TITUS 1:15

Titus 1:15 describes one of the differences between two different types of people on this earth. It says, “Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.” The type of person that you are will determine how you interpret things. If you are pure at heart, then you see things from that standpoint. A positive person looks at the positive side. A negative person looks at the negative side. They both saw the same thing, but they interpreted it differently. Give people the benefit of the doubt. You do not know everything. Do not let your imagination run away with you. You will be happier and you will have a better influence on others if you give things a positive interpretation whenever possible.

If someone frowns at you, it may not mean that they do not like you. It may simply mean that they were lost in thought and did not realize what “look” they had on their face. A Christian should have the best of thoughts, because the Lord Jesus has taken all of our sins upon Himself. We are pure because of Him and therefore our thoughts are pure thoughts because of Him. At least that is the way that it should be and can be. The Bible says in Philippians 4:7, “whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” You will know if you are pure by examining how you interpret things; that is, how you think about things. “Unto the pure all things are pure.”

What about those who are not pure? What about those who do not see all things as pure? How did they get that way? Titus 1:15 tells us, “but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.” The opposite to being “pure” is to be “defiled.” The only way to become pure is to believe on Jesus Christ, and then His righteousness becomes your righteousness by the grace of God. The way to stay defiled is to stay “unbelieving.” Notice that when someone is defiled it is because “their mind and conscience is defiled.” True Christianity has everything to do with what goes on inside of you. The thoughts that you have will demonstrate how much faith you have. Those who are totally unbelieving are defiled in their thoughts. Romans 10:10 says, “For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” Jesus said in Matthew 7:15, “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.”

Titus 1:15 says that the mind and the “conscience” is defiled. The conscience is the knowledge of oneself in relation to the knowledge that one has of a standard of right and wrong. The conscience becomes defiled when a person stops having the proper reaction to his conscience. The proper reaction to one’s conscience is to repent of one’s sins, turn to Jesus, and trust in Him for forgiveness. Do not take the issue of conscience lightly. Make sure that you have a clear conscience. If something bothers your conscience, then do not do it. If you have violated your conscience, then make sure you confess your sin to Jesus Christ. In First Timothy 1:19 Paul wrote, “Holding faith, and a good conscience; which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwreck.”

Concerning the unbelievers that Paul was writing about to Titus, the Bible says in Titus 1:16, “They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.” They “profess” that they know God. The word “profess” means literally “to say the same thing as.” These people are actually unbelievers. They have never been saved through faith in Christ. They are not born again. But they say the same thing that believers say. Anyone can read the words from a statement of faith and claim to believe those words. They do not deny Christ in the things that they claim to believe. They deny Christ “in works.” Jesus said in Matthew 7:24, “Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock.”

The opposite to believing in Christ is to “deny” Him. There are two ways to deny God. The first way to deny God is in what you say. Some people deny Him in this way. The other way to deny God is in what you do. Some people say the right things, but in what they do they deny Him. They give a profession that they believe, but their life does not back it up. Anyone who comes to Christ does so with a desire to live for Him. Anyone who has no desire to live for Christ has never known Him. That is why those who “deny” Christ are described in Titus 1:15 as being “disobedient.” They are disobedient to the gospel because the gospel is a command to all men everywhere to repent. They are disobedient to Christ because Jesus said, “If you love me, keep my commandments.” These who give false professions are known by their evil works. That is why it says that they are ”unto every good work reprobate.” In no way do they serve Christ. They lie, they are deceitful, they commit adultery, they steal, etc. The word “reprobate” means that they are unapproved. If you were to know them well and look at them closely, you would not approve of the life that they lead. That is why careful instructions were given earlier in this chapter for pastors. Just because someone says that they believe does not mean that they really do. This is not only the reason that there are problems with some pastors; it is also one reason that there are problems with church “members.” You become a member of a church by making a profession of faith. The problem according to what we just read in the Bible is that not all professions of faith are genuine. People should probably be accepted as members of churches not only by what they claim to believe but also by their life-style.

In the last couple of verses Paul described to Titus and to the rest of us what some of the unbelievers are like: especially the false believers and the false teachers. In Titus chapter 2 Paul is going to write about how true believers should be. Titus 2:1 says, “But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine.” What we say is important. Hopefully we will not make false professions, but even so, what we say is important. God spoke and the worlds were created. What things should we say when we speak? We should say “the things which become sound doctrine.” Everything in life starts and ends with what you believe. If you believe the right things, then and only then is there any hope that you will do the right things. If you believe the wrong things, you will do the wrong things and end up in the wrong places. Therefore, it is very important that someone studies carefully the complete teachings from God, and then teaches those things so that others can also benefit from them.

There is a message for everyone. The message for older men is given in Titus 2:2. It says, “That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience.” The word that is translated “aged” comes from the same word that is translated “elders” in Titus 1:5, where Paul said that Titus should “ordain elders in every city.” Once again it must be pointed out that: the fact that the word “elder” primarily refers to the age of a man, undoubtedly means that “older” men are often better to be pastors than younger men. Older should mean wiser, and it usually does. But it does not always mean that, and that is why individuals still must be evaluated based upon their own behavior and character. And of course, it is why some younger men are also qualified.

The older men should be sober. The word that is translated “sober” comes from a word that literally means to have no wine or no alcohol. Of course, a person who partakes of alcoholic beverages will have their behavior modified by the alcohol. A Christian should be a person who is under control, and the older the Christian the more that this characteristic should be manifested.

Older men should also be “grave.” This word means to be honorable or worthy of respect. Therefore, it has to do with other people’s opinion of you. You have a lot of control over what people think of you. You are responsible to do what you can so that you will be a person who is respected and honored. You will not be doing this for your own sake, but for the sake of the gospel of Christ.

Older men should be “temperate.” This word refers to being in one’s right mind. It refers to having self-control. A temperate person is not guided by passionate emotions, but is guided by sound reason. This is one of those words that helps to demonstrate that Christianity has a lot to do with the mind: what one thinks about. If you are a temperate person, your behavior is under control because the thoughts of your mind are under control.

Finally, Paul writes by the Holy Spirit that older men should be “sound in faith, in charity, in patience.” Faith always comes first, and then you build on the faith. True faith has results. True faith leads to better behavior. So faith is the foundation. That is why sound teaching is so important. You must hear the truth in order to believe. If you hear the wrong things about the raising of children, then you will do the wrong things in raising your children. If you hear that you should be harsh and strict in service to God in the raising of your children, then you will reap their rebellion and disrespect for you as the years go by. It all started with what you believed.

Make sure that you have faith. You can have faith if you seek it. Jesus said, “Seek and ye shall find.” Faith is a valuable and important resource for every human being. Without faith you will be lost forever. Without faith you will live like an animal full of selfishness and self-will. But if you have faith, there will be results. As important as faith is, it is not enough. Have a healthy faith, but also have a healthy love. The word “charity” means love. Love is the greatest commandment. Love God with all the heart, and love your fellow man as yourself. Those are the teachings of Jesus. In loving your fellow man; love lost souls so that you can love them to Christ. Jesus loved them so much that He died for them on a cruel Roman cross. You should also especially love your brothers and sisters in Christ. This is the new commandment that Jesus gave to all of His followers. Talking about brotherly Christian love, the Bible says in First John 4:20-21, “If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar; for he that loveth not his brother, whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?”

Have a healthy and sound faith. Have a healthy and sound love; and also have patience. It will take faith and love to have patience. If you have faith, you will be able to have patience because your faith will be in Christ and in His power. Jesus can do anything, and He has promised to do anything for you. If you believe that, then you can wait on Him and His will. In each situation in which you lack patience you are simply demonstrating your lack of faith in the power of Christ to have ordered things the way that he wanted to.

Having true love will help you to have patience. Your love for God will make you desire to wait upon Him. Your love for lost souls and for your brothers in Christ will also help you to have patience, because you will be happy when others get what they want even when you do not. Many times impatience is caused by an emphasis on self and what one wants for oneself. Having true love will help you to not be so centered on yourself and your own desires.

What a great Savior we have! We may not have near the faith, the love, or the patience that we ought to have; but He is merciful and gives new chances to learn once again what we should already know.

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