There is a very strong general resemblance between 1 Timothy and the
Epistle to Titus; so much so that at first sight we might be misled
into thinking that the latter is mainly a repetition of the former. As
we examine the Epistle to Titus in more detail we shall soon become
conscious that it has features all its own, and that it fills a niche
in the scheme of Christian truth which without it would remain empty.
As we remarked when surveying the four personal epistles of Paul,
Titus is the epistle of sobriety and soundness. It is also marked by
the strong assertion of authority, the authority vested in Paul as an
Apostle of the Lord, and in Titus acting as his delegate. The
conditions prevailing in Crete, owing to the racial characteristics of
the Cretians to which Paul alludes in his first chapter, rendered this
strong assertion necessary; but as there is all too much of the Cretian
difficulties-if not of the Cretian character-about us and amongst us
all today, we shall find the exhortations of this epistle peculiarly
healthful to our souls.