In the opening greeting of Paul’s letter to Titus, as a wise master builder he implicitly lays the foundation for the central issues he addresses in this short letter: authority and truth. By describing himself as “a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ,” and stating that his preaching ministry is a task “entrusted” to him “by the command of God our Savior,” he establishes the authority by which he will insist that his “child in a common faith” act with dispatch to put “what remained into order” on the island of Crete. Additionally, when he says that his calling is for “the sake of the faith of God's elect and their knowledge of the truth” he asserts the standard by which false teachers will judged and the people of God will be protected.
Authority and truth are two inescapable realities that are hard for human beings to accept. We have challenged them from the beginning and, as a result, have been forever plagued by the fallout (see Genesis 3). That this is true for all humanity is evident from an even cursory look at history. That the church has also fallen prey is evident from the fact that falsehood always finds a hearing, creating havoc. Why should this be except that even those within the church are hesitant to accept God’s full and final authority in our lives? John Stott asks, “In the final analysis this is the big question for the church: is there such a thing as divine revelation? Do we concede that truth, having been revealed by God, ipso facto has authority over us? Are we ready to submit to it, that is, to him, in humble faith and obedience? Or are we brash enough to behave like unruly children and reject God’s authority?”
Jesus warned that “false christs and false prophets will arise and perform signs and wonders, to lead astray, if possible, the elect” (Mark 13:22). We can appreciate, then, the wisdom of Paul to minister as boldly as he does for “the sake of the faith of the elect and their knowledge of the truth.” He knows that without embracing the twin realities of divine authority and truth the people of God leave themselves open to deception and to suffer the attendant consequences.
