Answer: An elder must be able to hold firmly to the
trustworthy Message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage
others by Sound Doctrine and refute those who oppose it, (verse
9).
MORE INFORMATION AND/OR OTHER SCRIPTURE REFERENCES:
From Scriptural Organization of the Churches of Christ
by Jim Massey:
Titus 1:9 teaches that an elder must hold fast
to the faithful Word that he may be able by Sound Doctrine both to
exhort and to convince the gainsayers. This is further
instruction on being "apt to teach." He must be
capable of teaching unbelievers as well as believers. He must
know false doctrines and be able to refute them. He must be
qualified to meet opposition with the Word of God and with a spirit
of exhortation. This requires that an elder be firmly taught
in Sound Doctrine (2 Timothy 1:13). [2
Timothy 1:13-14: "What you heard from me, keep
as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ
Jesus. Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to
you--guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit Who lives in
us."] He should be so well grounded that all
oppositions cannot move him away. He must be a firm yet kind
and forceful teacher. This is holding fast to the faithful
Word of God.
1 Corinthians 15:1-2: "Now,
brothers, I want to remind you of the Gospel I preached to you,
which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By
this Gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the Word I
preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in
vain."
1 Thessalonians 3:2: "We sent
Timothy, who is our brother and God's fellow worker in spreading
the Gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your
faith..."
1 Timothy 1:1-6: "Paul, an apostle
of Christ Jesus by the command of God our Savior and of Christ
Jesus our hope, To Timothy my true son in the faith: Grace,
mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our
Lord. As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there
in Ephesus so that you may command certain men not to teach false
doctrines any longer nor to devote themselves to myths and endless
genealogies. These promote controversies rather than God's
work--which is by faith. The goal of this command is
love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a
sincere faith. Some have wandered away from these and turned
to meaningless talk."
1 Timothy 3:2: "Now the overseer
must be above reproach, the husband of but one wife, temperate,
self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to
teach..."
1 Timothy 6:3-5: "If anyone teaches
false doctrines and does not agree to the Sound Instruction of our
Lord Jesus Christ and to godly teaching, he is conceited and
understands nothing. He has an unhealthy interest in controversies
and quarrels about words that result in envy, strife, malicious
talk, evil suspicions and constant friction between men of corrupt
mind, who have been robbed of the Truth and who think that
godliness is a means to financial gain."
2 Timothy 2:24-25: "And the Lord's
servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone,
able to teach, not resentful. Those who oppose him he must
gently instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance
leading them to a knowledge of the Truth, and that they will come
to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has
taken them captive to do his will."
2 Timothy 4:1-5: "In the presence
of God and of Christ Jesus, Who will judge the living and the dead,
and in view of His appearing and His kingdom, I give you this
charge: Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of
season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and
careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not
put up with Sound Doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires,
they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what
their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears
away from the Truth and turn aside to myths. But you, keep
your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an
evangelist, discharge all the duties of your
ministry."
Titus 2:7b-8, 15: "In your teaching
show integrity, seriousness and soundness of speech that cannot be
condemned, so that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they
have nothing bad to say about us...These, then, are the things
you should teach. Encourage and rebuke with all authority. Do not
let anyone despise you."
Hebrews 3:12-14: "See to it,
brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that
turns away from the living God. But encourage one another
daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be
hardened by sin's deceitfulness. We have come to share in
Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at
first."
Hebrews 4:14: "Therefore, since we
have a great High Priest Who has gone through the heavens, Jesus
the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we
profess."
