So Titus is a young pastor who Paul left in Crete to pastor the church that they planted there. Now you need to understand that Crete was a difficult place to pastor a church. We might think that a place like Las Vegas would be a difficult place to pastor, well Crete was a place like that. In fact, one of the Cretan poets, probably Epimenides, said this about his fellow Cretans: “Cretans are always liars, cruel animals, lazy gluttons.” And Paul says, “This testimony is true.”
The Cretans, they always lie, they are like animals who only indulge their animal instincts, they are lazy, and they are gluttons. And Paul says, “yeah, that’s probably true.” So what do we do, Titus? Do we just abandon them, leave them to wallow in their gluttony and laziness?
No, in fact, we plant a church there, an outpost of hope and the gospel, to take people who are liars, who are lazy, who are addicted to all kinds of sinful stuff, and to introduce them to the person who can change everything. There’s hope for you too, by the way, if you are always a liar, a dog, lazy, a glutton.
In the midst of this kind of culture, how do we create a counter-culture?
“In the same way, encourage the young men to live wisely. And you yourself must be an example to them by doing good works of every kind.” (2.6-7)
Paul is saying, Titus, just because the Cretans are known as being lazy, it doesn’t mean there’s no hope for them. In fact, there is all of this potential energy waiting to be unleashed! You have the opportunity to set an example and to lead them to use their bodies, to use their untapped strength – to do good, to devote themselves to good works.
Good work, the right use of strength, using your energy to serve, is the way you love God with all of your strength.
Lord, help me to love you with all my strength today, and to set an example for others to do the same. Amen.
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