Once saved through faith in the Person and finished work of Christ, God’s people get brought into the most glorious organism in the universe; the church. Though often messy and seemingly mundane, the NT kind of local church is God’s best, no-alternative plan for humanity this side of heaven. In and through such churches, God brings his perfect care through his perfect sovereignty, saving and sanctifying even Cretans like us.

Imagine the scene. A guy gets dropped off on a 140 by 30 mile island. With beautiful weather, rich agriculture, calm beaches, and mountainous landscape, it was, externally, a great place. However, as he spends time there, reality sets in. The island is inhabited by stiff-necked, unsaved religious people and liars, evil beasts, and lazy gluttons. There is no worse combination. The place is so debauched that even Greeks cringed at the thought of it. Later, he receives a letter which says, “I want a good church going in every town on the island.” And, at that time, it’s likely that there were about 100 towns.

This was the situation in which Titus found himself near A.D. 60 on the island of Crete, and for which Paul wrote the New Testament letter.

Though Crete prided itself on once having advanced societies such as the Minoans, history records it was so bad in Titus’ day, that to be called a “Cretan” was to be called something like a liar or drunk. Even so, and, perhaps, especially so, Paul and Titus did not see it as off-limits for evangelism and planting strong churches. The book of Titus was written, in part, to make this happen in Crete, and, places like Crete thereafter.

For this reason, I’ve found the book of Titus to be a helpful and strengthening study as a younger church plant. I suppose, also, it would be an equally helpful study for anyone in the throes of a church revitalization. In some sense, Titus is a God-breathed church planter’s and revitalizer’s manual. Why? Consider Titus’ task: among other things, he was to plant strong churches in the sense of gathering existing, unassimilated believers, into NT kind of churches in the midst of a godless, gluttonous, religious culture.

As I had the opportunity to stroll around the island of Crete a few springs ago, I was stunned and sobered at the daunting task facing Titus: “For this reason I left you in Crete, that you would set in order what remains and appoint elders in every city as I directed you” (Titus 1:5). Sadly, today on Crete, there seems to be little of the book of Titus happening. In downtown Heraklion, there sits one of the larger “churches” (which was closed on Sunday!). Outside was a tiny plaque which gloried in the claim to possess the skull of Titus. And, while chatting with a guy at the Greek yogurt shop, instead of telling me about the Apostle Paul or Titus, he told me about Zeus.

In Titus’ day, things were likely worse. And to equip him for setting in order what remained, Paul handed him the short, 46-verse letter.

This is not an attempt to say all that there is to say regarding church ministry from Titus. Rather, these are a few observations simply from Titus 1:5 pertaining to church planting, revitalizing, and local church ministry in general.

1. Local church life and ministry must be backed by God’s authority.

Paul left Titus in Crete to set in order what remains and appoint elders in every city. But, if Titus was to faithfully carry out the commands in the letter, he’d need to have more than his own authority. That’s why the Apostle Paul wrote. As an apostolic delegate, Titus had the authority of Christ behind setting things in ecclesiological order. Insofar as he stuck to Paul’s instructions, everything he did was under God’s authority. We can do the same today as we stick to the book of Titus.

2. Church ministry and doings are not arbitrarily determined.

God’s kind of order was the best way to bring God’s care to God’s people, hence the command, “…set in order what remains…” The phrase, “set in order” is translated from a word which carried the idea of standing straight or putting something on its feet; to make straight something which has shifted from its correct position (TDNT, 5:450).

God wants the local church—the members, doctrine, leadership, disciple-making—to be done a certain way, hence books like Titus. Generally speaking, Paul is saying to Titus, “We started something according to God’s word and by his power. We need to finish it according to his word and by his power. Don’t worry too much about being creative, just be faithful to do what I wrote.”

3. Regeneration merely begins the work of local church ministry.

Likely Paul and Titus had seen a number of Cretans come to faith in Christ. Contrary to some approaches to missions these days, Paul never says to Titus, “Great, we have a bunch of people who made a profession of faith in Christ, our work is done here!” Conversion is not the end of the matter, but the beginning. When a baby is born, the parents do not say, “No more work to be done here!” The work of the ministry is no more finished with people getting saved than parenting is with a baby being born.

Since God had miraculously granted spiritual life to the former evil beasts and lazy gluttons, the work had begun. Things needed setting in order. These spiritual newborns now needed to be brought in for care into a NT kind of local church.

Sidenote: if Cretans could come to faith in Christ, then the difficult people in our towns can too.

Read More