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Question

APPOINT ELDERS IN EVERY TOWN

Titus 1:1-16

Key Verse: 1:5

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• Ti1a2004Q.doc

Message

APPOINT ELDERS IN EVERY TOWN

Titus 1:1-16

Key Verse 1:5

The reason I left you in Crete was that you might straighten out what was left unfinished and appoint elders in every town, as I directed you.

This passage serves as a good guide to pioneer all college campuses in 230 different nations. 

Part I the blessed hope

Ecclesiastes 9:4 reads, "Anyone who is among the living has hope--even a live dog is better off than a dead lion!" 

When we study the Bible, we see that the way the Bible sees man's life even here on earth is very different than the way the philosophers of this world see it. The Bible sees man’s life as a greatly pleasant phenomenon, filled with joy. But the philosophers of this world do not see it that way, their views are at best somber, sullen, and sad. 

The question then is, "Why is it that the way the Bible sees man's life is so different? What makes the difference?" We find an answer to this question in the Bible passage we just read: Ecclesiastes 9:4. "Anyone who is among the living has hope--even a live dog is better off than a dead lion!" Each time I read this passage, it conjures up in my mind a picture of a dog during winter time. I grew up in a country side where four seasons are clearly delineated. During the winter you go to bed at night. Then you wake up in the morning, go out, and see that the whole town is covered with white snow. It snows during the winter. Then guess what. Who enjoys the snow covered fields the most? Your dog. This dog is so joyful that it jumps all around, up and down, rocking and rolling, sometimes on its tummy, sometimes on its back, and does break dances far better than Michael Jackson. "Anyone who is among the living has hope--even a live dog is better off than a dead lion!" Here, by the "hope," the Holy Spirit, the real author of this line, does not mean just any hope, but the real hope, the hope of eternal life. Illustrating this concept, Ecclesiastes 3:11 also says, "He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end." 

But by God's grace, the Apostle Paul fathomed what God has done from beginning to end. He discovered that from the beginning of time, the Lord God gave us the hope of eternal life even here on earth. Look at verses 1-4. "Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ for the faith of God's elect and the knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness--a faith and knowledge resting on the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time, and at his appointed season he brought his word to light through the preaching entrusted to me by the command of God our Savior, To Titus, my true son in our common faith: Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior." 

Notice the expression, "a faith and knowledge resting on the hope of eternal life!" To the Apostle Paul this hope, the hope of eternal life, did not exist merely as wishful thinking; rather it became part of his life as an "effective knowledge." It existed inside of him. He knew that it was coming. 

"A faith and knowledge resting on the hope of eternal life"! Let us then stop for a moment and think about this hope.  

(1) Its blessed contents

When we think about it, no hope is greater than the hope of eternal life. Each time I think about the expression "eternal life," I am reminded of what I was told to be the three greatest lies. The first lie is from a salesman who says, "I ain't get any profit out of this deal". The second lie is from an old virgin who says, "I don't want to get married." The third lie is from an old man who says, "I want to die early." Of course, there might be some exceptions. But with all other conditions being equal, a normal human being of sound mind, will always want to live as long as possible. 

But the fact of the matter is that we cannot live here in our physical body eternally. Still, however, the Apostle Paul says that Jesus even called him to preach the faith and knowledge which rests on the hope of eternal life! 

For those who regard what is physical seen here in this world as all there is to life, the hope of eternal life may not seem to amount to anything. But, from a Biblical perspective, what is physical is merely a garment of what is essential. It is like a lamp that is lit up upon turning the light switch on. And as Paul used it, the term "eternal life" refers to the new life which is given to a man while in his physical body, and will be donned with a new resurrected body as we will soon see the blessed hope of Jesus appearing again (2:13). Surely the hope of eternal life is the greatest hope we can ever imagine to hope for.

(2) Its blessed certainty

How certain then is this hope? Where is the guarantee that this hope will become a reality for us? Look at verse 2, "A faith and knowledge resting on the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time..." If I say, "I, Isaac H. Kim, a servant of God hereby guarantees that this hope will be a reality for you in due course of time," will you believe me? I do not think so. If Paul says the exact same thing, you may or may not believe him. In the passage Paul stresses that it is not men like me, Paul, or any human being, but God the Creator who cannot lie. And Paul says that we can be rest assured in regard to the certainty of this hope because it is God the Father who promised to fulfill it. And we can certainly believe this promise because it is impossible for God to lie. 

What Paul says in regard to the origin of the promise of the eternal hope is also very interesting, for Paul says that God gave us this promise even before the beginning of time. When Jesus came he said to his followers in John 5:24, "I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life." Jesus issued this promise about 2000 years ago. But this promise predates far beyond that. The Lord God gave us this promise before the beginning of time. When did time begin? It began before God creating the earth, the sun, moon, and stars. In fact it began in God's mind prior to God's will to make anything manifested. The Prophet Isaiah also explained this concept when he said in Isaiah 46:10, "I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please." 

When we combine what Isaiah says with what Paul says in verse 2, we can truly rest assured that God's promise of eternal life is truly trustworthy. According to Jesus, God is perfect (Matthew 5:48). One of the elements of God's perfection is revealed in the way he makes a plan. Like each of us who bear the image of God, God also establishes a purpose, and then makes a plan which fits the purpose. The generality of the Bible shows us that God's only purpose in creating the world is to bestow upon his creation, particularly you and me, the crowns of creation, all the good he has in mind. God's name is Love. And love seeks the highest good of the one to whom it is directed. According to this purpose he made a plan to bless us even before the creation of the universe. One then will ask, "What is the plan?" The plan is profound and yet simple. In fact, it is couched in a man named Jesus Christ. John 1:1-4 clearly says that the existence of Jesus predates the existence of time! 

"A faith and knowledge resting on the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time..." Again, combine what Paul says here with what Isaiah says in Isaiah 46:10, especially in the latter part of the verse: "I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please." Thank and praise God who established such a great purpose and plan. Thank God who made this end purpose known from the beginning. Thank God who is committed to fulfilling this purpose.

(3) Its blessed availability

The next question that naturally arises is, "How can I make myself available to this promise?" Or, "Who can take possession of it?" In verses 1-4 we read that we already received an answer to this question: "by faith in Christ Jesus our Savior." It has been said, "FAITH is an acronym for 'Fantastic Adventure In Trust Him". 

If one has 99 cents, he can go to a 99 cents store and buy any item for 99 cents. What if you don't have even 99 cents? Nothing. But it is not so with the greatest gift of God. It has been said, "All the great things of our life are free." Air is free. Water is free. Life itself is free. Which one of you here ever paid anything for your life? And the promise of eternal life comes to us only upon showing of our faith that God is so good as to send Jesus Christ to make this eternal life available in him all for free. 

This transaction sounds too good to believe. But this is not just make-believe, but quickly becomes a reality for those who believe. Speaking of this truth, in verses 1-2, Paul uses the words "faith and knowledge" twice. "Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ for the faith of God's elect and the knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness--a faith and knowledge resting on the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time..." Notice the order in which the two words appear, for faith appears first, and then knowledge appears. This indicates that God reveals his truths as much as we believe. In other words, knowledge follows faith. Yesterday, Dr. Paul Lim shared good news with me. He received from INS a notice of approval stating, "Your application for permanent resident status has been approved." The notice says that the priority date was July 19, 1996, and the date of notice of approval was September 24, 2004. Let us do a little math: 2004 - 1996 = 8. 8 years is a long time. Believing that it would come, he applied for a green card. There were moments of doubt arising in his heart. But, he continued to believe. Finally the Lord God blessed him with fruit. He now knows that the promise of Jesus is for real. 

Most importantly, as we put trust in Jesus, he continues to reveal himself to us. He proves to us that he is good and therefore out of his total goodness does nothing but what is good for us, and he does all that is good in every sense of the word “good.” And the greatest good he is going to do is transform us into a man who is suitable for the eternal life in the eternal presence of God, first in the form of a down payment while in this mortal body then in full in the day to come.

Part II the blessed mission

Again, Ecclesiastes 3:11 says, "He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end." Here, "they cannot fathom," does not mean that no one can fathom. Rather by this expression Solomon simply shares his remorse for the fact that people remain ignorant of what God has already done from beginning to end, specifically of his will to bestow eternal life on those who put trust in him. [And people remained ignorant not all the time but until the opportune time was to come.]

This lack of knowledge then gives rise to the need for evangelism. It is the only true reason why when the opportune time had arrived, the Lord God established apostles like the Apostle Paul to bring his word to light through the preaching entrusted to them. 

In Titus then the Apostle Paul charges Titus to appoint elders in every town in Crete. Crete is a small island which is about one third of Hawaii in size. It is located at the heart of the Mediterranean Sea. It is like a belly button of one's tummy. In the day of the Apostle Paul it was one of the most favored resort areas and it still remains so today. Inasmuch as the Mediterranean Sea itself was surrounded by the people and nations of all different civilizations so also the residents of this island consisted of people from all different backgrounds (politically, socially, economically, culturally, religiously or otherwise). If you go to the fruit section at Ralph's you can find all kinds of fruit - apples, grapes, oranges, tomatoes, pears, etc. Likewise, this island was like a department store with all kinds of people. The Apostle Paul saw the great possibility to reach out to the whole world by evangelizing this island. With this vision Paul says, "The reason I left you in Crete was that you might straighten out what was left unfinished and appoint elders in every town, as I directed you."

Here the expression "every town," impresses us. We do not know exactly how many towns the island had in Paul's day. We do not know the size of population in each town. Maybe a few thousand or even a few hundred, we do not know for sure. Yet, Paul is mindful of every soul that needs to be saved. In God's eyes certainly the value of one soul is greater than the entire universe. So Paul charged Timothy to establish elders in "every" town. What does "every" mean? “Every” means every. This charge then reminds us of the need to pioneer all college campuses in all nations. I am quite certain that the number of student population in most of these campuses is even as great as the number of souls residing in the entire Island of Crete of Paul's day. 

"[A]ppoint elders in every town..." Here the title "elders" is a Biblical idiom for a spiritual leader such as a prayer servant, a Bible teacher, or a shepherd. In Los Angeles alone there are more than 42 major college campuses to pioneer. In California alone there are 126 community colleges for us to reach out to, just to begin with. And there are private schools, state colleges and universities. And across the nation there are more than 561 college campuses. When we think about the Lord's desire to reach out to them with the hope of eternal life, we are overwhelmed. 

Yet the Lord knows that it does not rest on our abilities, but rather on his love and on his power. For this reason when Jesus came and chose to reach out to all the villages and towns of Israel, Jesus asked his disciples to pray saying, "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field" (Luke 10:2).

Part III, the blessed instrument

Not all believers however are qualified to serve the blessed mission. Who then is qualified? Let us read verses 6-9 responsively. This passage lists 16 points to check:

(1) blameless;

(2) the husband of but one wife; 

(3) a man whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient; 

(4) not overbearing; 

(5) not quick-tempered;

(6) not given to drunkenness;

(7) not violent;

(8) not pursuing dishonest gain;

(9) hospitable;

(10)     one who loves what is good;

(11)     self-controlled;

(12)     upright;

(13)     holy;

(14)     disciplined;

(15) he must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught; and 

(16) he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.

The list then shows us the need for key member training. It also indicates the need for us to establish house churches such as the family of Priscilla and Aquilla. 

Part IV, the blessed challenge

Although this mission is a blessed one, it is also very challenging. In what respect is it challenging? Let us read verses 10-16 responsively. This passage indicates that mainly the challenge comes from people. Who are the people Titus are to minister to? In the passage we just read, Paul adopted very colorful expressions: (1) the rebellious, mere talkers, the deceivers; (2) the Cretans who are described as being always liars, evil brutes, and lazy gluttons; and (3) the corrupted, the detestable, the disobedient, and the unfit for doing anything good. 

When we think about these descriptions, however, it is not difficult to see that once upon a time all of us also used to be like this at least to a certain extent. And in college campuses and all other places, we run into people like this all the time. Yet, for those who have faith in Jesus, every challenge is an opportunity to experience God's glory. I say this out of my own personal experience, for each time I think about myself, I am only amazed that what kind of a sinner I have been and still I am, and yet how God keeps bearing me. Then I am more amazed that God sacrificed his one and only Son even for a man as unworthy as I am. This is truly amazing grace. When we remember this grace, then we can continue to pray to reach out and serve many sheep who are more or less the same as Cretans.

One word: appoint elders in every town

Manuscript

• Ti1a2004M.doc

Biblenote

Appoint elders in every town

Titus 1:1-16

Key Verse 5

This passage is a good guide for the pioneering of all college campuses in the whole world. 

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Manuscript

• Ti1a2004N.doc