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Number 93 | January 23, 2007

Co-workers: Titus

This is the eighth in a continuing Ekklesia Then & Now series on the individuals Paul referred to as sunergos sunergos (co-workers). Previous installments have been Priscilla and Aquila (ET&N 62), Aristarchus (63), Euodia and Syntyche (66), Clement (70), Demas (79), and Epaphroditus (85), and Jesus Justus (89). The purpose of the series is to examine the biblical and extrabiblical information about these people and their lives to determine what lessons they hold for today's Christian. Additional installments of this series will include Luke, Mark, Philemon, Timothy, Luke, and Urbanus.

As I meander through this series on Paul's co-workers, I am consistently amazed by these people. By every indication, they were very ordinary people before their encounters with the gospel. Not all of them are heroic, but they often sacrificed everything to help Paul spread the message. I am amazed by the loyalty of Aristarchus, the commitment of Epaphroditus, and boldness of Priscilla and Aquila. This issue of ET&N considers yet another amazing individual, known by most Christians only by the letter Paul wrote to him. Inexplicably, and despite what may have been an association with Paul of as much as twenty years, Titus is not mentioned once in Luke's Acts. We know nothing of his life before he became a Christian, but from Paul's letters we can reconstruct key elements of his new life.

Conversion (48 A.D.)

The first chronological mention of Titus comes in Galatians 2:1-3, when Paul reports that he took Titus along with him to the so-called Jerusalem Council in A.D. 49, but we can surmise something about his conversion. In his letter to Titus, Paul refers to him as "my true child" (Titus 1:4), a label he applies to only two others - Timothy (1 Corinthians 4:17; 1 Timothy 1:2, 18; 2 Timothy 1:2; 2:1) and Onesimus (Philemon 1:10) - and is assumed by most commentators to indicate they were converted directly through the ministry of Paul. In all likelihood, Titus first heard the gospel from Paul and was baptized (reborn) into Christ by him, making Paul his spiritual "father."

Where this occurred is uncertain, but a clue may lie in the fact that Paul chose to bring Titus with him to Jerusalem. Luke reports that the Antioch church appointed "Paul and Barnabas and certain others" to meet with the apostles and elders (Acts 15:2), but the implication is that these were all representatives of the Antioch church, and I don't think Titus was. The overarching subject of the Jerusalem Council involved Paul's mission to Gentiles and whether or not they would be required to follow the Mosaic Law once they became Christians. Paul was vehemently opposed to put such an obstacle in God's path, and what better object lesson for the Jerusalem church than to bring a product of his initial efforts?

Consequently, I suspect Titus was converted during Paul's first mission trip to Cyprus, Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe. When Paul entered a new city for the first time, his consistent strategy was to go first to the synagogue, where he could preach the gospel to those who would be familiar with the messianic prophesies, but in Pisidian Antioch, he met opposition from the Jews and turned to the Gentiles (Acts 13:44-46). Luke goes on to report the results: "And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed" (13:48).

Titus may have been one of those Gentiles, and when Paul again passed through Pisidian Antioch on the return trip, he may have decided Titus was an ideal exhibit for his sponsoring church in Syrian Antioch. This is all conjecture, of course, but when Paul and Barnabus gathered the Syrian Antioch church together to report "how (God) had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles" (Acts 14:27), perhaps Titus was there as proof.

The Jerusalem Council (49 A.D.)

Shortly thereafter, a group of Judaizers arrived in Syrian Antioch, creating great dissension, and the church decided to send representatives to Jerusalem. Here was Titus, a full-blooded, uncircumcised Gentile (as opposed to Timothy who came from a mixed Gentile-Jewish marriage), who had accepted the gospel and followed Paul to Syria. When Paul later wrote about this event to the Galatia churches, he wrote that he took Titus with him (Greek, sumparalambano Titos), implying it was his decision, not that of the Antioch church. He wanted to "make sure (he) was not running or had not run in vain" (Galatians 2:2). Once again, Titus was "Exhibit A," and his faith may have been a contributing factor to the decision that the Mosaic Law did not apply to Gentile Christians. Titus, Paul reports, "was not forced to be circumcised" (2:3).

We can reasonably assume that Titus returned to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. Certainly, his testimony (both verbal and physical) to the Gentile Christians there would certainly serve as a reinforcement of the Jerusalem decision and encouragement to his Gentile brethren. For the same reason, I suspect Titus accompanied Paul and Silas on the second mission trip. Peter had been guilty of some hypocrisy when he visited Antioch and, under pressure from some legalists, refused to eat with Gentile Christians. Paul upbraided him for this (Galatians 2:11-21), and when he heard that the Galatian churches were being persuaded by Judaizers, he used the council decision, Titus' uncircumcision, and the incident to Paul to berate them. That his references to him in the Galatian letter suggest their familiarity with Titus serves as a further indicator that Titus was a convert from Paul's first mission.

Titus in Ephesus (53/55 A.D)

After the Jerusalem council, Scripture does not indicate where Titus went. It is reasonable to assume that he accompanied Paul and Silas on the second Gentile missionary trip, probably in early 50 A.D. We can be fairly certain, however, that he did not remain with Paul and Silas as far as Troas since it was there that Luke joined Paul's entourage (Acts 16:8-10). Revisiting the churches he and Barnabas had founded, Paul would find Titus useful in relating the decision of the apostles and elders in Jerusalem (Acts 16:4), but he may have wanted Titus to leave the team when they reached his home city (Pisidian Antioch, Iconium?). In fact, Titus impending departure may have been the reason Paul recruited Timothy in Lystra (Acts 16:1-3).

The next reference to Titus places him in Ephesus with Paul during the apostle's third missionary trip. Beginning in 53, Paul began his third journey as he had the second, revisiting the churches of the Asia Minor interior. When he reached Titus' hometown, he may have invited Titus to rejoin him. He saw an enormous opportunity in Ephesus. He had already installed Aquila and Priscilla there as an "advance team," but the work would require as many disciples as possible. We know that Titus was in Ephesus at the time because Paul asked him to go to Corinth on his behalf (2 Corinthians 12:18) after both he and Timothy had failed to reestablish Paul's pre-eminent position with the Corinthian church.

This request demonstrates that Paul had enormous confidence in Titus' ability to communicate with the troublesome Corinthians and serve as a minister of reconciliation. Whereas Timothy had a bit of a timid streak (cf 2 Timothy 1:6) and Paul, by his own admission, could be rather heavy-handed (cf 2 Corinthians 7:8), Titus had apparently shown himself to be am attentive listener and a gentle teacher, yet one who was able to confront difficult people effectively. So Paul decided to proceed from Ephesus to Alexandria Troas, another strategically-placed city, while Titus made a last-ditch effort in Corinth. Apparently Paul didn't think Titus would be in Corinth very long since he asked his co-worker to join him in Troas and became impatient soon after his arrival in Troas.

Titus comforts Paul (56 A.D.)

Paul was so anxious to hear the results of Titus' efforts in Corinth that he cut short his ministry and Troas and proceeded to Macedonia, where he encountered Titus on the road. It was a joyous reunion for Paul because Titus had good news. He had succeeded in restoring the Corinthians love and respect for Paul (2 Corinthians 7:6-7). Titus then expressed his desire to return to Corinth - specifically to encourage them in the collection for the Jerusalem church that the Macedonian churches had begun, but he seems to have found in Corinth (at least temporarily), a home church where he could contribute. Paul encourages him to do so, sending along two other unnamed brothers (2 Corinthians 8:16-24). Paul still wanted to return to Corinth, but he did not do so immediately. Perhaps he continued leisurely through Macedonia, but he may also have taken this opportunity to go further west into Illyricum (cf Romans 15:19).

Paul's Fifth Missionary Journey (62-66 A.D.)

Luke's narrative of the early church in Acts ends with Paul's two-year house arrest in Rome (Acts 28:30-31), probably 60-62 A.D., but from information in his pastoral letters to Timothy and Titus, as well as some extrabiblical information, we know the apostle's story did not end there. Well-attested tradition suggests that Paul was beheaded by Nero in 66 or 67 as a scapegoat for the great fire of Rome in 64, so we have four or five unaccounted-for years. The clues to Paul's whereabouts during that time come from a variety of sources. There are numerous ways to look at the data and reconstruct Paul's post-imprisonment itinerary. What follows is my speculation.

• In his letter to the Corinthians, Clement of Rome comments on the martyrdom of Paul, writing "After preaching both in the east and west, he gained the illustrious reputation due to his faith, having taught righteousness to the whole world, and come to the extreme limit of the west, and suffered martyrdom under the prefects" (1 Clement 5). To a Roman such as Clement, the "extreme limit of the west" could only mean the Iberian Peninsula. Paul had written to the Roman church of his plans to go to Spain after he visited them (Romans 15:24-28). His hopes that the Roman church would sponsor such as trip don't seem to have come to fruition, but that would not deter someone with Paul's single-mindedness. Furthermore, in the apocryphal Acts of Peter, there are two references to Paul's departure from Rome to Spain. Hence, there is ample reason to believe Paul ministered in Spain. Given his announced intentions, it is likely that he went to Spain immediately after his release.
  
• Paul and Titus went together to the island of Crete: "To Titus, my true child in a common faith: Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior. This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into order, and appoint elders in every town as I directed you" (Titus 1:4-5). It appears that Titus may have gone to Rome during Paul's first imprisonment. When Paul wrote to Timothy during his second imprisonment (which ended with his execution), he wrote plaintively about his loneliness, asking Timothy to come to him, mentioning three men who have left - Demas, Crescens, Tychicus and Titus. While Demas' departure is the source of disappointment for Paul, the others seem to have gone off on mission trips of their own (2 Timothy 4:9-12). Obviously, Paul and Titus had to reunite at some point in order for them to travel together to Crete. If Titus came to Rome, Paul almost certainly would have welcomed his presence on the mission to Spain, where the first time he would venture outside the range of the Jewish Diaspora. A Gentile partner would be an asset, even if he had no personal knowledge of Iberia. The trip to Crete may therefore have occurred immediately after the Spanish mission.
  
• Paul's comments in 2 Timothy suggest that his protégé was familiar with parts of his post-Roman experiences and imply a visit to Ephesus, a short voyage from Crete.
  
• In his final letter, Paul tells Timothy that Erastus remained in Corinth (2 Timothy 4:20), implying that Paul had been there with him. It is a very short voyage from Crete to Corinth. From there, he may have taken the road up the western side of Greece to the Epirus region.
  
• At the end of his letter to Titus, Paul asks his partner to join him in Neapolis, a city in Epirus, where he would be spending the winter. Like Ephesus, Corinth, Philippi, and Troas, Nicopolis was another port city - the kind of human crossroad Paul most liked to evangelize because of the potential for spreading the gospel more broadly and rapidly. Bringing Titus to Nicopolis for a season suggests a major evangelistic effort there, requiring his trusted partner. When Paul laments to Timothy that Titus, among others, is no longer with him (2 Timothy 4:10), he reports that Titus has gone to Dalmatia, which was a region of Illyricum, just north of Neapolis. It would therefore seem that Paul and Titus separated after the winter in Nicopolis.
  
• In Philippians, Paul praises their representative, Epaphroditus, who came to visit him in Rome and expresses his intention to visit them again (Philippians 1:26). Philippi was a relatively easy fortnight journey across Macedonia on an excellent Roman road. While Titus traveled to Dalmatia, Paul may have fulfilled he promise to visit Philippi. [Note: in his personal letter to Philemon, a leader of the church in Colossae, Paul also suggests he intends visit there after his release from prison (Philemon 1:22). Colossians and Philemon have traditionally been attributed to Paul's Roman imprisonment, but there are numerous reasons to attribute it instead to an unreported imprisonment in Ephesus in connection with the riot of the silversmiths.]
  
• From comments in 2 Timothy, we also know that Paul had passed through both Corinth and Miletus (4:20) and Troas (4:13). Paul had walked north and south on the Roman road through Macedonia to Achaia on several occasions, so he probably proceeded from Philippi to Corinth, visiting the churches in Thessalonica and Berea en route. From Corinth, he could easily have booked passage on any of the numerous cargo ships ferrying goods between Greece and Asia, landing in Miletus, from whence he could again traverse Roman roads north through Ephesus to Troas.

These clues to Paul's whereabouts after his release from Roman captivity in about 62 A.D. allow us to get a very revealing glimpse into Titus' importance in Paul's later years. When the apostle urged Titus to return to Corinth six year earlier (2 Corinthians 8:6), he referred to the him as his "partner" (Greek, koinōnois, a sharer). This is characteristics of Paul. Some see him as an autocratic leader, dispatching his associates at his whim, but closer examination reveals that Paul never ordered his co-workers around - he urged them or encouraged them, but he left the final decision to them. This is clear in the case of Titus' return to Corinth when Paul testifies that his partner is doing so "of his own accord" (2 Corinthians 8:16-17).

Titus had a passion for Corinth, but it is apparent he also had a passion for Paul's ministry to the Gentiles. We know he accompanied Paul to Crete (Titus 1:4-5) and remained there when Paul moved along. As I said above, I strongly suspect Titus reunited with Paul in Rome and accompanied the apostle to Spain, after which they went to Crete. We know absolutely nothing about Paul's hypothetical journey to Spain, but we can surmise a few things about the visit to Crete because Paul uses some rather uncomplimentary language to describe Cretans: "One of the Cretans, a prophet of their own [Epimenides], said, 'Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.' This testimony is true" (Titus 1:12-13).

If Paul made such a blanket statement about a people today, he would be forced into 'sensitivity training!" While Paul's use of the Epimenides quote may seem harsh, he later points out that "...we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another" (Titus 3:3). He is simply saying that the Cretans suffer from Mankind's common maladies.

While I get the sense that Paul didn't care much for Cretans personally and had difficulties dealing with them while he was there, he still had a passion for their salvation. He left perhaps his most trusted partner behind to minister to them and gave him a prescription for curing what ailed them. Paul's instructions are succinct: appoint reliable leaders from among them (Titus 1:5-8), teach sound doctrine (2:1ff), and model what you teach (2:7). Furthermore, when Paul asks Titus to join him in Nicopolis, he does not leave the Cretans without strong leadership. He intends to send one of two men, Artemas or Tychicus, to replace Titus.

Artemas is not mentioned elsewhere in Scripture, but Tychicus is another close, long-standing associate of Paul's. He carried Colossians and Philemon to the church in Colossae (Colossians 4:7), and later is noted as one of Paul's fellow-travelers at the end of the apostle's third missionary journey (Acts 20:4-5). Still later, he bore Paul's letter to the Ephesian church (Ephesians 6:21). Apparently, Paul was planning a missionary foray into Illyricum and Tychicus was with him. That Paul chooses send Tychicus (or Artemas) to Crete and wait for Titus before proceeding speaks volumes of Paul's confidence in Titus.

After his mission in Dalmatia (according to Catholic and Orthodox tradition), Titus returned to Crete, where he served faithfully until his death from natural causes at the age of 94. Catholics celebrate his feast (along with Timothy) on January 26; Orthodox on August 25. According to legend, most of Titus' bones (relics) lost when the Arab Saracens conquered Crete is 824, but his skull was rescued by Christians. It resided in a church in Heraklion (Chandax) until 1669, when the town fell to the Turks and the skull was taken to the Basilica of St. Mark in Venice. Following nearly ten years of negotiations, Titus' relics were finally returned to Heraklion on May 15, 1966, greeting by hundreds of Cretan Christians. They are currently kept at the Church of St. Titus in Heraklion.

Conclusion

Titus is not as famous as Paul - nor even as Barnabas or Timothy - but he appears to have emerged in Paul's later years as the apostle's most trusted partner (not assistant, as some commentators label him and other co-workers). Paul had complete trust in Titus - to deal effectively with difficult people, to recognize good leaders, to teach the truth, and to behave in a manner consistent with his beliefs. At the end of his life, awaiting Roman judgment, he lamented that Titus was not with him.

Given all this, it is near impossible to explain why Luke never mentions Titus in Acts, except perhaps to point out that it was never Luke's intention to publish a "Who's Who in the Early Church." His primary focus was to chronicle the missions of Peter and then Paul, and while Titus is certainly a notable omission, it is not, as some contend, evidence of unreliability in Acts. Titus was not the central Pauline partner as the apostle began any of his journeys, and he seems to have developed into a central character relatively late (after 56 A.D.) in Paul's ministry. If Titus ever read Luke's portrayal of the church, I suspect he wasn't bothered by his absence. Titus knew his role and, by all indications, was content to be a shadow of Paul.

At the same time, Titus deserves more recognition from the church today, which suffers too much from celebrity-centricity. Even the best leaders are susceptible to sin, and the best of them readily acknowledge this, but the degree to which the church suffers when such a one stumbles is evidence of our all-too-centralized view of the church. The church is intended to be an organism with only one head (Christ Jesus), and when we look too-devotedly to men (or women), the consequence is almost inevitable. The solution lies not in trying to be a Peter or a Paul, but in someone like a Titus.

What does it take to become as trusted as Titus?

1. It takes time. Titus' association with Paul lasted nearly twenty years (ca. 47-68). The biblical record shows that their relationship grew over the years - Titus going from an enthusiastic new convert to a trusted partner. The closeness they experienced doesn't usually happen overnight. To develop a meaningful relationship with others, we must be willing to invest our time.
   
2. It takes proximity. During that twenty-year period, Paul and Titus were together for several extended periods: from the time of his conversion on Paul's first missionary journey through the first part of the second (ca 47-50), including the Jerusalem council; in Ephesus and again in Macedonia during Paul's third mission (ca 53-56); on Paul's final (post-Roman imprisonment) journey to Spain and Crete (ca 63-65); and finally in Nicopolis shortly before Paul's re-arrest and execution (ca. 67). We must spend a significant amount of face-to-face time, particularly working cooperatively in God's service, if we want a close relationship.
   
3. It takes results. Paul exhibited some immediate trust in Titus by bringing him to Jerusalem for the meeting with the apostles and elders in 49, but Titus' role appears to be minor. During that and subsequent experiences, however, Titus obviously proved himself trustworthy. In about 55, Paul sent him to Corinth, the church for which the apostle had the deepest emotions, to reason with the Corinthians. Titus' success lifted Paul's down-trodden spirit and definitively verified his integrity and effectiveness in even the most difficult circumstances - so much so that Paul took him to Spain (probably) and to Crete (certainly), places that presented new challenges to Paul's evangelism. Developing trust isn't simply a matter of time and proximity; it is only confirmed through results.

Prescription for an ailing church

From Luke's description (Acts 2:1-41), we know there were people from Crete (v. 11) in the crowd on the Day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came on the disciples (vv 1-4), Peter preached the first sermon (vv 14-40), and over three thousand were converted to Christ (v. 41). They carried the gospel back to their island, but by the time Paul and Titus arrived, the church was beset by hypocrisy, false teaching, and apathy - it needed a strong injection of apostolic influence. There is no way of knowing how long Paul remained in Crete, but by his own words, he admits that he left the job unfinished. When he tells Titus (1:5) to "put what remained into order" (Greek leipō epidiorthoō - literally, what is lacking, straighten out further), he is asking his partner to finish the work.

Paul's prescription is straight-forward and highly significant:

1. Identify qualified leaders. The first step is to appoint leaders (appoint elders) who (1) understand the truth and (2) are able to teach it. Even though Paul may have a low opinion of Cretans in general, he is nevertheless confident that effective leaders exist within the populace. He does not instruct Titus to import and impose leader, but to appoint them from each city. He lists some additional qualities Titus should look for in such leaders - both disqualifications (arrogant, quick-tempered, drunken, violent, greedy) and qualifications (hospitable, self-controlled, upright, holy, disciplined). See ET&N 76 (Pastoral Leadership) for a discussion of the kind of leadership the Bible mandates for the church.
   
2. Teach the truth. Once leaders are identified, they are to teach the truth and "rebuke those who contradict it" (1:9). Paul particularly calls for these leaders to counter those who continue to impose the Law on new Christians (the "circumcision party"). Titus is to continue to teach, and Paul gives him succinct advice for five categories of people - older men, older women, young women, young men, and slaves/servants (2:2-5, 9-10).
   
3. Practice what you preach. Titus and the new leaders are to be models of Christian behavior (2:7-8).

How different would the Christian world be if we all followed Paul's simple "epidiorthoō" formula?

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Unsure about or don’t agree with something in Ekklesia Then & Now? First, be a Berean (Acts 17:10-11). If you still disagree, comment on the ET&N blog so we can all share in the discussion!

Unsure about or don’t agree with something in Ekklesia Then & Now? First, be a Berean (Acts 17:10-11). If you still disagree, post a message so we can all share in the discussion!

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