The apostle’s job.

Titus 1.1-4.

Okay, tackling Titus this week. Paul wrote this letter to Titus during his last missionary journey of 63–66. That journey isn’t told of in Acts, but it took place after Paul stood trial before Nero Caesar in 62 and was acquitted; and took place before Paul was arrested again, stood trial before Nero again, and that time was beheaded in the year 67. Nicopolis, Epirus, Greece was one of the cities on Paul’s itinerary, and where Paul expected to see Titus again. Tt 3.12

Titus was a member of Paul’s apostolic team, a Greek Ga 2.3 originally from Crete (Greek Κρήτη/Kríti), the largest of the Greek islands, about 160km off the coast of the Greek mainland, and 100km southwest of Türkiye. There were Cretans at the first Pentecost, Ac 2.11 and for all we know Titus was among them.

But since Paul calls Titus his son in this letter, Tt 1.4 Christians figure Paul likely introduced him to Christ Jesus. Though elsewhere in the scriptures Paul calls him a brother 2Co 2.13 and partner; 2Co 8.23 so if Paul had led Titus to Jesus, these descriptions indicate Titus had quickly matured to a point where Paul considered him an equal in Christ. Paul occasionally sent Titus to help out churches and deliver his letters. Corinth, fr’instance. 2Co 2.13

In this letter, Paul states he’d sent Titus back to Crete to organize Jesus’s church there. Tt 1.5 From what little we know, that’s where Titus served till he died, either in the 90s or early 00s. The Church of St. Titus in Heraklion, Crete, still has his skull.

Titus, along with 1–2 Timothy, are called the “pastoral epistles” because, duh, they were written to pastors. Naturally they contain a lot of advice from Paul to these two pastors about how to best do their jobs, and it’s served as useful advice for every other Christian about how to be in leadership. That’s why we study it.

As usual, Paul’s introductions were done Roman-style, so you could unroll the scroll a little bit, quickly read the author and the recipient, and roll it back up. Paul’s introduction in this letter is a little wordier than usual, ’cause he’s trying to slip some theology in there.

Because certain scholars try to make a name for themselves by challenging everything, some of ’em have tried to argue Paul didn’t really write this letter, and Titus wasn’t really the recipient. Few take these scholars seriously. I don’t.

Titus 1.1-4 KWL

1 Pávlos, God’s slave

and Christ Jesus’s apostle,

consistent with the faith of God’s selected ones,

and consistent with the recognition of the truth—

consistent with piety—

2 in the hope of life in the age to come,

which the never-lying God promised

before the time of this age.

3 He made his message of this eternal life known

through preaching in our own time,

which was entrusted to me

according to the command of our savior God.

4 To Titus, my genuine child

according to our common faith:

Grace and peace from God the Father,

and Christ Jesus our savior.

Notice it took four verses to get to the typical Christian greeting of “Grace and peace from God and Christ.” Let’s unpack that, shall we?

Paul’s commission. And Titus’s. And ours.

Paul starts his letter by kinda describing in what way he’s an apostle of Christ Jesus. No, he doesn’t tell his conversion story again; it’s not that kind of description. It’s more of a job description. He’s sharing the gospel. He’s speaking of life in “life in the age [to come]” (Greek ζωῆς αἰωνίου/zoës eöníu). The King James Version and subsequent translations tend to render this saying as “eternal life,” which it is, but in so doing we might miss the point: Paul’s talking about the age of God’s kingdom. Remember, the gospel is that God’s kingdom has come near, and we’re invited to repent and join it.

Paul describes himself as a slave of God. We Americans tend to balk at the “slave” language, and prefer to translate /dúlos as “servant”—it’s a voluntary employment, not the obligation of captives under a master. Thing is, slavery in ancient times was sometimes voluntary: People sold themselves in order to get out of debt, or preferred life under a compassionate master to their own freedom, and chose to remain slaves. Ex 21.5-6 That’s how we Christians are to Jesus: On our own, we’ll make an utter disaster of our lives. Following Jesus—when we actually follow him instead of hypocritically pretending we do—we’ll finally live them the way we should.

Paul also describes himself as an apostle of Christ Jesus, ’cause Jesus made him one, with a mission to share the gospel with gentiles and kings as well as Israelis. Ac 9.15-16 But notice Paul follows up this statement with three statements of κατά/katá, “consistent with”:

1. Consistent with the faith of God’s selected ones.
2. Consistent with the recognition of the truth.
3. Consistent with piety.

Paul isn’t a nondenominational apostle, going it alone apart from the rest of Christianity, bucking the teachings of other apostles because he figures he hears from God more clearly than they do. Paul considers himself part of the Christian mainstream (and because he wrote so much New Testament, Christians consider him, almost as much as Jesus, to be the mainstream). He’s an apostle same as the other apostles, hearing from Jesus with them, on the same team. He’s got the same faith in God as they. He recognizes the same truth as they. He believes in goodness, both as a fruit of the Spirit and as a qualification for Christian leadership. You might notice a lot of go-it-alone “apostles” nowadays do not stay consistent with these principles: They claim the right to develop unique doctrines, unique truths, and to define goodness however they please; and phooey on the rest of the church. Jesus cares about Christian unity, but they surely don’t.

Back to the gospel: Life in God’s kingdom, as it exists today, and as it’ll exist once Jesus finally returns, is the good news Paul was commissioned with preaching and demonstrating. This gospel was revealed to the world by Christ Jesus himself, promised by God himself, and God doesn’t lie; the kingdom is coming, and it’s already here among us.

So, that’s Paul’s job. And it’s also Titus’s job. And the job of every Christian in leadership. This is what we’re all supposed to be: People whom Jesus has chosen to represent him, to preach his gospel, and to do it alongside and harmonious with every other Christian. True of the apostle Paul, the apostle Titus, and every other Christian apostle. There shouldn’t be any such thing as a Christian apostle, pastor, or minister who rejects any element of this job description.

You wanna be in Christian leadership? You be like Paul and Titus.