Titus 1:1

New King James Version

This letter is from Paul, a slave of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ. I have been sent to proclaim faith to those God has chosen and to teach them to know the truth that shows them how to live godly lives.

For Ecouragement

When we see the Lord in His exalted state, everything about us changes. Our speech, perspective, demeanor, actions, and reactions transform to reflect His majesty and honor. Everything becomes strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace, as the hymnist says. It is like having electricity suddenly restored in a candle-lit room during a storm. The candlelight becomes almost invisible and inconsequential. That is the force of Paul’s introduction of himself in his letter to Titus.

This letter is from Paul, a slave of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ (Titus 1:1).  

Paul sees himself as a slave or bondservant of God. He reduces himself to the lowest place of servitude in the kingdom of God and sees himself as nothing but one whom Christ has purchased with His blood unto the Father (Rev. 5:9).

That perspective is humbling. It deflates the ego and challenges us to greater obedience to God and His calling on our lives. It focuses our audience on God and the message, not on ourselves.

The Lord Jesus Christ called Paul to be His apostle (Acts 9:15), an exalted position beyond his imagination. He was duty-bound to the cause of the gospel and the growth of the church. Paul set his focus on two things—the faith of God’s elect and knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness (Titus 1:1).

The gospel message is the gospel truth—the saving knowledge of Christ’s death, burial, resurrection, ascension, and return. As the elect (Eph. 1:4) hear the message, they receive faith through the prompting and enablement of the Holy Spirit to believe and get saved by grace (Eph. 2:8-9). This same truth produces godly living in the believer to the glory of God the Father in Christ. In sum, Paul received the responsibility of communicating the gospel truth for salvation and sanctification. People’s lives depend on his ministry, and that was constantly humbling to Paul, the chief of sinners, saved by grace (1 Tim. 1:15).

We, too, have been called by God and given the message of reconciliation through Jesus Christ, the gospel truth, to proclaim by word and conduct (2 Cor. 5:18-21). Do we see God in His resplendent glory to fall before Him in humility, rising with a sanctified perspective for life and godliness (1 Pt. 1:3), determined to carry forth the Great Commission (Matt. 28:18-20)? What do you commit to today, considering this reminder?

Pray with Me

Father, yours is the glory and honor and power and majesty. We humbly join our hearts with the host of heaven to fall before you in unceasing worship and praise. Help us respond to your call as Paul and all the other apostles did, so that we may honor you with our lives through Christ our Lord. Amen.

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