Lessons #23 and 24
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+ 1. It is best to use this note after you have listened to the lessons because there are +
+ comments given in the actual exposition not in the note. +
+ 2. The Bible abbreviations are as follows: CEV =Contemporary English version, +
+ CEB = Common English Bible, ESV= English Standard Version, +
+ GWT = God’s Word Translation, ISV = International Standard Version, +
+ NAB=New English Bible, NASB= New American Standard Bible, +
+ NEB= New English Bible, NET = New English Translation, +
+ NLT = New Living Translations NJB = New Jerusalem Bible, +
+ NJV = New Jewish Bible, TEV = Today’s English Version. +
+ 3. Notes have not been edited for grammatical errors. +
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Three essentials of soundness in faith (Titus 1:12-16)
12 Even one of their own prophets has said, “Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons.” 13 This testimony is true. Therefore, rebuke them sharply, so that they will be sound in the faith 14 and will pay no attention to Jewish myths or to the commands of those who reject the truth. 15 To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted. 16 They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.
The second task of Titus in Crete, as we indicated when we introduced the section of Titus 1:10-16, was to confront the various problems that were threatening the spiritual life of the various local churches. Thus far, we considered the first problem of false teachers that were mostly Jewish Christians who undoubtedly were teaching, among other things, the necessity of circumcision for salvation. Titus’ responsibility was to put an end to their teaching as they were causing harm to believers in various local churches in Crete. So, we proceed to consider the second problem that was threatening the spiritual life of the local churches in Crete that Titus had to confront.
The second problem Titus and the overseers he appoints had to confront concerned the Cretans themselves. The problem of the Cretans that threaten their spiritual life is two-fold: their vices and distractions related to Jewish myths and requirements imposed on them by false teachers. The apostle indicated that Titus and the overseers he appoints should tackle these issues to ensure the Cretans are sound in their faith. Based on the responsibility of Titus and the overseers as stated in our passage, we derive the message we believe the Holy Spirit wants us to communicate to you. This message is that an overseer should ensure soundness in faith of believers by rebuking of vices, avoidance of myths, and differentiating the pure from the impure. This message implies that we will consider three essentials of soundness in faith in expounding the message. Furthermore, expounding of this message will mean that we will not follow our usual method of our exposition of a passage whereby we expound a given passage in a sequential manner of going from one verse to another or from one clause to another. Instead, the sentence or clause we expound will be guided by a specific point that we want to get across but rest assured that by the end of our exposition of the passage we will have considered all sentences of this section.
Be that as it may, our focus on the message that we stated is on the soundness of faith. This is because it is the result the Holy Spirit expected through the ministry of Titus and the overseers he appoints when they carried out an important aspect of their primary function of preaching and defending the Christian message. This focus is because of the last clause of Titus 1:13 of the NIV so that they will be sound in the faith.
The clause so that they will be sound in the faith of the NIV is translated in some English versions in a way that it may not be clear what is intended. For example, the ESV translated the clause as that they may be sound in the faith. The use of the word “that” may be read as indicating purpose or result. This is because the Greek conjunction (hina) the apostle used may be interpreted in one of two ways in our passage. It could be taken as a marker of purpose or objective in which case it may be translated “that, in order that” or it could be taken as a marker of result demanding it be translated “so that.” Granting that in some cases it is difficult to differentiate purpose from result, it seems that the Greek conjunction is used in Titus 1:13 to reflect result of the action expected of Titus and overseers instead of purpose. We are saying that the apostle did not express the goal of the activity expected of Titus and overseers but the expected result that will occur once Titus and the overseers carried out their function that we will get to later in our study.
The expected result of the activity of Titus and overseers with respect to believers in Crete is correctness regarding Christian doctrine and the lifestyle that is in keeping with it. It is this expected result that is given in the sentence they may be sound in the faith. Some take “they” here as a reference to the false teachers but it is much more in keeping with the overall task of Titus to take the pronoun as a reference to believers in Crete who are to instruct to keep away from false teachers. That aside, it may not appear that this sentence affirms what we claim that it does, that is, that is concerned with correctness regarding Christian doctrine and the lifestyle that is in keeping with it, so we need to show that it does. You see, the expression “be sound” is translated from a Greek word (hygiainō) that we encountered in Titus 1:9. As we indicated, the Greek word has two meanings. It means “to be healthy” so that it is used as a formula in an epistolary greeting in 3 John 2:
Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.
The verbal phrase enjoy good health is more literally to be healthy. Another meaning of the Greek verb is to be sound or free from error and so means “to be correct, be accurate.” In our passage, the meaning is that of being correct or accurate although some English versions, such as the NET, used the first meaning of “to be healthy” so that they translated the clause we are considering as they may be healthy in the faith. Nonetheless, such a meaning in the end has the same sense as being sound in the faith since it is difficult to understand how one could be healthy in faith except in the sense of being free from error with respect to the faith that involves correctness of belief and correctness in application of God’s truth. Interestingly, the translators of the NLT interpreted our word to mean being strong in the faith since they translated the Greek clause in question as to make them strong in the faith.
We insist that being sound in the faith refers to correctness in doctrine and correctness in lifestyle that results from correct doctrine because of the word “faith.” It is translated from a Greek word (pistis) with a range of meanings, but we consider those that are possible candidates in our passage. The word may mean “firm commitment” in the sense of “genuine devotion or true piety” that in the NT indeed means being a Christian, as Apostle Paul used the word in Romans 1:8:
First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world.
Faith here could either refer to the fact that the Romans accepted the gospel message or to their firm commitment to Christ so that it is the quality of their faith and not merely the fact they believed that is being reported all over the ancient world. The Greek word translated “faith” may have the meaning of “conviction” which is the sense that our Greek word is used by Apostle Paul in Romans 14:23:
But the man who has doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.
It is true that the translators of the NIV translated our Greek word “faith” in this passage of Romans 14:23 but the sense of faith here is that of conviction. Thus, it is not surprising that the United Bible Society Handbook on Romans suggests that our Greek word translated “faith” could here mean “confidence” so that they suggest the clause everything that does not come from faith is sin could be translated as “and if we do anything without the confidence that it is right, then it is sin.” Another meaning of the Greek word translated “faith” refers to the Christian faith as a religious movement, as that is the sense the word is used in Galatians 1:23:
They only heard the report: “The man who formerly persecuted us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.”
Faith is taken by some here as being synonymous with the gospel but it is more likely that it is used in the sense of the Christian movement in general. Another meaning of the Greek word translated “faith” is as a reference to a Christian virtue as it is often coupled with other virtues such as love and endurance, as for example, in 1 Thessalonians 3:6:
But Timothy has just now come to us from you and has brought good news about your faith and love. He has told us that you always have pleasant memories of us and that you long to see us, just as we also long to see you.
Another meaning of the Greek word translated “faith” is that which is believed hence means “teaching, body of faith, that is, doctrine, belief.” It is in this sense that the word is used by Apostle Paul in his second epistle to Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:7:
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.
The word “faith” here could be interpreted either as “trust” meaning that the apostle has faithfully carried out the ministry the Lord assigned to him or it could mean “doctrine”. Nonetheless, it is more likely that the apostle meant doctrine so that he was saying he had preserved the Christian teaching or the Christian message from any error. In our passage of Titus 1:13, our Greek word is used in a general sense that encompasses both Christian virtue and Christian teaching. This being the case, the apostle indicates that the result of Titus and the overseers he was to appoint, carrying out their function in the local churches is that of believers being correct with what they believe and with the lifestyle that is associated with the Christian faith. It is for this reason we stated that the result expected from the activity of Titus and the overseers mentioned in the passage of Titus 1:12-16 is correctness of doctrine and lifestyle that is associated with it. Christian faith requires not only that one has correct doctrine but that one also has the correct lifestyle that is consistent with Christian teaching. It is an incomplete understanding of the Christian faith to assume that one has only to be correct in doctrine but not in practice. The two cannot be separated. Thus, we focus on the concept of soundness in faith, that is, correctness of doctrine and application as being the concern of the apostle in the passage we are considering.
It is our assertion then that the focus of the apostle in the passage we are considering is on the soundness in faith and so we will consider three essentials of soundness in faith as given in the passage we are considering. The first essential of soundness in faith is rebuking or admonishing of a local congregation with respect to vices that are common in the nation or the locale in which the local congregation is located. We mean that for soundness of faith, it is important local pastors rebuke and or admonish believers in their congregations with respect to the prevailing vices or traits of their locale. This essential is given in the instruction of Apostle Paul to Titus and would-be overseers in expression of Titus 1:13 Therefore, rebuke them sharply. But before we examine this essential of soundness in faith, we should first focus on the fact that the rebuke is to be concerned with the vices that are common in the area in which a local congregation is located.
There is no gainsaying that every nation or local area has vices or traits that are common among its citizens. Pick any nation you like and study the history of that nation in terms of its morality you will find that there are certain vices that generally characterize its citizens. Take for example, in this nation, we find that sexual immorality is very rampart among our citizens. Another vice that many are not aware that it is rampart, is hypocrisy. People are generally hypocritical in that they are prone to excusing behaviors in some people they like while condemning it on others. That is being hypocritical. This is rampart even among Christians in this country. I have observed that even among Christians they are ups in arms about sexual immorality among those they despise for whatever reason but they remain silent about the same thing with respect to those they like. A case in point is with political leaders. Many years ago, many Christians were ups in arm condemning a president for his sexual immorality but then about 20 years later we have a president that was in the same vice but there was no outcry among the evangelicals because they like or tolerate the president for whatever reason they have. That my friend is hypocrisy. Sin does not change because of who commits it. What I described is very common in everyday life of many in this nation only that it is not recognized as a vice. Still another vice that is rampart in this country is that of hatred of groups of individuals. Hatred is a sin that is found in any society but in our society, it is magnified because of the diversity of people in this country so a common vice in this country is discrimination based on how a person appears or speaks. It is a vice that causes most people to think not in terms of truth first but in terms of how a person looks before they consider any other factor. In effect, people want to know the pigmentation of a person when something wrong is stated before they fully react. That is part of the vice that is common in this country; for only few believers that have matured enough or have been well taught by their pastors that actually think first in terms of truth before considering a human pigmentation. In effect, I am saying that there are few believers who can claim what Apostle Paul under the Holy Spirit stated in 2 Corinthians 5:16:
So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer.
You see, the apostle indicates that he no longer evaluates anyone by world’s standard of using appearance or ethnicity or wealth. How many of us can honestly state what the apostle asserted here in Corinthians? People have difficulty in this area because it is related to a vice that is common and ingrained in many individuals in this nation. That aside, the point is that in every country or local area there are vices that are generally common to that country or area.
The authority for our assertion that there are vices or traits that are common to a country or a local area is what Apostle Paul wrote in Titus 1:12 Even one of their own prophets has said, “Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons.” The word “even” of the NIV and a handful of English version such as the NCV and the GWT is interpretative, probably intended to help the English reader think that verse 12 is emphatic. Nonetheless, the word is not found in the original Greek text which is probably the reason it was dropped by the translators of 2011 edition of the NIV.
In any case, the Holy Spirit through Apostle Paul refers to the vices that were prevalent in Crete. The apostle here quotes a well-known Cretan poet or prophet Epimenides in the phrase one of their own prophets. A prophet as used in the Scripture generally refers to a person inspired by God to proclaim or reveal His divine will or purpose. However, the Greek word (prophētēs) translated “prophets” is used in the Greek world for a person who declares things imparted to him by the gods either in direct inspiration or through signs. In addition, it is used to describe poets who were said to be inspired by the gods. A poet was then regarded as a chosen herald of wise sayings, lauding virtues and instructing in them. Thus, when the apostle referred to a Cretan prophet he either meant a poet who was concerned with denouncing vices among the Cretans or a prophet as the Cretans recognized the individual not as God’s prophet. Information available to us indicates that the Cretans considered Epimenides a prophet. It is claimed that he was a religious teacher and a miracle worker. He supposedly predicted the failure of Persia to conquer Athens ten years before the event and so he was regarded as one who divined the future. Consequently, the Cretans could have regarded him as their prophet, so the apostle used the people’s description of Epimenides or he regarded him as a poet but not as the true prophet of God.
The vices the Cretan poet or prophet decried are prevalent among the Cretans as that is implied in the expression of Titus 1:12 Cretans are always. The use of the word “always” in this passage is to indicate that the vices mentioned are those commonly reoccurring among the Cretans. We make this assertion because such a meaning is conveyed in the Greek adverb (aei) used by the apostle. The Greek adverb may mean “always”, as the word is used in 1 Peter 3:15:
But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,
The Greek adverb may also be used of a frequently recurring action or situation and so means “constantly, continually”, as the word is used by Apostle Paul to state the situation that he and his team faced in 2 Corinthians 4:11:
For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body.
The clause we who are alive are always being given over to death may alternatively be translated we who are alive are constantly being handed over to death as in the NET. It is in the sense of continually or constantly that the word is used in Titus 1:12 because the vices mentioned are those that frequently occurred among the Cretans. In effect, we can say that their poet decried his people for their three common national vices.
The first common vice the Cretan prophet mentioned is lying as in the word liars. The implication is that the Cretans were accustomed to lying and saw nothing wrong with it. Information available to us indicates the Cretans were considered liars because they claimed that Zeus had a tomb in Crete, something that was not considered possible because Zeus as chief of the gods, could not have died. It is therefore not surprising that the same Cretans were reported as having considered highway robbery as honorable which speaks to their level of morality. Nonetheless, they are described as liars. There are several countries today that can be described this way. In fact, there are places that are used to lying that to tell the truth becomes something abnormal to them because that is their way of conducting themselves. Anyway, we often think of liars as those who tell what is false, but we should be careful to recognize that a person can be a liar not only in words but in actions. This truth is conveyed by the Holy Spirit through Apostle John. A believer may become a liar because of disobedience to God’s word, as stated in 1 John 2:4:
The man who says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
It is not only disobeying God’s word that makes a person a liar but rejection of the deity of Jesus Christ also makes a person a liar, as that is implied in 1 John 2:22:
Who is the liar? It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a man is the antichrist—he denies the Father and the Son.
Therefore, based on this definition of a liar, there are some nations today that we can say are constantly liars because as a group they reject Jesus as the Son of God. We are saying that those nations that reject Christ as the Son of God as their national belief are indeed liars although they do not know it. To such nations, we can say that they have the vice of being liars. In case of the Cretans, it is possible that they were liars both in words and in actions. Believers in Crete may fall prey to this vice since national vice is often difficult to avoid and so the necessity of mentioning this vice so that believers would avoid it.
The second common vice of the Cretans is wickedness which is described with the phrase evil brutes of Titus 1:12. This phrase described wickedness or evil that characterizes a group of people. This interpretation may be supported by understanding of the Greek words used. The adjective “evil” is translated from a Greek word (kakos) that may pertain to being socially or morally reprehensible and so means “bad, evil.” The word may mean “wrong” in the sense of what is contrary to custom or law, as it is used in Romans 14:20:
Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a man to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble.
It is used in the sense of “bad” to describe bad desires in Colossians 3:5:
Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.
The Greek word may mean “wicked”, as it is used in Revelation 2:2:
I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false.
The Greek word translated “evil” in Titus 1:12 may pertain to being harmful or injurious hence means “injurious, dangerous, pernicious.” It is in this sense that the word is used in Revelation 16:2:
The first angel went and poured out his bowl on the land, and ugly and painful sores broke out on the people who had the mark of the beast and worshiped his image.
The adjective “ugly” is more literally “evil.” Anyway, it is in this sense of being harmful or injurious due to wickedness that the adjective “evil” is used in our passage of Titus 1:12.
The word “brutes” is translated from a Greek word (thērion) that refers to any living creature excluding humans and so means “animal, beast.” It is used for real animals in a general sense as in the instruction given to Moses regarding Mount Sinai that is quoted in Hebrews 12:20:
because they could not bear what was commanded: “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned.”
Real animals may refer to wild animals as the kind described to have surrounded Jesus while He was being tempted in the desert, according to Mark 1:13:
and he was in the desert forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him.
The meaning of “beast” is used in the book of Revelation to describe ultimate figures that oppose God during the final spiritual battle of the future. Thus, we have, for example, the being described as beast that comes up from the Abyss in Revelation 11:7:
Now when they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from the Abyss will attack them, and overpower and kill them.
The beast mentioned here is taken by some interpreters as a reference to the Antichrist while others take it as a reference to Satan himself. That aside, our Greek word is used figuratively to describe someone with “bestial nature” and so a description of a wicked person so that we can describe such an individual as “a monster, beast.” It is in this sense that the word is used in our passage in Titus 1:12, especially as it is qualified with the adjective that we stated may mean “wicked.” Because the word is in the plural it is a description of the Cretans and hence we are correct in stating that the second vice of the Cretans is wickedness, that is, morally very bad.
The third common vice of the Cretans is gluttony that is combined with laziness. It is this vice that is described in the last phrase of Titus 1:12 lazy gluttons. The adjective “lazy” is translated from a Greek word (argos) that may pertain to being without anything to do and so means “unemployed, idle”, as it is used to describe young widows with the habit of being idle in 1 Timothy 5:13:
Besides, they get into the habit of being idle and going about from house to house. And not only do they become idlers, but also gossips and busybodies, saying things they ought not to.
The Greek word may pertain to being unproductive, hence means “useless, worthless”, as it is used to encourage believers to be controlled by the Holy Spirit so that they would not be unproductive spiritually, as per 2 Peter 1:8:
For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The word may pertain to being unwilling to work and so means “lazy, idle.” It is in this sense of lazy that it is used in our passage.
The word “gluttons” is translated from a Greek word (gastēr) that generally refers to the inner regions of the body. The Greek word is used for “belly” in the Septuagint of Job 15:2:
“Would a wise man answer with empty notions or fill his belly with the hot east wind?
The verbal phrase fill his belly with the hot east wind is equivalent to the English a “bag of hot air,” that is, someone whose talk has no substance. So, in the context of Job 15:2, Eliphaz may be saying that Job speaks too much from his feelings and not discriminatingly from his heart, the seat of reason. The Greek word may mean “womb”, as it is used in Luke 1:31:
You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus.
The sentence You will be with child is more literally you will conceive in the womb. In Titus 1:12, our Greek word is used figuratively for a glutton since per the Greek-English lexicon of Louw-Nida such a person is described as “a large belly” or “a person who is only a stomach” or “a professional eater.”
Gluttony refers to habitual greed or excess in eating. The Cretans were probably habitually greedy and hedonistic in the sense that they were concerned with life of pleasure to the point that they ate too much but were unwilling to work. This describes some people today in this country who want to have the fine things of life but are unwilling to work for them. This leads to all kinds of sinful conduct such as prostitution and robbery. The Cretans in a sense lacked self-discipline so that they pursued pleasure without being willing to work. They wanted more and more of things of this life but did not work harder to obtain whatever pleasure they were seeking. The vice of gluttony that is characterized by laziness, as we have stated, characterizes many today but that was more common among the Cretans that their poet or prophet decried it. Our society today is a hedonistic one in that many are pleasure seeking although some are ready to work hard to obtain the kind of lifestyle they desire. Nonetheless, constant desire for pleasure at the expense of one’s spiritual life is not admirable. That is probably why the apostle found it necessary to quote the Cretan poet that described his people to say to us that these vices are contrary to lifestyle of Christians.
We do not like to be criticized or told the truth. This is particularly the case in a nation with great national pride. The implication is that whenever individuals criticize citizens of such a nation, people get upset and deny whatever the charge is. It is probably that the Cretans when they heard what their poet stated, they were indignant and felt he was not telling the truth, but he was. It is because what he said was true that the Holy Spirit directed Apostle Paul to quote him with the affirmation that what he stated was true, as we read in the first sentence of Titus 1:13 This testimony is true. The word “testimony” is translated from a Greek word (martyria) that no doubt means “testimony”; however, the word conveys different nuances. The word may mean “witness” in the sense of having personal knowledge about an information, as it is used to describe John in John 1:7:
He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe.
It may mean the act of testifying so means “testimony, testifying”, as that is the sense of the word in Revelation 11:7:
Now when they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from the Abyss will attack them, and overpower and kill them.
It is the act of testifying that is meant in this passage in Revelation, thus a handful of English versions such as the CEB and NJB used the word “witnessing” instead of testimony to reflect the act of testifying that the two witnesses in Revelation 11 completed. The Greek word can refer to the content of testimony, as it is used in John 19:35:
The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe.
The word may refer to the attestation of character or behavior and so means “reputation”, as it is used in describing the qualifications of an overseer in 1 Timothy 3:7:
He must also have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the devil’s trap.
In Titus 1:13, the sense of the word is that of reputation. The implication being that the Holy Spirit through Apostle Paul confirmed the reputation of the Cretans. In effect, what their poet said about them is true.
The confirmation of the Holy Spirit through the apostle regarding the reputation of the Cretans in the sentence This testimony is true does not mean that the Cretan poet or prophet was inspired in the sense of the Holy Spirit’s inspiration of the writer of the Scripture. No! It is a reminder that all truth is from God while all lies come from Satan, for after all the Lord Jesus called him the father of all lies in John 8:44
You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
What all this means is that even learned unbelievers can state what is true if they are careful to observe things around them.
In any case, when an overseer observes the common vices of the people in the area he ministers then it is incumbent upon him to speak against such frequently. It is because the reputation of the Cretans as stated by their poet or prophet is true that the apostle commands Titus and the overseers to take the action stipulated. That the instruction that follows is due to the reputation of the Cretans is conveyed with the word therefore that begins the next clause of Titus 1:13. The Greek phrase translated “therefore” is more literally on account of which reason although when the Greek phrase involved begins a sentence, as in our passage, it may simply be translated “for this reason” or “therefore.” The translation “for this reason” enables us to understand that it is because the vices levied against the Cretans by their poet are true that it is necessary for Titus and the overseers to carry out the task stated in the expression rebuke them sharply.
It is true the task assigned to Titus, and by implication all the overseers, is described with the word “rebuke” but it seems that a gamut of related tasks was probably in the mind of the apostle when he issued the command rebuke. This is because the word “rebuke” is translated from a Greek word (elegchō) with a range of meanings. The word may mean “to convict, convince”, that is, to bring a person to point where the individual recognizes his/her wrongdoing, as the word is used by Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 14:24:
But if an unbeliever or someone who does not understand comes in while everybody is prophesying, he will be convinced by all that he is a sinner and will be judged by all,
Another meaning of the Greek word is “to expose, bring to light”, as the apostle used it in his instruction to the Ephesians with respect to what should be their action regarding hidden sinful conducts in Ephesians 5:11:
Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.
Another meaning of the Greek word is “to reprove, correct”, that is, to express strong disapproval of someone’s action, as the word is used in charging Timothy, and by implication all overseers, regarding what is expected of him with respect to the local congregation he was responsible, as per 2 Timothy 4:2:
Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.
All the three meanings we have considered in a sense are applicable in the context. In other words, Titus and the overseers should through the teaching of God’s word bring to light the vices of the Cretans mentioned, strongly disapproving them, that is, reproving of these vices and to do so in a way that believers would be convicted of the sinfulness of such vices if they were involved in them.
The task of Titus that involves exposing, convicting, and reproving of the Cretans of the vices that were common among them is one that is to be repeated, that is, it is to be done again and again. We can understand this requirement because of how common the vices listed were among the Cretans. This means that Titus and the overseers he was to appoint should take the task of repeated instruction with respect to these vices. The implication is that a pastor of a local church should periodically speak of the vices predominant in the nation or locale of the local church he is over. He should never be tired of doing so. He should teach and admonish against such vices on a regular basis. It is not enough to expose or disapprove of these vices only once but should be done repeatedly. Unfortunately, many pastors do not do this and so are guilty of the charge given in Lamentations 2:14:
The visions of your prophets were false and worthless; they did not expose your sin to ward off your captivity. The oracles they gave you were false and misleading.
It is not only that a pastor should speak against the vices that are common in the nation or locale that he ministers the word of God, but he should do it with great seriousness and intensity so that there can be no mistaken how serious such vices are before God. It is this requirement that is conveyed in the adverb sharply in Titus 1:13. The word “sharply” is translated from a Greek adverb (apotomōs) that means “severely, rigorously, harshly.” It is a word that appears only twice in the NT, both by the apostle. In its other usage, the sense is that of dealing with someone harshly, as in 2 Corinthians 13:10:
This is why I write these things when I am absent, that when I come I may not have to be harsh in my use of authority—the authority the Lord gave me for building you up, not for tearing you down.
The clause I may not have to be harsh may be rendered I may not have to act harshly. Anyway, the word is used to convey the rigor and seriousness with which Titus was to reprove the Cretans of the vices listed. The implication is that pastors of local churches should rigorously speak out against the vices prevalent in the locale where their local churches are located.
We have already noted the importance of such rigorous reproving of vices, which is for believers to be sound in faith. In any event, the first essential of soundness in faith is rebuking or admonishing of a local congregation with respect to vices or traits that are common in the locale in which the local congregation is located.
03/31/17