TITUS 3 — GOOD WORKS, SALVATION BY MERCY, AND FINAL INSTRUCTIONS

Chapter 3 completes the letter by turning from the internal life of the church to its conduct in society, and then it gives the grandest statement of the gospel in the letter. Paul has told Titus how to organize the church and teach the various groups within it, and now he addresses the church's relationship to the surrounding world: submission to civil authorities, gentleness toward all, and a readiness to do good. This is a vital theme for the Cretan churches, where the culture was known for aggression and dishonesty. The theological center of the chapter is the passage in verses 3–7, which is one of the most complete summaries of salvation in the New Testament and which mentions the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit in a single sentence. The pattern is characteristic of Paul's letters: the doctrinal statement undergirds the ethical instruction. Then Paul gives practical advice on dealing with divisive people and closes with personal notes. The letter's final theme is the importance of good works as the fruit of grace and as a witness to the world.

The summary of the gospel in verses 4–7 is a fine example of the early Christian understanding of salvation as a Trinitarian act. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are named together, as in 2 Corinthians 13:14 and Ephesians 1:3–14, and each has a part: God the Father saves out of mercy, the Holy Spirit renews, and Jesus Christ is the one through whom the Spirit is given. This was written within about thirty-five years of Jesus' death, and it shows that Trinitarian thinking was embedded in the earliest Christian worship and teaching, long before the creeds of the fourth century. The passage may also be a quotation from an early hymn or baptismal confession, since it has a rhythmic quality and is introduced as a trustworthy saying. The call to be good citizens is consistent with the practice of early Christians. The second-century apologist Justin Martyr wrote to the emperor that Christians were the best helpers of the government in maintaining peace, since they believed that no one could escape the notice of God, and the Letter to Diognetus describes the Christians as obeying the established laws while surpassing them in their private lives. The mention of Nicopolis is a historical detail that fits the geography of the region: the city was a prominent Roman foundation on the road between Greece and Italy, and the winter weather would have made it a convenient place to wait. Zenas the lawyer and Apollos appear in the same list of coworkers that is found in other letters, which provides a network of connections between the letters and Acts.