False Doctrine Needs to be Opposed
Scripture: Titus 1:9-15Devotional Series: Sound Doctrine
Teaching: Sound Doctrine pt. 2 (SUN_AM 2021-02-21) by Pastor Star R Scott
Sin no longer has dominion over us, because of the power of the gospel. The gospel separates us from our sins as far as the East is from the West. Beloved, that doesn’t just have to do with the fact of justice and judgment and the wrath of God. The Bible says in Romans, we are dead to sin; sin is no longer dominating our lives. We sin when we choose to sin and yield our members as instruments to unrighteousness. But if we choose to yield our members as instruments to righteousness—it’s choice—then we’re living a life of sanctification by faith in the finished work of Jesus. It’s He doing it in us. It’s He that’s working in us, not only to will but to do His good pleasure; amen? It’s Christ living through me. The life that I now live I’m living by the faith of the Son of God Who loved me and died for me. My success is because I’m abiding in the vine.
There are probably no more ambitious people today in the world than preachers. Dear God, what a mess these people are in! Looking for the next biggest church. It’s all about how many people are going to show up. How much money I’m going to get in my honorarium? “Can I use this in my newsletter?” God help us; amen? But as a young man, I learned to go where God says to go. That’s sound doctrine. You want to know how sound it is? “Be followers of those who through faith and patience are inheriting the promises of God” (Hebrews 6:12). Is that the Bible?
But we see here in Titus, Chapter 1, verse 9 says, “Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers. For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision.” This thing today of “Well, we need to be tolerant and we need to be loving,” and we do. We need to be Christlike in every situation we’re in, but the mouths of deceivers have got to be stopped. Amen? False doctrine needs to be opposed, and these people need to be silenced, and He says that here, “Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole [churches], teaching things which they ought not, for [money].” And as he sets that particular environment of what’s going on in the church, he talks about the fact—in verse 15—that “Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure.” So now we’re going to get a look at him setting this thing in order, bringing them back to verse 4 saying, “the common faith.” Verse 5 says, “…set in order the things that are wanting.” Sound doctrine is about taking disorder and putting it back into order. Taking the defiled and making it pure. It’s not knowledge for knowledge’s sake. Sound doctrine always performs a function that edifies the church that glorifies Jesus.
There are probably no more ambitious people today in the world than preachers. Dear God, what a mess these people are in! Looking for the next biggest church. It’s all about how many people are going to show up. How much money I’m going to get in my honorarium? “Can I use this in my newsletter?” God help us; amen? But as a young man, I learned to go where God says to go. That’s sound doctrine. You want to know how sound it is? “Be followers of those who through faith and patience are inheriting the promises of God” (Hebrews 6:12). Is that the Bible?
But we see here in Titus, Chapter 1, verse 9 says, “Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers. For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision.” This thing today of “Well, we need to be tolerant and we need to be loving,” and we do. We need to be Christlike in every situation we’re in, but the mouths of deceivers have got to be stopped. Amen? False doctrine needs to be opposed, and these people need to be silenced, and He says that here, “Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole [churches], teaching things which they ought not, for [money].” And as he sets that particular environment of what’s going on in the church, he talks about the fact—in verse 15—that “Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure.” So now we’re going to get a look at him setting this thing in order, bringing them back to verse 4 saying, “the common faith.” Verse 5 says, “…set in order the things that are wanting.” Sound doctrine is about taking disorder and putting it back into order. Taking the defiled and making it pure. It’s not knowledge for knowledge’s sake. Sound doctrine always performs a function that edifies the church that glorifies Jesus.