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If no one else needs it, I confess I do. In fact, I need a message like this one on a regular basis for the simple reason that I get distracted. There’s something that God says is supposed to be priority in my life and in the church that easily gets put on the back burner. It’s called evangelism.

My non-Christian neighbors don’t typically call me up and say, “Hey, Brad, how come you haven’t come over recently to talk with me about my need for Christ?” On the other hand I get plenty of phone calls, emails, and personal requests from Christians to do all sorts of other things, and if I’m not careful my life gets cluttered with things, good things perhaps, but things that cause me to forget there’s a world out there that needs to hear the good news about Jesus Christ.

Acts 1:8 “…you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem , and in all Judea and Samaria , and to the ends of the earth.”

Mark 16:15 “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.”

So I need this message. My hunch is, you may need it too. Here’s the reality of the situation. Evangelism won’t happen unless we get intentional about it. So we’re going to get intentional by giving our attention to what the Bible says about evangelism.

The question is, are we ready to reach out? Frankly, it’s why we’re here, to reach out. It’s our God-given assignment, to let the world know that God sent His Son to rescue sinners from their sins and reconcile them to Himself. This is not simply my assignment. It is our assignment as a church, hence the question, are WE ready to reach out?

That raises some other questions. What are the marks of a church that's ready for evangelism? How can you spot a truly evangelistic church? Opinions abound.

Someone will say, “I know. An evangelistic church is one that has an organized visitation program that sends out teams of members every Thursday evening to go door to door. A church that's got that kind of program is an evangelistic church.”

Another person offers a different answer. “A church that's ready for evangelism? That's a church that makes sure it schedules a week of "Revival" or “Evangelistic” meetings at least once a year, and brings in a dynamic speaker who can stir people's souls. You have to have special meetings if you're going to be a church that's ready for evangelism.”

One segment of churches might answer the question this way, “A church that's ready for evangelism is a church where the pastor gives strong evangelistic messages on Sunday mornings, and those messages are followed up by a powerful invitation hymn. The congregation’s job is to invite the unsaved to church to hear those messages. A church that does that shows that it's serious about and ready for evangelism.”

In the past thirty years we’ve been hearing a different sort of answer. “That’s not it. If you want to reach lost people in this post-modern age, you need to offer ‘Seeker’ services. If a church is really serious about reaching the non-churched, it needs to structure services that are non-threatening to the unsaved. It needs to use a format with which a non-Christian could identify and feel comfortable, such as contemporary music, drama, a short “talk” that addresses some felt need. That's it. A church that's ready for evangelism is a church that takes seriously how non-Christian seekers think.”

So back to the question … What are the marks of a church that is ready for evangelism? True, all of the above have been used by various churches who indeed have a reputation for evangelism. But I want to pose the question again, with a slight adaptation: What does GOD say are the marks of a church that's prepared for evangelism?

That's the ultimate test. Not pragmatics, but truth. Not, “Well, I know a church that's doing this and it seems to be working,” but “What does God say are the marks that must be in place if a church is to be ready for evangelism?”

God does tell us, too, in several places. We find one of the clearest explanations, however, in the small New Testament epistle of Titus.

Titus is an evangelistic epistle. By saying that, I don't mean that it's designed for non-Christians and is intended to bring the lost to Christ. Rather, I mean that Titus tells Christians what must be true in a church if it is to be effective in bringing the lost to Christ. In that sense, Titus is an evangelistic epistle.[2]

In Titus, Paul refers to God as the God Who saves. We see this throughout the letter:

--Titus 2:13 says we are to look for the glorious appearing of "the great God and our Savior, Jesus Christ."

--The emphasis continues in Titus 3:4 where Paul calls Him, "God our Savior," and in 3:6, "Jesus Christ our Savior."

From merely observing how God is described in Titus you get the idea that He is a saving God and that as a saving God He has a saving purpose. He does. In fact, Paul states emphatically in Titus 3:5, “He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.”

He saved us. We didn't save ourselves, and in fact, we couldn't. We needed a Savior, and that Savior is God Himself. He is a saving God.

Now follow me at this point. The God Who has a ‘saving’ agenda expects the people that He has saved to devote themselves to that same agenda. We've been saved, great, but what about the multitudes who are still lost? What about the ‘other sheep’ for whom the Savior gave His life, of whom Jesus said, “Them also I must bring (John 10:16)”? They too need the Savior, and God expects us to take the good news to them.

That's evangelism. Evangelism is not optional for the Christian, nor for the church. If our God is committed to seeing the lost saved, so must we be.

But what are the marks of a church that's prepared for evangelism? We find the answer in Titus. In the book of Titus, God through Paul identifies three marks that must be in place in the church if the church is to fulfill its God-given mission in evangelism.

Paul sent his cohort Titus to the island of Crete with this objective in mind. Notice Titus 1:5, “The reason I left you in Crete was that you might straighten out what was left unfinished [KJV ‘set in order the things that are wanting’]...” The church in Crete was a young church. It lacked organization. The young Christians needed some real direction, and it was Titus' job to provide it.

What would this young church need if it was to be effective in evangelism? What does any church need? In this epistle of three chapters, God specifies three characteristics that must be in place if a church is to be effective in evangelistic outreach.

They may surprise you. In fact, you might hear them and respond, “That's it? That doesn't sound like the answer the church growth specialists are giving today.” You're right, it doesn't, but it's God's answer. Here are the three characteristics of a church that’s ready for evangelism:

In the next three weeks we want to examine these three characteristics and seek to bring ourselves in line with them. Remember, this is not some take-it-or-leave-it, arbitrary list, but God's definitive statement concerning the kind of church that pleases God and is positioned for effective evangelism in a community.

The first task which Paul gave Titus to do had to do with leadership in the church. Notice verse 5 again, “The reason I left you in Crete was that you might straighten out what was left unfinished and appoint [KJV ‘ordain’] elders in every town, as I directed you.”

A church needs leaders. If a church is to be effective in evangelism, it needs the right kind of leaders doing the right kind of things. What should a church expect of its leaders? Paul tells us in chapter one.

My aim is not to do an expositional study per se of Titus. Rather we're going to work our way through the book seeking to answer the question, “How does a church prepare itself to do evangelism?” Like detectives, we’re going to look for clues in this church planting manual called Titus. The end result will be to develop a checklist for preparing a church for evangelism. The first checklist, in chapter one, deals with the area of the leadership team in the church.

What should a church expect of its leaders? The fact is, you should expect certain things of your leaders. What’s that? Paul tells us in Titus 1. If a church is to be effective in evangelism, the leaders must exhibit the following six marks. They must…

I’ll say it again. You should expect certain things of your church leaders. You should expect no less than (and no more than) what God expects of church leaders.

A church will not be prepared for effective evangelism if its leaders do not meet the divine standard. That may sound obvious, but it is often ignored. Many churches that are wondering why the baptismal tank has been empty for years need look no further for a reason than to the spiritual condition of its leadership.

Not just anyone should be a leader in God’s church. The stakes are too high. A person may be a leader in a secular organization yet not qualified to lead in the church, for the world’s standard of successful leadership God’s standard are quite different.

What does God expect? What are His standards for church leaders? He’s very specific.

First of all, consider the terms Paul uses. In verse 5, the term is ‘elders’ (Greek, presbuteros). In verse 7, it's ‘overseer’ (KJV ‘bishop’; Greek, episkopos). The terms are closely related, if not interchangeable.

“Elder” refers to a man's reputation, his dignity and status. Though not necessarily older in terms of age, the man must demonstrate unquestionable maturity and stability. He’s been down the road, tested, and proven reliable. He’s not a novice but experienced in walking with Christ.

“Overseer” [‘Bishop’] refers to his function or duty. He has the ability to give godly oversight, to lead God’s people in a way that reflects the leadership of the Great Shepherd, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will function as God’s undershepherd, and thus must possess the ability to feed and lead the sheep.

Put the two terms together and you conclude this. To qualify as a leader in God’s church requires both character and conduct. God’s interested in both what a man is and what a man does.

Note that the word ‘elders’ in verse 5 is plural. Paul told Titus to appoint elders in every town. God does not intend His church to be a one-man show. Churches need a team of godly men who are qualified to lead the church where the Good Shepherd wants it to go. How many elders was Titus to appoint? We're not told. How many leaders should our church have? The Bible doesn’t give a number, but certainly no more than are qualified.

Which brings us to the question: What are the qualifications? Paul gives at least fifteen in verses 6-8:

“An elder must be blameless, the husband of but one wife, a man whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient. Since an overseer is entrusted with God’s work, he must be blameless—not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain. Rather he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined.”

Just from an initial reading of these qualifications, we’re confronted with two obvious factors regarding God's standards for being a leader. One, a man is not qualified to lead in the church if his character is not Christlike. And two, he's not qualified if his family life is not attractive to the gospel. Or to state it positively…

Let’s take a closer look. First, His character must be Christlike. He must be…

“blameless” (anegkletos) – free from accusation, irreproachable. It refers to a person who cannot be accused of anything wrong. It’s not suggesting perfection, but rather that there are no skeletons in the closet, no unaddressed sin issues that would be inconsistent with the person’s claim to be a follower of Christ. Being “blameless” is so important Paul repeats the requirement in verse 7, with this reason, “Since an overseer is entrusted with God’s work, he must be blameless.”

“not overbearing” (authades) – the word means arrogant, stubborn, self-willed. It’s the person who views decisions as “his way or the highway,” who doesn’t need input from others because he insists he’s always right.

“not quick tempered” (orgilos) – angry, hot tempered, short tempered. It refers to the person who has a short fuse, who is irritable and it doesn’t take much to set him off.

“not given to drunkenness” – not a drunkard, not addicted to wine. He is under the control of the Spirit, not the spirits. Substances don’t control him, such as alcohol, but that would include narcotics, nicotine, even food. As we’ll see in a moment, to lead in God’s church a man must exhibit self-control.

“not violent” (plektes) – not a bully, not a striker. It refers to a contentious and quarrelsome person who loves to fight. The church doesn’t need that kind of person in a leadership position.

“not pursuing dishonest gain” (aischrokerdes) – not shamefully greedy, not pursuing dishonest money. A person who’s looking for a quick buck even if it means bending the rules to get it (like fudging on tax returns) isn’t qualified to lead in the church. On a positive note, he is…

“hospitable” (philoxenos) – literally, the word means “loving strangers.” It refers to the person who is generous to guests. He doesn’t wait for others to take the initiative. He does as His Savior did. He takes the first step. He goes up to the visitor. He invites the visitor to come to his home. He shares his home, his food, his life with the stranger so that in a short time that stranger is no longer a stranger.

Why would you want that kind of person as a church leader? Because that’s what the whole church family is supposed to be doing, as Romans 12:13 exhorts, “Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.” And God expects church leaders to set the example.

“one who loves what is good” (philagathos) – a lover of good or goodness. In a world that mocks goodness and morality, the church needs leaders who not only talk about it, but love it. Some men are quick to write a letter to a congressman to try to legislate goodness (and there’s a place for letter writing), but here’s where it starts. We need to be people who love what is good. It shows up in our movie selection, our music choices, where we go for entertainment, and so on. A leader is to be a lover of good.

“self-controlled” (sophron) – of sound mind, moderate, prudent, discreet; to behave in a sensible manner. It carries the idea of “disciplined.” The person whose life is out of control is not qualified to be an elder in God’s church. This applies to his spending habits, his eating habits, the amount of time he spends watching television, playing sports, and so on. He’s not out of control. He thinks before he acts.

“upright” (dikaios) – just, righteous, and by implication, innocent. If you want to know how to please God, imitate an upright person for his walk is consistent with God’s righteous standard.

“holy” (hosios) – righteous, pious, devout, pleasing to God. It’s used of God in several passages where He is referred to as “the Holy One” (Acts 2:27; Rev. 16:5). It can carry the sense of “dedicated.” If there’s something the contemporary church needs today, it’s holiness. And who is supposed to set the example? The elders are.

“disciplined” (egkrates) – strong, master of, self-controlled; mastering, controlling, curbing, restraining. It’s the opposite of a feeling-oriented approach to life. Sin always “feels” natural to a sinner. Godliness doesn’t “feel” natural, not at first. That’s why Paul told Timothy, “Train yourself to be godly (1 Tim. 4:7).”

What do the above traits have in common? They are characteristics that Christ demonstrated. When you see them they make you think of Christ. Indeed, no person can exhibit them as God requires apart from knowing Christ personally.

So to be a church leader, a man must demonstrate Christlike character. And when that character is present, it will show up first at home. Hence, the second basic testing ground for elders. His family life must make the gospel attractive.

“the husband of but one wife” – literally, a “one woman man.” Some suggest Paul here has in mind polygamy, but that doesn’t seem likely. Polygamy wasn’t all that common in Roman society since sexual encounters outside of marriage were very accepted and divorce was easily obtainable. What does Paul mean by this? John MacArthur answers the question:

“Paul is not referring to a leader’s marital status, as the absense of the definite article in the original indicates. Rather, the issue is his moral, sexual behavior. Many men married only once are not one-woman men. Many with one wife are unfaithful to that wife. While remaining married to one woman is commendable, it is no indication or guarantee of moral purity.”[3]

The facts speak loudly. The failure to be one-woman men has put more men out of the ministry than any other sin.

A one-woman man is a man who is devoted in his heart and life to the woman to whom he made a promise. He loves her, gives his heart only to her, and thinks only of her. He finds sexual fulfillment in her alone. He flees from all sexual temptation (that includes not only the woman at work but also the woman on his computer screen) in order to demonstrate his covenant loyalty to his wife, in the fear of God.

This was a huge issue in the Roman empire . The typical man did not marry until around the age of thirty (in contrast, girls normally married around age fourteen). It was taken for granted that before he married (and even after) he would “sow his wild oats.” The Greeks had what they called the “men’s hall” where they engaged in socially accepted sex. Some men had one or more concubines among the slave-girls of their household. It was quite accepted that a married man have, in addition to his wife, another woman (or more than one woman) with whom he had relations.[4]

But what was common in society had no place in the church. Hebrews 13:4 states, “Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral.”

That kind of thinking runs cross grain to a sex-obsessed culture, whether Roman or our own. And who’s going to pave the way in the church? The leaders must. Consequently, God says a church leader must be a one-woman man. Furthermore…

“a man whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient” – One of the prime tasks of a church leader is to pass on the faith to others. Where does that begin? In his home. The NKJV says an elder must have “faithful children.” The NIV says that his children “believe.” The Greek phrase can go either way, either saying his children are believers or that they are faithful. I take this to refer to children living at home since once children grow and leave the nest they become directly accountable to the Lord for their actions. The point is, in order to lead in the church a man must show that he knows how to lead his children in the ways of God.

Furthermore, some things are NOT to be true of the children of church leaders. They are not to be “open to the charge of being wild.” The word translated “wild” means “reckless, out of control.” Furthermore, they are not to be “disobedient.” The requirement isn’t perfect children, for none exist. The requirement indicates that the children are under control and obedient, in part, because their dad taught them to be such and when they weren’t, he dealt with the sin problems in God-honoring ways.

Paul explains why this is so important in 1 Timothy 3:4-5, “He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him with proper respect. (If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God’s church?)”

Verse 9—“He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught…” To be an elder, a man must know the Word of God. Yet not know merely in an academic sense, for the verse continues, “…so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.”

In his classic book, Spiritual Leadership, Oswald Sanders remarks: “Mentally and spiritually, he (a qualified church leader) should be able to teach. The word implies not only ability but readiness to teach; a desire and constraint to impart to others the truth that the Holy Spirit has taught him from the Scriptures. If he is to teach, he himself must be a student of the Scriptures.”

To be a leader, you must have a passion to teach God’s Word. I didn't say a position, but a passion to teach. Some of the most effective teaching in this church takes place, not behind this pulpit, nor behind a Sunday School lectern, but in the pews after church, in the parking lot Wednesday evening, at the dinner table while visiting with guests you invited home from church.

Growing up as a teen, I learned a lot from my youth leader because when we got together for pizza, in addition to talking about the recent ballgame, he often turned the discussion to theology. Teaching God's truth was his passion.

Is it yours? If a church is to be effective in evangelism, it must have leaders who have a passion to learn and teach the Word of God.

Why is that? Here's one reason. If a church is doing evangelism, what's going to happen? People are going to get saved. What do you have when a person gets saved? A baby Christian. What does a baby Christian need? A mentor, a discipler, someone to teach him/her how to grow.

I have a hunch that one of the reasons God doesn't give some churches more converts is that they are not discipling the ones He's already given them. May I ask you something? When did you last spend time with a young Christian with the sole purpose that you wanted to help him or her grow? I challenge you this week to approach a young believer and invite him to have a coke with you. Get to know him so you can encourage him to grow in Christ.

Teaching the Word has two prongs, according to verse 9. One is exhortation (encouragement). The other is refutation. As the KJV puts it, “That he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to confute the opposers.”

It takes courage to confront. Wisdom, too. But God expects leaders to stomp out the fires of false teaching when they pop up in the church.

Why would it be mandatory that a church involved in evangelism have leaders who are committed to dealing with heresy? Think about it. What do newly saved Christians typically bring with them into the church? Enthusiasm and zeal, yes, and what else? Unbiblical baggage.

Suppose you visit a brand new Christian's home and discover he's got a picture of Jesus on the wall to which he prays during his devotions. And suppose you call up another new Christian, and when you ask him how his job went that day, he tells you he quit his job because he heard Jesus was going to come right away. In the store later, you run into a third new believer who informs you that he's enrolled in an exciting Bible study on family values that his friend invited him to join. You ask him where and he replies, “Some place called the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.”

Question: What do these three new Christians need? They need someone to teach them what the Bible says. Each of them currently hold to non-biblical views.

Another question: What should happen if, after being taught the truth, these three new believers refuse to forsake their non-biblical beliefs? What does verse 9 say? They must be rebuked. Why? Because false beliefs, like cancer, have a tendency to spread.

This is one of the unpleasant parts of being a leader in the church. But I want you to see that God says that if evangelism is to occur, church leaders must use the Word to both encourage and rebuke. They must also...

Verses 10-11 explain, “For there are many rebellious people, mere talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision group. They must be silenced, because they are ruining whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach—and that for the sake of dishonest gain.”

The verb must be silenced is quite strong. The phrase literally means "to put a muzzle on an animal's mouth." What are church leaders to do with dangerous, doctrinally-deviant, divisive people? Silence them.

“Are you kidding, in America ? Doesn't everybody have a right to speak his mind?” Not in the church, not if what's in his mind unscriptural.

Frankly, there are a lot of talkers in churches. People love to throw in their two cents in discussions. And there's nothing wrong with talk, as long as that talk is backed by two things. One, one's talk must be backed up by one's walk, and two, by the Word. If it's not, it must be silenced. The fifth mark is related.

Be involved in rebuking whatever harms the testimony of Christ in the church (13)

The people who lived on the island of Crete had a reputation, verse 12 says. They were known as “liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons.” The church can't help it when non-Christians have a reputation like that.

But it can (and must) make sure of one thing. What’s that? That what's accepted in the world is not to be accepted in the church. What must be done with those church members whose behavior is harming the testimony of Christ in His church?

Verse 13 tells us, “Therefore, rebuke them sharply, so that they will be sound in the faith.” Rebuke is not a pleasant word, and in fact, is painful. I know few people who enjoy confronting (nor should they). But confronting is a biblical responsibility of church leaders (not to mention Christians in general; Mt 18:15). And sixthly...

My heart breaks when I consider the description in verse 16, “They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.” Herein lies perhaps the greatest hindrance to evangelism in the church. It’s church members who claim to know God but deny Him by their actions.

Have you ever invited an unsaved person to come to church, only to hear them say sarcastically, “Why would I do that? I know some of the people who go there every week and their lives aren’t any different than mine.” End of discussion.

A nominal Christian is like a leech that sucks the very life-blood out of the living organism of the church. So God commands church leaders to deal with people who sing about God on Sunday but smear Him with their ungodly lives on Monday.

Inventory Time: I have a burden to see our church be effective in evangelism, and I know many of you share that burden. What will it take for that burden to be realized? The first prerequisite is godly leadership.

If you are a leader in this church, I would ask you to take a moment to take some personal inventory in light of the checklist of Titus 1. If you are not a leader, but aspire to be, consider carefully God's standard.

Is your family in order? Can people see Christ in the way you conduct your home?

Are you involved in learning solid biblical doctrine (have you learned anything new in the past month?), and then are you making it a priority to teach others the truth God has given you? Are you afraid of learning new truth? Frankly, some are. They have a theological system they've learned in the past and no longer approach the Word of God with an open, teachable mind, but merely to protect their system.

Are you able to refute false teaching when it surfaces? Are you committed to the truth of God's Word?

Are you willing to deal with problem-causing people, or do you take the passive, it's-none-of-my-business approach?

Are you willing to get involved in delicate situations which are harming the testimony of Christ in this church?

Are you willing to exert the effort needed to deal with people who claim to know God but deny Him by their actions?

We as a church cannot fulfill our God-given mission in evangelism without godly leaders who can answer "yes" to these questions. Why not?

Would you listen to a mechanic who couldn't start his own car? Would you follow a sergeant into battle who didn't know how to load his own gun? Would you take piano lessons from a person who couldn't find Middle C? Hardly.

We cannot give to others what we do not possess ourselves. How can we tell lost people, "Jesus can change your life," if the evidence of His changing power is not visible in our lives? A church will not be effective in evangelism if the power of the gospel is not apparent first of all in the lives of its leaders.

What about the rest of the membership? That's the issue we'll see next time as we come to Titus chapter two. First, godly leadership, then a godly congregation.

**Note: This is an unedited manuscript of a message preached at Wheelersburg Baptist Church. It is provided to prompt your continued reflection on the practical truths of the Word of God.

[2] Observation by John MacArthur on his tape "Handling Scriptural Hot Potatoes"

[3] John MacArthur, First Timothy, p. 104.

[4] Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary, Titus, p. 502.