teaching things they ought not to teach? (verse 11)
Who is quoted as saying, "Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons."? (verse 12)
Why does Paul say that those who are full of meaningless talk and deception should be rebuked sharply? (verse 13-14)
What are the two things that those who are rebuked sharply might pay no attention to?
What are all things to those who are pure? (verse 15)
To those who are corrupted and do not believe, is there anything that is pure? (verse 15)
What is the state of the minds and consciences of those who are corrupted and do not believe? (verse 15)
What are the people who claim to know God but deny God through their actions fit for? (verse 16)
Interpretation
Who is quoted as saying, "Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons."? (verse 12)
Application
Seek to
be blameless
be faithful to your spouse
be one whose children believe
be one whose children are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient
not be overbearing
not be quick-tempered
not be given to drunkenness
not be violent
not be pursuing dishonest gain
be hospitable
be one who loves what is good
be one who is self-controlled
be upright
be holy and disciplined
hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught
to encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it
Thoughts
To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted. - verse 15
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