Titus 3:9-11 Avoid the Divisive

Church of Christ Dapto The Letter to Titus Lesson 10—Avoid the divisive Titus 3:9-11 But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless. (10) Warn a divisive person once, and then warn him a second time. After that, have nothing to do with him. (11) You may be sure that such a man is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned.          Good things are profitable Titus 3:8 This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.          Foolishness is unprofitable Titus 3:9 But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless. Avoid Have nothing to do with these unprofitable activities. Do not do engage in them yourself. Do not participate if others engage in them. Warn others about engaging in them 2 Timothy 2:16-17 Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly. Their teaching will spread like gangrene. Foolish controversies The controversies generated by those who do not know God. The “clever” questions they present aim to prove that God does not exist, or to question His authority. Consider the result of the resolution of such a controversy. Do those causing it want to find a profitable end? Would the Church be better if this controversy was brought to a logical conclusion instead of being removed from the conversation of the Church? 1 Timothy 6:3-5 If anyone teaches false doctrines and does not agree to the sound instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ and to godly teaching, he is conceited and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy interest in controversies and quarrels about words that result in envy, strife, malicious talk, evil suspicions and constant friction between men of corrupt mind, who have been robbed of the truth and who think that godliness is a means to financial gain. Genealogies Genealogies mean endless research into past generations of your family. At what level do you stop? How does the behaviour, occupation or social status of your antecedents in any way effect your life or future? How does the sin, or holiness, of your antecedents effect your relationship with God? 1 Timothy 1:3-4 …. command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. These promote controversies rather than God’s work—which is by faith. Genealogies are unprofitable Ezekiel 18:20 The soul who sins is the one who will die. The son will not share the guilt of the father, nor will the father share the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous man will be credited to him, and the wickedness of the wicked will be charged against him. Matthew 16:27 For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done. Arguments and quarrels about law This is not referring to thoughtful discussion of the meaning and application of Scripture by those who seek to understand its part in changing us to be more like Christ. This is a person who seeks to present questions which bring controversy without purpose except division. They are not seeking truth but working to trouble the church and its members. They are not building up but breaking down. In causing arguments in the church they seek to dishearten its members and have them believe that the Church is no better than any other human organisation. 2 Timothy 2:14 Keep reminding them of these things. Warn them before God against quarrelling about words; it is of no value, and only ruins those who listen. 2 Timothy 2:23-24 Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. (24) And the Lord’s servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. Quarrelling about the unimportant is not a quality which is to be displayed by the people of God. Those who indulge in such argument are simply aiming to further their own interests in gaining a reputation for “cleverness” or demonstrate their power in being able to destroy an opponent. These are the ways of the world, not the ways of Christians. All these are unprofitable and useless Any question which is not seeking spiritual profit and blessing for the hearers is mere controversy or “stirring”. Any plan to research your forebears to somehow explain or justify your faults or weaknesses does not produce any relationship with Christ Jesus because it does not admit your responsibility for your own sin. Any statement which is not intended to encourage and build up has not value in eternal terms for the Church and is thus without profit for those who are members of the Kingdom of God. James 2:20 You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? Be profitable Titus 3:8 …. stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone. 2 Timothy 2:21 … be an instrument for noble purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work. Avoid the divisive Titus 3:10 Warn a divisive person once, and then warn him a second time. After that, have nothing to do with him. Who are the divisive? The divisive member focuses on foolish controversies, genealogies, and arguments and quarrels about law. A divisive person, or heretic, seeks to divide the Church into parties rather than seeking the unity we are commanded to strive for in Christ. He sets one member against another by repeating stories and accusations for his own gain. He refuses to accept the Word of God as Scripture and the guide for our lives in Christ, preferring his own version of church membership and seeks to convert others to his personal religion. He is one who believes we can pick the parts of the Bible we like and ignore the bits that upset us, challenge us, or offend us. He will insult or denigrate any who seek to disagree with him. A heretic is one therefore who refuses to accept true doctrine as it is revealed in the Bible, and prefers to choose for himself what he is to believe.1 2 Peter 2:1 But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. What do they do? Galatians 5:19-21 The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. How must we respond to the divisive? Warn once—Warn twice—Separate Matthew 18:15-17 "If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.' If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector. 2 Thessalonians 3:14-15 If anyone does not obey our instruction in this letter, take special note of him. Do not associate with him, in order that he may feel ashamed. Yet do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother. Why must this be our response? Titus 3:11 You may be sure that such a man is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned. God makes it clear that it is not hard to spot such people in the Church. Their thinking is warped; it does not make sense in connection with Scripture. They are sinful in that their aims are not to obey and glorify God in Christ but themselves. They are self-condemned. No other evidence is needed except the behaviour, words and attitude of the divisive person. All these make their aims very clear to anyone guided by the Spirit of God. Why should such a man be permitted to stay in the Church? Although it may sound harsh to separate a divisive person from the Church, it is a necessary action to protect the weaker members of the Church who may be misled, or even have their faith destroyed by such a person, and to remind all members that there are standards of behaviour and attitude, which display our relationship to Christ, which must be maintained in His Church. How must we respond to the divisive? Why must this be our response? If the members of the Church do not respond to such attacks, then it shows to the world that the members do not really care about what they teach. Titus 1:10-11 For there are many rebellious people, mere talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision group. They must be silenced, because they are ruining whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach—and that for the sake of dishonest gain. The aim of such separation is always done with the hope that the cast out one will come to true repentance if they will take the warnings to heart. 1 Timothy 1:19-20 holding on to faith and a good conscience. Some have rejected these and so have shipwrecked their faith. (20) Among them are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan to be taught not to blaspheme. 2 Timothy 2:25-26 Those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, (26) and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will. Such people being so arrogant in their selfishness, rarely show any interest in healing the breach they have caused, but rather will do all they can to gain sympathisers and attack the members of the Church out of which they were cast. Hebrews 10:26-29 If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgement and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? Turning this argument around for a moment, often in cases of church discipline we ask, ‘What is the mark that someone is repentant?’ The answer is: ‘a willingness to hear, receive and positively respond to the Word of God’. We cannot gauge the depth of remorse in anyone’s heart, nor are we called to do that. Only God knows people’s hearts. All we can ascertain is how they respond to the Word of God. Are they willing to obey? Do they show that by their actions? If the answer is ‘Yes’, then that is good enough, for church discipline is not aimed at being punitive, or at getting ‘justice’, but at reclaiming the offender.2          What are you to learn? You have a responsibility to ensure that your conversation with others is profitable in terms of eternal salvation in Christ. Accept that nothing of eternal value is found in controversies, genealogies, arguments or quarrels about law. Do not participate, or encourage others to do so. You also have a responsibility to avoid those who insist on indulging in controversies, arguments or quarrels, to the detriment of their own lives, and the spiritual lives of weaker members. There is nothing to be gained by trying to refute their arguments, or even treating them with any seriousness because the motive of the divisive is not to bring about anything that God desires. Those who insist on behaving this way are called “heretics” because they seek to divide the church with their opinions. If you are aware of a member who behaves in such a way, you have a responsibility to participate in the process of trying to change them, or if that fails, in removing them from the Church. All members, not just the leaders, are commanded to have nothing to do with such a member who refuses to listen to two serious warnings. Understand that nothing they say is right. There is no “kernel of truth” in their words. These are not people who are confused or wondering about the faith. They are not “sincere” despite their protestations to be so. They are not intellectually superior, having greater knowledge, so that we must bow to their opinions. Their actions are deliberate, self-serving and destructive. We must do nothing which appears to confirm that anything they have said is at all right. We must not consider the reputation of the Church in the outside world as a reason for not acting against them. This is a command of Christ to the Church as a whole to protect the weaker members and the Truth of the Gospel. Obeying this command shows the depth of your faith in Him, and the depth of your love for your fellow members of His Church.          Next Lesson: Live a devoted life Titus 3:14 Focus Verse: 3:14         