As the world, the flesh, and the Devil war against the truth and those who propagate the truth, believers must determine to hold fast to the very words under attack. The apostle Paul expressed this truth to two young preachers. The verse above shows that Paul admonished Timothy to “hold fast the form of sound words” which he had heard from Paul. He also admonished Titus and all those desiring the office of a bishop to hold “fast the faithful word” (Titus 1:9). As the battle for men’s minds and souls rages, the ultimate objective is to get believers to turn loose of the words of life. Those desiring to deceive use various means with the propagation of false doctrine being one of their primary tools. Each believer must diligently hold fast the faithful, sound words given by God.
Many people fail to enjoy the present blessings by worrying about the inevitability of future difficulties. Though each time of life is certainly filled with its difficulties, it is also filled with tremendous opportunities for blessing. When young, a person ought to rejoice in his youth while keeping in mind that God will bring his deeds into judgment. When growing older, people ought to rejoice in getting married, having children, working, and serving the Lord. As one grows older, he can enjoy the benefits of each phase of life knowing that God has special blessings in store for each day. After all, why be robbed of today’s joys by worry concerning troubles and sorrows that may never come to pass? And if they do transpire, effort spent in worrying about them was useless.
Believers are to rebuke others in one form or another, but what primary purpose should the rebuking serve? Some rebuke with a prideful heart leaving the person rebuked with feelings of inferiority. Some rebuke because they themselves are guilty of the same glaring fault within their own lives. However, what purpose should rebuking others serve? According to Titus 1:13, believers are told to rebuke others “that they may be sound in the faith.” Scripturally rebuking someone never serves as a self-gratifying act. Rather, it focuses upon helping others grow, improve, and spiritually mature in the Lord. It should never be the desire of a believer to see another person destroyed through a rebuke but always edified. Galatians 6:1 reiterates this same truth.
All good motives for Christian service should be rooted in love. As believers, we have a God-given responsibility in the area of hospitality. Twice the Bible refers to being “given to hospitality” (Romans 12:13; 1 Timothy 3:2). The First Timothy passage specifically speaks of the qualifications of a bishop. However, God never intended for hospitality to be limited to church leadership. In fact, the passage in Romans identifies hospitality as a responsibility for all believers. To be “given to hospitality” means to be led by or under the control of hospitality. In other words, everything we do involving others should be motivated by the desire to be hospitable. Titus 1:8 takes hospitality a step further by declaring that a bishop must be “a lover of hospitality.” Christians should purpose to find joy spending time with others, sincerely desiring to strengthen and encourage them in some area of need.
Today's passage presents a list of qualifications for a man who desires to be a pastor holding the office of a bishop. Though this list specifically deals with a ministry office, it could serve as a list of admonitions for anyone desiring to serve the Lord. Bible teachers and preachers often focus on a few of the most publicized qualifications while neglecting some of the others. For instance, very rarely is much attention focused on the necessity of temperance in the life of the man of God. Temperance plays an important part in the life of God's servant. Failure of those in leadership to be balanced will lead to a whole church full of people lacking temperance. This same truth holds for anyone who leads or serves in any ministry of a church.
Believers should seek to be pure in every facet of life. One might consider limiting this to the places he goes or the things he hears and sees, but purity demands a much greater focus. Believers ought to think on pure things (Philippians 4:8) with pure minds (2 Peter 3:1) and pure consciences (1 Timothy 3:9; 2 Timothy 1:3). In particular, believers should have pure hearts before the Lord (1 Timothy 1:5; 2 Timothy 2:22). A pure heart will lead to a pure conscience and a pure mind. A pure heart changes where a man goes, what he looks upon, and the things he allows to enter into his ears. Every Christian should strive to make sure that all things are pure.
The Bible describes God as a God of truth. He will not lie (1 Samuel 15:29) and cannot lie (Titus 1:2). This attribute of truth is designated to each person of the Trinity or the Godhead. Truth is declared as an attribute of God the Father in Titus 1:1-2, of God the Son in John 14:6, and of God the Spirit in John 16:13. Even the very words of God are ascribed this attribute in John 17:17 where the Bible says, “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.” Thank God that He is truth and so is His word. A lie to the least extent within the words of God or in God’s very nature would incriminate God’s expressed deity. Lying is contrary to the nature of God. The scripture says that it is “impossible” for God to lie (Hebrews 6:18). Impossible! It would be a different world if men would simply live more like Christ.
