A Letter to a Friend (Titus 3:12-15) - Pastor David Houck | April 26, 2026

So this is the 15th and final Sunday of looking at the book of Titus together.

I trust that this uh letter from the Apostle Paul has been edifying, encouraging, and I know it has been challenging at times for many of us, but we know that these words are inspired by God, written through both the Holy Spirit and the hands of men.

And they are living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword.

It speaks truth to us when we need it, it comforts us when we need it, and it challenges us when we need it.

It has the power to transform how we live and think, and it certainly pierces our sinful desires.

And I believe the book of Titus uh has done that over the past several months.

If you will look with me at Titus chapter 3, verses 12 through 15.

Titus 3:12–15

We read it last week, but we will examine it again this morning, beginning in verse 12.

When I send Artemis or Tychicus to you, do your best to come to me at Nicopolis, for I have decided to spend the winter there.

Do your best to speed Zenus the lawyer and Apollos on their way, see that they lack nothing.

And let our people learn to devote themselves to good works so as to help cases of urgent need and not be unfruitful.

All who are with me send greetings to you, greet those who love us in the faith.

Grace be with you all.

Let's pray.

Heavenly Father, we thank you for your truth, living and active.

Lord, we ask for your spirit's help this morning, that we might be slow or that we might be quick to listen and receive your word, that we might be slow to speak about that which we don't understand, and slow to find offense when your truth contradicts with our desires.

And Lord, um, enable us to not only be hearers of the word, but doers as well.

In Jesus Christ's name we pray.

Amen.

While we know and trust that these words are the very words of God, we must not forget that they are also the personal words of Paul.

These are both true, even if it's hard for us to understand that.

We are reminded of the humanity of these words when it comes to the end of many of Paul's letters, when he includes personal messages and greetings.

While we understand that this letter is from God to all believers, it was written to the believers in Crete in Paul's day, it is written to believers at Lampston Road Community Church today.

We must also appreciate that this letter, as well as Paul's two letters that he wrote to Timothy, are letters to friends.

That's why I've titled this today's message, A Letter to a Friend, because we can't lose sight of that.

And these personal moments, these little greetings, these closures at the end of his letter provide our first observation that Paul's letter to Titus is written with love.

It's written with love.

Now, this is certainly true of every book of our Bible.

If it is authored by God and God is love, then every book of the Bible is written with love.

And all of Paul's letters are written with love.

So I'm not saying that this book is different in that aspect in any way.

But this letter highlights brotherly love.

Paul's love for fellow believers, Paul's love for fellow brothers and sisters in the faith.

We find five brothers in the faith mentioned by name just in that um closing message.

First of all, we know that he's writing the letter to Titus.

Um Titus is mentioned several times throughout Paul's letters, not just this one.

He was a Gentile Christian, so he was a non-Jew who converted to Christ.

Um accompanied Paul in several missionary journeys, and he became sort of a protege to him.

As we read back in chapter one, Paul uh greets him and refers to him as my true child in a common faith.

Then we just read uh about a man named Artemis.

Um Artemis, this is the only time he is mentioned in the Bible, so we really aren't given much information about him, but by his inclusion, we uh can understand that he was trusted by Paul enough to be a possible replacement for Titus in Crete.

Um so clearly this was a very godly man, a faithful man, and a trustworthy man.

Then uh we find the name of Tychicus, um, who is also a companion of Paul.

In Colossians, he is referred to as a beloved brother and faithful minister.

Um, and it appears that perhaps a few times he was actually entrusted to deliver Paul's letter to churches.

Um, he perhaps was the one to deliver this letter to Titus.

And then we get Zenus the lawyer.

Um, this is the only time that he is mentioned, uh, but we know he is a lawyer of some kind.

Now, this could be, this could mean that he was an expert in Jewish law, which would have made him a Pharisee, as Paul once was.

Or if he was a Gentile, he could have been an expert in Roman law, which is interesting to think about because that certainly would have come in handy as these Christians began to preach in Roman land, someone who knows the law and who's able to come to their defense whenever someone tries to unjustly use the law against them.

And then we read the name Apollos.

Apollos is another prominent figure in the early church.

We first meet him in the book of Acts.

Um, he was a very powerful speaker.

Uh, he was probably a follower of John the Baptist.

Now, if you don't know, John the Baptist was a cousin of Jesus, and his whole ministry was preparing the way for the king.

He was sharing that a messiah is coming.

Get your hearts ready for the Messiah.

And so it appears that Apollos was only familiar with his message, and he continued to preach that message, but he didn't know the full story.

He didn't know, hey, the Messiah is here.

It's Jesus.

He just raised himself from the dead.

So two people heard him preach, two Christians, um uh Aquila and Priscilla, and they took him aside and they said, Hey, let me tell you the full story.

And then he converted and he became perhaps one of the most powerful preachers in the early church.

And so he is mentioned here as well.

So we see here, one thing we can learn here is that Paul was not a one-man show.

He relied on people, he trusted people, he loved people, people mattered to him because he knew people mattered to God.

Little inclusions like this in Paul's letter perhaps serve to correct false images that sometimes we can build up in our head about the Apostle Paul.

Now we understand that Jesus is both fully God and fully man, they both exist.

But I think sometimes as modern Christians, we appreciate the humanity of Jesus more than we do the Apostle Paul.

Not saying that the Apostle Paul is a god or a deity in any sort of way.

He wasn't.

But we like to notice and pick out the more human, emotional sides of Jesus.

And oftentimes, when we read Paul's letters, that there's this great misconception that, you know, he was a focused, driven man.

He was basically an energizer bunny.

God just wound him up and he kept going, never stopped to take a breath.

And that, you know, he kind of bristled people along the way.

He was a one-man show.

Uh, he didn't really seem to like people that much.

You know, he might have been a little mean, a grumpy old man.

We see, I mean, that is actually depicted in art of Paul.

And that is often the picture that people have in their minds.

So much so that we've mentioned it before, their entire sex of Christianity, false Christianity, that discount everything Paul said.

We don't like what Paul said, so we're gonna get rid of it.

But then we read his letters, we read moments like this, and we see that Paul was a man of love and a man of emotion.

He was focused and driven and passionate about spreading the gospel, but he was just as focused on loving his fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

And in his closing, we read in verse 15: all who are with me send greetings to you, greet those who love us in the faith.

This is what Paul's love was: love in the faith.

Commonly referred to as brotherly love in our Bibles, which is what I am going to call it today.

Of course, this encompasses both men and women and is not literal brothers, uh, it is brothers and sisters in the faith.

Um, our scripture calls it brotherly love, that's just how it was written.

And I just didn't feel creative enough to try to come with another term.

So, ladies, please forgive me.

We are talking about you as well, even if we say brotherly love.

Is that all right?

If anyone needs to leave at this point, you can go ahead and do so.

The offering box is in the back on your way out.

But what is this brotherly love that we read about?

Well, first of all, brotherly love is a fruit of the spirit.

That's the first thing we need to understand.

Brotherly love is a fruit of the spirit.

As Paul said, it is love in the faith.

Love in the faith.

This Christian love for fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, I'd say is perhaps the most powerful human-to-human connection there is.

You might ask, well, what about marriage?

I think brotherly love, Christian love, is more powerful than marriage.

Because Christian brotherly love is supernatural.

And if you look at the marriages of the world, how powerful is just the idea of marriage in itself, the way that the world has taken and corrupted it.

Look at the divorce rate.

The strongest marriages are between two Christians, a brother and a sister in the faith.

That is what makes a Christian marriage powerful.

But that cannot happen if there first isn't a mutual Christian love.

Because Christian brotherly love is supernatural.

It's not based on our thoughts or our feelings or our attraction or our interests or experiences or anything else.

In fact, it has absolutely nothing to do with us, it's a fruit of the spirit.

When Paul lists the fruits of the spirit in Galatians 5, chapter 22, what does he say the first one is?

He says, but the fruit of the Spirit is love.

It is love.

When you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

This is God Himself, God's own Spirit.

The Spirit of Jesus comes and lives inside of you.

When that happens, you change.

This is what changes you.

This is what changes and softens your heart.

This is what makes you even want to serve God in the first place and gives you what you need to do so.

And the Holy Spirit produces fruit in us, spiritual fruit.

The first is love.

And this Holy Spirit isn't different from person to person.

This isn't like a guardian angel or something like that.

This is the same spirit existing in every genuine believer, all at once.

So if we all share the same spirit, the same spirit that God has, by the way, we are united.

It's what supernaturally binds us all together.

Just as different organs and bones and ligaments all come together to form one body, the Holy Spirit joins us to form the body of Christ.

Paul to the Ephesians put it this way: there is one body and one spirit.

Just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all, through all, and in all.

To the Corinthians, he said, For in one spirit we were all baptized into one body, Jews or Greeks, slaves or free, and all were made to drink of one spirit.

God's own spirit binds us together.

And it doesn't matter your race, your gender, your ethnicity, your nationality, your politics, your age.

It binds us together.

Slaver free, Greek or Jew.

Doesn't matter your economic status.

And this was what really stood out to the first century.

When they saw all of a sudden all these different peoples of different classes, different backgrounds, different different ethnicities, different languages come together and worship.

Unheard of in that time.

Unfortunately, uncommon in today's time as well.

But we are supernaturally joined together.

And so if we all as Christians possess God's Spirit, and God is love, and God's Spirit produces love, then it is an undeniable truth that genuine believers have a love for fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

If you want to read about God's love, read John's first letter, 1 John, all about God's love, and we're gonna reference it several times.

But in chapter 4, verses 7 through 8, he says, Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God.

And whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.

Anyone who does not love does not know God because God is love.

God is love.

So if you possess God within you, then you will love.

Which leads us to our second point.

Brotherly love is evidence of one's faith.

Our brotherly love, our love for fellow Christians, fellow believers, people in our church, should be the very first thing people notice about us as Christians.

This is what should cause us to stand out.

Our love for each other, our unity.

Not bumper stickers on our car or cross necklaces or Facebook posts or quoting scripture everywhere you go or carrying a Bible with you.

It's nothing wrong with that.

But the first thing they should notice is your love for fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

That should be what draws people in.

That should be what people notice and say, This guy is different.

Why?

And they start asking questions.

How can I say this?

Because Jesus made it perfectly clear when he said to his disciples in John 13, verse 35, By this all people will know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another.

John 13:35

This is the defining characteristic of a Christian: a sacrificial love and unity that surpasses human understanding, that breaks down barriers, that defies worldly expectation.

It's evident that we are different.

So much so that the only possible explanation people can come to is that God must be in them.

But that leads us to a severe warning that we also read in 1 John chapter 4, verse 20.

1 John 4:20

He says, If anyone says I love God and hates his brother, he is a liar.

For he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.

Look, none of us are perfect.

We're gonna get to that.

But if you call yourself a Christian or religious, if you go to a church, if you tell people, I believe in God, I love God, yet your heart is just consumed with hatred, anger, resentment, judgment, jealousy for fellow Christians, for other people in the church.

John says you're a liar.

John says, you know, there will be love in your heart.

If there isn't, then God is not in your heart.

So that's one of the ways we can examine ourselves.

Lastly, brotherly love is a command.

Right before Jesus singled out love as the defining trait of true Christians, he issued a command in verse 34.

He said, A new commandment I give to you that you love one another, just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.

So, yes, if you have the Holy Spirit, it is inevitable that you will have a love for your brother.

But here's where the rubber meets the road.

As long as we're in this bodies, as long as we're walking this earth, we're still sinners.

And occasionally, hopefully rarely, and certainly never here, occasionally there will be a Christian, a brother or sister in Christ, who rub you the wrong way.

And it's hard in that moment to love them.

The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.

In these moments, we fall back to the fact that it's not about our feelings, it's a command from our Lord Jesus Christ.

We are to love others when it's easy, and we are to love others, especially when it's hard.

What does that love look like?

He said, He said, just as I loved you.

How did Jesus love his disciples?

How does he love us?

He loved us while we are still sinners.

He continues to love us despite the messes we are.

He led his disciples, he spoke truth to them, he confronted them, but he also served them, encouraged them, and for Forgave them.

He washed their feet.

He even laid down his life for them and for us.

So as Christians, we are called, we are commanded to do no less.

And this command is repeated all throughout the New Testament.

These are our marching orders.

These are the words to live by.

I've shared this one of my favorite verses.

I was actually at the doctor's office of all places several weeks ago when the doctor asked me what my favorite Bible verse is.

And it was one of those moments where I go, Bible verse?

But I remembered.

It's 1 Peter 2.17.

Honor everyone, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the emperor.

If I were to say what my life verse is, this is it.

This is what I try to live by.

And in connection time, we always have a verse that we try to memorize each month.

And I picked a short and simple one for this month, Hebrews 13, verse 1.

Hebrews 13:1

Let brotherly love continue.

There's an easy memory verse for you.

Let brotherly love continue.

So understanding what brotherly love is, how do we let it continue?

How do we increase our love for one another?

Well, brotherly love grows, first of all, through fellowship.

Brotherly love grows through fellowship.

He said, When I send Artemis or Tychicus to you, do your best to come to me at Nicopolis, for I have decided to spend the winter there.

Now I love this verse.

It's a reminder.

When it comes to the majority of scripture, the main is plain.

The plain things are the main things.

There are some people who might look at this verse and break it apart and come up with this really, really overly spiritual meaning behind every word in the sentence.

But what does this actually mean?

What is he actually saying?

He's saying, hey, winter is coming.

I've decided to spend the winter in Nicopolis.

Hey, as soon as your replacement arrives, come meet me there.

Let's work together.

Let's settle down and spend a few months together.

Let's fellowship.

I miss you, man.

I want to see you again soon.

And we miss this in our English translations, but there is actually an urgency here in the words that he used.

It was come to me as soon as you can.

Why Necopolis?

Now there are many cities by that name because it just meant city of victory, but likely he's referring to a city in southern Greece.

So why there?

Why is he spending the winter there?

Well, because that's not a bad place to spend winter time, is it?

I mean, that is the main reason.

What a better place to spend winter time.

In fact, I've been praying about God.

Is this your message to me through this text?

Should I go spend join me?

Why don't you join me there?

Travel was very difficult in winter time.

Um, so it was common to just pick a place to settle down to spend a few months there.

Paul, he might seem like an energizer rabbit, but he needed rest, he needed Sabbath, he needed time.

Um, and so he wanted Titus, one of his closest friends.

Hey, come meet me for the winter.

Let's spend some time together.

And it was strategic as well.

This was a city of commerce and trade, and so there was some strategy here, and we know that later on in his life, Titus went on from Nicopolis to further areas.

So it was kind of a launching point, but the main reason was hey, meet me here, let's spend some time together.

I miss you.

Let's fellowship.

It's an invitation to a friend.

We see similar sentiments in Paul's letter to Timothy, another close friend and ally and son in the faith.

In 2 Timothy 1, verse 3, and this is at the very end of Paul's life.

2 Timothy 1:3

He says to Timothy, I thank God whom I serve as did my ancestors, with a clear conscience, as I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day.

As I remember your tears, I long to see you that I may be filled with joy.

I think that is beautiful.

He says, I remember your tears.

What does he mean?

He means the last time he saw Timothy, Timothy cried when he left because they were that close.

And he says, Man, I think about you and pray for you night and day.

Come see me.

I remember the last time we saw each other, and I will be filled with joy if I can see you again.

And then at the end of the letter, he says again, do your best to come to me soon.

Fellowship.

Paul relied, Paul needed fellowship.

We do too.

And fellowship, getting together, spending time together, showing hospitality to one another, was a primary act of the early Christian church.

Acts chapter 2, verses 42 through 47.

Acts 2:42–47

This is the pinnacle of Christianity.

This is when the church was at its best.

Says, and they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles.

And all who believed were together and had all things in common.

And they were selling their possessions and belongings, and distributing the proceeds to all as any had need.

And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people.

And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.

Fellowship.

Fellowship united in Christ.

Fellowship in the face of all of their differences.

It was beautiful.

And it wasn't just Sunday morning.

It was day by day.

It was throughout the week.

They were getting together because they were friends, they were family, and they loved one another.

You cannot grow brotherly love if you're not even getting together in the first place.

I'll be honest, it's hard to grow in brotherly love in rows.

It best grows in circles.

You're sitting and you're listening to me.

You might greet each other a little bit on the way in or on the way out.

But it's not enough time to truly get to know each other, to truly fellowship.

That's why Bible studies are important.

That's why small groups are important.

That's why we've encouraged in the past.

Hey, just invite someone over for dinner and just say, hey, do you want to do you want to go out to eat?

Do you want to go get lunch or breakfast together?

Because it needs to exist.

This fellowship, this friendship needs to exist beyond these four walls.

Next, brotherly love grows through generosity.

We looked at this last week, so we won't spend too much time.

If you missed last week's message, I encourage you to go online and catch up.

But he said, Do your best to speed Zenus the lawyer and Apollos on their way, see that they lack nothing, and let our people learn to devote themselves to good works so as to help cases of urgent need and not be unfruitful.

Brotherly love grows and is displayed through generosity, meeting the needs of our spiritual family.

In the case of Zenus the lawyer and Apollos, it is giving them what they need so they can further their work in ministry.

And they're also to devote themselves to good works, devote themselves to generosity to help cases of urgent need.

Hopefully, this is a place where you can feel safe enough, or in your Bible study or small group or whatever it is, to let people know if there is a need in your life.

And as fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, rather than just you know doing what James says of, you know, go say, hey, have a good day, be warm, be well fed, but not do anything about their need.

You go home, you talk to your husband, you talk to your wife, you look at what you have, and you say, Hey, can we help this person?

How can we help this person?

That should be the goal.

Now, I have to say, I have to include this caveat.

Some people hear this, hear about Christian um generosity and generosity in the church and giving to brothers and sisters.

Some people, and it's very rare, but some people listen to that and they say, Great, where's my free stuff?

Great, where's my money?

Yeah, the church should be generous.

Write me a check, guys.

Come on.

Let's read the words of Paul to 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, verses 9 through 12.

1 Thessalonians 4:9–12

He says, Now concerning brotherly love, you have no need for anyone to write to you.

So this church, they're great, all about brotherly love.

He says, For you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another.

For that indeed is what you are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia.

But we urge you, brothers, to do this more and more, and to aspire to live quietly and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.

There are other verses I could have included here, but the message, the common message is that our goal should be to alleviate the burdens of others, not become a burden ourselves.

And this instruction, these aren't two separate thoughts.

They're connected.

Keep growing in brotherly love.

How do you do that more and more?

You live quietly, you mind your own business, you work with your hands.

Why?

So you have a good reputation and so you don't become a burden to anyone else.

And he actually instructed them work with the hands.

That meant physical labor.

Because people look down upon it.

I don't want to work with my hands.

I want to do something.

I'm above that.

You know, I don't want to do that.

And there's some people who is like, well, you know, Jesus is coming back.

Why work at all?

Let's just run around, you know, whatever it is, sing kumbaya.

Um he's like, no, no, no, work with your hands.

What's our takeaway?

No work is too demeaning or menial if you're providing for yourself and your family and not relying on anyone else.

Now, there are cases when someone genuinely cannot work.

Then the church's job is to step up and help them.

And guess what?

We live in a nation where there are other benefits for them.

But the Christian church should be leading.

However, what he's saying is if you can go get a job, go get a job.

Go flip burgers, go stock shelves, go clean toilets.

It's not too menial, it's not too demeaning if you're doing what God has called you to do.

And I understand it's not your goal in life.

That might not be your dream job.

Hopefully, God will call you somewhere else.

But work.

Don't be asking other people for money.

Don't be depending on money from other people's taxes if you are fully capable of getting a job yourself.

That's what he says.

That is brotherly love, providing for yourself, your family, and working so that you can provide and meet the needs of others as well.

Next, brotherly love can grow through partnership.

He mentioned Artemis or Tychicus.

It could be an either or, or it could mean that they were a pair, but then he mentions the pair of Zenus the lawyer and Apollos.

They were traveling together.

This was a very common theme in the early church.

Very few exceptions.

We see disciples, we see followers of Jesus working together.

Jesus set the standard during his earthly ministry.

In Mark chapter 6, verse 7 says, and he called the twelve and began to send them out two by two.

Mark 6:7

They worked together.

They worked in pairs.

There are many other examples of this.

We know Paul and Barnabas were a very famous duo.

Fortunately, they had a bit of a breaking up, a bit of an issue.

But then it became Paul and Silas and Barnabas and John Mark.

We talked about Priscilla and Aquila.

They were often pairs, duos, partnerships.

So we say here often, there are no Lone Ranger Christians.

And even the Lone Ranger had tonto.

We're not meant to do it alone.

We aren't even equipped to.

We all have spiritual gifts and talents and abilities, but we all have weaknesses as well.

That's why God has made us a body so that we can fit together, so we can complement each other's strengths and weaknesses.

We need someone working alongside us.

And no experience can unite two people more than being in the trenches together.

This happens in the faith too.

To engage in battle side by side, facing the enemy, looking out for one another.

That's ministry.

I don't know if you've experienced that or not, but that is ministry.

Engaging in God's will for your life is a battle.

And to be very clear, I am not talking about a culture war here or an us versus them mentality or let's go fight the world.

What I'm talking about is the battle against our own stupidity.

Amen?

Anyone else face that battle or is it just me?

It's a battle against our own selfish, sinful pride, and it's a battle against the real enemy, the real spiritual enemy, not other people.

And you can't win that battle alone.

And nothing unites people more than fighting that battle alongside someone else.

I personally have experienced this in many ways.

The neighborhood church.

Um got to work with some beautiful people, some of whom are here.

Relationships formed in the trenches.

Pastor Ronnie and I, good friends.

Uh, I've been picking his brain on different questions all week.

Uh, I think he blocked my number.

No, he didn't.

Uh great guy.

There's another gentleman in the church.

And I won't say his name to embarrass him, but you'll probably know who I'm referring to.

Um leader in um the neighborhood church.

Uh on paper, we really don't have a lot in common.

I mean, we're different in age and background.

Um, I couldn't really tell you, nor do I care about his politics.

Um, I really don't know many of his interests.

I know some of them.

I certainly don't think he's a comic book collector.

I don't know, I could be wrong.

So I don't think we share a lot of interests.

I don't think we share a lot of experience or background, but I love that man.

Absolutely love him.

I look forward to seeing him every single week because there are very few people who encourage me and build me up more than him.

And it was just on the foundation of the fact that he loves Jesus and he loves me, and I love Jesus and I love him.

And you know the greatest miracle about it?

He's a lawyer.

So if that's not God working, I mean, I don't know what is.

No.

It can unite people in the faith.

We need other people, and yes, sometimes that can make things complicated.

Sometimes it would seem easier to go it alone.

There will be friction.

We'll get to that, but be encouraged by this.

Proverbs 27, verse 17 iron sharpens iron and one man sharpens another.

Proverbs 27:17

Friction between two brothers united in Christ can cause each other to grow stronger.

Next weekend, grow brotherly love through encouragement.

As he said in verse 14, let our people learn to devote themselves to good works.

Now, this entails teaching, being taught, yes, but it's also encouragement, it's exhortation.

As a pastor, as a preacher, that's my job.

It's not only to just teach scripture and teach what it means in the context of it, it's to exhort you, to encourage you to apply it to your life.

That responsibility is not on me alone, though.

Every single one of us should be encouraging each other.

And this isn't like a fluffy sentimental, like, hey, it'll all be okay, you're doing well, have a good day.

It's much more than that.

Hebrews chapter 10, verses 24 through 25 says, and let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another and all the more as you see the day drawing near.

Hebrews 10:24–25

We're to encourage each other to love and good works.

It's calling each other to action.

That's what it's about.

Not sentiment, not feelings, action.

Inspiring, motivating, and challenging one another to do what we are called to do.

Stirring each other up.

And lastly, grow brotherly love through prayer.

Paul's final words were, Grace be with you all.

This might not necessarily be a formal prayer, but it's more so a benediction that Paul would include in many of his letters.

He's saying it to them, but he's also saying it to God.

It's, I am praying that God's grace may continue in your life.

And we know from his other letters, Paul is a man of prayer, and Paul preached for fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

Ephesians chapter 6, verses 18 through 19, he said, Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication, to that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to procr proclaim the ministry of the gospel.

Ephesians 6:18–19

This is how often should we pray?

All times.

What are we to pray for?

Well, if you were to ask the modern American Christian, we'd say safety, protection, pray, good health.

Pray for my mother's cousin's neighbor's son.

If you're like Kate and I, praying that your baby sleeps through the night.

And none of those things are wrong.

God cares about those prayers.

He cares for those.

But our prayers need to evolve and mature beyond that.

What did the early church pray for?

Paul there didn't say, Hey, please pray that I'm protected, please pray that I'm safe, please pray that my next missionary journey goes easy.

He said, Please pray that I have boldness.

Boldness in the face of everything that he would experience.

What else should we pray for?

Let's get really uncomfortable.

Look at what James said.

James chapter 5, verse 16.

James 5:16

Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another that you may be healed.

The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.

We don't really see this often in prayer groups, do we?

It's not super common that you see someone in church or see someone in the Bible study say, Please pray for me because I am struggling with this sin.

Because I did this today.

Please pray for me.

Help me overcome this.

No, oftentimes we keep it superficial or we keep it about someone else.

We don't make it personal.

But James says, no, confess your sins to one another because their prayer is powerful, and through that you can be healed.

Is this a physical healing?

No, this is a spiritual healing to help you overcome whatever sin, whatever temptation you are facing.

Now I'm not saying you stand up in church on a Sunday morning and say, hey, I got really drunk last night and crashed my car on the way home.

Probably don't want to share that with everyone.

But you should have a brother or sister to that you can trust, that you can confess your sins to.

Don't go alone.

And I want to close with this.

When brotherly love is tested, true friends remain.

I say when, because it will happen.

Brotherly love will be tested.

There will be conflict.

There will always be friction.

Friction exists in every family and every home, and the church certainly is not excluded from that.

Some people say, I don't want to be a part of the church.

I don't want to go to church.

Some people may say, hey, I follow Jesus, but I don't want to go to church because a church is full of hypocrites.

Amen.

Yes, we are.

I say that as a hypocrite.

Because you're a hypocrite.

Because we are all hypocrites.

Because we are sinners.

Church is just a group of sinners who love Jesus.

Church is just a group of sinners who have been loved by Jesus.

I'll be the first to say, our church is messed up.

The people in our church are messed up.

Your pastor is messed up.

Don't nod too much.

But thanks be to God that Jesus isn't afraid of the mess.

In fact, he was willing to cover himself in our mess just to make us clean.

But until the day we're called home, we're going to track dirt around with us.

Sometimes we're going to get it on other people.

There's going to be pain.

There's going to be friction.

Unfortunately, sometimes we hurt others.

Sometimes others hurt us.

Sometimes relationships end, relationships break.

And this, for better or for worse, can cause people to reveal their true colors.

Paul understood this so well.

He experienced the joy of those who stuck by him to the very end.

He experienced the stinging pain of betrayal.

He said to Timothy, Do your best to come to me soon, for Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalica.

Luke alone is with me.

Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is very useful to me in ministry.

Alexander the coppersmith did me great harm.

The Lord will repay him according to his deeds.

Beware of him yourself, for he strongly opposed our message.

At my first defense no one came to stand by me, but all deserted me.

May it not be charged against them.

Yes, we're all hypocrites.

But we learn that even in churches, there are those in every church who might claim to be a Christian, but don't genuinely have the love of God in them.

They perhaps were attracted to a part of the Christian message.

Maybe they enjoyed getting involved.

Maybe they enjoyed the friendship, the fellowship, having similar interests and values.

But God's love was never in them.

And you only learn of that when trouble comes.

In seasons of adversity, when life gets tough, when challenges come, when friction arises, because when all of this becomes too much for them, they walk away.

And it's tough.

If you've been a Christian for any extended period of time, you likely have experienced this as well.

It's heartbreaking, but it reveals who our true brothers are.

As Proverbs 17, 17 says, a friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

Those who have the love and love of God in them will remain, even when there is friction.

And that friction is not always a bad thing.

Sometimes it needs to be there because, as we read, iron sharpens iron.

We all have some edges that need to be shaved off.

We all have some rough spots.

We all have some things in our lives that need to be confronted and called out, things that need to be challenged, sins that we're holding on to, and we need someone else to do that.

A true brother or sister to come along and say, hey, we need to take care of this.

Is it uncomfortable?

Is it awkward?

Is it embarrassing?

Absolutely.

But it's better than the alternative, which we read in Proverbs 26 or 27, verse 6.

Wounds from a sincere friend are better than many kisses from an enemy.

Being a part of the family of God isn't all lovey-dovey, holding hands around the fire and singing.

Sometimes it's two brothers wrestling on the floor.

One ends up with a black eye, and a coffee table is broken.

But afterwards they hug it out.

Being a Christian means you need to be willing to wrestle at times rather than run away.

Embrace conflict over comfort when it's necessary.

And not to just seek conflict, not to unleash your anger or get someone back or to fight, but to broke, to mend a broken relationship.

This is why Jesus gave us very specific instructions regarding conflict.

He said, if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone.

If he listens to you, you have gained your brother.

That's always the goal.

Gain them back.

But you can't do that unless you talk to them, unless you confront them.

And he goes on to say, if they refuse to listen to you and listen to others, hey, he isn't your brother.

And now you know.

It's hard.

It's challenging.

But it's worth it.

Some of you might feel like you're alone.

You're lonely.

You don't have friends.

You haven't really experienced this.

Well, I hope if God's called you here, that you can experience that here.

I'd say maybe stop trying to look around for people who are the same age, have the same background, have the same interests.

Those relationships are great, but they're superficial.

Said look around you at the people who love and serve Jesus.

It could be a Titus and Paul or a Timothy and Paul type of a relationship.

And I want to encourage you with this.

There is one friend who will never betray you, who will never leave you, who will never abandon you.

Paul said in Romans chapter 8, verse 38 and 39, for I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God and Christ Jesus, our Lord.

Romans 8:38

What a friend we have in Jesus.

A perfect friend who sets the standard for each and every one of us.

So don't just look for that friend, be that friend, be that brother and sister in Christ.

Amen.

Let's pray.

Heavenly Father, we thank you for your love.

Lord, we don't deserve it at all.

We don't deserve the friendship, the relationship with your son Jesus, but you've given it to us anyways, despite our mess, our sin, our filth, and our continued rebellion.

But Lord, you've called us not just to love you, not just for unity in you, but also unity with our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

So I pray that we might be inspired and challenged by this word to seek that brotherly love and to love those that you have placed in our faith, not just for the sake of our own personal gain from these relationships, but that you might be glorified and that other people might be drawn towards you because of how your love is evident in us.

I pray that if there's anyone here this morning who hasn't received that love, who doesn't have that relationship with you, that they would seek to do so today.

That before they leave, they would come and talk to me or Pastor Mike or anyone else and just say, Hey, I want that relationship.

How do I get it?

Lord, we thank you.

We love you.

We thank you for the letter of Titus and for the growth it has caused in all of us.

Jesus' name we pray.

Amen.