Titus 1

In today’s chapter, Paul instructed Titus to appoint elders or overseers and gave some guidelines as to the kind of characters that would make the mark.

For an overseer, as God’s steward, must be above reproach. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain, but hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined. He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it. (Titus 1:7-9)

As God’s steward…
Aren’t we all called to be stewards of God as well? We are exhorted to be good stewards of the manifold grace of God (1 Peter 4:10) by using the various gifts which God has given us individually to minister to one another. Have we been faithful in using the gifts which God has bestowed upon us to edify others and to help the Church to grow?

We are also stewards of the truth, the gospel of Christ. What have we been doing with this amazing knowledge of the truth, which God has opened our eyes to see and know? Do we rejoice at the knowledge that we have found something precious and spread the good news around? Or have we bury this treasure away? How have we been stewards of the truth?

And since we are also stewards of God, let’s take a look at the guideline and measure it against ourselves:

…must be above reproach.
Another word for “above reproach” can mean “perfect”. Basically, you should be different from the others; you should be blameless. Nothing you do should bring you criticism from others. Everything that you do is right and good.

Wow, a perfect man?

You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. (Matthew 5:48)

We know that no one is perfect, and none of us has reached perfection. However, we can strive to be perfect.  And as we strive for perfection, to be like Christ, though sometimes we may still fail, we know that God will perfect that which concerns me (Psalm 138:8).

As we strive on this journey of faith, can we truly say that we are above reproach? Or perhaps, are we barely making the mark, always hovering around the passing mark? Or worse still, have we been failing?

…must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain.
These are all characteristics from the teachings in the Bible. We know how the Bible teaches us to be humble and to see others as better than ourselves. We are also encouraged to be slow to anger, and not to let the sun set on our wrath. We need to be sober and alert, and to remember that godliness with contentment is great gain (1 Tim 6:6).

How many of these are easy for us? But how many are difficult? Each of us has our own weaknesses and though we may find some of the above easy to fulfil, that does not give us the excuse to close one eye on our weakness. We must be “above reproach” and hence, need to strive to be perfect in all these things.

…hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined.
The previous are things we should not be; here are characteristics that we should have. Being “disciplined” left a great impression on me after NWYS at Brisbane last year. I find that it is one of the Christian traits that are more likely to be neglected.

What does being disciplined mean then? To me, it means having a proper, somewhat predictable life so that important things get done. It means getting up for work and going for services, and fulfilling the roles and responsibilities in our lives. Though a little spontaneity can bring colour and joy into our lives, discipline shows that we know what we are here (on earth) for and we move in the direction of that goal. On the other hand, a total lack of discipline would show that we simply don’t know and we don’t care.

He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught…
How have we held firmly to the Word that was taught to us? Do we find ourselves loosening our grip as the currents of the world kept sweeping over us? Do we truly believe that the Word saves us?

… so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.
The previous is for one’s own salvation with regards to the Word, how holding fast to the Word and enduring to the end can save us. However, that is not all that is required of us. The Bible is very consistent and clear on this - that we cannot only care about oneself, but need to also look out for the others.

There were many times when I had felt that the world (or the Church) would be a better place if everyone can individually just mind their own salvation and make sure that they are walking on the right path. Then, we won’t jeopardise our own salvation by being burdened by other people’s burden, especially when we are feeling weak ourselves. But what does the Bible say?

Bear each other’s burdens (Galatians 6:2).

Hence, we need to know the Word, hold firm to it, and teach others too.

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Now that we know the requirements that we should have as stewards of God, how do we measure against it? Have our faith often stopped at the “knowing” or “believing” but not actually “doing”? Is that, then, faith?

As we conclude with the verse below, let us (myself included, definitely) seriously ponder over the works of our faith and whether we truly meet the mark of a true Christian.

They profess to know God, but they deny him by their works. (Titus 1:16)

1 Timothy 1

Dear Paul,

Thank you for writing me. I have always been thankful to have a mentor like you to guide me through my journey of faith, especially teaching me specifically on some of the things that I ought to take note of and do. You have been like a father to me, faithfully teaching the way of the Lord. I would never trade anything in the world for this mentorship. I only pray that I can pass on this baton of faith to the next generation and be a mentor to them as you had been to me.

Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith (1 Timothy 1:5)

When you asked me to stay in Ephesus that I may charge some that they do not teach other doctrine, and also not to pay any attention to fables and endless genealogies, because these causes disputes more than edification, it was hard. Often, when we are the teachers, we like to have the authority over those we teach. If not for the three explicit elements that you listed out, I might have been instructing in vain, because I would have been teaching with a wrong motive.

Firstly, you stressed that it must be done out of love from a pure heart. Why do we even bother in the first place to charge those who have strayed to return?  It is because we genuinely love their souls. We care that they may not perish, but that we may all inherit that heavenly prize when Jesus comes again.

Secondly, it is love from a good conscience. Can we see a brethren fall and not feel anything? If we are compelled by the love of Christ, and bonded in the body of Christ, we would feel the pain when a brethren falls. When Jesus was to ask, “Where is your brother,” how would we answer?

Finally, love from a sincere faith. When we truly love our God, we would also treat all other people with sincerity. Charging them not to teach a different doctrine then should not be done out of any sort of arrogance or a I-am-higher-rank-than-you-and-so-you-ought-to-listen-to-me kind of attitude. Rather, it is done in all sincerity and hence humility; for we are humbled by the love of Christ to love others. And so, when others are going on a wrong way, we speak the truth in love, not because we are lord over them, but because we love them with the love of God.

And so, whenever we teach, instruct, or admonish others, we ought to check within ourselves against these three elements. Is it done out of a pure heart, a good conscience, sincere faith? Or am I just satisfying some of my own fleshly desires?

This charge I commit to you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, having faith and a good conscience, which some having rejected, concerning the faith have suffered shipwreck (1 Timothy 1:18-19)

You commit to me the charge that I may wage the good warfare. How often do we forget that in this life of faith, it is really about fighting a battle, a spiritual battle! We often imagine that after we have submitted our lives to Christ, all should be well and good. We forgot that Jesus Himself said that in this world we would have tribulation, and also how we must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God. Striving to enter through the narrow door already signifies that it is a road not easy to tread on. Why do we imagine that all would be smooth-sailing and even expect prosperity?

You reminded me that struggle is good. A spiritual struggle means that we are still fighting on; we are not giving up. And we fight on, knowing that God has already given us the victory. Yes, Jesus has overcome the world, the victory is promised, but we still need to march round Jericho in order to obtain that victory in Christ Jesus. This is the faith that you were talking about.

The other is to have a good conscience. Believing and having full trust in God to deliver us and give us the victory is one thing; but have we really done according to His will and what pleases Him is another. Can we really have a good conscience before God? Can we stand blameless before Him when He comes again, telling Him that we have done and kept all that He has commanded. Will He say, “Well done, you good and faithful servant, come and enter into My rest”?

I definitely would not want to suffer shipwreck in my faith, like some others had. I need to have both faith and a good conscience.

Thank you, Paul, for your words that build me up, and for guiding me as a son in the faith.

Till I see you again, may the good Lord watch over you.

Emmanuel,
Timothy

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As I tried to put myself in the shoes of Timothy, these were some thoughts that I had. When I read the epistle that Paul wrote to Timothy, I am comforted by the bond that the two share. Like father and son, Paul not only cared for Timothy but also gave really specific ways that Timothy should conduct his life and to pastor the sheep. While there is no obvious Mentor Paul in my life, I thank God that He has provided people along the way to direct me to the right path. Their appearances are often timely, and I know that it is only possible by the hands of God. Hence, I learnt that we need to be sensitive to the gentle prompting of the Lord through the people He has placed around us at different periods. Their kind words, their sincere encouragement (that sometimes almost come forth as plea), and sometimes their tears, reminded me of what Paul told Timothy about love and the whole purpose of teaching another in the faith.

May we be able to love others with a pure heart, a good conscience, and a sincere faith.