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“This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into order.”
[Titus 1:5 ESV]
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Premise
I just completed a wonderful journey teaching through Titus. I had never done so in a church setting, and the results were wonderful. I highly recommend that each person study this powerful little letter.
As you surely know, it’s hard for Christians to stay on track, following Jesus every day. This world can be a tough place for Christians and their churches – and not only because of “Cretan” societies. The cretin in the mirror is a mess as well. Thankfully, God engages with His people to meet our needs and prosper us in Christ. Titus shows that He especially does this through sound doctrine lived out in good deeds.
David Campbell’s excellent analysis captures this premise:
There were things ‘unfinished’ in the first century Cretan church where Titus served and as we read through the letter we discover what they were. They have a familiar ring to them. They are the very things that need to be addressed in our churches today. But there is so much more to the letter than a mere list of things that needed to be tackled. Under the guidance of the Holy Spirit the Apostle Paul explains why they are to be tackled and how they are to be tackled and by whom. In doing so he gives inspired guidance for churches in all ages as each faces its own unfinished task.
– David Campbell, Opening Up Titus
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