Division & Devotion

All right, well this morning we come to our last sermon in the New Testament book of Titus,

the letter that Paul wrote to Titus.

We're going to hear this morning how the Apostle Paul wraps this letter up

and what his final instructions are for Titus there on the island of Crete.

And if you've been here for some of these Sundays where we've been working our way through this,

you'll know that Paul has already given a whole bunch of instructions to Titus

about how he should teach the Christians there on the island to live.

And his emphasis has very much been on living good lives and on doing good works

and on living with self-control because this is the kind of living that adorns the gospel.

It reflects the character of the God who has saved us.

And so we as followers of Jesus are to live that way.

And it's a way that we bring testimony to our God and to our Lord, Jesus.

Well, after proclaiming some wonderful truth about the gospel,

about how God has saved us and the work that he has done in us by his spirit,

Paul now finishes his letter in this way.

We're in Titus chapter 3 verse 8.

Titus 3:8

He says,

This is a trustworthy saying,

and I want you to stress these things so that those who have trusted in God

may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good.

These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.

So Titus, this truth of our salvation,

this gospel, teach it,

proclaim it,

declare it,

emphasize it,

emphasize it in the churches.

And not just so that more will hear and be saved,

but so that those who have already been saved

may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good.

The gospel leads us to live differently,

to devote ourselves to doing what is good,

or good works, literally.

And if we do this,

he says it's going to be beneficial,

it's going to be excellent for everyone.

Verse 9,

But avoid foolish controversies,

and genealogies,

and arguments,

and quarrels about the law,

because these are unprofitable and useless.

There's a contrastive link here.

I highlighted those words in the verses there.

The flow of Paul's thought seems to turn on this word profitable,

which in this case doesn't mean financial.

It means just beneficial.

So what's profitable?

If everyone devotes themselves to doing good works,

that's profitable.

That's beneficial.

What's unprofitable?

Getting caught up in these foolish controversies,

and arguments,

and quarrels about the law,

and genealogies.

This is unprofitable.

It brings zero benefit.

And so let's consider these four things

that we as Christians are to avoid.

The instruction given by Jesus through Paul.

First, he says,

Avoid foolish controversies.

There are some things that are worth fighting over.

There are some hills that are worth dying on.

The apostles made this clear through their lives.

The gospel message,

the truth about Jesus and his kingdom,

is something worth dying for.

It's something worth fighting over to defend.

Paul himself fought to defend the gospel

in his letter which he wrote to the Galatians.

He was willing to go to battle over this.

That it's not by works that we're saved,

but by faith alone.

And so there are some things that are worth fighting over.

There are some controversies

which demand our participation as Christians,

but there are many

that we are to avoid

all together.

Avoid foolish controversies,

says Paul.

And Paul gives us two other things here

in the context

which kind of serve as examples

of what kind of things is he talking about.

What's a foolish controversy?

There are two listed in this little list here.

One of them is genealogies.

This on its own is a thing to avoid,

but it's also an example

of a kind of foolish controversy.

Fighting or arguing over ancestry

is foolish.

And we don't know how much

the Gentile Christians in Crete did this,

but we do know that

some of the Jewish people of this time

were more susceptible

to this kind of controversy.

They would argue about

who was descended from who,

who was of which tribe.

Paul himself even goes so far

as to give an example of this,

this mentality

in his letter to the Philippians

where he boasts

about his ancestry

to the Philippians.

There in Philippians 3, verse 4,

Philippians 3:4

he says,

if someone else thinks

they have reasons

to put confidence in the flesh,

I have more.

I was circumcised

on the eighth day.

I'm of the people of Israel.

I'm of the tribe of Benjamin.

I'm a Hebrew of Hebrews

in regard to the law of Pharisee.

And he goes on,

and then he ends it this way.

He says,

but whatever were gains to me,

I now consider loss

for the sake of Christ.

What's more,

I consider everything a loss

because of the surpassing worth

of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord

for whose sake

I have lost all things.

I consider them garbage

that I may gain Christ.

Ancestry or heritage

is not entirely unimportant.

Of course,

we hear a little bit about this

in Paul's letter

to the church at Rome.

But now,

the gospel message

is that salvation

is for all people.

regardless of heritage,

regardless of ancestry,

as Paul says

in his letter

to the Galatians,

there's neither Jew

nor Gentile

in Christ Jesus.

And as we just heard,

Paul said that

his particular ancestry,

he now counted

as rubbish

compared to the surpassing

greatness

of knowing Jesus,

his Lord.

Ancestry,

whether you're Jew

or Gentile,

who you're related to,

that doesn't limit

your access to Jesus

and it doesn't give you

special privilege

or access to Jesus.

And so going back

and tracing out genealogies

to bolster your status,

it's foolish.

It's pointless.

We all have the same standing

before Christ

and in Christ.

So this is just one

of the foolish controversies

that he names

that's going on

on the island of Crete.

A second example,

he says,

avoid quarrels

about the law.

Avoid quarrels

about the law.

And this is almost

certainly a reference

to the Mosaic law,

like the Old Testament law.

And again,

another distinctly Jewish

point of controversy.

Scribes would get

into battles

with each other

over what

the Old Testament law

meant,

how it was to be read,

how it should be interpreted

and applied.

And there were

different sects

that emerged

within Judaism

and then that would

all filter down

to the people

and there'd be

these factions

that were at odds

with each other.

So this,

on its own,

quarreling about the law

is a thing to avoid,

but it's also

a specific example

of another kind

of foolish controversy

that people were

getting tangled up in

back then.

And here again,

Paul had some

pretty clear words

about our relationship

to the Old Testament law

as Christians today.

He said,

we've died to the law

through Jesus.

He said,

we're no longer

under law,

but grace.

The author of Hebrews

describes how

the Old Covenant

has been made obsolete

by this new covenant

which Jesus

has inaugurated

with his death.

And so the Old Testament law,

it doesn't apply

to us today

in the same way

that it applied

to the people of Israel

before Christ came.

And so it's foolish

to get caught up

in disputes

about Old Testament

law observance

like some of the Jewish

false teachers

were promoting.

So these are just

two examples

of foolish controversies

given by Paul himself

to avoid.

But we also see

that this is broader

than just those two examples.

In between those two examples,

he says,

avoid arguments.

It's pretty general.

There seems to be

a larger principle here.

It's not just about

ancient Jewish controversies.

It's about all kinds

of foolish,

stupid,

senseless,

irrelevant controversies

or arguments

that we could get

tangled up in

even today.

Now,

I thought about

just giving a whole list

of some different ones

but then I thought,

you know,

this is a tricky thing

because

these are things

that we easily

take offense over.

These are things

that we tend to

invest ourselves

into a lot.

We feel very strongly

about some of these

kinds of things.

We put our emotions

into these things.

We come to see

these things

as really important.

And sometimes

in these kinds of issues

we tend to see

everything as truth

versus error

or right versus wrong

when in many of these

issues in our world today

they're not as easy

to sort out

or to get to the bottom of.

And

we can do the same thing

when it comes to matters

of our faith.

Unfortunately,

we can be all too quick

to judge

a brother

or a sister

in the church

as sinning

or as straying

from the word of God.

We could judge them

as being unsubmissive

to the word of God

just because

they might come

to a different opinion

or understanding

of a secondary matter

in the Bible.

We can be so concerned

about that speck

in our brother

or sister's eye

that we fail

to see the log

in our own eye.

So how do we know

whether something

falls into the category

of argument

worth having

or foolish controversy

to be avoided?

Well, Paul gives us

at least one

very obvious

reason or statement,

a way to see

a little bit

what we're dealing with.

He says,

avoid foolish controversies

and arguments

because these

are unprofitable

and useless.

Here we've got

a pair of words,

basically synonyms.

They mean the same thing.

These foolish controversies

and arguments,

they're of no benefit.

They're fruitless,

literally.

Nothing good

is coming from them.

And so that's really,

I think,

maybe the first way

to discern

whether an argument

is worth having

is to,

at the outset,

before we get into it,

before we venture

into this discussion

or debate

or whatever,

ask ourselves

this question,

what good is there

to come of this?

What benefit

is there

to arguing

over this,

to going to battle

over this?

What's really

at stake

in this argument?

If we think

about genealogies,

it's pretty obvious

that arguing

about who's descended

from who

is pointless.

There's nothing

at stake.

If we think

about the precise

significance

of every little detail

of the Old Testament

feasts

and how they were

commemorated,

it's pretty obvious,

I hope,

that arguing

over those details

is fruitless.

We're not even

required to keep

those festivals

and feasts today

because of our

position in Christ.

And so,

how is arguing

over the details

going to help us?

It isn't.

But let's pick

a more contemporary

issue

and let's pick

one that's not

a biblical issue

just as an example.

One of the

hot-button issues

in our world today

is climate change.

And it's not

a simple issue.

There are many

different related

issues to it.

You could talk

about emissions.

You could talk

about global

temperatures.

You could talk

about natural

disasters and how

they affect

or are affected

by the climate.

We could talk

about related

technologies and

their effectiveness

or ineffectiveness

at curbing emissions.

We could talk

about carbon

taxation

or power

generation

and power

demand.

Is climate

change

an important

issue?

Yes.

The policies

being made

around this

issue do

affect us.

But when it's

all said and

done,

does what a

person believes

about climate

change and

each related

sub-issue

really matter

for the

kingdom of

God?

I hope

your answer

is no.

I doubt

it.

What benefit,

what good fruit

can come

from really

arguing with

people over

this?

We might

think that

we're bringing

the benefit

of enlightening

the person

that we're

talking to,

helping them

see the truth

of the issue,

but do we

fully understand

the truth

of the issue?

and all

the related

sub-issues?

Do we know

which scientific

studies are good

and which are

bad?

Do we know

all the

motivations and

agendas that

are being carried

by all the

players around

this issue?

We might

think that we

do, but

you know,

that's kind

of a common

factor in

every useless

argument.

We think

we see things

clearly.

We think

that we have

it all figured

out.

We think

that everyone

would be best

served by

forsaking

their opinion

and adopting

mine.

But as it

often goes,

do people

tend to

change their

views on

these issues?

Or do they

tend to just

get more

entrenched?

We could

probably take

a lot just

from the

word foolish.

Foolish

controversies.

What are

fools known

for?

Well, in the

Bible, one

of the things

that they're

known for is

doing the

same thing

over and

over and

over again

without learning

from the

consequences of

their actions.

There's a

senselessness to

it.

A lot of

efforts put

into an

endeavor or

behavior that

yields, at

the end of

things, no

benefit.

That's why it's

foolish.

It's like just

wasted effort,

wasted words,

wasted time.

The overall

aim of the

actions taken

or the words

spoken is of

little value.

What do we

really hope to

accomplish if

after an hour

of going at

it back and

forth about

climate change

we still haven't

changed the

other person's

mind and

they still

haven't changed

ours?

Should we go

another hour

just for the

fun of it?

Or maybe

there's something

that we could

talk about that

really will build

each other up,

something that

will really

encourage the

other person

or meet a

need or open

the discussion

up to

spiritual

things?

So this is a

question the

Lord wants us

to consider

when it comes

to a matter.

Is this really

of benefit

or value?

Is this worth

fighting over?

Is there

something lasting

and worthwhile

at stake here?

Does this have

to do with

kingdom things?

The things

above?

Or is this

just pointless

quibbling over

stuff that doesn't

really matter

for no real

benefit?

Now let's be

clear here.

Is it okay to

have an opinion

on these kinds

of things?

Yes.

He doesn't say

avoid thinking

about controversial

things.

Is it fine to

have a discussion

with a friend

about a

controversial topic?

I think so.

What's the

thing that we're

really to avoid

here?

It seems

by the way

that it's

worded that

it's really

the fighting

part,

the arguing,

the quarreling

part,

the senselessly

going at it

with each other.

That's the thing

that we're to

avoid.

I mean if you

want to yak

with a friend

about Elon

Musk's

latest

speech on

interplanetary

space travel,

go for it.

God is

not against

the use

of imagination

or reason

or evaluation

but it's

when we

fight over

these kinds

of issues

and in so

doing allow

these issues

to cause

rifts

and hurt

and division

among us

that it

becomes a

problem.

It's when it

becomes your

mission to

win the

argument or

to spread

the good

news of

your opinion

to everybody

else and

convert them

all over

that damage

is done

and factions

are formed.

Avoid that

kind of

behavior

says Jesus.

It's

unprofitable.

It's useless.

There's no

benefit to it.

And here's

what to do

when a person

becomes divisive

like this

as a sort

of pattern

or as a

sort of habit.

He says

in verse 10

warn a

divisive person

once and

then warn

them a

second time.

After that

have nothing

to do with

them.

So this

is serious.

Paul gives

instructions to

Titus about

how to deal

with divisive

people in

the church.

He's first

to warn

them.

And the

word that's

used here

for warning

it has a

very nuanced

specific meaning.

It specifically

means to

counsel them

about avoiding

or stopping

an improper

behavior

with a goal

that they

actually would.

So it's not

just kind of

like lambasting

them or

intimidating

them.

Just stop

it.

It's more

than that.

The goal

of this kind

of warning

is to help

the person

see how

what they're

doing is

improper.

The goal

is to

counsel them,

to warn

them,

to admonish

them so as

to change,

to see them

change from

doing that

to behaving

as they

should.

And so this

kind of warning

should really

address the

heart and

the mind

as well as

the behavior.

So first

warn them

like this,

says Jesus,

and then if

they continue

to be

divisive,

warn them

a second

time.

and then

if they

still

continue

to be

divisive,

he says

have nothing

to do

with them,

a more

accurate

translation,

reject,

reject them.

Some

commentators

see this

as more

of a

passive

thing,

like just

shun that

person,

don't talk

to them,

treat them

like an

unbeliever.

Others

see this

as more

actively

dismissing

them

from the

church,

or excommunicating

would maybe

be a word.

I mean,

we don't use

that word

often because

it kind of

brings up

connotations,

especially in

the Catholic

church.

But I think

I tend to

agree more

with this

idea of

kind of

sending them

out.

Why?

Look at the

next verse.

For you

know that

such a person

has gone

astray

and is

sinning.

He is

self-condemned.

So they're

persistently

deviating

from what

is good

and right.

They're

stirring up

trouble

and conflict.

They're

promoting

foolish

and fruitless

arguments

and controversies

over things

that are

bringing no

benefit to

anybody.

And the

present tense

here is

notable.

Such a

person is

sinning.

Is sinning.

Like right

now, in

doing this,

they are

sinning.

They are

self-condemned.

So if

they're

unresponsive

to this

kind of

restorative

warning that

Titus gives

to them

twice,

then they're

kind of

proving

their own

actions,

that they're

just unwilling

to be

obedient to

the Lord

Jesus and

to the

correction that

he's bringing

into their

life through

the leaders

in the

church.

Now we

might want

to think

for a moment

about the

effect on

that

individual.

It might

seem

harsh,

but the

truth is

that the

Lord Jesus

is concerned

about his

people.

He doesn't

want to see

us all

divided and

in factions.

He wants

to see us

united,

together,

like a

family.

And these

kinds of

behaviors,

when done

persistently,

fight against

that and they

destroy that.

But there

is also a

purpose for

the person

who is being

sent out.

if they

don't yield

to the

warnings that

are given,

it's not

all judgment

or condemnation

and God

may use

that to

help them

really come

to grips

with where

they're at

spiritually.

And the

hope or the

goal would

be that

they would

repent,

that they

would confess

the wrong

that they're

doing and

be restored

to fellowship

in the

church.

We could

look at some

other passages

about that,

but we won't

go into that

this Sunday.

it's probably

worth mentioning

that it fell

to Titus

to do this

in the

churches,

to do the

warning and

also the

rejecting part.

But then

when Titus

leaves,

naturally this

would then fall

to the elders

that he

appointed,

the leaders

in the

church.

We think

back to the

metaphor of

shepherds,

elders are to

be shepherds,

and at times

that's going to

require them to

ward off the

wolves,

those who

would try to

creep in and

do damage or

hurt.

So this is the

first part of

our passage this

morning, and it's

really focused on a

thing that we're

to avoid, because

this doesn't do

anything good for

us.

Avoid arguments and

foolish controversies.

But then as we

shift into the

last little bit of

the letter here,

we're going to see

an emphasis the

other way on what

we're to do,

what we're to

focus on.

And let me just

read it for us

here in verse 12

to 15.

Paul says,

As soon as I

send Artemis or

Tychicus to you,

do your best to

come to me at

Nicopolis, because

I've decided to

winter there.

Do everything you

can to help

Zenos, the

lawyer, and

Apollos on their

way, and see that

they have everything

they need.

Our people must

learn to devote

themselves to

doing what is

good in order to

provide for urgent

needs and not live

unproductive lives.

Everyone with me

sends you greetings.

Greet those who

love us in the

faith.

Grace be with you

all.

So Paul goes on

to give some very

specific instructions

here about how

Titus is to come

to Nicopolis once

his replacement

arrives, and he's

also to ensure that

Zenos, the lawyer,

and this guy named

Apollos are sent on

their way with

everything that they

need.

Paul then passes

along greetings of

those who are with

him, and he tells

Titus to greet those

who love him in the

faith.

What should we make

of these instructions?

What should we make

of these greetings?

things?

Well, sometimes when

we read through our

Bibles, these might

be the parts that we

just kind of skip

over.

Is it even relevant

to our lives today?

But you know, as I

was thinking through

some of these words,

there's actually a lot

here for us.

There's something that

we can take from

them.

We get the sense from

these words that there

is so much more going

on than just the

happenings of one

local church, or the

happenings of one

little island.

We see Paul kind of

quarterbacking efforts

to see the gospel go

forward here and there,

and he's trying to get

people to go this way

and see that people can

go that way.

And even these people

on Crete and their

churches, even though

they're isolated from

others because of

living on this island,

they too have a role to

play in the greater

cause of the gospel.

And so, help Zenos,

the lawyer, and

Apollos on their way.

Be diligent.

Make sure that they

have everything that

they need as they're

coming and as they're

going.

Whatever assignment the

Lord Jesus has for

them, Paul probably

knew where they were

going or what they

were doing.

Each local church,

even on the island in

the middle of the

Mediterranean, has

something to

contribute to the

cause of the gospel,

gospel, to the

mission of Jesus

Christ in our world,

to our brothers and

sisters who are beyond

our community.

And in some ways, as I

was thinking about

Crete, here this island

in the middle of the

Mediterranean, it kind

of wasn't, you know,

it's not really a

destination.

It's not a place people

wanted to get to.

It was a place that was

on the way, usually

traveling by ship, a

place that people would

stop over.

And so, here in this

stopover place, they

had this unique

opportunity to assist

these brothers in

Christ on their way.

And I got thinking

about this, you know,

Davidson is also a

place that's on the

way.

A place between the

big cities.

The coffee pot says it

well.

people often stop to

grab a Timmy's, to

take a rest break, to

get gas.

It's just a long way

to go between Regina and

Saskatoon for most.

We're also a meeting

place where those are

who are looking to

meet halfway for sports

or business or other

things can meet.

I wonder what

opportunities the Lord

might bring to us in

the future to meet the

needs of our brothers

and sisters in this

province as that place

on the way.

Finally, there's the

greetings here.

I love this part.

You get the sense that

wherever Paul is at this

moment, the believers

with him, they're there.

They're thinking about

their spiritual family

members.

They're on the island of

Crete.

I don't know if you

guys do this same thing

that we do in my family

when it comes to

FaceTime.

Sometimes you get on

FaceTime with family or

friends who are far away.

You ever have that

moment where either at

the beginning when it's

hello or at the end

when it's goodbye,

everybody comes and

gathers around the

screen and at least

gives a little wave

and says, hi, goodbye.

Well, back then they

didn't have FaceTime.

They didn't even have

telephone.

So the picture we get

here is of them all

crowding around the

letter that Paul is

penning.

Oh, you're writing to

the churches on Crete,

to our brothers and

sisters on Crete.

Well, tell them I say

hi to.

And eventually there

was just too many names

probably.

So he just says,

everyone with me sends

you greetings.

We are a spiritual

family as a church,

knit together by

Christ.

But we are just one

local expression of

of the larger family.

We have brothers and

sisters all over the

world and in the

neighboring communities

and cities in our

province.

This is why I'm really

excited for us as we

explore this opportunity

to join the Baptist

General Conference to

which we've applied

because it's another

opportunity for us to

open ourselves up to

just some of our

brothers and sisters in

Christ who are in other

churches in our

province.

There's an opportunity

here for us to

participate in the

cause of the gospel

beyond just Davidson

and Craig and the

surrounding areas.

There's an opportunity

here for us to take an

interest in the blood

bought brothers and

sisters in Saskatoon

and Regina and

Wadena and

Mydale and Birch Hills

and Turtleford.

Right now many of

those brothers and

sisters are probably

doing the same thing

we're doing right now.

Maybe they have some

needs in their community

or in their church that

we can help meet.

Even if it's just to

pray for them.

Maybe we have some

needs that God has

uniquely equipped them

to meet.

And they could be

praying for us about

some things.

Our people must

learn to devote

themselves to doing

what is good in

order to provide for

urgent needs and

not live unproductive

lives.

The temptation is for

us to just focus our

attention on ourselves.

Only on our

comforts.

Only on living a

life of ease and

entertainment and

recreation for me.

But no.

Paul shows us a

better way here.

He says the cause of

the gospel is greater.

It's greater than the

local community.

It's greater than the

local church.

There are urgent

needs in the cause of

the gospel all over

the place.

And our people need

to be actively

participating in

meeting those needs.

Devoting themselves to

doing good works that

meet real needs.

Urgent needs.

And to live otherwise

he says is to live an

unproductive life.

There it is again

that word.

Unprofitable.

Unproductive.

A fruitless life.

A wasted life.

As we bring this to a

close we could kind of

sum this whole passage

up.

We're given something

to avoid.

And we're given

something to devote

ourselves to.

We're to avoid being

divisive.

And we're instead

to learn to be

devoted to doing

what is good.

To meeting needs.

In the first half of

this passage we heard

about the thing that is

unprofitable.

The thing that is

fruitless and unproductive.

And it's getting into

foolish controversies and

arguments and fights.

And in the second half

of this passage we hear

about the thing that is

profitable.

The thing that is

beneficial and fruitful.

It's us being

devoting to doing

what is good.

To the meeting of

needs.

This is the profitable.

This is the fruitful

life that Christ longs

for his people to

embrace.

Don't be a divisive

disturber of the peace.

Be a devoted doer of

good works.

A meter of needs.

Paul is saying.

And so I want to just

leave you with this

question.

Are you attuned to

the needs of others?

Are you looking for

them?

Are you responding to

them as you can?

Paul ends with a

simple blessing.

He says grace be with

you all.

May God's generous

kindness.

His favor.

Be with all of you

there on the island

of Crete.

Let's pray.

Father in heaven we

thank you for the

words of this letter.

And we ask that you

would do in us what

you long to see happen

in them all those

years ago.

In those churches.

In any way where we

are the same.

Where we need the

same word of

correction.

Speak that to our

hearts.

Lead us away from the

things that are

unprofitable.

The things that are

that have no value.

And lead us to the

things that will bless

others and benefit

others.

And ultimately

will bring glory to

you.

Our Savior.

And our King.

We pray this in

Jesus name.

Amen.