Titus Gospel-Propelled People: Delighted by the Good News, Devoted to Good Works

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Earl Lang
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Titus Gospel-Propelled People: Delighted by the Good News, Devoted to Good Works Week 1 1. Introduction: Read the whole book of Titus aloud together.

1 Titus Gospel-Propelled People: Delighted by the Good News, Devoted to Good Works Week 1 1. Introduction: Read the whole book of Titus aloud together. It s helpful to remember that this was a letter that Titus would ve read all at once, not just in short chunks. Seeing the whole letter will help us better understand the parts once we start digging deeper into smaller sections. Think of this like putting together a puzzle. Even if you study and study each piece, you ll never really get what image is on that piece until you look at the picture on the box and understand the bigger picture that the pieces are a part of. a. As you read, be listening for a few things: i. What are some words or ideas that seem to be repeated? ii. What might be some main ideas or themes of this letter? What would you say this letter is about? 2. Opening Questions: a. In general, how would you say your beliefs relate to your behavior? Is there a connection? If so, how do they connect? b. Would you say that people could tell a lot about what you believe based on how you live? Why or why not? c. Based on what you just read in Titus, how does good doctrine relate to good (How does believing the right thing relate to doing the right thing?) 3. Section 1: Gospel Greeting (1:1-4) a. Paul identifies himself as a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ. If you were writing a letter like this, how would you introduce yourself? What are the most important things about you that you d want to communicate? b. What is the truth that Paul is referring to in verse 1? How would you explain it? i. [The gospel (See Colossians 1:5 & Ephesians 1:13). This is a great chance to unpack the gospel with your students.] c. What do you think it means that this gospel truth accords with godliness? [it lines up with it or fits with it]

2 4. Section 2: Gospel-Propelled Leaders (1:5-9) a. Why did Paul leave Titus in Crete? b. What are elders? c. Why is it so important to have godly leaders? d. Paul explains what an elder must look like. His first phrase, above reproach, is sort of like a banner flying over this section. That s the main thing an elder must be. The rest of the description unpacks what it means to be above reproach. i. He must be a faithful husband and father. Why do you think this is important? (Look at 1 Timothy 3:4-5) ii. Verse 7 says an elder is God s steward. What does that mean? iii. Verse 7 then lists several things an elder must not be. What would the opposite of these things be? (e.g. What would be the opposite of being arrogant?) iv. What are the other things an elder must be in verse 8? What does each of these mean and why would it be important for a leader of the church? e. What does it mean to be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it? f. Why do you think this list focuses more on character than skills or gifts? g. Can you think of specific examples of ways you see some of these qualities in some of our elders at College Park? 5. Section 3: Fake Followers and Treacherous Teachers (1:10-16) a. How would you describe the people Paul talks about in these verses? b. What do you think it means to be an empty talker? How is this different than how an elder is called to speak? c. Why are these false teachers so dangerous? d. One author talks about our need to have good theological sniffers so we can smell when a teaching doesn t line up with the Bible. Do you know the God s truth well enough that you can easily detect error? e. How can understanding some places people have departed from the truth help us stay on course? f. Verse 16 is one of the key verses of the whole book. i. What does Paul say about people who say they know God with their lips but don t show it with their lives? ii. How does this show the connection between what you believe and how you behave? iii. What are some areas in your life where your words and actions don t line up? g. Summary: How would you sum up Chapter 1 in your own words?

3 Week 2 1. Recap Week 1 (not meant to take a long time) a. Who can remember some of the main ideas from last week (chapter 1)? b. Why did Paul leave Titus in Crete? [to appoint elders] c. Describe the character of elders. Now describe the character of the false teachers. d. What are the results of the false teachers teaching? e. So last week, we saw that what you believe shapes how you behave. This week, we re going to see that principle working the other way: 2. How You Behave Shows What You Believe (2:1-10) a. Remember in 1:1, Paul said that his role as an apostle is to serve the faith and knowledge of the truth which accords with godliness. Here Paul tells Titus to teach what accords with sound doctrine. Paul is saying teach them to live in a way that shows what they believe. i. Have you ever drawn conclusions about what someone believes based on how they were living? ii. What does this tell you about the importance of living in a way that reflects what you believe? iii. Compare Titus 2:1 to Eph. 4:1 and Philippians 1:27. How do these verses call Christians to live? b. Paul addresses five groups of people in this section. What are the five groups? (older men, older women, young women, younger men, slaves) c. What things are similar in the list of responsibilities for each group? d. What things are different? e. Why do you think those differences exist? f. When we study the Bible, it s important to look for purpose statements. These are statements that tell us the purpose of doing something. They often begin with words like that or so that. i. Can you find any purpose statements in this passage? [2:5, 8, 10] What are the reasons given why people should live this way? 1. [That the word of God may not be reviled] What does this mean? [so they won t speak poorly of the gospel because of our behavior] 2. [so that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us] What does this mean? [it means that our actions don t create a stumbling block for our message] 3. [so that in everything they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior] What does it mean to adorn something? So how would our actions adorn the doctrine of God? ii. Are there areas where you know you your actions don t line up with what you know is true from God s word? How should you respond? (can talk about it now or transition to next section where it will be addressed)

4 3. Grace that Saves is Grace that Trains (2:11-15) a. Verse 11 starts with the word for, which means it s telling us why we should do something. In this case, the for links all the way back to 2:1. Paul is getting ready to tell Titus the reason why he should teach people to live the way he just described in 2:1-10. b. What s the reason Paul says people should live in a way that adorns the gospel? [grace has appeared] i. Look at Titus 3:4-7, Romans 3:21-24, and Ephesians 2:8-10. What is this grace that has appeared? c. What does v. 11 tell us this grace has done? [brought salvation] d. Verse 12 tells us this grace is also continuing to do something. It s training us. How is grace training us to live? e. What is the great hope of the Christian life? [the appearing of Jesus] i. Why is this our great hope? ii. Are you eagerly waiting for Jesus? Why or why not? iii. Look at 1 Thessalonians 1:9-10 and Hebrews 9: What role should waiting for Jesus play in the life of a Christian? f. This passage tells us that Jesus purifies us to make us a certain type of people. What type of people does Jesus make out of those he redeems? i. What does it mean to be zealous for good ii. When you don t feel zealous for good works, what helps restore your zeal? g. Summary: How would you sum up Chapter 2 in your own words?

5 Week 3 Recap Week 1 & 2 1. What were some of the main ideas from Chapter 1? Chapter 2? 2. Why is knowing good doctrine so important? (it shapes how we live) 3. What is the good news that s at the center of good doctrine? (2:11-14) 4. Saved for Good Works, Not by Good Works (3:1-7) a. How do people tend to view authorities in the world today? b. How are Christians called to respond to authorities? c. Who are some authorities in your life? d. Which of the things listed in 3:1-2 do you find most difficult to obey? Why do you think that one s so hard for you? e. Why does Paul say we should be gentle and courteous toward everyone? [because of who we were; we re no better apart from grace] f. Who does Paul say we used to be? g. If you re in Christ, do you think about who you were before Jesus? How does it change your attitude toward others when you remember who you were? h. What changed everything for us? i. According to verse 5, what prompted God to save us? What didn t? j. Look at 3 passages: Titus 3:3-7, 1 Cor. 6:9-11, and John 3:3. i. What are some things you notice from looking at these passages? ii. How does a person go from one way of living to the other? 5. Be Devoted to Good Works (3:8-15) a. In verse 8, which comes first in a person s life: faith or good What happens when we get the order wrong? b. How do Paul s commands in this section about people who like to fight fit together with what he said earlier about the need to rebuke those who contradict sound doctrine (1:9) and silencing false teachers (1:11)? c. When should we be willing to engage in a controversy and when should we avoid it? d. How do we avoid being unfruitful? (v. 14) e. As you look at your life, what are some things you re involved with that would be considered fruitful? What would be unfruitful? Why? f. Summary: How would you sum up Chapter 3 in your own words? 6. Conclusion a. What have you learned about God in the book of Titus? b. What have you learned about yourself? c. What is the foundation of good doctrine? (good news, gospel) d. Why is good doctrine so important? (it shapes how you live) e. Is good doctrine enough? (No, it should produce a life of good works)

May God use it to remind us of the truths we have learned and conform us to the church He wants us to be!

May God use it to remind us of the truths we have learned and conform us to the church He wants us to be! First Bilingual Baptist Church preached through the Epistle of Titus from September 2016 through February 2017. These sermons may be accessed at fbbchurch.org. The following is the text of Titus (from