Titus 3:12-13

Titus chapter 3 verses 12 and 13, When I shall send Artemius unto thee, or Tychicus, be diligent to come unto me to Necropolis, for I have determined there to winter. Bring Zinus the lawyer and Apollus on their journey diligently, that nothing be wanting unto them. God blessed to us His sacred and holy word this evening. Years ago, Kirby J. Hensley started a mail order Universal Life Church in California. It was eventually taken to court for violating the California Education Code. He was using his so-called church. church as a paper mill for diplomas. Hensley claims he had liberally dispensed 2.5 million ordination certificates and over 20,000 Doctor of Divinity degrees in 11 years. All you needed was to send in your $20, and you got your papers and could be a minister. You even issued ordnity. certification for dogs, cats, raccoons, or whatever you wanted. The following advertisement was a clip from a California college newspaper. Would you like to become a minister? Ordination is without question and for life. Legal in all 50 states and most foreign countries, perform legal marriages, ordinations, and funerals, ministers, credentials, and licenses, credentials, and license sent. Now, it would seem that ministers could be a dime a dozen if they’re produced in this manner. You simply buy your way into it without a single theological course or even doing any extensive Bible study, and you can have what you want. How would you like one of those mail-order ministers to be your pastor? Paul, having addressed, the issue of how the church is to deal with heretics. We’ve spent a couple weeks addressing that issue. Now proceeds to speak about faithful ministers of the gospel. Now many people come to the end of these epistles of Paul and you’ve got names and you have some basic thoughts about the work and so forth. And many times people sort of skip over these things, but Hopefully we can benefit by seeing what God has for us from this text. We don’t really know much about Titus, Artemius, Tychicus, Xenus, or Paulus, but they have the recommendation here of the apostle, and that’s a big thing. And they were certainly men who appear to be serving the Lord, as according to what we read here. Sadly, many do not appreciate faithful ministers of the gospel, who are able to teach others the Word of God. Good ministers are not a dime a dozen. Good ministers are rather rare. And so we want to talk about faithful ministers tonight from this text of Scripture. Now you find the necessity of a faithful minister here in verse 12. So, when I shall send Artemis unto thee, or Tychicus, be diligent to come unto me to Necropolis, or Necropolis, that I, for I have determined there to winter. Now, Paul sends here a replacement for Titus to Crete at this time. At this moment, Paul is present here a replacement for Titus to Crete to Crete at this time. probably somewhere in Macedonia, where we might call Greece. Perhaps he’s at Philippi, visiting the Philippian Church. He desires to spend the winter here in Nicopolis, which was a sea-coast town on the coast of Greece that faces the Italian peninsula. He wants Titus to join in there. And the coppolis would provide, I think, a suitable place for this meeting. It was a fine winter resort. Titus could just take a boat or ship not too far to reach that particular city from Crete. It was an excellent base of operations for missions into Italy or Dalmatia, which is the Yugoslavian. area coastline. It appears that Titus did meet Paul at this particular city, for the scripture records the Apostles helper did some evangelistic work in Delmadia, according to 2 Timothy 410. Even though Titus was to do his utmost to come to Nicopolis, it was extremely important, evidently here, Paul wanted him right away. There was some urgency to it. He must not leave the people of Crete without someone to be a spiritual leader for them. Titus here is not to leave Crete before the replacement comes. Because he tells us here, when I send one of these two men, then I want you to come. Paul didn’t want the Christians on Crete to be without some type of oversight at this time. He didn’t want them to fend for themselves. He doesn’t write and say, well, the Cretians can easily care for their spiritual welfare on their own and your absence just come ahead. Eventually someone will come down. No, he says, that’s not going to be the case. You’ll recall the churches in the island were just getting started. They hadn’t even established. eldership in the churches or congregations that they had at that time. In fact, the first part of the book tells you know, talks about appointing elders. So they needed to get that taken care of. And they needed someone to provide supervision. Artemis and Tychicus here were Paul’s co-workers. We know very little about these men. Tychicus did accompany Paul into Asia Minor. what we call Turkey in Acts chapter 20. This man did work in Ephesus as well, as second Timothy 412 indicates to us. This being the case, some have surmised that Artemius was sent to Crete. We just don’t know for sure. But Paul sends a replacement for Titans. Now, we can glean from this. it is harmful and sometimes dangerous for a church to be without a faithful minister. He’s concerned here about this assembly, having someone to provide some spiritual oversight for the assembly. We live in a day when many people consider a pastor or elder even unnecessary. If you have any connection with the Brotherin movement, they actually frown on anyone being a half a husband. any type of oversight over the church. We find people engaging at times exclusively in private Bible studies with no concern about spiritual oversight by a man that has been called by God to the ministry. I once knew a church that decided to go without a pastor. And after a while, there was no longer any church in the building sat there empty for a number of years. During his earthly ministry, Jesus was moved. He was concerned about the people of Galilee because they had no one to watch over their souls. Here’s what he said in Matthew 9, 36 to 38. When he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them because they fainted and were scattered abroad as sheep having no shepherd. Then saith he to his disciples, the harvest truly is plentious, but the laborers are few. Pray ye, therefore, the Lord of the harvest, that he will send laborers into his harvest. There was a tourist in Syria who observed a shepherd who was taking care of his sheep, taking them out in the various pastures and by various brooks of water during the day. But at night, he would bring them all into the fold and count them by name as they went into the fold. The tourists noticed, though, there was an opening at the fold. entrance, but there was no gate. There was no door for the gate to close it off, so to to speak. And he said to the shepherd, can’t the sheep just wander off? Can’t a predator just sneak in? He said, no, because I’m going to sleep in the gap here. I’m going to sleep and be the door, so to speak. The sheep aren’t going to get out without going over me, and no predator’s going to get in without going over it. So he was the protector of the sheep. In the spiritual realm, elders are shepherds of the congregation. They’re supposed to provide leadership, feeding, protection, watch, care for the flock. Now, Jesus Christ, obviously, is the chief shepherd and bishop of our souls and the true door of the church. But the shepherd is also to, that he appoints, is to watch, out for the sheep. When there’s no spiritual shepherd, serious problems can arise for the people of God. We read in Ezekiel 34 in verse 5, they were scattered because there was no shepherd. Friends, faith is easily weakened without continual support. Christ has provided pastor shepherds, if you would, pastor teachers, shepherd teachers, if you would, for the edification, the growth, and the perfection of his church, as Ephesians 4 indicates to us. It’s one of the gifts that God has given to his church. And that means that the church matures and grows spiritually as it is ministered to by these men that have been called. Without such shepherds, the people of God could be blown about with every wind. of doctrine. You remember that when Paul went to the Galatians and he preached the gospel and they believed, and then for a short time, he went away. And what happened? When he writes to the epistle, he says, I, I’m amazed. I marveled that you’re so soon removed from the gospel that I preached unto you onto another gospel, which isn’t another gospel. But a perversion. Satan is very subtle. And he will try to destroy the church at any way. way he can. And a prime opportunity comes when there’s no shepherd watching over the people of God. So it can be harmful and even dangerous for church to be without a faithful minister. When I send one of these men, then you come. Notice it’s a duty of the minister to attend to his congregation. Titus here wasn’t to go wandering off to another place, even to do the Lord’s work. without first making sure that the flock was taken care of. That is his primary concern. God has commanded elders, take heed, therefore, unto yourselves and to all the flock, over which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which is purchased with his own blood, Acts 2028. You’ll notice here, where the pastor is told here, the elder is told about the preciousness of the sheep, I have purchased them. Therefore, you are accountable, and you’re to take care of the sheep. Jesus pointed out, he that is a hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own sheep, they are not, seeeth the wolf coming, leaveeth the sheep, and fleeth, and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep. The herling, flee if because he’s a herling. He doesn’t care for the sheep. If a minister is always flitting about from one place to another, for this speaking engagement, and for that speaking engagement, and so forth, who’s going to take care of the flock? The hireling doesn’t care about the flock, the flock the way the shepherd does. Doesn’t the commandment given to Archippus, apply to all pastors, the one we studied in Colossians 417, take heed to the ministry, which thou hast received in the Lord that thou fulfill it. Where God has placed us, we should labor. One of the characteristics of Napoleon is when he led common men into battle soldiers, he didn’t have them go anywhere where he himself would not go first. At one point, Napoleon ordered his army across the river, and there was an enemy at a short distance away, and there was hesitation a part of his troops. So he was on his steed, and he just plunged into the river and went across first, and said, follow your general. And they all gave a cheer and jumped in right after him because their brave commander, he was going to go across, and he was going to go across first. As Christ said of the faithful shepherd, when he puteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them. and the sheep follow him. If the shepherd is not present to lead, the sheep cannot continue to go forward as they ought. So this is Christ’s flock, and it’s a high calling for the minister to care for the sheep that have been given to him. And as you remember in Hebrews, he said that the elder is going to have to give an account. Hebrews, Hebrews 13. 17, they watch for your souls as they who must give an account. If it were merely the goods or the bodies of an individual, you could understand negligence would be serious. We’re dealing with eternal souls of people, and it’s even more serious than any of these other things. There’s an interesting passage in Ezekiel, if you turn with me there, about this matter. Ezekiel check. chapter 34, verses 1 to 10. And the word of the Lord came unto me saying, Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy and say unto them, thus saith the Lord God unto the shepherds. Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves. Should not the shepherds feed the flocks? Ye eat the fat. Ye clothe you with the wool. He kill them that are fed. But ye feed not the flock. The diseased, have you not strengthened. Neither have you healed that which was sick. Neither have you bound up that which was broken. Neither have you brought again that which was driven away. Neither have you sought that which was lost, but with force and with cruelty have you ruled them. And they were scattered because there was no shepherd. And they became meat to all the beasts of the field. And they were scattered. My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill, yea, my flock was scattered upon all the face of the earth, and none did search or seek after them. Therefore, ye shepherds hear the word of the Lord. As I live, saith the Lord God, surely, because my flock became a prey, and my flock became meat to every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd. Neither did my shepherd search for my flock. But the shepherds’ fashers’ feet. themselves and fed not my flock. Therefore, O ye shepherds hear the word of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord God, behold, I am against the shepherds, and I will require my flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock. Neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more, for I will deliver my flock from their mouth, and they shall not be meat for them. your God is angry with the spiritual leaders of the nation because of how poorly they led the people of God. And he’s not going to let them continue. He’s going to cut them off from this position that they are in. It is the love of Christ that should motivate the minister. Remember what Jesus said to Peter in the book of John, chapter 21. Do you love me? Lovest thou me? Feed my sheep. feed my sheep. So you find the necessity here of a faithful minister, and we see that emphasized, I think, in this verse of scripture. Secondly, you should recognize other faithful ministers of the gospel. Notice verse 13, bring Zenas the lawyer and Apollos on their journey diligently, that nothing be wanting unto them. Zinus and Apollos were servants of the Lord. but evidently not working directly with the Apostle Paul. We don’t read of them in the introductions, the salutations of any of the letters that he sends as if they’re working with Paul and we send our greetings to you. No doubt these two men could have been the ones that delivered this letter to Titus. Maybe they went down there to see how things are going and to deliver this letter. But they weren’t playing. planning to stay in Crete. They were going to go on with their ministry elsewhere, and so Paul wants them to be sent on their way and taken care of at the same time. We know practically nothing of Xenus, that he was a lawyer. We’re told, now, I don’t think we should look at this as a civil lawyer. He’s not Perry Mason, but I think we should look at it more in the sense of him being, being a scribe, someone who has studied the law of God and therefore is an expert in the law. He is a Greek name probably derived from Zenodorus, meaning the gift of Zeus. Seems to have something to do with Zeus. Paulus is more familiar to us. Of course, you have heard about him. from the Book of Acts. He’s a Jew, a native of Alexandria, Egypt, and a powerful order, well versed in the scriptures. And we find him in the Book of Acts several places. He was such a well-known person and well-liked. It’s interesting that the Corinthians, when they talked about who they broke into little factions and who they were liked, one was of Paul, one was of, of Apollus and one with Seifus. He’s put right in there with two main apostles. Well, he came to Ephesus as preaching only what he knew, according to the teaching of John the Baptist. And we find that Aquila and Priscilla had to take him aside and go over the truth concerning Christ more fully, so he had a more accurate information concerning Christ concerning Christ. But he was a great black person. blessing we find to all the people throughout the Roman Empire. Paul counted him as a good friend. I planted Apollus watered, but God gave the increase. He sees him as a co-worker with him. Yet Zenus and Apollus were working independently. The apostle tells Titus to respect them, show them every Christian courtesy as fellow laborers for Christ. Whatever needs the people of God, could provide for these men, they were to be given, that these two servants may be sent on their way and taken care of. Now, we can learn from this that we should appreciate and respect all faithful ministers of the gospel. You remember one day, the disciples were disputing about who would be the greatest among them, and Jesus perceiving their thoughts gave them an object lesson, taking a child. and placing that child in their midst and said, whosoever shall receive me, receiveeth him that set me, for he that is least among you shall be the greatest. This led John to speak up and say this, Master, we saw one casting out devils or demons in thy name, and we forbade him because he followed us not. He’s not among us. He’s not of our group, evidently. this person was a believer in Christ, maybe he was a follower of John the Baptist. But he wasn’t closely associated with the Lord’s ministry as the disciples were, and because he wasn’t in their little band, their little group, they rebuked the man and said, you can’t be doing this. You know, Christ gave us this ability to cast out demons. So they forbade him. Jesus said, forbade him not, or forbid him not, For he that is not against us is for us. The disciples were not to have such a sectarian spirit, but recognize all those who are faithful followers of Christ, though not directly connected with the local ministry. We must recognize that there are other faithful believers outside of our local assembly, who are doctrinally sound in serving the Lord, and with such a multitude of false prophets that abound, in our world we ought to be thankful when we find those who indeed to have not bowed the knee to bail so to speak have not gone off to false worship we need to adhere to God’s sovereign grace in salvation especially those whom God is gifted to preach and teach for the people of God. It’s interesting that John Bunyan, the writer of Pilgrim’s Progress, was not highly educated. He was a poor tinker, and a tinker was one of those guys that went around and repaired, broken pots and pants, welded them, I guess, back together and fixed them up, slaughtered them. That’s what he did for a living before he was saved. But when he was saved, he went into the ministry and preached the gospel of Christ. Now, Bunyan was a Calvinist. Baptist. But he suffered under the English law, because if you weren’t of the right persuasion, you could get thrown in jail for preaching. He was not, you know, he was a dissenter. And so he’s in jail for 12 years for preaching the gospel. By the way, it’s why we have some of the books that we have by John Bunyan. He wrote them when he was in prison. John Owen, just the opposite, was a highly educated person, a scholar of the first rank, and a Calvinistic congregationalist. However, Owen had a love for Bunyan and appreciated the gifts that God had granted this man. He’s a Baptist minister, but he’s delighted him. So he spoke well of Bunyan, and on behalf of Bunyan to magistrates and kings, try to get him out of the prison. John Owen, one of the greatest of the pure and theologians, told Charles II that he would exchange all the learning that he had for the ability to move hearts like the tinker. Eventually, through Owen’s efforts and the efforts of others, Bunyan was released and was able to go back and complete his work in the ministry. While I will grant that there are some ministers ought to be in jail, So they can’t preach with their preaching. Faithful men, even of other denominations, ought to be appreciated by us. They may not agree with us on every jot and tittle, but if they’re faithful men, we should recognize. I’m not saying we compromise the gospel, but we should recognize and treat with respect and courtesy those men called by God who don’t serve, let’s say, in the Baptist denomination. Appreciate. and respect other ministers. Support faithful ministers in their labors elsewhere. Titus here was the sea that nothing was lacking, wanting here means lacking, to Zenos and Apollos. Now, the scripture indicates to us that those who preach the gospel should live of the gospel. And evidently, the indication here is that they should be receiving some type of financial help or assistance as they go on their way, maybe help them with their traveling expenses or whatever the case may be. Those who sow spiritual things, according to Paul, should reap physical things, the temporal things. 1 Corinthians 9-11. Shepherds are to be provided for out of the flock. Christians who profess a love for the truth should not neglect those who proclaim it. The faithfuls, ought to comfort and encourage the ministers of God and the messages of God. In supporting sound men, you are partakers of the fruits of their labor. When you financially support missionaries, you share in God’s work in that foreign land. You have part in their ministry. You can do the same here in the United States. Not that the local. church should be neglected financially. If one does not provide for his own household, he’s worse than an infidel. So if you don’t provide for your own church and you’re supporting everybody else, that’s not the way to go. Yet whenever there’s something worthwhile, there’s a sound ministry that we can help, and we have the ability to do so, we should try to help. Especially those whom God has providentially brought us into contact with you. And may the Lord, you know, give us to you. enter spirits in this regard to advance his kingdom on the earth. Well, mail order ministers, they may be a dime a dozen. You know, 20 bucks gets you what we want. A piece of paper says you can be a minister. But good, faithful ministers, they’re rather rare. We should appreciate them. And we should appreciate the fact that faithful ministers will take care of their own flocks as God has commanded them. And also recognize those faithful ministers of the gospel who may serve elsewhere and are preaching the Word of God to the benefit of people’s souls. We ask these blessings upon God’s people and his preaching, the preaching of the Word elsewhere should be something we should always be doing. God will bless His Word, wherever. God will bless His Word, wherever it is faithful. taught around this globe. Let us close a word.