Elements City Church
Titus consists of three short chapters written over 20 centuries ago to a little-known missionary (Titus) on an obscure island by an aging senior missionary— can there be any relevance here for modern-day Christians? Actually, it has a great deal for Christians today.
*Series Takeaway: Being good or Doing good isn’t what makes you right with God, but when you’re right with God – it always produces a life that does good!
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the Book of Titus: 921 words in total:
Summed up in 2: Do Good
Besides the general themes that Titus shares in common with the other two Pastoral Epistles (1 & 2 Timothy), Titus gives a fine concise summary of how a believer should live out the doctrine of grace with godliness and good works.
“DO GOOD”
ch 1: within yourself (character matters – who you are becoming)
ch 2: within your relationships
ch 3: within your scope of influence in the world
Titus 1:1 NIV
In one short phrase, Paul gave insight into his reason for living. He called himself a servant of God—that is, one who was committed to obeying God. (This is the only place where Paul used this particular phrase to describe himself.)
This obedience led him to spend his life as an apostle (meaning messenger, ambassador or sent one) of the Good News about Jesus Christ.
Paul’s view of ministry was always long-term. He was not content to aim at people merely responding to the gospel.His goal was to bring people to spiritual maturity in Christ.
As he told the Colossians, “We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. To this end I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me” (Colossians 1:28–29 niv).
The sequence of these three significant terms Paul used in v.1 —faith, knowledge, and godliness— suggests a pattern of true Christian growth.
Saving faith that opens one’s eyes to the knowledge of the truth should result in a transformed life characterized by godliness.
Titus 1:1-5 NIV
Then he writes about the description of what an ‘elder’ – overseer in the church is to BE like. He doesn’t write about their experience, or abilities – he focuses in on their character. YES, this is to be for a leader within the church, but it’s really about the character we’re all to model as follower of Christ.
Spirituality is not to be measured in terms of Bible knowledge, pious prayers or attendance at religious gatherings. Those measurements alone can be misleading – even faked in some ways.
Spirituality is a matter of the extent to which the Holy Spirit is motivating, empowering, and changing our lives from the inside out - to reflect more & more of Jesus in how we live, act and obey His teachings.
Disciples are built by nurturing/growing Christ like character within; that will naturally overflow into Christ like actions coming out in our lives!
Quote:
"Be more concerned with your character than with your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are." -John Wooden former UCLA basketball coach
Titus 1:6-9 NIV
this list – this challenge isn’t JUST for those aspiring to Christian leadership
We’re ALL CALLED to be ones who reflect good/godly character to a watching world!
Did you ever stop to think: You are the greatest Christian that someone knows. People watch and are looking for people who are defined by godly character growing within them. They’re not looking for ‘perfect people’, but godly people who are willing to own mistakes, seeking to grow to DO GOOD and be more and more like Jesus!
=Jesus said ‘you are the light of the world’
We are that light – this movement of Jesus - needs people who shine light, right where they are!
We each shine brightest, not by simply doing “right things” every so often – but by BEING the right kind of people. We are meant to live and leave an impact via the ‘overflow’ from within.
It is God's intention that our lives should be a seamless manifestation of the fruit of the Spirit: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (see Gal. 5:22-23).
“The fruit of the Spirit, in contrast, gives a sure sign of transformed character. When our deepest attitudes and dispositions are those of Jesus, it is because we have learned to let the Spirit foster his life in us.” ―Dallas Willard
If we do not make formation in Christ the priority, then we're just going to keep on producing Christians that are indistinguishable in their character from many non-Christians. -Dallas Willard
Series Takeaway:
Being good or Doing good isn’t what makes you right with God, but when you’re right with God – it always produces a life that does good!
It begins by DOING GOOD within oneself – growing godliness and godly character within!
Q) how’s it going in allowing God to craft, cultivate and grow His character within yours? Are there areas you’d like to see more growth?
*to let go of
*to grab ahold of more
IF YOU'RE NEW:
We throw a 10-minute party immediately following the service in the back corner of the room. If you're new, we'd love to meet you and we have a small gift for you! We also want invite you back with us next Sunday at 5pm as we continue our series together.