Faith

Hope

Grace

Sensibly

Leaders/leadership

Deeds/action

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Titus became a trouble shooter for Paul in Corinth helping him in one of the most difficult moments in his ministry.  He took I Corinthians to the church in Corinth and later met Paul to give him the good news that the Corinthians had responded well to his teaching and demands presented in his letter to them .(II Cor. 2:13; 7:6, 13, 14; 8:6, 16, 23, 12:18). 

Their relationship, the fruit of grace, was very special, and Paul called Titus "my true child in a common faith."

That is a very amazing statement in the ancient world where no Jew would own a Gentile as his "true child."  Gentiles were dogs to the Jews, and they had as little to do with Gentiles as they possibly could.  The common faith was the work of grace in both of their lives that brought each of them to Christ from very different places.

This is amazing.  Paul, the Jew of Jews, and Titus, the uncircumcised Gentile, part of the same family holding the same faith as a result of the same grace.

Time Out Questions:

1. Who is in your family of common faith that you would never have a relationship with apart from grace? 

2. What is that relationship like? 

3. What does that relationship mean to you? 

4. Write a word of appreciation to this person expressing how much it means for you to be together in God's grace family.

Titus is on another trouble shooting venture for Paul.  They were traveling together when they came to the island of Crete south of Greece and a bit southwest of Turkey in the Mediterranean.  Paul saw great needs in the church that had already been established on Crete, so he left Titus there to do two things:  set in order what remains to help the church to become healthy and appoint elders.  Both of these are leadership tasks, and Paul wrote his memo to remind Titus of what these responsibilities required.