WEBVTT 00:00:09.710 --> 00:00:11.730 As Nicholas mentioned, we're in Titus chapter 00:00:11.730 --> 00:00:15.650 1. Of course, this is God's holy and inspired 00:00:15.650 --> 00:00:19.129 and inerrant word. Our exposition today will 00:00:19.129 --> 00:00:22.989 focus on verses 10 through 16 in Titus chapter 00:00:22.989 --> 00:00:27.429 1. But if you will allow me, I'd like to read 00:00:27.429 --> 00:00:30.629 the entire first chapter. It's only 16 verses, 00:00:30.789 --> 00:00:32.890 so it shouldn't be too bad. But I'd like to read 00:00:32.890 --> 00:00:35.649 this whole first chapter so that it helps us 00:00:35.649 --> 00:00:39.329 to understand where we're at today. Titus chapter 00:00:39.329 --> 00:00:42.909 one, Paul, a bondservant of God and an apostle 00:00:42.909 --> 00:00:45.670 of Jesus Christ for the faith of those chosen 00:00:45.670 --> 00:00:47.969 of God and the knowledge of the truth, which 00:00:47.969 --> 00:00:50.649 is according to godliness in the hope of eternal 00:00:50.649 --> 00:00:53.909 life, which God who cannot lie promised long 00:00:53.909 --> 00:00:57.310 ages ago, but at the proper time manifested even 00:00:57.310 --> 00:01:00.130 his word in the proclamation with which I was 00:01:00.130 --> 00:01:03.030 entrusted according to the commandment of God, 00:01:03.130 --> 00:01:07.819 our savior. To Titus. my true child in a common 00:01:07.819 --> 00:01:12.159 faith, grace and peace from God the Father and 00:01:12.159 --> 00:01:17.079 Christ Jesus, our Savior. For this reason I left 00:01:17.079 --> 00:01:19.239 you in Crete, that you would set in order what 00:01:19.239 --> 00:01:21.519 remains and appoint elders in every city as I 00:01:21.519 --> 00:01:24.840 directed you, namely, if any man is above reproach, 00:01:24.840 --> 00:01:27.480 the husband of one wife having children who believe, 00:01:27.560 --> 00:01:31.629 not accused of dissipation or rebellion. For 00:01:31.629 --> 00:01:34.989 the overseer must be above reproach as God's 00:01:34.989 --> 00:01:37.750 steward, not self -willed, not quick -tempered, 00:01:37.849 --> 00:01:41.090 not addicted to wine, not pugnacious, not fond 00:01:41.090 --> 00:01:44.290 of sordid gain, but hospitable, loving what is 00:01:44.290 --> 00:01:47.569 good, sensible, just, devout, self -controlled, 00:01:47.849 --> 00:01:50.549 holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance 00:01:50.549 --> 00:01:53.209 with the teaching so that he will be able both 00:01:53.209 --> 00:01:56.250 to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those 00:01:56.250 --> 00:02:00.069 who contradict. For there are many rebellious 00:02:00.069 --> 00:02:03.060 men. empty talkers and deceivers especially those 00:02:03.060 --> 00:02:07.040 of the circumcision who must be silenced because 00:02:07.040 --> 00:02:10.060 they are upsetting whole families teaching things 00:02:10.060 --> 00:02:12.439 they should not teach for the sake of sordid 00:02:12.439 --> 00:02:15.520 gain one of themselves a prophet of their own 00:02:15.520 --> 00:02:19.639 said cretans are always liars evil beasts lazy 00:02:19.639 --> 00:02:23.379 gluttons this testimony is true for this reason 00:02:23.379 --> 00:02:25.819 reprove them severely so that they may be sound 00:02:25.819 --> 00:02:29.180 in the faith not paying attention to jewish myths 00:02:29.770 --> 00:02:32.349 and commandments of men who turn away from the 00:02:32.349 --> 00:02:36.289 truth. To the pure all things are pure, but to 00:02:36.289 --> 00:02:38.469 those who are defiled and unbelieving nothing 00:02:38.469 --> 00:02:41.590 is pure, but both their mind and their conscience 00:02:41.590 --> 00:02:45.310 are defiled. They profess to know God, but their 00:02:45.310 --> 00:02:50.030 deeds deny him, being detestable and disobedient 00:02:50.030 --> 00:02:53.830 and worthless for any good deed. Let's pray. 00:02:54.629 --> 00:02:56.689 Gracious Heavenly Father, as we come to your 00:02:56.689 --> 00:02:59.620 word this morning, We ask that it would have 00:02:59.620 --> 00:03:02.639 its intended effect on our hearts and on our 00:03:02.639 --> 00:03:05.860 minds. Holy Spirit, we ask you to accompany the 00:03:05.860 --> 00:03:08.280 proclamation of your word. We ask that you would 00:03:08.280 --> 00:03:10.780 guide us into all truth as we seek to understand 00:03:10.780 --> 00:03:14.120 it rightly. Lord Jesus, be honored and glorified 00:03:14.120 --> 00:03:17.000 as we search the scriptures, desiring to know 00:03:17.000 --> 00:03:21.280 how you would have your church to be ordered. 00:03:21.680 --> 00:03:25.830 May this study today Conform us to your image 00:03:25.830 --> 00:03:29.110 and produce godly living among your people. We 00:03:29.110 --> 00:03:31.389 ask these things in your precious and holy name. 00:03:31.449 --> 00:03:36.069 Amen. Please be seated. I think it's easy for 00:03:36.069 --> 00:03:41.469 us to be comfortable with what we hear one Sunday 00:03:41.469 --> 00:03:46.909 to the next in a congregation like this. I believe 00:03:46.909 --> 00:03:52.650 it's easy for us to almost be lulled into a pattern. 00:03:53.210 --> 00:03:58.889 of worship into tradition, into a liturgy that 00:03:58.889 --> 00:04:06.490 is, quite frankly, not controversial. There may 00:04:06.490 --> 00:04:09.590 be some people who would disagree with that locally, 00:04:09.750 --> 00:04:13.449 the idea that what we believe and teach here 00:04:13.449 --> 00:04:18.649 at Grace Fellowship Church, that it is not controversial. 00:04:19.529 --> 00:04:23.089 But I think by and large, for those of us who 00:04:23.089 --> 00:04:25.870 attend regularly for the members of Grace Fellowship 00:04:25.870 --> 00:04:28.689 Church, for the elders of Grace Fellowship Church, 00:04:28.850 --> 00:04:35.110 we do not really struggle with noticing issues 00:04:35.110 --> 00:04:39.410 with the preaching that is proclaimed and heard 00:04:39.410 --> 00:04:42.310 here at Grace Fellowship Church. But that does 00:04:42.310 --> 00:04:48.230 not mean that there are not people, perhaps locally, 00:04:48.350 --> 00:04:52.680 but certainly, around the area or perhaps in 00:04:52.680 --> 00:04:57.160 the state or in the region, nationally, internationally, 00:04:57.420 --> 00:05:03.560 who are teaching error. Our familiarity with 00:05:03.560 --> 00:05:09.800 good, sound, biblical teaching, with proper biblical 00:05:09.800 --> 00:05:13.639 exegesis and exposition at Grace Fellowship Church 00:05:13.639 --> 00:05:20.089 should not cause us to deny the reality of false 00:05:20.089 --> 00:05:24.829 teachers and false teaching. And that's really 00:05:24.829 --> 00:05:28.730 what our focus is today. And before we really 00:05:28.730 --> 00:05:31.850 try to dig into these verses here, these last 00:05:31.850 --> 00:05:35.129 several verses at the end of chapter one of Paul's 00:05:35.129 --> 00:05:38.069 letter to Titus, I think it's helpful for us 00:05:38.069 --> 00:05:41.050 to just take a brief moment to consider where 00:05:41.050 --> 00:05:43.930 we're at because the context is so important 00:05:43.930 --> 00:05:48.160 to properly understanding a passage. If we make 00:05:48.160 --> 00:05:51.379 the mistake of simply pulling verses 10 through 00:05:51.379 --> 00:05:54.279 16 out of the greater context of the chapter 00:05:54.279 --> 00:05:58.459 and out of the book itself, we might be tempted 00:05:58.459 --> 00:06:03.180 to gradually slide into error ourselves. So I'd 00:06:03.180 --> 00:06:06.300 like to just give you a quick, very quick synopsis 00:06:06.300 --> 00:06:10.860 of what we've studied thus far in this particular 00:06:10.860 --> 00:06:15.220 letter, Paul's epistle to Titus. So as we continue 00:06:15.220 --> 00:06:18.029 our study, It's important to recall what we've 00:06:18.029 --> 00:06:22.290 learned in the previous messages. Passes 10 through 00:06:22.290 --> 00:06:25.629 16, they do not stand alone, and they cannot 00:06:25.629 --> 00:06:28.709 be divorced from the preceding verses. In our 00:06:28.709 --> 00:06:30.949 first session, if you think back to it, verses 00:06:30.949 --> 00:06:33.910 1 through 4, we introduced the letter by establishing 00:06:33.910 --> 00:06:36.629 its setting and context. We actually went through 00:06:36.629 --> 00:06:40.430 great pains to make sure we understood what was 00:06:40.430 --> 00:06:43.189 happening in Crete, to whom the letter had been 00:06:43.189 --> 00:06:45.509 written, by whom the letter had been written. 00:06:45.959 --> 00:06:48.860 and the context, the cultural setting, the society 00:06:48.860 --> 00:06:54.600 around this letter. In our second series, or 00:06:54.600 --> 00:06:57.920 in our second message, I should say, of this 00:06:57.920 --> 00:07:00.480 series, we were in verses 1 through 4 again, 00:07:00.540 --> 00:07:03.019 and that was where, if you will recall, we observed 00:07:03.019 --> 00:07:06.160 how the Spirit -inspired author, the Apostle 00:07:06.160 --> 00:07:09.600 Paul, grounded that salutation, the introduction 00:07:09.600 --> 00:07:13.660 to the letter, the salutation to Titus in... 00:07:13.980 --> 00:07:17.740 the truth of the gospel. You may remember that 00:07:17.740 --> 00:07:20.040 that was when we gained a greater understanding 00:07:20.040 --> 00:07:23.279 of the truth that produces faith, knowledge, 00:07:23.519 --> 00:07:28.939 and godliness in the people of God. We talked 00:07:28.939 --> 00:07:31.139 much about the fact that this is the overall 00:07:31.139 --> 00:07:35.699 emphasis of Paul's letter to Titus, that properly 00:07:35.699 --> 00:07:38.720 ordering the church, that properly understanding 00:07:38.720 --> 00:07:42.970 the gospel. will lead to proper practice within 00:07:42.970 --> 00:07:46.569 the church and will result in godly living among 00:07:46.569 --> 00:07:51.290 God's people. Then we began in this current unit, 00:07:51.350 --> 00:07:54.230 and I would argue that verses 5 all the way through 00:07:54.230 --> 00:07:58.689 16 are one unit. We began with verses 5 through 00:07:58.689 --> 00:08:00.889 9 a couple weeks ago. Of course, we took off 00:08:00.889 --> 00:08:04.689 for Easter, but... where we saw that Paul's charge 00:08:04.689 --> 00:08:07.149 to Titus was to set in order what remains and 00:08:07.149 --> 00:08:10.370 appoint elders in every city as I directed you. 00:08:10.730 --> 00:08:13.449 In our analysis of those verses, we identified 00:08:13.449 --> 00:08:16.829 the character and qualifications of elders. We 00:08:16.829 --> 00:08:18.689 noted that these are men who are to be above 00:08:18.689 --> 00:08:21.649 reproach, who serve as God's stewards, who are 00:08:21.649 --> 00:08:23.709 marked by godly character in their families, 00:08:23.829 --> 00:08:28.069 their conduct, and their doctrine. It's important. 00:08:28.589 --> 00:08:30.910 that that happened in those verses because of 00:08:30.910 --> 00:08:33.269 what we'll be studying today, because certainly 00:08:33.269 --> 00:08:38.250 verses 5 through 9 offer a juxtaposition to the 00:08:38.250 --> 00:08:41.289 description of these false teachers which appear 00:08:41.289 --> 00:08:46.190 in verses 10 through 16. If you will recall, 00:08:46.309 --> 00:08:50.250 we referred to God's stewards as fiduciaries, 00:08:50.289 --> 00:08:54.210 wherein that fiduciary relationship, God is the 00:08:54.210 --> 00:08:57.730 principal. And his stewards, his elders, his 00:08:57.730 --> 00:09:01.909 overseers are his agents who act on his behalf. 00:09:02.529 --> 00:09:05.129 Make no mistake, Christ is building his church. 00:09:05.529 --> 00:09:09.389 And the shepherds who serve the church are certainly 00:09:09.389 --> 00:09:12.629 under shepherds who look to the good shepherd 00:09:12.629 --> 00:09:15.509 for their example. But nonetheless, we should 00:09:15.509 --> 00:09:17.549 acknowledge that they have this very important 00:09:17.549 --> 00:09:21.549 and vital role that God has ordained them to 00:09:21.549 --> 00:09:25.529 fulfill in the context of the local church. Very 00:09:25.529 --> 00:09:28.450 importantly, at the conclusion of that section, 00:09:28.549 --> 00:09:31.610 we saw in verse nine, the central responsibility 00:09:31.610 --> 00:09:36.590 of a qualified leader, a qualified elder or overseer 00:09:36.590 --> 00:09:38.289 in the church. If you would look at verse nine 00:09:38.289 --> 00:09:41.809 with me again. And there it says, holding fast 00:09:41.809 --> 00:09:45.409 the faithful word, which is in accordance with 00:09:45.409 --> 00:09:47.629 the teachings so that he will be able both to 00:09:47.629 --> 00:09:55.279 exhort in sound doctrine and to refute. those 00:09:55.279 --> 00:10:00.879 who contradict. Truly, verse 9 is the hinge point 00:10:00.879 --> 00:10:07.320 of verses 5 through 16. It ties together these 00:10:07.320 --> 00:10:11.620 two sections into one cohesive unit dealing with 00:10:11.620 --> 00:10:14.980 qualified elders and their responsibilities. 00:10:15.620 --> 00:10:19.019 That much is certainly demonstrated by what follows 00:10:19.019 --> 00:10:23.110 in these verses we're considering today. Paul 00:10:23.110 --> 00:10:27.269 instructs Titus to refute false teachers because 00:10:27.269 --> 00:10:31.730 the church must not only be ordered by establishing 00:10:31.730 --> 00:10:36.490 godly leadership, but also by protecting the 00:10:36.490 --> 00:10:42.690 church from those who seek to corrupt it. Now 00:10:42.690 --> 00:10:47.549 we might argue that locally we don't see this 00:10:47.549 --> 00:10:52.110 as often. that we do not run across false teaching 00:10:52.110 --> 00:10:54.769 as often. And perhaps that's a blessing, and 00:10:54.769 --> 00:10:56.950 in some ways I might argue that it could be a 00:10:56.950 --> 00:11:01.269 curse to some degree because false teaching is 00:11:01.269 --> 00:11:05.529 not always obvious error. False teaching oftentimes 00:11:05.529 --> 00:11:10.110 is subtle. False teaching oftentimes creeps in 00:11:10.110 --> 00:11:13.250 unnoticed, and we'll see that as we continue. 00:11:13.929 --> 00:11:17.309 After Paul says elders must be able to refute 00:11:17.309 --> 00:11:21.299 those who contradict, Fortunately, he does not 00:11:21.299 --> 00:11:27.000 leave Titus there by himself in Crete to figure 00:11:27.000 --> 00:11:32.019 out just how to go about that on his own. Paul, 00:11:32.279 --> 00:11:35.240 under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, gives 00:11:35.240 --> 00:11:39.980 Titus directions. He gives Titus instruction. 00:11:41.700 --> 00:11:46.039 And he does so first by explaining how to order 00:11:46.039 --> 00:11:49.779 and protect the church. by identifying false 00:11:49.779 --> 00:11:53.480 teachers. This happens in verses 10 through 12. 00:11:53.759 --> 00:11:56.419 Again, this first heading, if you're taking notes, 00:11:56.580 --> 00:12:00.159 would be identifying false teachers. Verses 10 00:12:00.159 --> 00:12:02.340 through 12, let's look at them together again, 00:12:02.440 --> 00:12:05.500 please. For there are many rebellious men, empty 00:12:05.500 --> 00:12:09.220 talkers and deceivers, especially those of the 00:12:09.220 --> 00:12:12.860 circumcision who must be silenced because they 00:12:12.860 --> 00:12:16.500 are upsetting whole families. teaching things 00:12:16.500 --> 00:12:20.700 they should not teach for the sake of sordid 00:12:20.700 --> 00:12:27.320 gain. There is a lot in those two verses. I will 00:12:27.320 --> 00:12:30.039 not lie, my notes for those first two verses, 00:12:30.100 --> 00:12:32.500 or excuse me, the first really should be three 00:12:32.500 --> 00:12:34.580 verses because we'll read verse 12 in a moment, 00:12:34.700 --> 00:12:39.019 are longer probably by double than the next two 00:12:39.019 --> 00:12:42.679 headings. There's a lot that we can say here. 00:12:43.070 --> 00:12:45.809 Notice what he goes on to say, to write to Titus. 00:12:45.870 --> 00:12:48.330 One of themselves, a prophet of their own said, 00:12:48.610 --> 00:12:52.230 Cretans are always liars, evil beasts and lazy 00:12:52.230 --> 00:12:58.330 gluttons. Stated plainly, we cannot protect the 00:12:58.330 --> 00:13:05.009 flock from a threat we do not recognize. We must 00:13:05.009 --> 00:13:09.330 identify false teachers. We order and protect 00:13:09.330 --> 00:13:12.090 the church first and foremost, according to Paul 00:13:12.090 --> 00:13:15.669 in verses 10 through 12, by identifying false 00:13:15.669 --> 00:13:20.269 teachers. And again, I say, we cannot protect 00:13:20.269 --> 00:13:25.090 the flock if we do not recognize the threat. 00:13:26.070 --> 00:13:30.710 Paul provides Titus, and of course us by extension, 00:13:30.990 --> 00:13:34.950 with the means to identify those who would disrupt. 00:13:35.629 --> 00:13:39.289 and disorder the church. Many of you may have 00:13:39.289 --> 00:13:42.389 been in a setting in the past in your lives, 00:13:42.490 --> 00:13:44.090 maybe at other churches that you've attended 00:13:44.090 --> 00:13:47.789 and now you attend here, but in the past you 00:13:47.789 --> 00:13:50.529 may have been in churches that were disrupted 00:13:50.529 --> 00:13:56.370 and disordered. Perhaps someone came into the 00:13:56.370 --> 00:13:59.889 church from outside of the church and disrupted 00:13:59.889 --> 00:14:02.570 and disordered the church. Perhaps they called 00:14:02.570 --> 00:14:06.860 into question Teachings that are obvious in scripture, 00:14:07.179 --> 00:14:10.740 not secondary or tertiary issues, but rather 00:14:10.740 --> 00:14:15.960 issues that are penultimate to the church. Those 00:14:15.960 --> 00:14:19.080 things which matter greatly to the church. We 00:14:19.080 --> 00:14:22.940 might even say things that are salvific. Those 00:14:22.940 --> 00:14:26.720 false teachings that may have run counter to 00:14:26.720 --> 00:14:32.019 the true gospel. And you know the chaos that 00:14:32.019 --> 00:14:37.889 ensues. from such situations. I like how Paul 00:14:37.889 --> 00:14:41.789 does this because he really starts in verse 10 00:14:41.789 --> 00:14:46.690 by identifying these false teachers. And first 00:14:46.690 --> 00:14:50.750 he really refers to their character. Paul calls 00:14:50.750 --> 00:14:58.850 them rebellious. They refuse to submit to authority. 00:15:01.840 --> 00:15:06.080 I would argue this is a defining hallmark of 00:15:06.080 --> 00:15:11.340 their character. I think many false teachers 00:15:11.340 --> 00:15:20.419 are rebellious. I think it's obvious that they 00:15:20.419 --> 00:15:23.700 are rebellious, and it works itself out, that 00:15:23.700 --> 00:15:27.860 rebellion works itself out, not only in their 00:15:27.860 --> 00:15:32.809 teaching, but in their character. They pride 00:15:32.809 --> 00:15:38.009 themselves on their individuality and their autonomy. 00:15:39.230 --> 00:15:43.590 Perhaps certain examples are rushing through 00:15:43.590 --> 00:15:47.429 your mind even as I say these things. Perhaps 00:15:47.429 --> 00:15:51.090 there are some folks you can think of, whether 00:15:51.090 --> 00:15:54.080 you've known them personally, heard stories of 00:15:54.080 --> 00:15:58.399 them, or perhaps seen them behave a rebellious 00:15:58.399 --> 00:16:06.519 way on TV or on social media. False teachers' 00:16:06.759 --> 00:16:12.279 character is marked by rebellion. They refuse 00:16:12.279 --> 00:16:18.919 to submit to anyone. They don't refuse to God, 00:16:19.139 --> 00:16:22.450 or excuse me, they refuse to submit to God. They 00:16:22.450 --> 00:16:25.990 refuse to submit to the clear teachings of scripture 00:16:25.990 --> 00:16:30.809 and they refuse to submit to other believers. 00:16:32.590 --> 00:16:36.809 I recently heard a story of a rather famous preacher, 00:16:37.090 --> 00:16:41.490 a lady nonetheless. So she's disqualified right 00:16:41.490 --> 00:16:47.309 out the gate of a lady who has in her bylaws 00:16:47.309 --> 00:16:50.490 at her church that she founded. It's actually 00:16:50.490 --> 00:16:52.210 the second church she founded because the first 00:16:52.210 --> 00:16:55.269 church went under. Another story all of its own. 00:16:56.429 --> 00:16:59.429 Who has in the bylaws of her church that no one 00:16:59.429 --> 00:17:03.789 can question her decisions and her rulings. She 00:17:03.789 --> 00:17:08.670 is at the top of the heap, so to speak. And this 00:17:08.670 --> 00:17:13.809 certainly is endemic. It is emblematic of false 00:17:13.809 --> 00:17:18.069 teachers. They are rebellious. They are autonomous. 00:17:19.000 --> 00:17:25.259 They are in control. And I would argue that this 00:17:25.259 --> 00:17:28.900 is a benefit of the plurality of elders. Do you 00:17:28.900 --> 00:17:32.920 see the benefit of the plurality of elders? If 00:17:32.920 --> 00:17:38.140 a man refuses to submit to qualified and co -equal 00:17:38.140 --> 00:17:43.019 under shepherds who co -labor with him in the 00:17:43.019 --> 00:17:49.789 church, how could he ever submit to God? I have 00:17:49.789 --> 00:17:52.789 known people through the years, people I have 00:17:52.789 --> 00:17:55.670 known personally through the years who have come 00:17:55.670 --> 00:17:59.730 in and gone out. And I can tell you of the ones 00:17:59.730 --> 00:18:03.529 who seemed to have the knack for leading people, 00:18:03.670 --> 00:18:07.569 many of those folks who might have otherwise 00:18:07.569 --> 00:18:10.650 made excellent pastors, teachers, shepherds, 00:18:10.650 --> 00:18:14.670 elders, overseers, many of them struggled in 00:18:14.670 --> 00:18:20.589 one specific area. One consistent theme I can 00:18:20.589 --> 00:18:24.730 point to with virtually every single one of those 00:18:24.730 --> 00:18:29.509 men. And do you know what it was? They would 00:18:29.509 --> 00:18:35.470 not submit to authority. They wanted to go their 00:18:35.470 --> 00:18:42.029 own way. They wanted to have their own way. They 00:18:42.029 --> 00:18:47.099 did not want to wait on timing that the overseers 00:18:47.099 --> 00:18:50.160 of the church they were attending felt was more 00:18:50.160 --> 00:18:54.420 appropriate for their ascent to the eldership. 00:18:55.180 --> 00:18:58.480 This has happened time and time again in church. 00:18:58.579 --> 00:19:01.359 I would argue that for those of us who do not, 00:19:01.400 --> 00:19:04.900 for those of you who do not aspire to the office 00:19:04.900 --> 00:19:07.720 of an elder or an overseer, which of course, 00:19:07.720 --> 00:19:11.319 as we know, is a noble thing to seek, but for 00:19:11.319 --> 00:19:13.559 those of you who do not aspire to that office, 00:19:13.759 --> 00:19:17.950 let me warn you of something. If your heart is 00:19:17.950 --> 00:19:21.970 rebellious toward authority, to the authority 00:19:21.970 --> 00:19:26.029 that God has set in place over the church, you 00:19:26.029 --> 00:19:31.289 too will suffer in the same way as many of these 00:19:31.289 --> 00:19:36.190 men. You too will experience the difficulties 00:19:36.190 --> 00:19:40.049 and the struggles that come along with having 00:19:40.049 --> 00:19:45.240 a rebellious heart toward authority. That is 00:19:45.240 --> 00:19:49.200 not to say that all authority is right. That 00:19:49.200 --> 00:19:52.660 is not to say that every leader should be followed. 00:19:53.279 --> 00:19:55.819 But when you enter into a covenant community, 00:19:56.200 --> 00:19:59.339 when you covenant together with other believers, 00:19:59.619 --> 00:20:03.539 you should be mindful of the condition of your 00:20:03.539 --> 00:20:09.640 heart. And you should not seek to be autonomous 00:20:09.640 --> 00:20:16.650 and of your own authority. It also says in verse 00:20:16.650 --> 00:20:23.170 10, for there are rebellious men, empty talkers 00:20:23.170 --> 00:20:27.910 and deceivers. With impressive words, they can 00:20:27.910 --> 00:20:33.369 drone on and on and on, but they have no substance. 00:20:34.109 --> 00:20:41.130 And in that empty talking, they lead others into 00:20:41.130 --> 00:20:44.230 error. Think to what Paul wrote in Romans chapter 00:20:44.230 --> 00:20:50.789 16, verse 18. For such men are slaves, not of 00:20:50.789 --> 00:20:54.450 our Lord Christ, but of their own appetites. 00:20:54.549 --> 00:20:58.750 And by their smooth and flattering speech, they 00:20:58.750 --> 00:21:02.430 deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting. There 00:21:02.430 --> 00:21:06.529 is no question some men are more eloquent than 00:21:06.529 --> 00:21:09.880 others. Not that long ago, many of you young 00:21:09.880 --> 00:21:12.099 people won't remember, but not that long ago, 00:21:12.180 --> 00:21:14.900 we had a president of the United States who was 00:21:14.900 --> 00:21:18.299 perhaps one of the most eloquent men I've ever 00:21:18.299 --> 00:21:22.059 heard speak. And this particular gentleman who 00:21:22.059 --> 00:21:23.920 was president of the United States at one point 00:21:23.920 --> 00:21:28.099 was an effective communicator. He was really, 00:21:28.160 --> 00:21:31.920 quite frankly, a brilliant orator. And he won 00:21:31.920 --> 00:21:35.500 many people to his cause through his rhetoric. 00:21:36.359 --> 00:21:42.799 And yet so many of his policies led to death. 00:21:43.599 --> 00:21:48.640 So much of what he advocated for was antithetical 00:21:48.640 --> 00:21:53.579 to scripture, to the revelation of God. Just 00:21:53.579 --> 00:21:56.940 because someone can communicate clearly, just 00:21:56.940 --> 00:22:00.220 because someone can speak well, that does not 00:22:00.220 --> 00:22:06.059 mean that they are worth your attention. False 00:22:06.059 --> 00:22:09.279 teachers who are empty talkers and deceivers 00:22:09.279 --> 00:22:15.160 are such men. Remember his warning about false 00:22:15.160 --> 00:22:18.160 teachers to the Ephesian elders. When Paul was 00:22:18.160 --> 00:22:20.420 leaving from Miletus, he called the Ephesian 00:22:20.420 --> 00:22:23.819 elders to him in Acts chapter 20. Kyle just preached 00:22:23.819 --> 00:22:26.259 from there not that long ago. And he said, and 00:22:26.259 --> 00:22:31.119 from among your own selves, men will arise speaking 00:22:31.119 --> 00:22:35.839 perverse things to draw away the disciples. after 00:22:35.839 --> 00:22:41.599 them. We might note the proverbial statement 00:22:41.599 --> 00:22:47.440 where words abound. I say it to my kids all the 00:22:47.440 --> 00:22:53.700 time. Sin is not absent. Now that might seem 00:22:53.700 --> 00:22:56.700 a little obtuse for someone like me to say something 00:22:56.700 --> 00:22:58.980 like that considering I love to talk so much. 00:23:01.130 --> 00:23:04.069 But this axiomatic and biblical statement is 00:23:04.069 --> 00:23:09.950 most certainly true. Where words abound, sin 00:23:09.950 --> 00:23:12.049 is not absent. I would take it a step further 00:23:12.049 --> 00:23:16.410 and say where words abound, false teaching may 00:23:16.410 --> 00:23:22.029 be close by. At its core, false teaching is not 00:23:22.029 --> 00:23:26.630 merely intellectual error. It is spiritual rebellion. 00:23:27.609 --> 00:23:30.869 Marked by an abundance of meaningless, empty, 00:23:31.130 --> 00:23:35.869 deceptive words spoken by men who are intent 00:23:35.869 --> 00:23:39.109 upon drawing away disciples after themselves. 00:23:39.690 --> 00:23:42.609 I mean, isn't that what it ultimately boils down 00:23:42.609 --> 00:23:48.049 to? A desire to have a following. Do we not see 00:23:48.049 --> 00:23:53.789 that in culture all day, every day? Have you 00:23:53.789 --> 00:23:57.339 been on Facebook? I know you have. The young 00:23:57.339 --> 00:24:02.359 people are like, Facebook, what's that? Have 00:24:02.359 --> 00:24:04.839 you seen the people who comment on Facebook? 00:24:04.839 --> 00:24:11.180 People you may know who seem so desperate for 00:24:11.180 --> 00:24:16.779 a following. I struggle with Facebook and I run 00:24:16.779 --> 00:24:20.539 a business and I need to be on Facebook for my 00:24:20.539 --> 00:24:23.599 business, but I struggle so much with trying 00:24:23.599 --> 00:24:26.319 to develop a following. And I mean more as an 00:24:26.319 --> 00:24:29.920 individual because I see other people who are 00:24:29.920 --> 00:24:33.140 doing it and it turns my stomach. Do you know 00:24:33.140 --> 00:24:35.519 what I'm talking about? I mean, can anybody else 00:24:35.519 --> 00:24:38.339 identify with that? There's just something about 00:24:38.339 --> 00:24:41.980 it that seems so pretentious, that seems so fake. 00:24:42.440 --> 00:24:45.099 I want to put this perfect image of myself out 00:24:45.099 --> 00:24:48.000 to the world. And the more clicks, the more likes, 00:24:48.079 --> 00:24:50.940 the more subscribes, the more views that I can 00:24:50.940 --> 00:24:56.970 get, the more I feel affirmed. Right? I like 00:24:56.970 --> 00:25:00.289 to feel affirmed. I like for people to validate 00:25:00.289 --> 00:25:03.809 what I say. But there's something about that 00:25:03.809 --> 00:25:09.369 desire that just turns my stomach. And false 00:25:09.369 --> 00:25:12.349 teachers are that way. They make much of themselves 00:25:12.349 --> 00:25:16.490 because they need that validation. They want 00:25:16.490 --> 00:25:21.210 that notoriety. And the reason why is because 00:25:21.210 --> 00:25:26.960 they are only concerned. about themselves next 00:25:26.960 --> 00:25:30.420 to identify false teacher paul points to their 00:25:30.420 --> 00:25:33.319 background this is also in verse 10 where he 00:25:33.319 --> 00:25:38.079 writes especially those of the circumcision i'm 00:25:38.079 --> 00:25:41.759 running through scenarios for just a second in 00:25:41.759 --> 00:25:51.869 light of the situation the world is now in I 00:25:51.869 --> 00:25:53.069 know you're not supposed to end a sentence with 00:25:53.069 --> 00:25:54.609 a preposition, but I can't come up with a better 00:25:54.609 --> 00:25:59.869 way to say it. In light of our current climate, 00:26:00.069 --> 00:26:04.630 I think it's good to be careful with this phrase. 00:26:05.990 --> 00:26:09.490 And I'll be honest with you. In the past, I probably 00:26:09.490 --> 00:26:11.349 would have thrown caution to the wind, which 00:26:11.349 --> 00:26:17.650 is kind of my MO. But I sense that there might 00:26:17.650 --> 00:26:22.599 be a need to help some people. pull back some 00:26:22.599 --> 00:26:25.299 of their fervor for what I'm about to talk about. 00:26:27.119 --> 00:26:30.160 Paul is very clearly referring to a particular 00:26:30.160 --> 00:26:33.460 group of people here, and no one can deny this. 00:26:33.839 --> 00:26:37.900 I actually listened to a few of the more, what 00:26:37.900 --> 00:26:43.980 I would describe, not woke, but more sensitive 00:26:43.980 --> 00:26:49.180 preachers just to hear how they would handle 00:26:49.180 --> 00:26:50.779 this. And unfortunately, some of them kind of 00:26:50.779 --> 00:26:53.339 soft peddled it a little bit, which was disappointing. 00:26:53.559 --> 00:26:55.420 Of course, you could also go online and you can 00:26:55.420 --> 00:26:59.000 find some reform bros on some podcasts who would 00:26:59.000 --> 00:27:02.240 have a heyday with this particular expression 00:27:02.240 --> 00:27:04.980 right now. I think you all know what I'm getting 00:27:04.980 --> 00:27:08.259 at, right? If you don't, you will hear in a moment. 00:27:09.599 --> 00:27:13.940 Here in verse 10, Paul points out the background 00:27:13.940 --> 00:27:19.180 of these false teachers. who clearly have infiltrated 00:27:19.180 --> 00:27:21.440 the churches of Crete. Now, these are young churches. 00:27:21.539 --> 00:27:24.599 So when someone comes in and they are convincing 00:27:24.599 --> 00:27:27.559 with their words and they have the ability to 00:27:27.559 --> 00:27:32.180 persuade people, there is a need for this. They 00:27:32.180 --> 00:27:33.940 have to be marked. They have to be identified. 00:27:34.559 --> 00:27:38.099 These whom Paul refers to as being especially 00:27:38.099 --> 00:27:41.920 those of the circumcision. These men are religious 00:27:41.920 --> 00:27:47.809 insiders. They are legalists. and they are within 00:27:47.809 --> 00:27:51.950 the covenant community. In Acts 15, Paul and 00:27:51.950 --> 00:27:55.049 Barnabas debated false teachers at Antioch. You 00:27:55.049 --> 00:27:57.650 guys all remember the story. Acts 15, probably 00:27:57.650 --> 00:28:00.289 one of the most famous chapters in the Bible, 00:28:00.410 --> 00:28:02.970 where the Jerusalem Council takes place. And 00:28:02.970 --> 00:28:05.809 I hesitated to turn to it because it'll take 00:28:05.809 --> 00:28:08.250 a moment, but I think it's valuable for us to 00:28:08.250 --> 00:28:11.349 understand. So please turn there now, Acts chapter 00:28:11.349 --> 00:28:16.970 15, and we'll see what was happening there. And 00:28:16.970 --> 00:28:20.089 I think it will help shed light on what was happening 00:28:20.089 --> 00:28:24.490 at Crete. Paul and Barnabas have been ministering 00:28:24.490 --> 00:28:27.430 to Gentiles around the known world, the Roman 00:28:27.430 --> 00:28:30.130 world, all around the Mediterranean. Paul and 00:28:30.130 --> 00:28:32.369 Barnabas, these great missionaries of the early 00:28:32.369 --> 00:28:35.109 church, and they have seen Gentiles converted. 00:28:35.309 --> 00:28:38.410 They have seen the Holy Spirit poured out on 00:28:38.410 --> 00:28:44.230 Gentiles, non -Jews, those guys. who would not 00:28:44.230 --> 00:28:48.150 have been circumcised, right? In Acts chapter 00:28:48.150 --> 00:28:54.309 15, verse one, some men came down from Judea. 00:28:54.549 --> 00:28:59.069 Where are they coming from? Judea. And began 00:28:59.069 --> 00:29:01.869 teaching the brethren, unless you are circumcised 00:29:01.869 --> 00:29:05.009 according to the custom of Moses, you cannot 00:29:05.009 --> 00:29:08.589 be saved. And when Paul and Barnabas had great 00:29:08.589 --> 00:29:12.099 dissension and debate with them, the brethren 00:29:12.099 --> 00:29:15.019 determined that Paul and Barnabas and some others 00:29:15.019 --> 00:29:18.240 of them should go up to Jerusalem to the apostles 00:29:18.240 --> 00:29:22.539 and elders concerning this issue. This issue 00:29:22.539 --> 00:29:27.000 was so important that Paul and Barnabas would 00:29:27.000 --> 00:29:30.559 be sent directly to the church at Jerusalem where 00:29:30.559 --> 00:29:34.380 they would speak with the apostles and the elders 00:29:34.380 --> 00:29:37.299 of the church. Therefore being sent on their 00:29:37.299 --> 00:29:39.140 way by the church, they were passing through 00:29:39.140 --> 00:29:42.799 both Phoenicia and Samaria, describing in detail 00:29:42.799 --> 00:29:44.900 the conversion of the Gentiles and were bringing 00:29:44.900 --> 00:29:48.500 great joy to all the brethren. Notice what happens 00:29:48.500 --> 00:29:51.180 there. What happens when people are told about 00:29:51.180 --> 00:29:53.539 the conversion of these Gentiles? It produces 00:29:53.539 --> 00:29:57.539 what? Great joy. This is a good thing. We're 00:29:57.539 --> 00:30:01.019 seeing good things happen. But as is so often 00:30:01.019 --> 00:30:03.460 the case, when people who preach a different 00:30:03.460 --> 00:30:07.140 gospel, when people... who are false teachers, 00:30:07.500 --> 00:30:13.480 come in, they sap us of our joy. They taint the 00:30:13.480 --> 00:30:17.079 work of God. Verse four, when they arrived to 00:30:17.079 --> 00:30:19.279 Jerusalem, they were received by the church and 00:30:19.279 --> 00:30:21.059 the apostles and the elders, and they reported 00:30:21.059 --> 00:30:25.619 all that God had done with them. But some of 00:30:25.619 --> 00:30:29.230 the sect of the Pharisees who had believed stood 00:30:29.230 --> 00:30:32.349 up saying, it is necessary to circumcise them 00:30:32.349 --> 00:30:36.750 and to direct them to observe the law of Moses. 00:30:37.450 --> 00:30:40.009 The apostles and the elders came together to 00:30:40.009 --> 00:30:42.609 look into this matter. After there had been much 00:30:42.609 --> 00:30:45.569 debate, Peter stood up and said to them, brethren, 00:30:45.769 --> 00:30:48.950 you know that in the early days, God made a choice 00:30:48.950 --> 00:30:52.730 among you that by my mouth, the Gentiles would 00:30:52.730 --> 00:30:55.829 hear the word of the gospel and believe. And 00:30:55.829 --> 00:30:59.660 God who knows the heart, God, who knows the heart, 00:30:59.880 --> 00:31:03.559 testified to them, giving them the Holy Spirit, 00:31:03.660 --> 00:31:11.000 just as he also did to us. Them, the Gentiles, 00:31:11.039 --> 00:31:16.200 us, Peter is a Jew, but God, knowing their hearts, 00:31:16.380 --> 00:31:22.759 gave them the Spirit in the same way. And he 00:31:22.759 --> 00:31:27.730 made no distinction between us and them. Cleansing 00:31:27.730 --> 00:31:31.309 their hearts by, what's the next word? Anybody? 00:31:31.730 --> 00:31:36.029 What's the next word? Read it. Faith. Cleansing 00:31:36.029 --> 00:31:40.029 their hearts by faith. He cleansed their hearts. 00:31:40.730 --> 00:31:44.190 Spiritually, he cleansed them. They did not need 00:31:44.190 --> 00:31:48.970 to remove some portion of their flesh in order 00:31:48.970 --> 00:31:52.950 to be cleansed. What had to happen? They had 00:31:52.950 --> 00:31:58.559 to come to Christ in faith. And that faith is 00:31:58.559 --> 00:32:04.420 what cleansed their hearts. Now, therefore, why 00:32:04.420 --> 00:32:09.400 do you put God to the test by placing upon the 00:32:09.400 --> 00:32:12.819 neck of the disciples a yoke? And listen to this 00:32:12.819 --> 00:32:17.359 next part. A yoke which neither our fathers nor 00:32:17.359 --> 00:32:21.940 we have been able to bear. What had the law done 00:32:21.940 --> 00:32:24.539 for the Jews? Well, the law certainly served 00:32:24.539 --> 00:32:27.019 as a tutor. The law helped to separate them and 00:32:27.019 --> 00:32:29.079 set them apart from the rest of the world. But 00:32:29.079 --> 00:32:32.960 the law did not save the Jews. And we know this 00:32:32.960 --> 00:32:35.039 because we pay attention when Kyle preaches from 00:32:35.039 --> 00:32:37.299 the book of Hebrews. And we know that we have 00:32:37.299 --> 00:32:41.539 a spiritual father in Abraham. And how was Abraham 00:32:41.539 --> 00:32:44.720 saved? What's the point then? Over and over and 00:32:44.720 --> 00:32:50.079 over. That Abraham believed God and God counted 00:32:50.079 --> 00:32:55.349 it as righteousness to him. Abraham was saved 00:32:55.349 --> 00:33:01.009 by faith. Abraham was not saved by the covenant 00:33:01.009 --> 00:33:04.750 of circumcision. Abraham was not saved by law 00:33:04.750 --> 00:33:09.009 keeping. Abraham was saved. Abraham became our 00:33:09.009 --> 00:33:13.390 father, our spiritual father, because he believed 00:33:13.390 --> 00:33:21.049 God. No amount of law keeping, no amount of good 00:33:21.049 --> 00:33:25.589 doing would save Abraham or any of his spiritual 00:33:25.589 --> 00:33:32.089 progeny. Only faith. And that is how our hearts 00:33:32.089 --> 00:33:37.970 are cleansed. But we believe that we are saved 00:33:37.970 --> 00:33:42.369 through the grace of the Lord Jesus in the same 00:33:42.369 --> 00:33:49.529 way as they, the Gentiles, also are. All the 00:33:49.529 --> 00:33:52.420 people kept silent. Well, but they did. Because 00:33:52.420 --> 00:33:54.799 I think Peter was probably on a roll at this 00:33:54.799 --> 00:33:59.160 point. All the people kept silent. And then they 00:33:59.160 --> 00:34:01.980 were listening to Paul and Barnabas as they were 00:34:01.980 --> 00:34:04.220 relating what signs and wonders God had done 00:34:04.220 --> 00:34:08.039 through them among the Gentiles. If you haven't 00:34:08.039 --> 00:34:10.679 read through the book of Galatians recently, 00:34:10.699 --> 00:34:12.920 I would encourage you to do that this next week. 00:34:12.960 --> 00:34:15.300 It won't take you long. It's not a terribly long 00:34:15.300 --> 00:34:17.880 book of the Bible. And you will see much more 00:34:17.880 --> 00:34:21.159 of this clearly identified. there, especially 00:34:21.159 --> 00:34:26.760 in chapter five. Paul points to their background. 00:34:27.099 --> 00:34:31.380 These religious insiders, clearly these men of 00:34:31.380 --> 00:34:34.639 the circumcision were perverting the gospel. 00:34:34.900 --> 00:34:41.000 They were turning it into grace plus. Grace and 00:34:41.000 --> 00:34:45.440 a little more. Grace and works. That's what saves. 00:34:45.960 --> 00:34:49.840 Law keeping, grace, for sure, grace, grace. For 00:34:49.840 --> 00:34:56.179 sure. And this. That somehow that's what saves. 00:34:57.940 --> 00:35:04.159 What a bummer. Indeed, some of the most dangerous 00:35:04.159 --> 00:35:07.920 doctrinal threats come from within the church, 00:35:08.119 --> 00:35:11.639 from people who appear to be part of the community 00:35:11.639 --> 00:35:15.059 of faith, but who in fact are false teachers. 00:35:15.579 --> 00:35:17.960 Do you remember during the Sermon on the Mount 00:35:17.960 --> 00:35:23.730 when Jesus... says, unless you are, your righteousness 00:35:23.730 --> 00:35:26.989 exceeds these, you will not inherit the kingdom 00:35:26.989 --> 00:35:29.789 of heaven. Do you remember who Jesus is talking 00:35:29.789 --> 00:35:32.650 about? He's talking about the Pharisees and the 00:35:32.650 --> 00:35:35.190 Sadducees, the scribes. He's talking about the 00:35:35.190 --> 00:35:38.829 religious leaders of the time, the very people 00:35:38.829 --> 00:35:41.949 that Jesus also described as whitewashed tombs. 00:35:42.210 --> 00:35:45.690 And what's inside of a whitewashed tomb? Dead 00:35:45.690 --> 00:35:51.159 men's bones, right? It's so common and it's so 00:35:51.159 --> 00:35:55.099 easy for people who appear religious to pervert 00:35:55.099 --> 00:35:58.400 and distort what the gospel is. And we look at 00:35:58.400 --> 00:36:00.719 them and we see them, those people who are listening 00:36:00.719 --> 00:36:04.019 to Jesus preach, if he said to me, hey, look 00:36:04.019 --> 00:36:07.300 at this guy right here, you have to be more righteous 00:36:07.300 --> 00:36:10.019 than him. And I'm looking at the guy and I know 00:36:10.019 --> 00:36:12.219 that he knows scripture and I know that he can 00:36:12.219 --> 00:36:15.179 pray like nobody else. I know he can do all these 00:36:15.179 --> 00:36:19.110 great things. And I might be tempted to think, 00:36:19.230 --> 00:36:21.650 well, then there's no chance of me being saved. 00:36:22.670 --> 00:36:26.329 But guys, that's not how we're saved. If it were 00:36:26.329 --> 00:36:29.289 how we are saved, none of us would make it, right? 00:36:30.789 --> 00:36:33.210 For by grace have you been saved through faith, 00:36:33.309 --> 00:36:36.150 that not of yourselves. It's the gift of God, 00:36:36.309 --> 00:36:39.650 not as a result of works. And why? Why isn't 00:36:39.650 --> 00:36:42.090 it about works? What does Paul say in Ephesians 00:36:42.090 --> 00:36:47.070 chapter two? So that no one may boast. Hey, guess 00:36:47.070 --> 00:36:51.550 what? There's no works in the equation. There's 00:36:51.550 --> 00:36:54.769 no human works in the equation because if there 00:36:54.769 --> 00:36:57.949 were, you would be robbing God of his glory. 00:36:58.289 --> 00:37:01.130 You could take some of the credit and wouldn't 00:37:01.130 --> 00:37:04.550 you like that? I mean, admit it, admit it. Deep 00:37:04.550 --> 00:37:06.989 down, you'd like a little bit of the credit. 00:37:07.110 --> 00:37:10.050 Hey, God, you know, just saying. I was smart 00:37:10.050 --> 00:37:14.130 enough to believe you, right? But that's not 00:37:14.130 --> 00:37:18.909 what this is about. So Paul points to their background 00:37:18.909 --> 00:37:22.309 as a means to identify these false teachers. 00:37:22.389 --> 00:37:25.489 Then he identifies them by their impact. And 00:37:25.489 --> 00:37:29.230 boy, this is a good one. In verse 11, it says, 00:37:29.369 --> 00:37:33.590 they are upsetting whole families. Quite an impact. 00:37:33.789 --> 00:37:35.369 Wow, wouldn't you want that to be your legacy? 00:37:35.889 --> 00:37:40.349 Yeah, hey, I did a great job. I like made three 00:37:40.349 --> 00:37:43.250 different churches split, saw several families 00:37:43.250 --> 00:37:48.480 go under. Glad I could do my part. They upset 00:37:48.480 --> 00:37:51.280 whole families. Their teaching spreads relationally. 00:37:51.619 --> 00:37:55.699 It destabilizes homes by captivating vulnerable 00:37:55.699 --> 00:38:00.880 people. In 2 Timothy 3, Paul warns Timothy in 00:38:00.880 --> 00:38:03.300 one of the other pastorals. He says, for among 00:38:03.300 --> 00:38:07.079 them are those who enter households and captivate 00:38:07.079 --> 00:38:10.579 weak women, weighed down with sins, led on by 00:38:10.579 --> 00:38:14.519 various impulses. He goes on to identify them 00:38:14.519 --> 00:38:18.579 further. By their motivation, also in verse 11, 00:38:18.860 --> 00:38:22.059 they teach things they should not teach for the 00:38:22.059 --> 00:38:26.659 sake of sordid gain. This is probably one of 00:38:26.659 --> 00:38:28.340 the most obvious hallmarks of false teachers, 00:38:28.440 --> 00:38:32.699 isn't it? Sordid gain, filthy lucre. I think 00:38:32.699 --> 00:38:34.739 that's King James. Always liked that one for 00:38:34.739 --> 00:38:39.920 some reason. Sordid gain. They teach things they 00:38:39.920 --> 00:38:42.139 should not teach for the sake of sordid gain. 00:38:42.809 --> 00:38:45.030 Jesus said, and it was right after the whole 00:38:45.030 --> 00:38:47.690 widow with two mites episode. So they're walking 00:38:47.690 --> 00:38:49.969 out of the temple. He says, beware the Pharisees 00:38:49.969 --> 00:38:53.170 and the scribes and the Pharisees who devour, 00:38:53.329 --> 00:38:59.730 anybody remember? Widows' houses. Yeah, the hallmark 00:38:59.730 --> 00:39:03.230 of a false teacher is that they will gladly take 00:39:03.230 --> 00:39:06.630 your money. They'll tell you things like, I'm 00:39:06.630 --> 00:39:09.590 just gonna pick an example out of thin air. They 00:39:09.590 --> 00:39:13.420 might say, God's telling me today. That you're 00:39:13.420 --> 00:39:15.460 going to take out that credit card. And I know 00:39:15.460 --> 00:39:18.079 you're broke. And you don't have enough money 00:39:18.079 --> 00:39:21.559 to make your next mortgage payment. But God has 00:39:21.559 --> 00:39:25.739 told me that you can make a seed offering today. 00:39:26.800 --> 00:39:29.219 Oh, all of their silly terms and expressions. 00:39:29.539 --> 00:39:33.059 Make your seed offering today. A thousand dollars 00:39:33.059 --> 00:39:36.599 on that credit card. And God will bless it tenfold. 00:39:37.380 --> 00:39:42.159 Why? So that false teacher can have another airplane. 00:39:43.000 --> 00:39:47.699 So they can add porcelain veneer to something. 00:39:48.260 --> 00:39:50.900 I don't know what they do with it. They're weird. 00:39:51.420 --> 00:39:53.860 Make their hair teased to stand a little higher. 00:39:55.699 --> 00:39:58.340 Extra gallon of makeup. I don't know for sure. 00:39:58.639 --> 00:40:07.780 But certainly, they are willing. To take advantage 00:40:07.780 --> 00:40:11.940 of vulnerable people for the sake of making money. 00:40:13.119 --> 00:40:16.539 You know, every profession, every profession 00:40:16.539 --> 00:40:24.800 has any business, has a profit model. The whole 00:40:24.800 --> 00:40:27.719 idea is to make money, right? And one of the 00:40:27.719 --> 00:40:30.019 greatest things about that is that when you're 00:40:30.019 --> 00:40:33.679 in business with someone, you know that they 00:40:33.679 --> 00:40:37.579 are driven to make a profit. And they have to 00:40:37.579 --> 00:40:39.619 be profitable because if they're not, they will 00:40:39.619 --> 00:40:42.639 cease to be in business. It's a beautiful thing 00:40:42.639 --> 00:40:46.340 about a business relationship. And it doesn't 00:40:46.340 --> 00:40:49.380 matter what type of business it is or whether 00:40:49.380 --> 00:40:52.679 you work for an employer, you're there to make 00:40:52.679 --> 00:40:54.900 money. And everybody knows that up front. But 00:40:54.900 --> 00:40:58.860 when someone disguises their desire to make money 00:40:58.860 --> 00:41:03.300 with ministry, they are automatically disqualified. 00:41:04.559 --> 00:41:09.920 If anyone is going about the ministry for the 00:41:09.920 --> 00:41:15.159 purpose of making a profit, they are to be disqualified. 00:41:15.179 --> 00:41:17.059 Remember Simon the magician? Do you remember 00:41:17.059 --> 00:41:19.980 how sternly Peter rebuked Simon the magician 00:41:19.980 --> 00:41:23.300 after he saw Peter and John laying hands on people? 00:41:23.679 --> 00:41:27.219 And he said, may your silver perish with you. 00:41:28.199 --> 00:41:31.579 You think you can buy God's power? You think 00:41:31.579 --> 00:41:35.170 you can buy the work of the Holy Spirit? Simon 00:41:35.170 --> 00:41:39.510 the magician was a perfect example of that. A 00:41:39.510 --> 00:41:42.530 faithful shepherd tends to and cares for the 00:41:42.530 --> 00:41:45.869 sheep. The false teacher merely sees the sheep 00:41:45.869 --> 00:41:48.969 as a resource for selfish consumption. John 10 00:41:48.969 --> 00:41:52.530 is so applicable here. I think another King James 00:41:52.530 --> 00:41:56.190 word would be the hireling there in the parable 00:41:56.190 --> 00:41:59.730 of the good shepherd. The good shepherd and his 00:41:59.730 --> 00:42:03.070 under shepherds who look to him. These men who 00:42:03.070 --> 00:42:05.289 are biblically qualified elders and overseers, 00:42:05.389 --> 00:42:08.550 rather than being driven by profit, rather than 00:42:08.550 --> 00:42:12.170 being motivated by money, they lay down their 00:42:12.170 --> 00:42:14.929 lives for the sheep. If you have an elder or 00:42:14.929 --> 00:42:19.829 an overseer in your church and they're not laying 00:42:19.829 --> 00:42:21.829 down their life for the sheep, rather they are 00:42:21.829 --> 00:42:25.969 trying to make money off of you, they need to 00:42:25.969 --> 00:42:31.530 go. Finally, to identify false teachers, Paul 00:42:31.530 --> 00:42:33.809 mentions their cultural context, and that happens 00:42:33.809 --> 00:42:36.210 in verse 12. We've covered this multiple times, 00:42:36.289 --> 00:42:39.489 so we won't spend much time on it here. He quotes 00:42:39.489 --> 00:42:41.289 Epimenides, which we've mentioned previously, 00:42:41.630 --> 00:42:44.329 to show that they are liars, evil beasts, and 00:42:44.329 --> 00:42:47.909 lazy gluttons. He is painting with a broad brush. 00:42:48.010 --> 00:42:52.030 He's using a hyperbolic statement, or he's overstating 00:42:52.030 --> 00:42:54.349 the fact. But what he's really pointing to is 00:42:54.349 --> 00:42:58.030 the fact that the culture at large is this way. 00:42:58.550 --> 00:43:02.050 They're deceitful. They're evil beasts. They're 00:43:02.050 --> 00:43:04.849 lazy. They're gluttonous. Rather than resisting 00:43:04.849 --> 00:43:07.130 the worst parts of the vile culture around them, 00:43:07.230 --> 00:43:10.030 they are products of it. Think of your favorite 00:43:10.030 --> 00:43:14.789 TV preacher and his jet that he just has to have, 00:43:14.989 --> 00:43:19.510 right? Because he can't dare fly commercial. 00:43:20.369 --> 00:43:22.949 I mean, God forbid. Now, I don't fly commercial 00:43:22.949 --> 00:43:26.710 either. Not since that last trip. But that's 00:43:26.710 --> 00:43:28.940 not because... I don't like the people on the 00:43:28.940 --> 00:43:31.780 planes because I don't want to go anywhere anymore, 00:43:32.019 --> 00:43:36.219 right? You got no worries about me getting on 00:43:36.219 --> 00:43:38.639 a Learjet, guys. That thing's way smaller. You 00:43:38.639 --> 00:43:44.679 feel every bump. I ain't doing that. Rather than 00:43:44.679 --> 00:43:46.980 being transformed by the renewing of their minds, 00:43:47.019 --> 00:43:50.559 false teachers are conformed to the pattern of 00:43:50.559 --> 00:43:53.539 this world, aren't they? Think about them for 00:43:53.539 --> 00:43:56.300 a moment. What do they desire? What do they crave? 00:43:56.909 --> 00:43:59.489 And that is how you can identify them. Merely 00:43:59.489 --> 00:44:01.789 identifying false teachers, though, is not enough 00:44:01.789 --> 00:44:06.650 because passive leadership in the church is permission 00:44:06.650 --> 00:44:11.889 for heresy to persist. Passive leadership in 00:44:11.889 --> 00:44:15.030 the church is permission for heresy to persist. 00:44:15.130 --> 00:44:18.710 So identifying false teachers must be accompanied 00:44:18.710 --> 00:44:22.289 by confronting false teachers. Your second heading, 00:44:22.329 --> 00:44:25.309 verses 13 and 14. I'll pick up the pace now because 00:44:25.309 --> 00:44:28.000 I know I'm going long. This testimony is true 00:44:28.000 --> 00:44:30.260 for this reason, reprove them severely so that 00:44:30.260 --> 00:44:33.159 they may be sound in the faith, not paying attention 00:44:33.159 --> 00:44:36.199 to Jewish myths and commandments of men who turn 00:44:36.199 --> 00:44:40.420 away from the truth. It's important to note this 00:44:40.420 --> 00:44:44.199 type of confrontation is not about winning. Now 00:44:44.199 --> 00:44:47.619 this is tough for me, right? Like some people 00:44:47.619 --> 00:44:50.920 have that shark mentality. Once they smell blood 00:44:50.920 --> 00:44:54.559 in the water, they ramp up their attack. Anybody 00:44:54.559 --> 00:44:57.239 else identify with that or is that just me? Yeah, 00:44:57.300 --> 00:44:59.320 you think, okay, okay, I got them against the 00:44:59.320 --> 00:45:01.760 ropes. I'm going in for the kill. This is a tough 00:45:01.760 --> 00:45:04.780 thing because you want to get them, right? You 00:45:04.780 --> 00:45:09.559 want to set them right. But this type of confrontation 00:45:09.559 --> 00:45:13.639 is not about winning. It's not about going for 00:45:13.639 --> 00:45:17.300 the throat. It's about restoring spiritual health. 00:45:18.559 --> 00:45:22.760 Think of the process of Matthew 18. What is the 00:45:22.760 --> 00:45:25.230 ultimate goal? It's a win back your brother, 00:45:25.329 --> 00:45:30.869 right? To confront false teachers and restore 00:45:30.869 --> 00:45:32.750 spiritual health, we must follow the mandate 00:45:32.750 --> 00:45:36.150 Paul gives Titus in verse 13. He says, for this 00:45:36.150 --> 00:45:40.110 reason, reprove them severely. This type of confrontation 00:45:40.110 --> 00:45:44.530 requires direct, courageous, and unmistakable 00:45:44.530 --> 00:45:47.530 correction. Just as Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 4 00:45:47.530 --> 00:45:51.179 .2, preach the word. Be ready in season and out 00:45:51.179 --> 00:45:54.739 of season. Reprove, rebuke, exhort with great 00:45:54.739 --> 00:45:59.579 patience and instruction. Make no mistake, silence 00:45:59.579 --> 00:46:04.519 in the face of falsehood is a failure of leadership. 00:46:06.260 --> 00:46:10.320 Silence in the face of falsehood is a failure 00:46:10.320 --> 00:46:14.940 of leadership. Furthermore, the purpose of this 00:46:14.940 --> 00:46:19.460 stern action, the reason, for this severe reproof 00:46:19.460 --> 00:46:23.059 is clarified by the motivation found at the end 00:46:23.059 --> 00:46:27.679 of verse 13, because the goal is, quote, that 00:46:27.679 --> 00:46:33.960 they may be sound in the faith. Even false teachers? 00:46:37.199 --> 00:46:40.099 We want them to be sound in the faith? Yeah, 00:46:40.199 --> 00:46:45.280 most definitely. You know, in our world, we're 00:46:45.280 --> 00:46:48.679 so divided. The political world is such an easy 00:46:48.679 --> 00:46:52.559 example. We're so divided, right? We're all in 00:46:52.559 --> 00:46:55.659 our own camps. Tribalistic is the term they like 00:46:55.659 --> 00:46:58.380 to use, I think. Constantly chucking spears at 00:46:58.380 --> 00:47:00.280 each other, I guess. I don't know. It seems primitive. 00:47:03.320 --> 00:47:05.880 And man, you know, there are some people in politics 00:47:05.880 --> 00:47:09.679 that I just think, they're irredeemable, man. 00:47:10.340 --> 00:47:14.659 They are irredeemable. And you might be tempted 00:47:14.659 --> 00:47:17.329 to... To feel that way, and I would argue that's 00:47:17.329 --> 00:47:20.909 wrong, I would say the same is true of false 00:47:20.909 --> 00:47:24.869 teachers. Some people who have spent the better 00:47:24.869 --> 00:47:28.630 part of their lives, who are now long in the 00:47:28.630 --> 00:47:33.190 tooth, men, women, perhaps you've seen them on 00:47:33.190 --> 00:47:39.650 TV since the 1970s, who have been preaching falsehoods 00:47:39.650 --> 00:47:44.260 that entire time. But you know what? They're 00:47:44.260 --> 00:47:47.920 not beyond the saving grace of Jesus Christ. 00:47:52.519 --> 00:47:57.360 This is about restoring spiritual health. So 00:47:57.360 --> 00:48:00.360 while we're reproving them severely, in the same 00:48:00.360 --> 00:48:04.500 breath, we're motivated to see them become sound 00:48:04.500 --> 00:48:08.719 in the faith. The rebuke is surgical. It's intended 00:48:08.719 --> 00:48:12.940 to restore spiritual health. It is not vindictive 00:48:12.940 --> 00:48:17.340 and it is not punitive. It may be severe. It 00:48:17.340 --> 00:48:22.380 may even be harsh, but it is not vindictive. 00:48:22.380 --> 00:48:27.960 It is not punitive. We correct errors so believers 00:48:27.960 --> 00:48:31.380 are no longer deceived. Think of the... effect 00:48:31.380 --> 00:48:34.159 that they have on the people in the church. As 00:48:34.159 --> 00:48:36.320 a result, we are no longer to be children tossed 00:48:36.320 --> 00:48:38.880 here and there by waves and carried about by 00:48:38.880 --> 00:48:41.500 every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, 00:48:41.579 --> 00:48:44.599 by craftiness and deceitful scheming. Ephesians 00:48:44.599 --> 00:48:48.719 chapter 4 and verse 14. Finally, to maintain 00:48:48.719 --> 00:48:50.900 the spiritual health that confrontation is meant 00:48:50.900 --> 00:48:55.519 to restore, we must reject unhealthy human tradition. 00:48:56.250 --> 00:48:59.530 Verse 14 makes this very clear. Restoration is 00:48:59.530 --> 00:49:02.869 only permanent if the believer stops consuming 00:49:02.869 --> 00:49:06.510 what made them sick in the first place. I know 00:49:06.510 --> 00:49:09.989 a man who's been diagnosed with lung cancer. 00:49:10.070 --> 00:49:12.110 He's a guy I really, really like. He is not a 00:49:12.110 --> 00:49:14.829 believer. I work with him on Monday nights at 00:49:14.829 --> 00:49:18.869 the auto auction, and I really, really like him 00:49:18.869 --> 00:49:23.929 a lot. He has lung cancer, and the doctors have 00:49:23.929 --> 00:49:26.780 put him on medicine. told him what his diet should 00:49:26.780 --> 00:49:30.300 be, but he still smokes like a chimney, right? 00:49:31.400 --> 00:49:34.440 So even if they were to correct the cancer that 00:49:34.440 --> 00:49:38.199 he has, is he not still consuming the same thing 00:49:38.199 --> 00:49:42.739 that made him sick? If we're going to restore 00:49:42.739 --> 00:49:45.679 people to spiritual health, we have to help them 00:49:45.679 --> 00:49:48.559 to stop consuming the things that made them sick 00:49:48.559 --> 00:49:51.360 in the first place. In this case, it's those 00:49:51.360 --> 00:49:54.219 Jewish myths. and commandments of men. It's those 00:49:54.219 --> 00:50:00.800 legalistic teachings, those empty words, those 00:50:00.800 --> 00:50:04.880 dangerous religious add -ons that invalidate 00:50:04.880 --> 00:50:07.880 our worship. Jesus warned the Pharisees in Matthew 00:50:07.880 --> 00:50:11.079 15 that adding human precepts to God's word doesn't 00:50:11.079 --> 00:50:14.099 make one more holy, it makes their worship vain, 00:50:14.440 --> 00:50:18.920 hollow, and devoid of life. True spiritual health 00:50:18.920 --> 00:50:22.300 isn't maintained by external man -made rituals, 00:50:22.519 --> 00:50:25.400 but by a heart that remains anchored to the objective 00:50:25.400 --> 00:50:29.199 truth of God's word. By rejecting these commandments 00:50:29.199 --> 00:50:32.420 of men, we ensure that our worship remains sincere 00:50:32.420 --> 00:50:37.000 and our faith remains sound. We'll be unpolluted 00:50:37.000 --> 00:50:39.579 by the deceitful scheming that's mentioned back 00:50:39.579 --> 00:50:43.510 in Ephesians 4, which we cited earlier. Identifying 00:50:43.510 --> 00:50:45.670 and confronting are necessary steps that must 00:50:45.670 --> 00:50:47.889 be taken to protect, restore, and maintain spiritual 00:50:47.889 --> 00:50:50.469 health in the church when false teachers are 00:50:50.469 --> 00:50:53.449 at work. But in this passage, the final step 00:50:53.449 --> 00:50:56.750 given by Paul to Titus to order the church and 00:50:56.750 --> 00:51:01.750 protect it is to expose false teachers. Exposing 00:51:01.750 --> 00:51:05.489 false teachers, verses 15 and 16. To the pure, 00:51:05.590 --> 00:51:07.630 all things are pure, but to those who are defiled 00:51:07.630 --> 00:51:09.849 and unbelieving, nothing is pure, but both their 00:51:09.849 --> 00:51:12.190 mind and their conscience are defiled. They profess 00:51:12.190 --> 00:51:14.670 to know God, but by their deeds, they deny him, 00:51:14.769 --> 00:51:17.289 being detestable and disobedient and worthless 00:51:17.289 --> 00:51:22.030 for any good deed. Quite frankly, a man's theology 00:51:22.030 --> 00:51:25.650 will be proven by his life. And the focus of 00:51:25.650 --> 00:51:28.369 these final verses isn't just on the error being 00:51:28.369 --> 00:51:31.329 taught, but on the hearts of the teachers. They 00:51:31.329 --> 00:51:34.849 are exposed because of their false teaching. 00:51:35.070 --> 00:51:38.110 In verse 15, Paul makes the distorted perspective 00:51:38.110 --> 00:51:43.030 of the false teachers patently clear. Legalists 00:51:43.030 --> 00:51:46.750 obsess over external rituals. That's why circumcision 00:51:46.750 --> 00:51:49.110 comes up over and over and over again, right? 00:51:49.409 --> 00:51:52.510 It's something that can be done physically to 00:51:52.510 --> 00:51:55.610 a person in order to mark them a certain way. 00:51:56.469 --> 00:51:59.650 So that's why it's so obvious. Honestly, it's 00:51:59.650 --> 00:52:02.269 helpful. It's helpful to see what we're talking 00:52:02.269 --> 00:52:05.130 about here. They're adding the law which Christ 00:52:05.130 --> 00:52:09.090 has already fulfilled as a means of salvation. 00:52:09.869 --> 00:52:13.650 Again, it's grace plus. They obsess over those 00:52:13.650 --> 00:52:17.510 external rituals because their internal conscience 00:52:17.510 --> 00:52:20.949 is defiled. Because their minds are corrupted, 00:52:21.010 --> 00:52:25.650 they see impurity everywhere except inside themselves. 00:52:26.250 --> 00:52:29.829 In verse 16, there's a form of practical atheism 00:52:29.829 --> 00:52:33.250 that's described. They have verbal orthodoxy. 00:52:33.250 --> 00:52:37.030 They may say a lot of the right things, but functionally, 00:52:37.030 --> 00:52:40.500 they're heretics. Just as Jesus warned in Matthew 00:52:40.500 --> 00:52:44.460 chapter 7, you will know them by their fruits. 00:52:46.559 --> 00:52:49.940 At the end of verse 16, Paul renders the final 00:52:49.940 --> 00:52:54.460 verdict of these false teachers whom he's commanded 00:52:54.460 --> 00:52:58.840 us to identify and confront and expose. And here 00:52:58.840 --> 00:53:03.480 he says that they are detestable. They're spiritually 00:53:03.480 --> 00:53:08.309 foul. They're disobedient, morally broken. and 00:53:08.309 --> 00:53:12.110 they are worthless for any good deed. They're 00:53:12.110 --> 00:53:13.829 practically useless for the kingdom. Now, they 00:53:13.829 --> 00:53:16.269 might do what we would describe as objectively 00:53:16.269 --> 00:53:19.329 good things, but because they do them with the 00:53:19.329 --> 00:53:22.630 wrong intent, they have no meaningful purpose 00:53:22.630 --> 00:53:26.309 in the kingdom. Truly, this entire passage brings 00:53:26.309 --> 00:53:28.389 us back to the original charge that we noted 00:53:28.389 --> 00:53:31.670 in verse 9. The church is ordered rightly only 00:53:31.670 --> 00:53:34.949 when elders hold fast the faithful word, exhort 00:53:34.949 --> 00:53:38.360 in sound doctrine, and refute. those who contradict. 00:53:39.679 --> 00:53:47.119 Those things are not to be taken lightly. Those 00:53:47.119 --> 00:53:52.179 tasks are not to be undertaken lightly. If a 00:53:52.179 --> 00:53:54.360 man is qualified as an elder, remember I said 00:53:54.360 --> 00:53:57.940 that this is really one large unit. It must also 00:53:57.940 --> 00:54:02.260 be about the business of calling out false teachers. 00:54:04.400 --> 00:54:06.619 False teachers must be identified, confronted, 00:54:06.820 --> 00:54:08.900 and exposed so that the church remains a place 00:54:08.900 --> 00:54:12.500 where sound doctrine leads to godly living. The 00:54:12.500 --> 00:54:14.400 church of Jesus Christ must not only be built 00:54:14.400 --> 00:54:17.880 up, it must be protected, just as Paul told the 00:54:17.880 --> 00:54:20.260 Ephesian elders to be on guard for yourselves 00:54:20.260 --> 00:54:25.739 and for all the flock. Hold fast the truth, refute 00:54:25.739 --> 00:54:28.500 what is false, and guard the church faithfully 00:54:28.500 --> 00:54:32.679 so that its conduct always matches its confession.