◄ Titus 1 Devotional Commentary ►

Titus 1:1

Paul wrote three pastoral epistles, the shortest of which was sent to Titus, his fellow bond-servant in the Lord. It reiterates much of the content in first Timothy and lays important emphasis on the doctrine of grace and its necessary relationship to godliness and good works.

No doubt Titus read and re-read this brief letter many times over, in order to extract all its nuggets of truth and to store in his heart its significant read more...

Titus 1:2

Like his letters to Timothy, this epistle to Titus outlines the qualification of elders, the characteristics of false teachers, and the godly behaviour that should be evident in the lives of all believers. And like so many of Paul's writings, his main focus was to further the gospel of Jesus Christ and to equip the saints in sound doctrine so that they would be enabled to grow in their own spiritual understanding of the glorious gospel of grace, and to proclaim the read more...

Titus 1:3

The book of Titus gives brief but thorough guidance on living a consecrated and virtuous Christian life that is holy to the Lord and displays grace and love to others. Titus was the man who was entrusted to teach, correct, and give guidance to the Christians in Crete, but Paul was the person who was entrusted by the Lord to reveal the truth of the gospel of grace to Titus, and to many in the early Gentile church.

In his letter read more...

Titus 1:4

It is always a joy when a man or woman trusts in Christ as their Saviour and sets out on their life-journey with Jesus at the helm, but what a thrill it must have been for Paul when Titus, his "true son in the common faith," was ready to take on full responsibility for the establishment of the Christian churches throughout the Isle of Crete. 

It is at the start of his letter, that Paul identifies his read more...

Titus 1:5

Titus was Paul's spiritual son in the common faith. He was a valuable assistant who was entrusted to oversee the establishment of the Church in the island of Crete. Titus was to appoint godly elders who were equipped to maintain doctrinal purity and support those in their care.

We discover that wherever Paul founded a Christian Church, false teachers quickly infiltrated the congregation and false doctrines were rapidly introduced, to undermine the true read more...

Titus 1:6

Paul was commanded by God, our Saviour, to carry out a unique mission as Christ's apostle to the Gentiles - and he chose certain men to have oversight of the setting up of local churches around Asia Minor.

Those first few years must have been quite problematic, as the fledgling Church sought to establish itself. They did not have the benefit of the written New Testament. Nevertheless, they received certain mysteries from the read more...

Titus 1:7

Paul was a bondservant of the Lord Jesus Christ, and his calling as God's appointed apostle to the Gentiles was to furnish the elect of God with a knowledge of the truth of the glorious gospel of Christ. Paul was an apostle of Jesus, who was called to equip believers with godly attributes which would glorify our Father in heaven.

Titus was a young man who, like Timothy, demonstrated some special spiritual characteristics which had read more...

Titus 1:8

The goal of Paul's ministry was to spread the gospel of Christ and its salvation message to many people. His goal also included giving godly instruction to those that were saved by grace through faith in Christ, and to remind pastors and teachers to preach the Word of God in season and out of season, and to correct, rebuke, and encourage the flock of God with great patience and careful instruction.

But Paul also knew that there read more...

Titus 1:9

The qualities that Paul lists for church elders and spiritual leaders are those to which every godly man should aspire. Not only are they called to be even-tempered in their dealings with others, honourable in all aspects of their home life, self-restrained in their business and financial dealings, and hospitable towards others, but they are instructed to stand firm in the faith, to hold fast to sound biblical doctrine, and to be able to exhort and encourage others read more...

Titus 1:10

Wherever gospel seeds of truth are sown, it is never long before the destructive tares of false doctrine are sure to be quickly spawned. Such was the case for Titus when he was working on the Isle of Crete, and Paul is quick to respond with wise advice to his fellow-worker, and offer Christian encouragement to this dearly loved co-labourer in Christ.

Titus was being bombarded with a range of different false teachings and read more...

Titus 1:11

There were many issues in the early Church that Paul frequently addressed, and in his epistle to Titus we discover the importance that he laid on sound teaching, godly leadership, the refuting of legalism in the Church, and other doctrinal errors.

Paul regarded the proclamation of the Word of God, in season and out of season, to be vital in fulfilling one's calling. He was also keen to ensure that the spiritual leadership of the read more...

Titus 1:13

Just as to Moses was given the administration of the Law, Paul was given the administration of the Church, and many Church-age doctrines which had been hidden from view in times past were given to us through the apostle Paul. To Paul was given the glorious mystery among the Gentiles: "Which is Christ in you the hope of glory." But as with Paul, the glorious gospel of grace was as viciously opposed in those early days of the Church, as it is in these read more...

Titus 1:15

Location, location, location is often the cry when looking for the right house, but context, context, context must be the call when interpreting Scripture. But how often the Word of God is taken out of context by carnal believers, religious legalists, and unregenerate man alike; distorting the good news of Christ and perverting the message of the Cross and how to live godly lives.

This verse in Titus is often incorrectly used by read more...

Titus 1:16

Titus was a man that was sound in his doctrine and had been authorised by Paul to appoint church elders in every city on the island of Crete. These men were to be equally grounded in sound doctrine and firmly committed to safeguarding biblical truth in their local assemblies.

Paul was also concerned that the appointed elders were equipped to identify false, unscrupulous, or ignorant teachers, and to be prepared to challenge any read more...