Silence is Golden
Titus 1:10-16 (ESV)
February 20, 2022
Dr. Ritch Boerckel

We’re going to open up our Bibles today to Titus chapter 1. We’ve started a new series. We’re going to be reading verses 9-16 today as we think about sound doctrine. Sound doctrine simply means doctrine that is healthy, that is nourishing. Today in this passage, we take sort of a negative turn of that which is contrary to sound doctrine and what God’s plan is when ideas about God and about His plan run contrary to the ideas or the truths that He has delivered to us. What do we do when we find that, as God creates order in His church through elders? I’m going to pick up verse 9, which is the last part of the qualities listed required of elders in churches. The elder

9 He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.

10 For there are many who are insubordinate, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision party. 11 They must be silenced, since they are upsetting whole families by teaching for shameful gain what they ought not to teach. 12 One of the Cretans, a prophet of their own, said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.” 13 This testimony is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith, 14 not devoting themselves to Jewish myths and the commands of people who turn away from the truth. 15 To the pure, all things are pure, but to the defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure; but both their minds and their consciences are defiled. 16 They profess to know God, but they deny him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good work.

What sobering words!

I would ask some of you young parents, do you still tell the story of Little Red Riding Hood to your children? Is that done anymore? As I reflected upon that story and how my parents taught it to me, I was kind of scratching my head. There were a lot of things my parents wouldn’t let me see, yet they told me this story of Little Red Riding Hood.

If you know the story, it’s about a little girl and she was given this cloak with a hood. It was all red. One day her mom presented a picnic basket to her of food and told Little Red Riding Hood to take the basket of food to her grandma, who was sick. Grandma lives in a house in the woods. She tells her daughter to go straight there and don’t dally along the way. “Don’t stop for anything. Just go straight to the house.” Little Red Riding Hood grabs the basket of food and start towards Grandma’s house. Lo and behold, who does she run across in the middle of the woods, but a wolf.

Now, she’s not familiar with wolves, so she’s not frightened. She doesn’t know that the wolf is a vicious beast, that the wolf is a killer. The wolf seems nice and engages her in conversation and asks her what she’s doing. He finds out her purpose and the wolf is thinking inside, “I could eat both the grandma and this little girl all at once.” So he encourages her to collect some flowers for her grandma. He wanted her to delay so he could race ahead to Grandma’s house. She decides to do that, against the instructions of her mom.

Sure enough, the wolf races to the house and knocks on the door. Grandma says, “Who is it?” The wolf says, “Little Red Riding Hood.” The wolf opens the door and in a single bite, swallows Grandma whole. He grabs Grandma’s pajamas and night cap and puts them on. He gets in Grandma’s bed and puts up the covers. Shortly after, Little Red Riding Hood knocks on the door and the wolf tells her to come in.

Right away, Little Red Riding Hood knows something is not quite right. As she approaches the bedroom, she says, “My, what a big voice you have.” He says, “Better to greet you with, my dear.” As she approaches, she sees his big ears. “My, Grandma, what big ears you have.” “The better to hear you with, my dear.” As she draws closer, she says, “My, what big eyes you have.” “The better to see you with, my dear.” Then she approaches closer and says, “My, what big arms you have.” “The better to hug you with, my dear.” At that, the wolf reaches out and embraces her. Then she gets really close and she says, “My, what big teeth you have.” “The better to eat you with, my dear.” The little girl screams, and in a single bite, the wolf gobbles Little Red Riding Hood whole.

Now, that would be a sad story if it ended there, but it didn’t. Little Red Riding Hood made the scream before she was gobbled. Out just a little ways from the house, in the forest, was a woodsman chopping down trees. He heard the cry and he ran to Grandma’s house. He bashed open the door, and there he saw the wolf standing there. He confronted the wolf with one great big swing of his ax, laying the wolf open and killing him with one swing. As the wolf fell to the floor, his belly opened and out popped Grandma and Little Red Riding Hood, shaken, stirred, but not harmed. The story ends in a wonderful, wonderful way.

Well, as a child, I identified with Little Red Riding Hood. I felt the vulnerability of my own weak little person and the strength of the world. I felt the evil of that beast in this world. I knew that not everything was the way God intended for it to be. I knew that not every place was safe, not every person was safe. Even as a boy, I knew that there was such a thing as evil to watch out for. As I listened to that story, I also was so thankful for the strength and the bravery of the woodsman. You know, he confronted the wolf. He could have been attacked. It might not have gone well for the woodsman, but he wasn’t even thinking about that. The woodsman was only thinking about saving Grandma and this little girl and killing this great threat. He did it with strength and the forcefulness of a single swing of his ax. Strangely, as I look back on this story, it’s kind of a scary story, but I wasn’t really frightened by it. In fact, it comforted me. I thought as long as there are brave woodsmen in this world, then children like me don’t need to be afraid of evil because there will be protection.
This pre-17th century story connects us to our passage today in Titus 1:10-16. Here in Titus we read about people who elsewhere, God calls wolves. They’re false teachers. They are people who teach that which is contrary to the Gospel that has once for all been delivered to them. These wolves, these false teachers lurk about inside Jesus’ church, looking for people to deceive and devour. These wolves dress themselves as gentle, kind, loving people. But inwardly they are deadly beasts. In Titus, we also read about innocent, undiscerning children of God who don’t understand the mortal danger that false teachers present to their soul. Some of these innocents in the church in Crete here are being spiritually devoured. In fact, whole families we’re told, are being destroyed.

In Titus, we also read of God’s provision for His huntsman to bring order to the chaos that the wolves cause. We hear how God is the ultimate shepherd of the sheep, but that He appoints under-shepherds, elders in every church to protect God’s people. God calls these church leaders in this passage to confront and oppose these wolves with courage and strength. They are not to take into consideration their own safety, the danger that confronting a wolf will pose to their own lives and their own welfare. God’s stewards are entrusted with the hard and necessary work of confronting wolfish teachers in order for the life of God to flourish within God’s family. The main idea we’re going to trace through Titus 1 today is that elders in the church must proclaim and protect the sound teaching of the Gospel. Apply that in every way possible; proclaiming sound teaching and protecting sound teaching of the Gospel.

By way of reminder from last week, Paul is explaining to a young church leader named Titus why he didn’t let Titus continue with him on the missionary journey. Titus had loved being part of Paul’s team, but Paul says, “No, you can’t go on our next trip. I want to leave you behind on this island of Crete. I have a very important assignment for you to do here.” He tells Titus what that assignment is.

Titus 1:5 This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into order,

There is chaos running through this new church and Paul says, “I’m leaving you here because as a leader, you’re commissioned by God and enabled to put what remains into order.” You do that by

Titus 1:5 …appoint elders in every town as I directed you—

So Paul explains then what kind of men Titus is to appoint in order to put the chaos that is encroaching from the world into the church, back into order. In verses 6-8 we read some of the qualities of these elders, these overseers who are to participate in putting things back to order in God’s church. He says

Titus 1:6-8 if anyone is above reproach, the husband of one wife, and his children are believers and not open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination. For an overseer, as God’s steward, must be above reproach. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain, but hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined.
Without godly character, a church leader will bring more chaos into the family of God, not less. What Paul is saying is that character matters, and it matters foundationally. It matters centrally. More than any other trait a church leader possesses, character must be at the root. Character is the center from which every other leadership action an elder takes flows. So then in verse 9, Paul speaks to this necessary quality related to the elder’s relationship with the Word of God, with the Gospel.

9 He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.

Paul is telling Titus that these elders yet to be appointed must be men who have spent a considerable amount of time in life listening to other godly teachers instruct them in the Scriptures. Do you notice that? They are to hold firm to the trustworthy Word as taught. Titus is one of these young men. Titus learned the Gospel. He learned the trustworthy Word. He learned sound doctrine through the teaching of the Apostle Paul and likely other godly leaders as well on His missionary journeys with Paul.

The idea here is that elders are not naturally wise men who have privately discovered spiritual truth to share with others. They are not men who have received a direct word of revelation from the Holy Spirit that no one else has received. These are guys who simply invested their lives in learning the Scriptures. They do so not just sort of in the corner and in the privacy of their own home, but they do so by sitting at the feet of other godly men who have already learned the revelation that God has given them in His Word and are willing to teach it. He says those are the kind of folks that are called and commissioned and qualified to be elders in the church. They are people who hold firm to the trustworthy Word as they have been taught. Again, Titus is one of these kinds of guys. In verse 4, Paul says

Titus 1:4 To Titus, my true child in a common faith:

Titus is Paul’s true child. It’s not fake. It’s not superficial. It’s real genuine, authentic. But he’s not speaking of physical birth or even of physical care as Titus is growing up as a toddler and then a young boy and into a young man. Titus is Paul’s true child by spiritual birth. The Apostle Paul is the one who brought the Gospel to Titus and Titus believed in the Gospel and he was born again, born of the Spirit. God used Paul as the instrument through which that conversion or that regenerating work took place. Also, Titus then was nurtured by Paul in his infancy of spiritual life with God on to this time where now he is a mature man in the faith.

So Paul could say that he and Titus have this relationship where Titus is his true son in the faith because they share a common faith. I love that little phrase Paul uses! You might just underline it in your Bibles. Paul and Titus believe the exact same truths about God, the exact same truths about sin, about righteousness, about Jesus, about the redemptive work on the cross, about their life’s purpose, about eternity, about everything important. They have a common faith. Paul says something very similar about Timothy, another beloved child in the faith. Look at what Paul says to Timothy.
1 Timothy 4:6 If you put these things before the brothers,

In other words, take these truths that I have taught you and put these things and teach them before the brothers.

1 Timothy 4:6 …you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith

This is the words of the common faith.

1 Timothy 4:6 …and of the good doctrine that you have followed.”

Here’s the idea that we get from this teaching that is necessary to pass on the life of God in the church of God. Where there is no common faith, there is no church family. I always love singing that song which is the Apostles Creed. I believe in God the Father. I believe in God the Son. I believe in God the Holy Spirit. These are three and yet one. I love that! Why? Because it’s in this common faith that we share that we are bound together to God in one amazing unified, harmonious family. It is the common faith that is shared by us that pulls us all together and allows us to experience the peace, the shalom of God in a world of chaos. The family of God is built upon the commonly shared truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. That’s why we exult in it. Furthermore, we do not need anything else in common other than the truth of the Gospel in order to be bound together as family.

Think of the Apostle Paul. He was a Jew from Tarsus, raised in the strictest sect of Judaism. From the time he was a young man, he studied and he was a scholar and he was a Pharisee of the Pharisees. Titus, on the other hand, was an uncircumcised Gentile. We don’t know of any other connecting point between Titus and Paul other than this common faith. They were not bound together by their race or ethnicity. They were not bound together by economic similarities. They were not bound together by common hobbies. They were not bound together by political party, not by their nationality, not by their personalities, not by their mutual “coolness,” not by their careers, where they work at the same company, not by their preferences in music or in art. Nothing other than this common faith bound them together. Yet it is this common faith that is powerful enough for Paul to say, “Here is Titus, my true son. That’s how tight we are.” I love that!

We look around and we don’t have to have anything else in this whole world in common, but if we share a common faith, then we share this unity now and forever and ever in Jesus Christ. Can you say Amen to that? (Amen!) That’s an amazing thing! Do you see why teaching sound doctrine is so important? It’s everything! Everything that we experience as Christians in community flows from a common faith, this truth that we share and hold in common. So if Satan attacks this common faith what happens to God’s people? They break apart. There is no more any glue to hold us together. We lose our identity as the people of God. Do you see why sound doctrine is so vital to God’s plan for His family? Having learned the truth of the Word, God says to these elders they must hold firm to it.
9 …He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught,

The elder keeps his heart and his mind absolutely wrapped around the truth of the Gospel. Like an NFL running back on Super Bowl Sunday, holding the ball and unwilling to let his opponents wrench it from his hands, knowing that if he fumbles the ball, everything could be lost, he is grabbing on and holding fast. “This is not going to come out of my hands.” That’s the idea of an elder in relationship to the truth of the Gospel. “This will not be torn loose from me or together from us as a team. It must not! It will not!” This is the focus that we’re applying our energies toward.

9 …He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught,

Why is that so essential? Well, there are two necessary ministries that God gives to elders in the church. He says

9 …so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.

So the first ministry is to teach sound doctrine. The second ministry is to rebuke false teachers who contradict sound doctrine. I know a lot of folks who decided to become an elder, and I’m one of them, because of their love to teach sound doctrine. They see what sound doctrine does. They see what the Gospel does. They see its life changing effects and they say, “I want to be part of that.” I don’t know anybody who has become an elder because they love rebuking people, rebuking false teachers. I didn’t even have that in view when God called me to become a pastor. I didn’t even think that was going to be an essential part of the ministry, and it is. It’s hard and difficult work, but it’s essential work of an elder. Few problems bring the kind of cataclysmic chaos into the church as false teaching does.

The word “sound” simply means “healthy.” It means “nourishing.” This truth of the Gospel is like nutritious food that feeds the soul and helps the members in Jesus’ family to grow in Christlikeness, to grow strong in faith. The opposite would be unsound doctrine or the kind of food that is poisonous. It’s corrupting. It depletes life, rather than gives it. It’s sweet to the taste, but ultimately, it robs the church of life itself.

If you’re taking notes, we’re going to look at three reasons why elders proclaim and protect sound teaching in the church. The first reason that the text points us toward is that

1. False teachers will enter the church.

It’s unavoidable. Here is this early church in the first generation of Christianity here in Titus 1, and Paul says this to Titus.

10 For there are many who are insubordinate,
“You need to appoint elders in every town, men who will hold fast to sound doctrine so that they can instruct people in the truth of the Gospel and that they might rebuke false teachers.” Why do they need to do that? Because there are many. You might just circle that word “many.” It’s not like there is this one guy over here in the corner who is teaching some strange ideas. No, already in the church, there are many. Then Paul gives this description of what false teachers are like. He gives these three words.
10 For there are many who are insubordinate,

That means their life is not characterized by godly submission, but by autonomy and by independence. So they’re the kind of people that really only submit to their own person. They don’t submit to Jesus. They don’t submit to God’s Word. They don’t submit to other godly leaders in the church. They openly reject every authority that God has established in their life except themselves.
As an aside, the word “insubordinate” does not mean that they don’t use the Bible. It just means they don’t submit to the Bible. My church history professor used to observe as he talked us through the various heretics of church history, he said, “Every heretic has a Bible verse.” That’s really important because you don’t want to say, “He’s not a false teacher because he quoted the Bible.” No, every heretic throughout church history has a Bible verse. So is their life characterized by submitting to the whole of Scripture, by submitting to the whole of every authority that God has established? Then he says they are
empty talkers

In other words, these people have some really interesting and engaging words to say, but if you stop and think about what they’re saying, there is no spiritual substance. They sound wise and deep, but their teaching doesn’t help a person to really know God. They appeal to the pride of the hearer with their philosophies, but they don’t appeal to the revelation, the simplicity of devotion simply to Christ, that God has given us in His Word. So they are empty talkers. They are also

and deceivers,

That is to say, they’re effective. They’re influential. They’re persuasive. People listen to say, “I like what they say.” People in the church are being led away from God through the false teachers’ lies and deceptions. It’s a real threat, in other words.

Again, I emphasize that these many are in the church. Paul is not talking about the philosophers that are atheistic or polytheistic that are outside the church. He’s talking about the many who are inside the church. You look at these three descriptive words that Paul uses in verse 10; insubordinate, empty talkers, deceivers. It would be easy for us to think that doesn’t sound very nice. Paul is reminding Titus, “God doesn’t call you to be nice. God calls you to be His steward. In the face of spiritual threat, you’re called to love, but you’re not called to be nice. You love God. You love the people who are being deceived and you even love the false teachers. But loving false teachers requires that you not be nice to them.” He continues this description that is not nice in verse 12. He quotes from one of their own poets.

12 One of the Cretans, a prophet of their own, said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.”

Do those words sound nice to say about people? Yet, Paul is applying them to the false teachers. These are real people. Think about this. This letter is being read and there are people who are false teachers and they know who they are. Paul has just listed six characteristics and none of them are nice. Then this quote here just has a sting. “Here’s who you are. You’re liars. You’re evil beasts. You’re lazy gluttons.” They’re listening to this with other church family. He’s calling them out and he’s doing so in a public way.

It’s interesting when I read commentators. A lot of commentators in our culture don’t know what to do with this verse. They say, “Well, it was a Cretan poet, so he really wasn’t saying that.” Well look at the next verse. What does he say?

13 This testimony is true.

He’s quoting the poet with a view of saying, “I don’t know what else this Cretan poet got right, but he got this right. This testimony is absolutely true. This is who they are.”

15 …both their minds and their consciences are defiled. 16 They profess to know God, but they deny him by their works.

Then he gives another list. If the first list of six aren’t enough, he gives three more.

They are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good work.
Paul is not holding back the use of forceful words that he uses to describe these folks. Remember, he is writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. So it’s the Holy Spirit using these words to describe these folks. This isn’t sort of some hidden enemy. It’s real people that are having these adjectives attached to their life. Too often our ideas about niceness get in the way of our ability to identify real threats and to confront real threats. Few warnings are given more often than the warning God gives to the churches regarding false teachers. Again this is not just false teachers that are outside the church, but the warnings that God gives to churches about false teachers who come into the church. They create chaos within the church. Let me just read a few of those verses. Jesus says
Matthew 7:15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.

Beware of them! They will wreak havoc on the flock of God. They will bring spiritual death and destruction. Beware of them. Watch out for them.

In Acts 20, the Apostle Paul is speaking to a group of Ephesian elders. He knows he is not going to get back to Ephesus, at least he believes so. The stewardship of shepherding this precious flock that God used Paul to start is now going to be wholly left to these men. So he is sort of passing the baton to them and he says this.

Acts 20:29 I know that after my departure fierce wolves

That’s false teachers. They

Acts 20:29 …will come in among you,

They will come right into the midst of the congregation.

Acts 20:29 …not sparing the flock;

In other words there are going to be some in the flock who are injured, damaged and even put to death.

Acts 20:30 and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them.

Orthodoxy is straight things. Twisted things means these are things that are turned away from orthodoxy. They’re going to come from your own selves. In other words, they’re men and women who have been baptized in the church, who have been received by the church into membership, who celebrate the Lord’s Supper together Sunday after Sunday, who are part of fellowship in the church, who are part of doing the mission of the church. Regardless of where they are in the church, they’re serving. This is the place from which false teachers are going to come. So he says

Acts 20:31 Therefore be alert,

Their goal is to draw away disciples after them, to draw disciples away from Jesus and toward them. So he says to be alert and to also remember what he did when he was with them. Paul was with them for three years.

Acts 20:31 …remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish every one with tears.

Paul says, “A big part of my work for three years was just warning about false teaching and instructing in sound doctrine. Remember that because that’s the work God has called you to do.” In Romans 16, Paul says

Romans 16:17-18 I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them. For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ,

They have to be told that because it seems like these people are serving the Lord Jesus Christ. There are some in the church that are saying, “They are servants of Jesus.” Paul says, “No, they’re not. Avoid them. Don’t treat them as servants of Jesus just because they say so.” They serve, rather,

Romans 16:18 …their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive.

In other words, there are some innocents who haven’t been well-taught inside the church. When they hear false teaching, they say, “That makes sense to me,” and they get drawn away and they are deceived by false teachers. Paul is saying there is real damage to real people in the church. Paul is not alone. Peter also says this.

2 Peter 1:21 For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

He’s talking about the writing of Scripture. But right at the time when the Holy Spirit is writing the New Testament, at the very same time, false prophets at that very same time also are arising among the people of God.

2 Peter 2:1-3 But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed. And in their greed they will exploit you with false words. Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.

So there right in the first century, right at the beginning of the early church, right while the Scripture is being written, we have false teachers tearing God’s people, God’s church, away from the truth of sound doctrine and the Gospel.

The danger that was present in the first century, I believe the danger has become multiplied in our day. It’s been multiplied because of the many ways that you all can receive false teaching and experience the work of false teachers. In Paul’s day, if a false teacher were to influence church members, they had to come physically and be part of the church in some way. You had to see them. You had to observe a little bit of the way of their life. They had to be among you. They had to ask, “Can I have a room in the back? I want to teach a Bible Study.” Then they would have other members, some of whom were being deceived, but others were not. They were there. So this is the context in which elders were enabled to observe false teaching and be aware.

Frankly, I don’t know how elders can do that effectively today because we all have so many opportunities to listen to teacher after teacher without any observation of local church leadership. So whether it’s by books or radio, that’s sort of old school, still. But more today would be YouTube videos and blogs and every other kind of social media that is available. All of a sudden we hear something and it captures our attention. “This guy said something really interesting.” It’s impossible for church leaders to really know what the people in the church are actually listening to and being influenced by, apart from real relationship, apart from conversation that elders and people in the church would have with each other.

These false teachers are so persuasive. Many trust people whom they do not know and have never met. They don’t know anything about their life and how chaotic their life is. They trust those folks because of how slick the presentation is, more than the people who are in front of them every day and you can see their life. You can see their family. You can see everything about them. What God is saying is, “Elders, I know it’s hard, but keep after it because it’s worth it for the glory of God in His church.”

Here’s an application that I would encourage church members toward. Honor your elders by allowing them to be a truth filter for your souls. I’m not saying to allow them to be the only truth filter. We all ought to have more than this. But allow your elders to be a truth filter for your souls. I think this is the way God has designed the church. Allow your elders to help you discern between that which is true and that which is error.
The Word of God is our only authority. But God commissions and calls elders to represent His Word to His people. It’s a sobering task that elders themselves are to take really seriously. We elders are not called to air our own opinions about matters. We are to give our lives to teaching sound doctrine as it flows from the Word. God places called and qualified elders in each church to be truth filters for the people. Elders help members of the church ask the question, “Is this new idea that I’m hearing, is this new philosophy that I’m reading about, is it from God or not? Elders help me. Is this found in the Word? It makes sense to me right now and I’m thinking that it’s true, but I don’t know where in the Bible I would go with that. Talk to me about that.” Godly elders, called and qualified elders love to have those kinds of conversations.
One of the reasons this ministry of teaching sound doctrine and rebuking false teachers is difficult is because we also live in an age that is rather independent or autonomous. It is negative toward any authority of any kind. From the beginning of time, none of us think that we are susceptible to deception. If I would come up to you and ask, “Do you think you’re very susceptible to deception?” you would say, “No, I’m a pretty discerning person.” I think every one of us would say that. I don’t know of a person ever in my life who has said, “Yes, I’m really easily deceived by people.” There might be some. I just have never met them yet. There is enough natural pride in us to say, “I think I can tell truth from error pretty easily.” Then we take that in addition to sort of this rejection of all authority, and now we become autonomous. “I don’t need any other truth-filter other than me and the Bible. That’s all I need.” Guess what? You are in a really dangerous place if that’s where you are, and you’re outside of God’s design. You’re outside of God’s kingdom plan. I would say that to myself.
This is one of the reasons why, by the way, I think that God says elders, plural, in every city. Every elder also is susceptible to false teaching and I need these other guys around me when I say, “Here’s something I’m thinking. I haven’t thought of it before and it’s not established doctrine. Talk to me about this. Am I right in thinking through that this is actually something rooted in the Word of God? I don’t want this to be some opinion that I’ve become convinced of that is rooted in the heart of man.” Other elders have often said, “Let’s talk about that.” We have great conversations. That’s the way it’s supposed to be. We lean into God through our relationship and our communion with one another. Here’s what Paul says in
2 Corinthians 11:13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ.

The say, “We are sent by Jesus.”

2 Corinthians 11:14-15 And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds.
How are we to know a servant of Christ from a servant of Satan? We won’t know by superficial appearance. We’ll only know as we dig deep and say, “I want to hear what you have to say. Does it match with what God has already said? Does it match what we’ve already been taught by God through His Word on this matter?” Can I have an Amen for that? (Amen!) God designs for elders to help church members identify and turn away from false teaching and false teachers. Every person, the elders included, need the godly help of other elders to keep false teaching from infecting our hearts and our minds.
So what exactly were these false teachers in Titus’ day teaching? What was the nature? I’m not going to spend a lot of time on this, but let’s look really quickly.
10 …especially those of the circumcision party.
14 …devoting themselves to Jewish myths

This isn’t an ethnic pejorative. Paul himself is Jewish. He is just saying there are certain myths that rise out of Judaism that are entering the church, and also they pertain to

and the commands of people who turn away from the truth.

These commands of what to do and what not to do, originate from man and not from God. So there are these standards of righteousness that are being set before people in the church that say, “Let’s signal our virtue, our righteousness to each other, by saying certain things that are kind of common in the heart of man.” Paul says that’s what they’re doing. What happens is it’s destroying your soul. It’s destroying your relationship with God. It’s destroying the communion of the saints. There are a few characteristics here of what we know to be true of the particular false teaching.

This false teaching added works to the requirement of God in order to be forgiven by God. So that was the circumcision party. They were saying, “You place your faith in Jesus, but here is a list,” and circumcision was on the list of what you need to do in order to be forgiven by God. So it’s grace plus works for forgiveness. Secondly, this false teaching led people away from Jesus and His completed work on the cross. So there were a list of human commands that were necessary in order to please God and not just simply Jesus and His Lordship and His work upon the cross. Then finally, this false teaching came from sources other than God’s revelation in Scripture. So humans got together and said, “Here’s what we think would be an add-on to the Word.” They would not say it is contradictory, but it is an add-on and they made it a necessary add-on to Scripture itself.

Now, there are an infinite number of angles at which one may fall from the truth. That’s why when you ask someone to specifically describe false doctrine, there are really so many false doctrines and so many kinds of false doctrine that it’s impossible to follow and impossible to describe them all.

I have a comment just on this last one, related to originating from the mind of man and not originating and finding its source in the Word of God. I am surprised in some ways and yet in other ways not surprised by how many believers are falling for doctrines that have been Christianized, but that flow from people who are demonically inspired. I don’t say that lightly. But these folks who originate some core ideas are demonically inspired by their own admission, by their own testimony, by their own life. So I think of a guy like Charles Darwin, for instance. I think of a guy like Karl Marx. I think of a guy like Sigmund Freud or Jacques Derrida.

These are really smart people who persuaded many. The story they tell has some loveliness to it. That’s why so many people attach onto it. So the culture at large has fallen, but what Christians often do is they enter into it and say, “We’re going to reject the base, but we’re going to take and redeem parts of this.” There isn’t a suspicion for how this all flowed from people. The origin of it was not the Word of God. What I have to say to you is that everything that is necessary, everything that is sufficient to your whole life, everything about your life, and godliness, to live for now and forever, is sourced here. It’s not, “Here’s a sourced idea. Let me attach some Scriptures to it to redeem it.” No, it flows from Scripture and that’s why we are people of the book, necessarily. That’s what the church is. False teachers not only will enter the church and it’s impossible to keep them out, but

2. False Teachers will destroy the church.

They destroy the church through their deceptive doctrines and through drawing people to themselves.

11 They must be silenced, since they are upsetting whole families

It’s not that these families are emotionally distressed. It means they are being ruined. So here is a family in a church who used to sit around a table after supper talking about the Gospel, enjoying relationship with each other; grandma and brothers and sisters and their wives and the kids all sitting around. They’re Christian. They’re enjoying this. A false teacher comes and suddenly, that table is ruined. There are conflicts and there is division and there are folks in that family who are no longer obedient to Christ. They no longer have a simple devotion to Jesus. Now that whole family is just messed up.

Paul says, “Do you care about this? Elders, do you care about this? Then they must be silenced!” False doctrine is not just about talking about esoteric things. “Who cares what opinions people have. Let’s just let it go and live life.” No, this is impacting every aspect of life inside the body of Christ and their relationships outside of it. Everything is being disrupted. Everything is being destroyed. The darkness of chaos is invading the church because of this false teaching.

Doctrine matters. Ideas have consequences. Paul’s affection for God, his love for God and his affection, his care for God’s people drives him to urge Titus and urge elders in the church to be brave and to be bold. False teaching always damages people. It always damages God’s community. It always brings the chaos of the world into the peace of God’s church.

Here’s the truth. Rebuking false teachers is an act of love. It’s not an act of hostility. It’s not an act of hatred toward people. It is an act of love. It’s a necessary act of love toward God and a necessary act of love toward individuals. It’s a necessary act of love toward the community of the church as a whole because false teaching leads people away from God in this life and it leads God’s people to quarrel and fight and divide. Some things are worth fighting for and sound doctrine is one of those things.

Here are some applications. Ask God to help you see that doctrines are relational keys to life. In other words, we try to teach the Bible here. We work hard at it. We trust though that it’s transferred from the realm of ideas to the realm of life. We don’t want you to go home and think about doctrine as something that you stuff into a corner and every so often, during Bible Study or Small Group or Sunday School, we’ll enter this room and talk about doctrine and then we’ll walk out of that room and this is where we live. Sound doctrine, healthy doctrine invades the kitchen table. It invades the living room. It invades the bedroom. It invades your garage and your work place. It follows everywhere because it impacts everything. So it’s important for us to treat it with that kind of impact. So ask God to help you see that doctrines are actually relational keys to life.

Secondly, engage in conversation with brothers and sisters doctrinally. If doctrinal conversations are keys to life about everything, then doesn’t it follow that we would talk about doctrine with our brothers and sisters often? We don’t wait for the time appointed to talk about doctrines. Yes, during Small Group and ABC and all these other times of separated church life, we enjoy talking about doctrine. But shouldn’t it be at the kitchen table as well? Shouldn’t it be while we’re watching the Super Bowl together that we engage in conversation with brothers and sisters doctrinally? Allow the truth of the Gospel to enter into every kind of conversation we have because sound doctrine, the Gospel, influences every other important conversation.

We all have important conversations. Since the pandemic, have you had any important conversations about pandemic? Have you had any important conversations about politics in the last couple years? Have you had any important conversations about morality, what’s right and true and good and how to live and how not to live? Have you had any important conversations about conflict, about family relationships? Have you had important conversations about money? Have you had important conversations about success or depression, trials and difficulties? Have you had any of these kinds of conversations? If the answer is yes, in order for them to be fruitful, all of them rest on a foundation of doctrine. It’s vital that we talk about doctrine and allow that doctrine to flow up into this conversation of every other matter. Ask the question, “How does our view of the Gospel impact this particular topic that we’re conversing over?”

Third, if you come to an unresolvable doctrinal conflict with a brother or sister, invite an elder into your conversation for help and clarity. It’s worth pursuing it together. I believe this is not just related to elders. Invite other godly women, other godly men who may not be elders. Invite other godly people who have been taught the Scriptures, who know what the Bible says and are going to root their thoughts in the Scripture, invite them in so that there is not unnecessary division. Too often, we just kind of leave it, part ways, and then there is relational brokenness and distance and we don’t ever get back to where we once were.

False teachers are going to enter the church. They’re going to destroy the church. But also,

3. False teachers will not silence themselves.

11 They must be silenced,

False teachers are not self-correcting. They are not the kind of people that say, “Okay. I’ll be quiet.” They must be silenced! That word is strong. It literally means they must be muzzled. If you take an animal that is biting, it must be muzzled. In other words, don’t let it bite anymore. How exactly does that happen in the church? We’re not told the method. We’re just told the end that must happen. Here they are in the church. Chomp, chomp, chomp, chomp, destroy, destroy, destroy, destroy inside the church. Elders, this is the flock that God has given you to care for. Put them to silence. They have to be put to silence. They can’t just be allowed to go on teaching that which is destructive. That can’t be allowed.

13 …Therefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith,

The word “rebuke” means to confront with clear opposition. He’s saying elders can’t afford to be so nice to false teachers that the teachers or the church don’t understand the gravity of the issues involved. There must be clarity and confrontation. The word “sharply” means without delay. In other words, don’t wait until next week when you hear false doctrine taught. Don’t wait until next month. Don’t say, “Maybe this will calm down. Let’s have long conversations about this.” No, if it’s false doctrine, rebuke them sharply. “This is the end of it. That can’t be taught in this church family.” It’s a word that indicates a woodsman and a dead limb. Rebuke sharply is like a sharp ax coming with one stroke. It’s not chop, chop, chop, chop, chop, chop, chop. It’s one stroke sharply. Put an end to it!

Now, this isn’t to be done violently. This isn’t to be done with hostility. Paul would say to Timothy that we’re to rebuke with gentleness and with instruction. So the woodsman is strong. He’s sure. He’s capable. It’s not like he’s so angry at this dead limb. It’s that he is self-controlled and he says, “This dead branch needs to be taken care of with strength, with accuracy, but absolutely with effect.” That’s what he calls elders to do.

What might a biblical rebuke look like? I think we have one in Galatians. Paul says

Galatians 1:6-8 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.

That’s our sharp rebuke. Let’s put an end to it now!

Galatians 1:9 As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.

There is too much at stake to be nice. Houses are being burned. Souls are being infected with disease. The church is being led into conflict-laden chaos. Why? Why would we confront and rebuke so sharply? First, for the sake of God’s glory in the church and for the sake of the flock. But also, Paul says surprisingly in some ways, for the sake of the false teachers.

13 …Therefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith,

False teachers are people with souls. False teachers are people we care about. We’re not fighting them. We’re fighting the doctrine they’re teaching. There is a spiritual war for their sake. The most loving thing we can do to a false teacher is to tell them this is contrary to the Gospel that was once for all delivered and God places a curse on you. I’m not saying that because I hate you. I’m saying that because you need to be awakened. If you’re not awakened, you will be destroyed by the doctrine you’re teaching. So maybe the strong rebuke might awaken them so that they would become sound in faith, too.

Here are some applications. Pray that your elders will have courage and boldness to put false teachers to silence. Pray for that. This is not an easy work. It’s heavy. It’s burdensome. Pray that your elders will have courage and boldness and clarity to put false teachers to silence.

Secondly, listen to your elders with your Bible open to receive instruction from the Word, correction from the Word, and rebuke from the Word. Welcome this ministry in your life. I know instruction is a little easier than correction and rebuke, but God would have the Word flow through His people and leaders in His church in all of these ways. Welcome this ministry. Say, “I need that.”

We started with the story of Little Red Riding Hood. What would have happened if Grandma and Little Red Riding Hood popped out of the wolf and they said, “What did you just do? We were so comfortable in there. Now we’re cold and we’re a bloody mess. How dare you do that? We actually love this wolf.” Now, that wouldn’t have happened. That would have been silly for the story to end that way. But that’s the way the story ends often in the church. Elders come and they confront and they put to silence false teachers. Those who are being devoured, while they are still being devoured by a false teacher, they now are loyal to the false teacher. They say, “How dare you?” They lash out at the woodsman who is just simply there to protect and preserve their life. So it’s hard. That’s why I say pray, pray, pray and listen with a heart ready to receive the ministry of God through His church.

Third, ask for God to give your church more called and qualified elders who are willing to do this soul-exhausting work. I would challenge you young men. Again, it’s a noble thing to desire to be part of this work. It’s not an easy thing. It’s often not a fun thing, but it’s a necessary thing and it is a glorious thing to be part of as Jesus shepherds His church. But ask for God to give your church more called and qualified elders.

The final application is give your elders the benefit of the doubt. If you hear a story about your elders, talk with us. We’re not perfect people. I’ve told many people through the course of my life, “I was wrong. I need to ask you to forgive me.” So we’re not perfect. But I can tell you also that we’re not as imperfect as some stories make us out to be. It is rare for an elder to confront sin or to confront false doctrine and not have that lash back on them with slander. It’s hardly ever happened to me. Whenever I’ve confronted sin, whenever I’ve confronted false doctrine, people come back with slander. That slander is sometimes directed to my face, but most often, it’s outside.

What is most grievous is I guess the wound that God calls and is right and God will help us bear it. The wound that God calls elders to bear is first being slandered by the person doesn’t feel good. But the greatest wound is that good people who formerly loved you and trusted you are impacted by that slander, and without any conversation. I’ve been amazed and asked, “How did this person’s heart change toward me?” It did in a profound way. Once I heard, “Pastor, you’re the greatest pastor in the world. We love you.” And then the next, it’s “I don’t want to talk to you anymore.” How did that happen? It’s because of slander. Again, we’re not perfect, but all we would say is to come and talk with us.

Proverbs 18:13 If one gives an answer before he hears, it is his folly and shame.

Proverbs 18:17 The one who states his case first seems right, until the other comes and examines him.

So again, give your elders the benefit of the doubt. I think that’s right.

I told this story of Little Red Riding Hood to my four year old grandson this week. We were having lunch at Original Pancake House. As I told it, I asked him if he had heard this before. No, he had never heard this story before. I’m telling him and his eyes got really big. At first I thought, “Oh no!” I asked him if the story was too scary for him. I stopped midway as the wolf has gobbled Grandma. (Laughter!) He said, “No, no, no, no. Keep telling me.” So I finally told him about the woodsman coming in and Grandma and Little Red Riding Hood popping out, and he had the biggest smile. He had the biggest joy in his heart over the ending of that story because it was a story of good overcoming evil, of strength coming to the aid of the helpless. So we talked a bit about that. So I let it go. At first I was thinking that I don’t know if his mom and dad really wanted me to tell him this story. (Laughter!) It might not be a story parents tell anymore. So it was he and I having lunch. We got home, and my wife, his Gigi was there. We started playing a little bit and then all of a sudden he stopped in our play and he said, “Tell Gigi the story!” I had forgotten. I said, “What story?” He said the story with the little girl. So I retold it and this time he had even more joy even at the beginning and at the middle because he knew how it ended.

Rather than scaring him, he had found security in the story. The story made him feel that there actually were woodsmen in the forest who would come to his aid if evil ever came against him. Of course as a grandpa and as a dad, I take pleasure in providing sort of a woodsman to kids in my own physical family. But also as an elder, I take great joy in providing some protection. The teeth of the wolf are just as sharp to the woodsman as they would be to anyone else. But we’re called to go in there and say it doesn’t matter. God is going to protect us. We’re going to go in there because we care. So my prayer is that God would make Bethany a place of wholeness, a place free of the chaos that wolves bring in, a place of safety, a place of flourishing as godly elders proclaim sound doctrine and protect the church against false teaching. Pray that with me!