9 But avoid foolish controversies, genealogies, arguments, and quarrels about the law, because these things are pointless and worthless.

10 Reject a divisive man after a first and second admonition, 11 knowing that such a man is corrupt and sinful; he is self-condemned.

12 As soon as I send Artemas or Tychicus to you, make every effort to come to me at Nicopolis, because I have decided to winter there. 13 Do your best to equip Zenas the lawyer and Apollos, so that they will have everything they need. 14 And our people must also learn to devote themselves to good works in order to meet the pressing needs of others, so that they will not be unfruitful.

15 All who are with me send you greetings.
Greet those who love us in the faith.
Grace be with all of you.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Nathan Ting

Growing up with an older sister, I would say I did my job of being the annoying younger brother pretty well. I would not be able to count the number of times that we would quarrel over such trivial things that by the end of it, even if I had “won” the argument, I would often not feel satisfied – because it wasn’t even worth arguing over in the first place!

Earlier in chapter 3, Paul exhorted Titus (and us) to remember the grace of God poured out on us through Christ, so that we might grow in godliness and live to please God, which is “excellent and profitable for everyone” (v8). In today’s passage, Paul continues to remind us to remain on course by steering away from things that are “pointless and worthless” (v9) in Christian living. This includes arguing over things that, instead of edifying the church, focus on semantics and nitpicking, minor details. Ultimately, those arguments distract people from the assurance and hope of the gospel message. Paul clearly warns Titus against such divisiveness and divisive people, telling him not just to ignore such a person but to actively reject them (v10, 11) because they are self-condemned. That kind of pointless arguing would undermine Titus’s teaching of the gospel.

Have you ever had disagreements with fellow believers over minor issues that really aren’t connected to the gospel or the truth of God’s word? While it (hopefully) may not be our intention to be divisive or to engage in pointless quarrelling, we can sometimes get caught up in the finer details and lose sight of the bigger picture – the amazing news that while we were all still sinners, Christ died for us so that we could all be invited into God’s family.

Spend a bit of time now praying that we would all remain united in the gospel, building one another up and fixing our eyes on Jesus as we continue living for Him and waiting for His return.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Nathan is a member of our Bossley Park Morning congregation.