Titus 1:9 9holding firmly to the faithful word according to the teaching, so that he might encourage with sound teaching and refute those who speak against it.
The last qualification in Paul’s short list is that the leaders must know the truth of the gospel. They must know what they have been taught in order to guide the church and to keep it from heresy. The participle holding firmly (antechomenon) shows that this education will not happen by accident but will take effort. They needed to grasp the deep meaning of the gospel and not let go of it. They were not to teach their own ideas or invent new interpretations but stick to what they had been taught. They had received orthodox doctrine, but false teachers had infiltrated the church and were teaching false doctrine. True doctrine is called the faithful word. False doctrine is described in the participle who speak against (antilegontas). The overseers were the preservers of orthodox teaching, and if they failed, the opponents would lead the people astray.
Teaching the truth would bring encouragement to the believers in Crete. Heresy would bring division and confusion. Encourage (parakalein) can also mean comfort, invite to participate in something, or stand beside someone and help him or her be successful and strong. This is what the gospel does when it is taught clearly and accurately. When it is distorted, it leads to confusing, fear, and bad behavior. It was crucial for the Cretan believers to know the truth so that they could stand up to the negative influences of their culture. The gospel was the answer for their needs.
We are no different than the Cretan church. We must know the truth of the gospel clearly so that we can know the path of righteousness. There are many voices that call for attention and allegiance. Sometimes these voices mask themselves as Christian, but they do not adhere to the truth of the gospel as it has been passed down through the ages. Orthodox teaching will align with what has been taught by the church in the past. It does not mean that all of church history has been accurate or truthful. But there is a strong stream of orthodoxy that has continued throughout history. There may also be times when we must stand up to false teaching and refute and speak against it. We can only do this if we know the truth ourselves.
For older posts, click here.