Titus: a reputation that stuck

Read Titus 1:10-16

Talk about a reputation! Look at what was said about people of Crete: "Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons." (Titus 1:12)

A Cretan poet, Epimenides, had written that about his own people about 600 years earlier, and apparently the label still stuck.

Write some of the descriptions of the people of Crete (based on verses 10-12):


Circle those descriptions which have to do with telling the truth (or not telling the truth.)

You probably circled words like “deceivers,” “dishonest gain,” “liars.” Paul knew the people of Crete weren’t offended by deception and falsehoods. Instead, why did they use lies, according to the end of verse 11?


The Christians on Crete grew up in that atmosphere of lying for personal gain. How could Paul get them to think differently? What did he ask Titus to do, in verse 13?

The pure were those changed by believing in Jesus. Would they want to do things impure?

What did Paul call those who were not Christians?


And how did he describe them in verse 15?

Remember how Paul described church leaders in last week's lesson. Notice how he describes the world outside the church in today’s lesson. Were there any important differences? What were they?


Look back at verse 9. What were the believers to do with those who didn’t accept the trustworthy message?

Next time: the bad guys