Well, what a bittersweet time to conclude the book of Titus tonight, isn't it? You want to start over again? Just kidding. There's many more books to preach through. So we're moving on. We come to the end of Titus. What a great little letter that we have looked at. I think if I remember correctly, we began the book of Titus the first Wednesday of 2019. I could be wrong in that. So it's been about a full year. that we've been here in this three chapter little book. And tonight, we come to the little paragraph at the very end. It's the personal remarks, the very kind of personal concerns that Paul has for Titus. And it's kind of a unique little paragraph. You know, you kind of read it in your Bible time and we can skim over these. They're kind of personal and maybe, you know, people or city names are mentioned here. I don't know what they are or where they are, and it's easy to kind of gloss over it. But I want to preach on this paragraph, and I trust the Lord will have something here. for you and something here for me as well. So follow with me as I just read Titus chapter 3 verses 12 to 15. Every word of God is inspired and there by the Holy Spirit for us. So we don't want to skim over it. We want to take it seriously and look at it together. Titus 3 verse 12. When I send Artemis or Tychicus to you, make every effort to come to me at Nicopolis, for I have decided to spend the winter there. Diligently help Zenos the lawyer and Apollos on their way so that nothing is lacking for them. Our people must also learn to engage in good deeds to meet pressing needs, so that they will not be unfruitful. All who are with me greet you. Greet those who love us in the faith. Grace be with you all." Our Father, you have given this wonderful little letter to us that we have studied word by word, phrase by phrase, verse by verse. And we come, Lord, to the end of this wonderful little book, oh Lord. It's wonderful, it's precious, it's understandable, it's needed. We thank you for the book of Titus, and we pray in the final paragraph tonight, Lord, that you would write your truth upon our hearts. God, that you would show us where we can learn, where we can grow, where we can apply, where we can implement your word. that we can be diligent to engage in good deeds so that we would not be unfruitful. Fill us, O God, with your help, with your illumination, Holy Spirit. In Jesus' name, amen. Well, rightly is the book of Titus called a pastoral epistle because Paul is writing to Titus about local church ministry. We've been looking at that all year long. Here's what you need to have. Here's what you need to avoid. Here's what you need to major on. Here's what you need to not entangle yourself in. Here's how you serve as a minister of the gospel. Here's what you need to preach. And here's how you need to live. so much has been said in such a short little letter. Three chapters. I want to remind you of the outline. I put it there in your outline. The outline of the book of Titus really can kind of be broken down in two main divisions. Chapter one is about church leadership and then chapters two and three is about Christian living. Chapter one is about the pastors and chapters two and three is your practice. Paul has given clarity in the book of Titus on many issues that we need in our day clarity on like, like the qualifications of elders, the false teachings and false teachers and how to deal with it. The roles of men and women in the life of the church discipleship and what preaching is and how preaching is to be done. And what is the response to biblical preaching? We've looked at what the gospel is and many of the gems and the different aspects that are found in this great diamond of gospel glory. We've looked at gospel living and gospel zeal and how to live in an ungodly society and being theologically precise in our understanding of truth and church discipline even. We've talked about that as well. Maybe in chapter one, you might think about it as protecting sound doctrine. And then in chapters two and three, it's practicing sound doctrine. And Paul ends his letters usually in a pretty typical, a pretty straightforward way, where he'll give some concluding remarks, some concluding words, where he'll mention some personal travels or some people that he wants to greet, and then he'll give maybe a concluding word of exhortation, kind of a summary of the letter, and then he departs with a concluding prayer or a concluding blessing. upon the people of God. And Titus is no different. He does the same thing here. And he's written this remarkable little pastoral letter. And he tells Titus, remember Titus 1.5 is like the key verse of the whole book. Titus 1.5, for this reason I left you on Crete. Why did Paul leave Titus in the island of Crete? So that he would set in order what remains. Okay, Paul, well, what is needed to set churches in order? You need to appoint godly elders in every city. As I directed you, you need godly leaders. You need godly leadership that can fight for the truth and contend for the truth and preach the truth and live out the truth and shepherd the people of God so that they can live out. discipleship and good deeds in the church. I also think in Titus chapter three and verse eight, it's another key verse in the book, Titus three and verse eight. This is a trustworthy statement and concerning these things. Paul said, I want you to speak confidently so that those who have believed God will be careful to engage in good deeds. Yeah, you you've got to set churches in order and appoint elders, but I want you to preach the word so that all Believers will be diligent to engage in good deeds. They go together Godly leadership and godly living they go together. That's a healthy And that's what the book of Titus brings out for us. But one of the things that I've mentioned again and again and again, but just by way of summary to bring out again, everything that Paul says in the book of Titus is undergirded. It's like standing upon the shoulders of gospel truth and gospel glory. Titus 1 verses 1 to 3 is all about the gospel. Titus 2 verses 11 to 14 is the gospel. Titus 3 verses 3 to 8 is the gospel. So it's like everything that Paul's going to say is connected to the good news of the gospel. So your Christian walk your church ministry is to build on the work of the gospel. Not that you add to it, but that's the motivation for living out Christian living. What's the work of the gospel? What is the work of Christ? Well, here's what Paul's brought out. Paul has brought out in Titus that you're chosen of God. He brought that out in Titus chapter one and verse one. You're chosen of God, that if you're a believer, you have the hope of eternal life, that Jesus Christ gave himself for us, the substitution of the atonement, that God, the Holy Spirit has regenerated you, that he has renewed you. He's given you life by his power. that you are justified by the grace of God and by the glorious mercy of our great God. And as a result of that, we are now a people for God's own possession. We are inheritors of eternal life and were adopted as God's children, his beloved children. And we have hope. We have security. We have eternal life. We have an inheritance. We have God. we have each other. What a gospel! That's the good news of the gospel that Paul has brought out in the book of Titus. In fact, that's the hope that I have, and I trust that's the hope that you have as well. You know, even for you young boys and girls, you children, we pray for you, and I'm so thankful that you're here, that you hear the truth again and again and again, so that you would put your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, that this work of Christ would not just be for your dad and mom, not just for the pastor and the elders, but for you as well personally. So this is the hope that we have. So everything that Paul talks about with church ministry and Christian living, and it's all, it's all an outflow of, it's all standing upon the shoulders of the gospel. Here's the hope that we have. And in light of that, we have this motivation. to live out Christian living in the church. So we want to interact with each other in a way that is honoring to God. We want to pursue holiness with the way that is pleasing to God. We want to live in the body life of the church in a way that is pleasing to God. God has not left us to invent our own way of doing church. God didn't say, you know, whatever the culture wants and however things change over time, then you adapt church to the culture. That's not what we are allowed to do. The Bible tells us how we are to worship God. Not only that is to be worshipped, but how he is to be worshipped as well. And Titus gives us clarity on that. So Paul has dealt with our devotion to God, he's dealt with the deceivers, he's dealt with the deliverance that God has given to us, the discipleship, the discipline, and now a couple of final words. And you know, you can look with me at verses 12 to 15 and say, you know, how's he going to preach on that? What is he going to say from those couple of verses to the church family tonight. And, you know, far from being neglected or unimportant or even a kind of a peripheral paragraph, I think there's some gems here. I think there's some hidden and important applications and instructions for us. And in your outline, I give you four of them tonight, and they're simple. They are helpful. They're exhortations. They're in the imperative form because I think that these closing words are good admonitions for me and for you. So follow with me and let's walk through these final couple of verses together. Number one, the first crucial final exhortation is to strategize. Look at verse 12. When I send Artemis or Tychicus to you, Paul saying to Titus, I want you to make every effort to come to me at Nicopolis for I have decided to spend the winter there. Now, it's interesting to me that when Paul writes Titus, we don't know where he is. We can't sort of pinpoint exactly where Paul is located in his travels and in his missionary Travels after his first Roman imprisonment. That's where the book of Acts ends He was imprisoned for a couple of years and he wrote the prison epistles Ephesians Philippians Colossians and Philemon and then he's released from Rome and he has some travels where he'll write 1st Timothy and then he'll write Titus and then he's going to be imprisoned a second time in Rome where he will write 2nd Timothy. And then he'll be beheaded there. But, but we don't know where Paul is exactly when he writes this letter to Titus. But for now, in this brief period, Paul is strategically, he's intentionally, he's carefully, and he's prayerfully thinking in ways of gospel advancement. How can I advance the gospel? It reminds me of when we were studying Philippians together. All of Philippians 1, it's just Paul. How can we advance the gospel? How can we advance the gospel? How can we advance? Paul is strategic. He's not all about strategies, but he's thoughtful. He's intentional. He's deliberate in where he goes and when. So verse 12, he says, Titus, when I send Artemis or Tychicus to you, in other words, to replace you, Titus, and I'm going to relieve you, Titus, of your duties. And we don't really know much about Artemis. In fact, we don't know anything about Artemis. But we do know that Tychicus was a missionary companion of Paul's in Acts chapter 20. And we know that Paul was one who did a lot of ministry with Tychicus because he was a faithful and a diligent servant who took letters back and forth. He took Ephesians back and forth. And then even in the end of Colossians, he also was instrumental in Paul's ministry there. In 2 Timothy 4 and verse 12, Paul was going to send Tychicus back to the city of Ephesus for gospel work at the end of Paul's life. And though we don't know much, we know that Paul had faithful men in mind. The ministry of the gospel needs to go on. And I want faithful men to carry on the work of the ministry. It reminds me of that E.M. Bounds quote you have in your outline. It's a famous one of Bounds, but it's so good. The church is looking for better methods, but God is looking for better men. Right? And you can read more on this. And it's so true. God doesn't need all of our methods. He doesn't need all of our machinery. He doesn't need our money. He doesn't need all of our wisdom and our intellect. He wants holy men that are available and faithful and willing to be spent for God and His glory. Why? Why does Paul say, I'm going to send Artemis or Tychicus to you and when you are relieved, Titus, look at verse 12, I want you to make every effort to come to me at Nicopolis. Make every effort. Intensity. would be a way to translate the Greek word. Intensity, be intense, be zealous, exert all the effort you have to come visit me in Nicopolis. Now you think Nicopolis, you know, Nicopolis is just this kind of an ancient city. No, no, no. I learned this week, this is strategic. Nicopolis, in your map there, you see it, it was a port town about 200 miles northwest of Athens, north of Corinth as well. And it was on the very western side of Crete, of Greece rather. And the city of Nicopolis in the historical records was known for its harsh winters. So, here's what Paul says. He says, this is an ideal location, Titus, for me to continue meeting people, for us to spread the gospel. Why? Because all these people are going to funnel in to this big port town, and they're going to be stuck there for the winter months. Guess what? meet me there. And we're going to do gospel work there. I'm going to spend the winter at this spot because, because I, I still want to go further West. We know from Romans, he wanted to go all the way to Spain. He didn't make it that far. but the town of Nicopolis was large. It was a port town. It would have given him many opportunities for him to share the gospel, to proclaim the gospel, to speak of Christ. And he said, Titus, I want you to meet me there. Think of how intentional Paul was, how thoughtful he was, how strategic he was in his plans. You know what? I want to do this, and I want to go there. People are going to be there. I want to share the gospel there. People, crowds, there's going to be people that need the gospel there. How can I prepare? How can I be ready? How can I have the right words to say? How can I have a gospel tract on hand? How can I be available and eager and courageous and prayed up to share the gospel? That's what Paul's thinking when he says to Titus, I want you to meet me at Nicopolis. It's a wonderful way that we see here in verse 12, a very strategic way that Paul does ministry. So I think for number one, we just say strategize. That doesn't mean all the methods and all the strategies. It means be thoughtful, be intentional, be deliberate in your life and where God has placed you. What is the Nicopolis, as it were, to apply it for you? You and I may not have a port town called Nicopolis, but where's that place where people gather? where's that place where you say, you know what? I wanna share the gospel with that person. Next week is Christmas and all the family that's here and the loved ones and the siblings and children and grandchildren and neighbors, opportunities that we can say, Lord, give me opportunity to share the gospel and to be used by you, to be thoughtful and deliberate and strategic about it. So number one, strategize. Number two, in your outline, help, help, because what Paul is going to say now in verse 13 is Paul is going to say now, Titus, I want you to diligently help Zenas the lawyer and to Paulus on their way so that nothing is lacking for them. It's a very personal, it's a very practical exhortation to Titus and the churches. Now I want you to help a couple of Christian travelers that are going to be coming through your way. I want you to provide for them. I don't know about you, but I can sometimes forget about this, you know, in a world of credit cards, in a world of iPhones, in a world of rental cars, in a, in a world of nice hotels, in a world of Uber, we can kind of do our own thing. People can kind of do their own thing. And little do we know the needs of others sometimes, and the availability, the ability to help and serve. But in the ancient world, it wasn't like this. In the ancient world, Christian travelers, whether it was a missionary or even just a fellow believer or a Christian teacher, they depended upon fellow Christians to provide for them, to help them, to provide for all of their needs. Notice verse 13, so that nothing is lacking for them. Paul expects that the believers will help other believers as they're traveling through food and lodging and travel and safety and refreshment and assistance and provisions. I want you to help them. They're going to be traveling through lavish them, provide for them, serve them so that nothing is lacking for them. This is all over, all over the New Testament. Paul told the leaders of the Ephesian church, I want you to help the weak in Acts 20. Paul told the church at Rome, you are to help one another in particular, the woman Phoebe in Romans 16 verse two. What a high honor to be able to help the people of God. Remember in the gospel of Matthew, you know, those that are saved, when did we see you, Lord, hungry or thirsty or naked or in prison? Well, what you did for my people, you've done for me. How we can help others and serve others and come alongside of them. Isn't it interesting that in the Old Testament, one of the most frequent titles for God in the Psalms is he is our help. He's our help. And now, in turn, we help others. We serve others. We labor for others. And we do that here, and you know that. We have regular giving. We're committed to regular giving, to the regular offerings. Why? Well, because we're called in Corinthians to all financially give regularly. Corinthians says as each one has apportioned in his own heart to set aside funds to give and then it is the leaders who are to be to be to be accountable to God and diligent with the resources to use it well and to use it use it in a way that is faithful to advance the gospel locally and even abroad as well to give first to the Lord and to give for gospel advancement, to give with specific needs in mind. You know, it's just an interesting way that he says it in verse 13. I want you to diligently help. He could have said just provide for the needs, but he said diligently. I want you to, I want you to be proactive in helping each other. I mean, just, just that kind of mindset that we, if, if we all cultivate that together, it doesn't mean that we're all lavishing all the money we have upon one another, but this idea of how can I serve? How can I help? How can I meet needs? Who's in need? What can I do? How can I help? How can I diligently help one another? I love that. Just practical, practical word. of exhortation to Titus and to the church. Diligently help these two believers as they pass through your area. May the Lord continue to help us to be faithful. I think we are, and I praise the Lord for that, but I pray that we would continue to excel still more at that. So not just number one, strategize, number two, help, but then number three in your outline, verse 14, the idea of work, the idea of work that is to intentionally engage in good deeds. And I feel like I'm just sort of repeating myself and I am because Paul has brought out the idea of engaging in good work so frequently. And here it is again in verse 14, look at it in your Bible. Our people must also learn to engage in good deeds, to meet pressing needs so that they will not be unfruitful. I love how we have to learn this. It's not like one thing that, well, I got it. I'm done with it. You know, I've moved on to bigger and better things. We're continuing. to learn in the school of Christ, how to work in this life of good deeds as children of God, out of gratitude for what he has done. Notice Titus 3 verse 1. Remember verse 1, remind them, Paul says, to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient. And Paul said, I want the believers to be ready for every good deed. And then in verse eight, those who have believed God ought to be careful to engage in good deeds. Here it is again in verse 14, to engage in good deeds. Titus 2 verse 14 said, we are to be zealous for good deeds. You know, I was reflecting on it this week. How, how little how little we, I, can sometimes think about being zealous for good deeds. Yeah, I think rightly so, we can fight against this performance type mentality, right? That we gotta work hard and do good deeds and do good in order to get or maintain the favor of God. Well, rightly we fight against that. but we don't wanna swing the pendulum to the other end where we just kind of neglect the importance of and the fact that God cares about and that he promises to reward our good deeds. 1 Timothy 6 says that we are to be rich in good works. 1 Timothy 5.10 says that godly women, the widows in particular, are to have a reputation for good works. We are to let our light shine before men so that they might see our good works. We have been created in Christ Jesus for, not because of our good works, but for good works. The faith without works is dead. Now, okay, so you know this, I've preached on it, you're aware of this, but look in your outline. Why should we intentionally work? Why is it, verse 14, that we as a church family, okay, Apostle Paul, we hear from you, we want to learn to engage in good deeds. Paul, why? Why? Well, I think, number one, for God's glory. Remember the whole context of Ephesians 2, that you were dead in your sin, that God made you alive, that you've been seated with Christ in the heavenly places. Why? So that you would be a trophy of God's grace for all eternities to come. It's all about God. It's all about His glory. And we are created in Christ for good works, which God prepared beforehand. so that we would walk in them. We want to engage in good deeds, first of all, for the glory of God. Number two, for the refreshment of the saints, for the refreshment of the saints. Remember Hebrews 10, verse 24, let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds. Stimulate one another. to love and good deeds. There's that refreshing, that one another, that togetherness mentality that we are to intentionally engage in good deeds so that we can stimulate one another, encourage one another, edify one another, and refresh one another. Third, why do we engage in good deeds? Third, for your joy. for your joy. Remember that wonderful picture that Jesus tells as he's walking with the disciples in John 15, I'm the vine, you're the branches, abide in me and you'll bear much fruit. And then at the end of that passage, he says, you'll bear much fruit and prove to be my disciples. And then right after that, these things I have spoken to you so that my joy may be in you. and that your joy may be complete." He wants you to abide in Him and to bear much fruit for your joy, your great joy. And then fourth, for your gospel witness, let your light shine before the lost, before the world, before the dark world around us. Why? So that they might see your good deeds and glorify God. For a gospel witness, So work, labor, be zealous, engage in good deeds. Again, Paul's not talking about trying to earn more favor with God or maintain a certain position with God or get our own salvation from God. He's already dealt with that all along. This is all a free gift of God, but now as a result of what God has done, Let's be zealous. Let's labor and learn to engage in good deeds so that we will not be unfruitful. And then finally, one more just very practical point. We've looked at strategize. We've looked at number two, help. We've looked at number three, work. And now finally, number four, greet. And I just love thinking about this because Paul does it so often. Look at the final verse, verse 15, all who are with me greet you. And then he says, greet those who love us in the faith. You know, let us never forget one way that Christians are so different is that we live in this committed, in this caring, in this close community of love. with one another. It's like we're bound together. It's like we're wedded together. It's like we're married together in this relationship of love because of what Christ has done for us. And frequently, Paul will talk. You ever read this? He'll talk and say, I want you to greet the brethren with a holy kiss. And you read that and you think, well, that's kind of an odd thing for him to say. And how am I supposed to apply that in our day? And you can go really off into some very dangerous hermeneutics if you start applying it like that, because why? Hermeneutics focuses on the verbs. The main point is greet. The supporting clause is with a holy kiss. The main point isn't go kiss each other. The main point is greet each other. And we know that kissing was a cultural thing because often people would bow down when they greeted each other. Sometimes they would kiss the hand. Sometimes they would kiss the cheek. Sometimes they would fall on each other's necks. Sometimes they would weep when they would greet each other. The idea that Paul is saying in the letters is take the physical familial expression of endearment and love. And whatever that is, that close, that warm, that affectionate way of greeting each other, I want you to do it. I want you to express that with the family of God, to express your love for one another. So when Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 5 26, I want you to greet the brethren with a holy kiss. Well, how do you have a holy kiss? Well, it it's, it's with genuine affection, genuine affection. Maybe for us, it's a hug. It's a, it's a firm handshake. It's, it's a genuine greeting of verbal warmth and tenderness and care. Whatever that way is, be affectionate and be loving and be warm with each other. Number two, in your outline, we ought to greet with specificity. I, I think of how John puts it in 3 John verse 15. I want you to greet the saints by name. Think of greeting the 54 members by name. Think of where you sit on Sundays or Wednesdays and where you kind of make your pew, your home, you know, when we're hearing the word. But then when we're done with our corporate worship time and we're fellowshipping and we're engaging in conversation, how can we thoughtfully, intentionally, proactively greet the saints by name? The people that I don't know very well, the people that sit far away from me, the people that are younger or older or single or married or people that are like me or people that are not like me, whatever it might be. greet with specificity, greet the saints by name, Paul says. And then a third greet with intentionality, greet with intentionality. You've read the end of Romans chapter 16. Paul just gives the name of like so many people. And he says, They're a useful worker. They're a hard laborer. They're a diligent, you know, worker for Christ. All of these very thoughtful, these very intentional ways of greeting each other. It isn't kind of a haphazard general greeting, but a specific, a thoughtful, an intentional greeting of brotherly love. And then, fourth, greeting with impartiality all the saints. Philippians 4.21, greet every saint singular. Not just everybody, but everyone. Everyone. You know, wouldn't that be so great if, you know, as I go and gather with God's people today, I review my membership list, and I'm in prayer, and I say, I'm going to find this person. I'm going to find that person. I haven't talked to them in a while. I'm going to reach out to that young child, or that teenager, or that single person, or that person sitting alone, and I'm going to go and greet them warmly in the Lord, and spend a few minutes talking with them, encourage them, reflect on the sermon, pray with them, and then go. What a way to greet and love and care and apply what Paul has said. And then finally in verse 15, Paul ends Titus chapter three by saying, grace be with you all. It's a prayer. May the grace of the Lord be with you. It's all of grace. You're saved by grace. You live in grace. You serve in grace. Faithful church ministry is done by grace. Our good works are done by God's grace. Grace be with you all. It all is built upon the great love and kindness of God our Savior. He loved us and saved us, didn't He? He changed us. He brought us together as a family of believers. Now we get to serve Him and live for Him and love the people that he has redeemed. Now, as we end, in your outline on the back of page three or, well, whatever page it is in your notes, there is a bunch of bullet points there because we end where we began. And I am just more convinced at the end of the study of Titus than I was at the beginning that Paul deals with all of these topics that are so needed in our day. spiritual maturity, true leadership, godliness, the priority of the home, the high calling of biblical womanhood and motherhood, wholesome, sacrificial relationship, sexual purity, credibility in your public testimony, church discipline, false teachers, the preaching and the application of God's word, the importance and the primacy of your local church. What is the gospel and the zeal for good works and on and on? We could go with more. Paul deals with all that. a lot of relevant truth because we serve the God who was the same yesterday, today, and forever, don't we? The book of Titus, wonderful book, isn't it? May the Lord write His truth upon our