Welcome to our new project, the Daily Bible Devotional. The goal is to help you understand and apply

scripture as you go through a New Testament Bible read five days a week, Monday through Friday,

as we move from Matthew straight through to Revelation. In under four minutes each morning, we will recap the chapter,

make some application, present thought questions for the day, and offer a prayer together.

I'm excited about exploring God's word with you, so let's get started.

Good morning and welcome back to the Daily Bible Devotional. Today we begin in the book of Titus

with chapter 1. The Apostle Paul opens his letter by identifying himself as a servant of God and an

apostle of Jesus Christ sent to build faith and knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness.

He writes to Titus, his true son in the faith,

and reminds him of his responsibility to appoint elders in every church. Paul outlines the

qualification for elders, emphasizing that they must be blameless, faithful to their families,

self-controlled, upright, and devoted to sound doctrine. These leaders must be able to

encourage with the truth and refute those who oppose it. Paul warns about rebellious people

with defiled consciences, especially those spreading false teachings for dishonest gain. He instructs

Timothy to rebuke them sharply so that their faith may be sound

and not corrupted by human commands. And that was the nature of false teaching, teaching of self-interested,

greedy ideas instead of the graceful truth. Leadership in the Lord's Church is not about status or personality, but character and

conviction. We are all influenced by those who teach and lead, so we must be careful to follow

those whose lives reflect the truth they speak. Elders are our spiritual examples and protectors.

As members of the body of Christ, we also carry responsibility.

We must live with integrity, speak with honesty, and be grounded in sound doctrine.

We cannot ignore false teaching. We must respond with clarity, conviction, and grace.

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