Titus 3 - "Watch Out For Divisive People!" Our genealogies teach of where and who we came from, but our faith in Jesus today tells us where we are going in the future.

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Saved in Order to Do Good

3 Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, 2 to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and always to be gentle toward everyone.

Once again Paul reminds Titus that the believers should submit to the government. This is a consistent theme in the bible. Even Jesus said, "Give to Caesar's that which is Caesar's, and give to God what is God's". 

Though there have been times in history where Christians have been called to resist a dictatorial or murderous government, Paul's teaching applies to us with very few exceptions. Some people reason they shouldn't have to pay taxes because they don't believe in what the government is doing, but this is still against the law and you can get jail time for it. The bottom line is that as Christians, we need to be good citizens of the country we live in. It brings a stain on our witness to Christ if we don't obey Paul's instructions to Titus here. 

3 At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. 4 But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. 8 This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.

Paul is not so removed from his old life to not remember when he was living a life controlled by his sinful nature. If you look at these qualities, you can see that Paul was no "choir boy". One of the things I appreciate about the apostle Paul is that he is very transparent about his shortcomings, which led him to the grace and mercy of Christ. 

Paul says that despite all of these behaviors, God sent Jesus to earth. Jesus delivered us from sin, not because we were such great people. but because of his great mercy. Mercy is not getting what we deserve. Part of this salvation or deliverance from sin is that we are now filled with the Holy Spirit through whom we are born again. Though we still live in our old body, we are filled with the Holy Spirit. We are a new Creation in Christ. 

The Holy Spirit is a gift of God. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Jesus, who lives in and through us. Without the Holy Spirit, we cannot live the new life we are called to live as followers of Jesus. With the Holy Spirit. we can the things Jesus and the apostles did. 

Because we are saved from our sin by God's mercy, we are justified by His grace in Christ. To be justified means to be "made right with God". Someone once described the word "justification" as, "Just as if I have never sinned!" 

Most of all will receive an inheritance from our parents, if they have any money left when they die. But we have another inheritance as God's children, which is eternal life. We are inheritors of God's kingdom and rule and reign with Him and with Christ. In the meantime we are called to be an agent of God's kingdom coming on earth as it is in heaven. 

Everything Paul has said and I have just written is a summary of the gospel. The gospel is Good News. Many people don't connect Christianity with Good News. They have been condemned or judged by Christians, and/or they have encountered hypocrisy from those who purport to be believers. These are the, "Do as I say, not as I do Christians!"

9 But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless. 10 Warn a divisive person once, and then warn them a second time. After that, have nothing to do with them. 11 You may be sure that such people are warped and sinful; they are self-condemned.

What types of controversies and genealogies is Paul referring to?

“The Jewish Rabbis spent their time building up imaginary genealogies for the characters of the Old Testament…. It is much easier to discuss theological questions than to be kind and considerate and helpful at home, or efficient and diligent and honest at work.” (Barclay)

A lot of times we spend a ton of time fussing and arguing about what we don't know, instead of putting our time and energy into what we do know!  As I have said before, Jesus taught clearly and openly. 99% of what we need to know to live our Christian faith is clearly spelled out in the bible. We will find out the 1% when we get to heaven. But oftentimes the 1% is what divides the church!  

There were no secret sayings of genealogies Jesus referred in this three years teaching the disciples. In fact, he simplified our genealogy by saying, "We are all sons and daughters of Abraham by faith". Our genealogies teach of where and who we came from, but our faith in Jesus today tells us where we are going in the future. We aren't saved by our ancestors but by our living faith in Jesus. This is one of the reasons why the Mormons were so interested in genealogies because of their doctrine of salvation. 

"LDS members research genealogy in order to baptize ancestors by proxy in a Mormon temple. Baptism by proxy, according to the church, makes it possible for people who lived before the LDS Church was formed (or did not accept the teachings of the Church during their lives) to receive salvation.

Salvation, in the eyes of the LDS Church, involves being reunited with all of those family members throughout history who were baptized and accepted Mormon faith; this concept is sometimes referred to as the "Forever Family." (learnreligions.com)

The other aspect of this was that people who espoused these views often became divisive, polarizing figures in the church. When our focus is on Jesus we are united, but when we turn to other myths, popular opinions, and other sources of information not contained in the scripture we are a house divided against itself. A house divided against itself will sure fall. And, of course, our enemy the devil is at sowing seeds of discord in the church. His greatest desire is to destroy the church and destroy the children of God. 

Final Remarks

12 As soon as I send Artemas or Tychicus to you, do your best to come to me at Nicopolis, because I have decided to winter there. 13 Do everything you can to help Zenas the lawyer and Apollos on their way and see that they have everything they need. 14 Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good, in order to provide for urgent needs and not live unproductive lives. 15 Everyone with me sends you greetings. Greet those who love us in the faith.

Paul hopes to see Titus in Nicopolis and also asks if he can help Zenas and Apollos as well. We see that the churches helped each other beyond their own churches. Paul had planted many churches and left people like Timothy and Titus to pastor them, but he always saw the church as the one Body of Christ! 

These personal words of Paul – common at the end of his letters – may seem insignificant, but are really very important. They communicate that Paul was a real man in a real world with real friends that he had regular contact with and care for. - Guzik

 “The epistle closes with reference to Tychicus, Apollos, Artemas, and Zenas. The very mention of these names indicates the growth of the Christian movement.” (Morgan)