Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev20130120.htm

THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION
Titus: God's Directives For Church Leaders In Deteriorating Cultures
Part VIII: The Leader's Calling Unto Separation From False Teaching And Teachers
(Titus 3:9-11)
  1. Introduction
    1. If Titus 1:9 calls local church leaders to hold fast to true teaching to be able to encourage others to hold to it and counter those who oppose it, what is to be done in relating to those who firmly adhere to false teachings that actually divide the local church opposite God's will?
    2. Paul answers this question in Titus 3:9-11, showing a leader's call unto separation in the issue as follows:
  2. The Leader's Calling Unto Separation From False Teaching And Teachers, Titus 3:9-11.
    1. The local church leader must himself separate from false teaching, Titus 3:9:
      1. Paul told Titus and all later local church leaders to "go around so as to avoid, shun" (periistemi, Arndt & Gingrich, A Grk.-Eng. Lex. of the N. T., 1967, p. 653) "foolish inquiries and genealogies and wrangling and skirmishes about the law," Wm. Hendriksen, Exp. of the Pas. Eps. (NTC), 1974, p. 394.
      2. This imperative is in the middle voice (Ibid., Arndt & Gingrich), meaning local church leaders for their OWN benefit must separate themselves and their minds from such false teachings.
      3. These false teachings were promoted by Judaizers as they were misapplications of the Mosaic Law:
        1. In Titus 1:9, 10 and 14, Paul had previously written about "they of the circumcision" (KJV) who promoted false teachings that subverted whole households.
        2. Specifically for this reason, elders were to be ordained in every city as men who held fast to the true Word of God to exhort and counter these false teachers, Titus 1:9.
      4. However, by way of application, Paul's command in the context of Titus 3:10-11 NIV against divisive false teaching makes it related to any potentially divisive, errant teaching.
      5. Local church leaders must then watch their own minds and hearts to keep themselves from yielding to popular but errant and divisive teachings that make the rounds even in church circles! (1 Tim. 4:16a)
    2. The local church leader must lead others to separate from divisive, false teaching, Titus 3:10-11:
      1. Local church leaders must lead others to be separate from divisive, false teaching, Titus 3:10a:
        1. The Apostle Paul directed Titus and all local church leaders to respond to "an heretick" (KJV), the Greek word being hiretikos and originally, as here, meaning "factious, causing divisions," Ibid .
        2. In an effort to drive a wedge between the one teaching this divisive error and the error itself, the local church leader was to provide the errant teacher with two admonitions, Titus 3:10a.
        3. This practice is similar to Christ's call in Matthew 18:15-17 that teaches a threefold admonition before excommunication. However, apparently due to the set ways of a false teacher, Paul calls for only two admonitions to be given to him before he is excommunicated, for the willingness of the false teacher to promote errant, divisive teaching after two admonitions to the contrary indicates he is "mentally and morally turned or twisted" ( ekstrepho, Ibid., p. 245; Ibid., Hendriksen, p. 396) to where he is living in open sinful rebellion against the Lord, and thus stands self-condemned.
      2. Local church leaders must lead the church to remove unrepentant, divisive false teachers, 3:10b-11:
        1. If the divisive false teacher refuses to repent after two admonitions, he is to be rejected, that is, removed from the local church's fellowship via excommunication, Titus 3:10b; Ibid., p. 395.
        2. The reason for this command is that a divisive teacher divides the church the Holy Spirit has united under His care (Ephesians 4:3), and such division done for the sake of error contradicts the plan of God to cause the local body to grow up in the truth in Christ Jesus, Ephesians 4:15-16.
        3. Thus, one teaching divisive doctrines, who refuses to repent, is working directly against the will and plan of God for the local church as a tool of Satan, so he must be removed to serve the will of God!
        4. However, in applying the teaching of 2 Corinthians 2:5-11, if the false teacher ever recants from his error, he is to be received back into the local church's fellowship as a forgiven brother.
Lesson: To serve God's plan for the local church, local church leaders must separate from errant, divisive teaching, they must admonish the false teachers to recant and discipline the unrepentant.

Application: May local church leaders obey this call, and may all believers heed their ministry in it.