What About Your Titus?

What about your Titus?

Titus (meaning: title of honor or pigeon, which can represent the Holy Ghost, the bringing of peace, and the sharing of the message) was sent by Paul to be a comforter to the people of Corinth.

Now, when we think of the word Comforter, our first thoughts may be one or two things - the Holy Spirit or a thick blanket. Both are right and that is what Titus was ordained to bring to the people. It was the Holy Spirit in him that allowed him to bring comfort and truth to the people and to cover them in the spirit.

Now, when we think of the word comfort it is important that we don’t minimize it to just making someone feel good. Too often we have churches filled will sermons that are only designed to make people feel good and as a result, we have a generation of people who feel entitled and hate correction, and only want to hear “good things.” This is also happening in our homes. So, the congregation, our community, and our children miss out on the truth of the Word, as well as the core principles of being saved and a servant of the Lord.

I thank God for our pastor, Chief Apostle H.C. Gunn, because he never sugarcoats the Word. He brings a balance of correction, encouragement, prophesying, admonishing, and of course the word of God straight from the source. He teaches us how to live! Which is what Jesus did in the Word!

The teaching at our church is always well-rounded. And well-rounded teaching brings about a well-rounded follower of Christ, if they are willing to listen and take action on what they hear. Think about it. Jesus spent most of his time on earth teaching with both corrective authority and Holy reassurance. The Bible tells us about the five-fold ministry: Apostleship, Prophecy, Evangelism, Pastorship, and Teaching. This is not the exception, but we should see this in whatever ministry we belong to. We see it every day at the Body of Christ, Inc. in one form or another, and we are blessed because the leader of our house brings forth all five of these attributes through his labor and commitment to the Lord.

Ephesians 4:11-13: And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ

Why is this relevant? Because this is what Titus represented, and our pastor has been a Titus to us and so many around the world.

In 2 Corinthians 7:6, it says, “Nevertheless God, that comforteth those that are cast down, comforted us by the coming of Titus.”

How can our pastor accomplish all the things he has done for our congregation and even those outside of the church on behalf of the Lord, but by the power of the Holy Spirit, the Holy Ghost - The Comforter?

John 14:26: But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

John 15:26: But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me.

So, let's get back to the definition of a comforter! It means someone who helps you to be less worried, upset, frightened, etc. or someone who gives relief to someone suffering grief or trouble.

What Chief Apostle Gunn has taught us is how to be delivered from fear, chaos, confusion, grief, trouble, etc, through prayer, through the reading of the word, through obedience, through fasting, through praise, through giving, through caring, through faith, and through having a clear conscience before the Lord. He has taught how the Word of God decrees that we are to be a resource and relief to one another.

So, being a comforter is not appeasing someone, band-aiding them, or watering down the Word ... it is giving and sharing the truth that will set them free, which is showing them, Jesus, in our thoughts, words, and deeds.

That's what the Holy Ghost does! He teaches us the truth on the inside, he reminds us of God’s truth every day and he comforts us with the truth. Not what the world says is true but what God says is true. But the keyword I have found in being taught by our leader about Jesus and the Holy Ghost is care. Without being saved and without having the Holy Ghost you can never really truly care for God, his people, his will, and others. In fact, you won’t even know how to care for yourself. Think of COVID. The reason people are dying is that people don't care. They don't have enough power on the inside to put on a mask or get a vaccine out of love for themselves and others, and because it's what the Lord said is right to do. If you don't have the love of God in you, you can't show the love of God!

And here is something we cannot miss: It was not just for Titus to be a comfort to the people of Corinth. It was also for them, the people, to be a comforter to Titus and to Paul, as they were sent by God together. We are to be comforters to our pastor, the saints, and others in need, and we can do so by the power of the True Comforter - the Holy Ghost. But if Jesus is not your Lord then how can his spirit (the Holy Ghost) abide in you to help you to care?

2 Corinthians 7:7: And not by his (Titus) coming only, but by the consolation wherewith he was comforted in you when he told us your earnest desire, your mourning, your fervent mind toward me (Paul); so that I rejoiced the more.

The question keeps coming up: Why is it so hard for us to care for others, to serve as a comforter through our praying, our giving, our faithfulness, our sensitivity, our watching?

Last night, Chief Apostle answered that through the message in service. He said no one believes they have the victory! We aren’t believing in the victory Jesus gave us through the cross, through salvation, and through the Holy Ghost. Instead, we think we are losing. And therefore, we think by caring, by giving, by sacrificing our time in prayer and in the Word, and by laboring for the church, we are losing something, missing out, giving away what belongs to us. We fail to realize that there is nothing we can lose in Christ. If everything we do is based on our love and fellowship with Christ, we will never lose. We will always win. As the word says:

“ But godliness with contentment is great gain.” (1 Timothy 6:6)

We are often tempted to fight for ourselves, to defend ourselves, to look out for ourselves, to keep things to ourselves because we are not assured in the Holy Ghost that by the cross and sacrifice of Jesus, we will always have the victory.

In our region, there are at least over 20 churches that have the word Victory in their names, but is victory really being taught in our churches and homes, and communities?

I thank God for this correction, I found myself even in the last months forgetting about the victory already given to me. And if I would have allowed the Holy Ghost to remind me of it, then I would have not been as overwhelmed or frustrated or consumed or distracted. Sometimes we just want God to get us through a battle, but it's time we think bigger, like Chief Apostle Gunn once said, and see our whole lives as victorious ...for God has already won the war for our souls.

1 John 5:4: For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.

So, what about your Titus?

If you have been impacted by the messages from our service, the broadcast, the prayers, and the labor of our pastor, we encourage you to not miss the opportunity to sow seed on God's good ground in support of his ministry. Donate here: https://www.thebodyofchristinc.com/donate.

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Listen to the replay of “Hot Now (from Jan 2018)” for today’s radio broadcast here: https://www.thebodyofchristinc.com/listen-in?wix-music-track-id=6851820604105145&wix-music-comp-id=comp-kjfzbgmx, which talks about how God is on our side if we receive him, how we need to learn to operate and align ourselves with what God has already spoken over us, and to remember to look like Jesus! This word is on fire!

This week’s Youth Pastor’s Blog also talks about looking like Jesus, the word always ties together: https://www.thebodyofchristinc.com/news/represent-god.