TITUS 1:11

The Bible says in Titus 1:11 concerning the false teachers, “Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's sake.” It is important that the mouths of false teachers “be stopped.” This statement amounts to almost a repetition of what was already said. Titus 1:9 said, “Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.” The mouths of false teachers will be stopped as long as the pastors are holding forth the faithful Word. Error left unchallenged will spread like a cancer, but truth is stronger than error. As long as truth is properly presented without compromise, it will conquer error. “Greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world.”

This reference to “whole houses” that are subverted is either a reference to the churches that met in houses or is a reference to families. It probably refers to the churches that met in houses because that was the very subject that Paul was on in the book of Titus: the need to establish pastors in all of the churches in every city on the island of Crete. Even if it does refer to “families” per say, we are still ultimately talking about the effect on the churches because churches are made up of families. The lesson here: the wrong teacher in any church can ruin that church. The most important activity in any church is the teaching that takes place, and the pastor is the one who should be doing that teaching, and the members of the church should be listening to the pastor, assuming that the right person was set up in the position of pastor.

The wrong teacher will mean disaster and destruction. The word subvert refers to destroying or totally ruining something. There are few things worse in this world than the wrong teachings on the subject of religion or divine truth. Whatever ideas that someone accepts will of course have a great effect on their behavior, their future, and their eternal destiny. Jesus said, “What shall it profit a man should he gain the whole world but lose his own soul?”

One interesting thing that Titus 1:11 tells us about false teachers is the motivation for what they are doing. If the things that they teach are so wrong, and if the things that they teach cause such damage and destruction to lives, then why do they teach them? What motivates them? They do it “for filthy lucre's sake.” In other words they do it for the financial benefit that they get from it. There is nothing more despicable in religion than someone who is taking the money that is given for the glory of God and uses it to enrich themselves. There is nothing wrong with having money, and even though it is not likely, it is possible to be rich and still serve God. But anyone who uses money given for God’s work to enrich themselves is a horrible person. Period. If someone is rich, then they might be evil or they might be a servant of God. If someone is rich because they took money that was given for God’s work, then that person is evil. There are no exceptions. That is why the same phrase that describes the motivation of a false teacher, “for filthy lucre's sake,” is also used to describe someone who is not qualified to be a pastor of a church. Titus 1:7 says that no one can be selected as pastor who is “given to filthy lucre.”

On the subject of the false teachers, the Bible says in Titus 1:12-13, “One of themselves, even a prophet of their own, said, The Cretians are alway liars, evil beasts, slow bellies. This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith.” Even false teachers sometimes say things that are true. One of the things that makes false teachers so dangerous is that very fact. They are wrong on the most important issues such as the deity of Christ, salvation by faith in Christ, and the inerrancy of the Bible; but some other things that they say are true. In the case of the false teachers on the island of Crete, one of them did correctly describe the people on the island of Crete. Three things were said about the people. The first thing said is that they are “liars.” That was an easy characteristic to identify. The same description could probably be made of the people of any nation.

Human beings lie easily and often. This has been true since the day that the first two human beings, Adam and Eve, blamed the devil and each other for their disobedience against God. It is written that the ancient Greek philosopher Diogenes wandered around ancient Greece carrying a lantern and searching for an honest man. He said that he could not find one. This is consistent with what the Bible says. Romans 3:13 describes human beings this way: “Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips.” Isaiah 30:9 describes the children of Israel, “That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the LORD.” The telling of lies is so common to the human race that Christians must be reminded not to be like that. Ephesians 4:25, “Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another.”

Do you have any business deals coming up? Be careful. Men “are always liars.” Has anyone told you that they love you more than anyone else in the world? Be careful. Men “are always liars.” They do not love you more than anyone else. They love themselves more than anyone else. Has anyone made you a promise recently and you are really hoping to see the fruition of that promise? Remember men “are always liars.” Thank God that He always tells the truth. At least we can read the Word of God and hear the truth. In Titus 1:2 we were told, “God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began.”

The churches on the island of Crete needed pastors because there was work to do in preaching the truth. There were liars everywhere. They needed to hear the truth from someone. They certainly were not going to hear it from each other. The people of Crete were also “evil beasts.” To call a human being a “beast” is not a compliment. What it means is that the person has no spiritual life. They are living the way that animals would live: physical creatures in a physical world and having absolutely no consciousness of a spiritual life. Remember animals kill and devour one another. To describe human beings as “evil beasts” is to say that they are capable of anything. Do not be surprised when you read in the newspapers about the horrible deeds that have been performed by horrible people. People on the island of Crete were “evil beasts,” and so are many people today.

People on the island of Crete were also “slow bellies.” Another way of saying this would be to say that they are “lazy gluttons.” Laziness is a sin. It is God’s will that you put an effort into what you do. When God cast Adam out of the Garden of Eden, God said to him, “In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” First Thessalonians 4:11 says to Christians, “And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you.” Ephesians 4:28 says to Christians, “Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth.” There are several different ways of acquiring possessions, money, and things; but the only way that God blesses is work. That is one of the reasons that gambling can be evil. It takes people on a way that is different from God’s way to acquire possessions in this world.

The Cretans were “lazy gluttons.” They were also liars and evil beasts. There are many people alive today, who are the same; because unregenerate human nature tends to such errors. Thank God that evil nature does not have to stay evil. The solution to this problem of human nature is in the gospel of Christ. Concerning the Cretans, the Bible says in Titus 1:13, “This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith.” Notice the phrase “sound in the faith.”

The goal is to be sound in the faith. Just having faith is not all that God wills for each person. Some people have faith, but they have a weak faith. Their faith only works for them when things are going well. Jesus was not happy with the disciples when He said to them, “O, ye of little faith.” When you are saved, your faith in Christ might start as a grain of mustard seed, but it is not supposed to stay there. Paul wrote in Second Thessalonians 1:3, “We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is meet, because that your faith groweth exceedingly…”

One way for Christians to have a more healthy faith is for other Christians to do what the Word of God says to do in Titus 1:13 “rebuke them sharply.” This word that is translated “rebuke” refers to expounding and explaining some particular idea, while refuting that which is unscriptural or ungodly. It is interesting that the same word was used in Titus 1:9 concerning the false teachers who speak against God, and there it was translated as “convince.” The concept is that the right information given to the right person in the right way will help them greatly, whether they are an unbeliever or a believer. It seems that some people just do not understand the condition that they are in. Sometimes God will use someone else to help wake them up.

The goal is to live by faith in Christ each moment of each day. “Whatsoever is not of faith is sin.” Titus 1:13 says that Christians should be “sound in faith.” What are some of the things that cause believers to not be sound in faith? Titus 1:14 gives us two of those things. It says, “giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth.” One thing that always happens to organized religion is that there are initially teachings that are the basis for that religion: the fundamental truths. But as time goes by other teachings come in and an attempt is made to make these “other” teachings of importance. It happened in Judaism at least during the first century, and it is happening in Christianity now. True religion, of course, is based upon truth; and there is only one source of religious truth: God and His written Word.

If God is the only source of religious truth, then where do the other sources come from? This verse makes that very clear. Other teachings come from “fables” and from “the commandments of men.” A fable is a myth. A fable is a narrative: a long story about one thing or another, designed to capture attention. The most important thing to know about fables is that they are not true. Because a fable is not true, it is a horrible and destructive thing to use as the basis for a religion. One of the religions of our day that is based upon fables is the Mormon religion.

If a person was sound in true faith, they would recognize a fable when they hear it and would not give “heed” to it. If you give heed to something, you accept it, you hold to it, and you apply it to your life. That is what happens to people who join a cult or a false religion that is based upon a fable. Once they accept that fable as being the truth, then they are captured. But the people who do not give heed to the fable do not get captured. True faith is based upon the promises of God as revealed in the Word of God. If someone accepts a substitute, then their faith will not be sound. They will have a faith that at best is weak and sick.

Something else that takes away from true faith is the “commandments of men.” The only valid commandments are the commandments of God. These commandments are found only in the Bible and in the teachings of Jesus. But human beings who are false teachers do not teach the Word of God. They teach their own words. They may be good speakers, and they may have pleasing personalities. But the content of what they say contains the “commandments of men.” Jesus said in Mark 7:7 of the scribes and Pharisees who were not true worshippers of God, “Howbeit in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.”

If you want to worship God in truth, then do the things that the Word of God tells you. Repent. Follow Christ. Serve Jesus as your God. Believe in Him.

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