Remind them to be
subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good
work. – Titus 3:1 (NET)
Why would the Apostle
Paul write such things to Titus? If we give it a moment’s thought, we’ll
realize the eminent practicality of this communication. We can embark
upon the process of realization by asking what it was that was the substance of
the message that Paul preached? He preached, above all things, that Jesus
Christ is Lord. Along with that over-arching message, Paul preached the
crucifixion and Resurrection of the Christ. For Paul, the Resurrection of
the Christ functioned as the demonstration of His Lordship over all
things.
Paul, along with
other early believers, consistently posits that the power that raised Jesus out
from the dead was unleashed into the world for and through the preaching of the
Gospel message. This unleashing was for the
purpose of sharing eternal life (bringing the life of the age to come into the
world) with and through those who would believe that message. Those who
believed the Gospel proclamation, and thereby acknowledged Jesus as the supreme
Lord and Master and Savior, were then said to be in union with Christ
(believing in Him and joining His kingdom movement), transferred from kingdom of
the Satan into the kingdom of the Christ.
The warning then
served two purposes. With his
understanding of human nature, Paul would have been keenly aware of where it
was the conception of Jesus’ supreme rule could lead. As we come to terms
with the substance of this message, and what it would mean for ourselves as we
operate in the world, we’ll have to confess that it would be rather easy for us
to take the position that, since we are under the Lordship of Christ, and
seeing as how He is in fact the Lord of all, with all principalities and power
and rules and authorities under His feet, then we no longer have any need or
compunction to submit to the human rulers to whom we find ourselves subject. Of course, this can be nuanced to take into
consideration the idea that, in a democratic republic such as that which exists
in the United States of America, that the citizenry is not properly understood
to be subject to the governing powers, but that the elected and appointed
officials stand in subjection to the citizenry.
That said, “If we are
a part of Christ’s kingdom,” some might think, “then we are in union with
Christ and rule with Him, so we do not need to indulge any human authorities
with our continued obedience or support.” Such thoughts that would have
naturally arisen are why it was so practical and appropriate for Paul to tell
Titus to “Remind them,” that being the believers to which Titus was responsible,
“to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every
good work.”
Another purpose
served by this warning was eminently practical, in that followers of Jesus
were, by definition, not followers of the Caesar. They did not participate in the Caesar cult,
nor the public worship of the Roman gods, and therefore were looked upon as
subversive of public order, as the Caesar cult was a unifying force across a wide
and diverse Roman empire. With this
perception of Christians coming to be widely held by those in positions of
authority, and with various kinds of persecution potentially attached to this
perception (if their leader was crucified as a rebel, it would be natural to
crucify His followers that are continuing His rebellious mission). Thus, the reminder to be subject, along with
the insistence towards the doing of good works (deeds of public benefaction for
their communities), which would show them to be the best citizens---indeed, the
embodiment of what it would mean to be truly human.
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