- 1Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness;
- 2In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;
- 3But hath in due times manifested his word through preaching, which is committed unto me according to the commandment of God our Saviour;
- 4To Titus, mine own son after the common faith: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ our Saviour.
- 5For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee:
- 6If any be blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of riot or unruly.
- 7For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre;
- 8But a lover of hospitality, a lover of good men, sober, just, holy, temperate;
- 9Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.
- 10For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision:
- 11Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre’s sake.
- 12One of themselves, even a prophet of their own, said, The Cretians are alway liars, evil beasts, slow bellies.
- 13This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith;
- 14Not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth.
- 15Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.
- 16They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.
KING JAMES VERSION
TITUS 1
Read the chapter, follow a linked verse, and continue into related Watchman 33 teaching.
CHAPTER VISUAL
Titus 1 — Titus must set the Cretan churches in order by appointing blameless elders who hold fast the faithful word and confront deception.
About this illustration
The harbor town represents Titus’s island-wide work rather than one identified city. Hospitality and faithful family life distinguish the elder, while the distant deceivers are shown without ethnic caricature.
Scripture basis: Titus 1:1–16King James Version · Standardized 1769 text with Strong’s numbering · Public domain outside the United Kingdom
EXPLORE THE MESSAGE
Related Watchman 33 Resources
Archaeological Evidence
ARCHAEOLOGY EVIDENCEManuscript
Sixth century AD
Codex Coislinianus
Codex Coislinianus is a dispersed sixth-century Greek Pauline manuscript whose thought-unit layout and Euthalian colophon preserve both early textual readings and a sophisticated ancient system for making Paul easier to read.
Colossians 1:1–20 · Titus 1:1–9
ARCHAEOLOGY EVIDENCEManuscript
2nd-3rd Century
Papyrus P32: Titus 1:11–15 in a Greek Witness
Rylands Greek Papyrus 5, or P32, is a small late-second- or third-century codex fragment of Titus 1–2 and the earliest surviving physical witness to the epistle before Codex Sinaiticus.
Titus 1:11–15 · Titus 2:3–8
Sermons
The Runaway Train to the Tribulation
Pastor Dean Odle warns that artificial intelligence, surveillance, economic instability, war, and spiritual deception are accelerating the world toward the tribulation described in Scripture. Moving from Matthew 24 and Revelation to the prophets and epistles, he argues that Christians should expect to endure tribulation rather than escape through a pre-tribulation rapture. He calls believers to reject lukewarmness, bring every thought into obedience to Christ, resist the mark of the beast, prepare wisely for disruption, and strengthen themselves through God’s Word. The sermon closes by urging repentance, perseverance, and an unwavering commitment to spend eternity with Jesus.
Bible ProphecyApostasy and DeceptionChristian LivingDoctrine and DiscernmentSpiritual Warfare
View sermon Dangerous End-Time Errors, Part 2
In “Dangerous End-Time Errors, Part 2,” Pastor Dean Odle warns that online influence, confidence, and large audiences are not substitutes for biblical grounding or accountable ministry. Beginning with Romans 16:17-20 and 1 Timothy 1, he argues that Christians must identify teachings that create spiritual stumbling blocks, test teachers by sound doctrine, and refuse the assumption that every persuasive voice carries authority. He especially defends the apostolic authority of Paul from 2 Peter 3:15-17 and connects rejection of Paul to confusion about grace, the New Covenant, and the place of the Mosaic law.
Doctrine and DiscernmentApostasy and DeceptionBible Prophecy
View sermon Born Again and Ready
In “Born Again and Ready,” Pastor Dean Odle argues that conversion is the beginning of the Christian race, not permission to return to habitual sin. Beginning with Jesus’ words to Nicodemus in John 3, he presents the new birth as a real work of the Holy Spirit received through heartfelt faith, repentance, and confession of Christ. He then contrasts a merely verbal profession with obedient faith, drawing on James 2:17 and Titus 1:16.
Doctrine and DiscernmentSalvation and the GospelChristian LivingBible Prophecy
View sermon Showing 1–3 of 6 sermons