This section has 4 verses:
1 Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus
Christ, according to the faith of God's elect, and
the acknowledging of the truth which is after
godliness;
2 In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot
lie, promised before the world began;
3 But hath in due times manifested his word through
preaching, which is committed unto me according to
the commandment of God our Saviour;
4 To Titus, mine own son after the common faith:
Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and the
Lord Jesus Christ our Saviour.
We will begin with the Barclay:
GOD’S PURPOSE AND GOD’S GOOD TIME
THIS passage tells us of God’s purpose and of his
way of working that purpose out.
(1) God’s purpose for all humanity was always one of
salvation. His promise of eternal life was there
before the world began. It is important to note that
here Paul applies the word Saviour both to God and
to Jesus. We sometimes hear the gospel presented in
a way that seems to draw a distinction between a
gentle, loving and gracious Jesus and a hard, stern
and severe God. Sometimes it sounds as if Jesus had
done something to change God’s attitude to men and
women and had persuaded him to set aside his wrath
and not to punish them. There is no justification
for that in the New Testament. But behind the whole
process of salvation is the eternal and unchanging
love of God, and it was of that love that Jesus came
to tell people. God is characteristically the
Saviour God, whose last desire is to condemn and
whose first desire is to save. He is the Father who
desires only that his children should come home so
that he may gather them to himself.
(2) But this passage does more than speak of God’s
eternal purpose; it also speaks of his method. It
tells us that he sent his message in his own good
time. That means to say that all history was a
preparation for the coming of Jesus. We cannot teach
any kind of knowledge until those who are to be
taught are fit to receive it. In all human
knowledge, we have to start at the beginning; so
people had to be prepared for the coming of Jesus.
All the history of the Old Testament and all the
searchings of the Greek philosophers were
preparations for that event. The Spirit of God was
moving both among the Jews and among all other
peoples so that they should be ready to receive his
Son when he came. We must look on all history as
God’s education.
(3) Further, Christianity came into this world at a
time when it was uniquely possible for its message
to spread. There were five elements in the world
situation which made the spread of that message
easy.
(a) Almost everyone spoke Greek. That is not to say
that the nations had forgotten their own language,
but that nearly everyone also spoke Greek. It was
the language of trade, of commerce and of
literature. Anyone who intended to take any part in
public life and activity had to know Greek. People
were bilingual, and the first age of Christianity
was one of the very few when missionaries had no
language problems to solve.
(b) To all intents and purposes, there were no
frontiers. The Roman Empire extended throughout the
known world. Wherever travellers might go, they
were within that Empire. Nowadays, to cross Europe,
we need passports and we may still be held up at
frontiers. In the first age of Christianity,
missionaries could move without hindrance from one
end of the known world to the other.
(c) Travel was comparatively easy. True, it was
slow, because there was no mechanized travel, and
most journeys had to be done on foot, with the
baggage carried by slow-moving animals. But the
Romans had built their great roads from country to
country and had, for the most part, cleared the land
of robbers and the sea of pirates. Travel was easier
than it had ever been before.
(d) The first age of Christianity was one of the few
when the world was very largely at peace. If wars
had been raging all over Europe, the progress of
missionaries would have been impossible. But this
was the time of the pax Romana, the Roman peace, and
travellers could move within the Roman Empire in
safety.
(e) It was a world which was conscious of its needs.
The old faiths had broken down, and the new
philosophies were beyond most people’s
understanding. People were looking, as Seneca, the
Roman statesman and philosopher, said, ad salutem,
towards salvation. They were increasingly conscious
of ‘their weakness in necessary things’. They were
searching for ‘a hand let down to lift them up’.
They were looking for ‘a peace, not of Caesar’s
proclamation, but of God’s’. There was never a time
when people were more receptive to the message of
salvation which the Christian missionaries brought.
It was no accident that Christianity came when it
did. It came in God’s own time; all history had been
a preparation for it; and the circumstances were
such that the way was open for the good news to
spread. ~Barclay Commentary
Let us go to the other commentaries beginning with
the general and going to the specific.
Let us begin with the Matthew Henry:
Here is the stability and antiquity of the promise
of eternal life to the saints. God, who cannot lie,
hath promised before the world began, that is, many
ages since.
How excellent then is the gospel, which was the
matter of divine promise so early! how much to be
esteemed by us, and what thanks due for our
privilege beyond those before us! Blessed are your
eyes, for they see, etc. No wonder if the contempt
of it be punished severely, since he has not only
promised it of old, but (Titus 1:3) has in due times
manifested his word through preaching; that is, made
that his promise, so darkly delivered of old, in due
time (the proper season before appointed) more plain
by preaching; that which some called foolishness of
preaching has been thus honoured. Faith comes by
hearing, and hearing by the word of God, by the word
preached. Which is committed unto me. The ministry
is a trust; none taketh this honour, but he who is
thereunto appointed; and whoso is appointed and
called must preach the word. 1 Corinthians 9:16, Woe
is unto me if I preach not the gospel. Non-preaching
ministers are none of the apostle's successors.
According to the commandment of God our Saviour.
Preaching is a work appointed by a God as a Saviour.
Quoted verse:
1 Corinthians 9:16
For though I preach the gospel, I have nothing to
glory of: for necessity is laid upon me; yea, woe is
unto me, if I preach not the gospel!
See a proof here of Christ's deity, for by him was
the gospel committed to Paul when he was converted
(Acts 9:15, Act_9:17, and Acts 22:10, Acts
22:14-15), and again when Christ appeared to him,
Acts 22:17. He therefore is this Saviour; not but
that the whole Timothy concur therein: the Father
saves by the Son through the Spirit, and all concur
in sending ministers. Let none rest therefore in
men's calling, without God's; he furnishes,
inclines, authorizes, and gives opportunity for the
work. ~Matthew Henry
Quoted verses:
Acts 9:15
But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a
chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the
Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel:
Acts 9:17
And Ananias went his way, and entered into the
house; and putting his hands on him said, Brother
Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee
in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou
mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the
Holy Ghost.
Acts 22:10
And I said, What shall I do, Lord? And the Lord said
unto me, Arise, and go into Damascus; and there it
shall be told thee of all things which are appointed
for thee to do.
Acts 22:14-15
14 And he said, The God of our fathers hath chosen
thee, that thou shouldest know his will, and see
that Just One, and shouldest hear the voice of his
mouth.
15 For thou shalt be his witness unto all men of
what thou hast seen and heard.
Acts 22:17
And it came to pass, that, when I was come again to
Jerusalem, even while I prayed in the temple, I was
in a trance;
I gathered some items from the Biblical Illustrator.
This first one is simply an outline.
But hath in due times manifested His Word through
preaching
A timely revelation
I. A timely revelation—the purpose of salvation
through Christ Jesus.
II. A sacred trust—to preach the unsearchable riches
of Christ.
III. A divine commission—to preach “according to the
commandment of God.”
~Biblical Illustrator
Salvation revealed
I. That salvation is more clearly revealed than in
former ages appeareth in that all the time of the
law was but the infancy and nonage of the Church,
which then was as a child under tutors and
governors; and as a child was initiated in rudiments
and elements of Christian religion, and endued with
a small measure of knowledge and faith, because the
time was not come wherein the mysteries of Christ
were unfolded.
II. The Lord effecteth all His promises
and purposes in the due season of them.
III. The manifestation of salvation is to be sought
for in the preaching of the Word. Which point is
plain, in that the preaching of the Word is an
ordinance of God.
1. To make Christ known, in whose name alone
salvation is to be had.
2. To beget and confirm faith in the heart, by which
alone, as by an hand, we apprehend and apply Him
with His merits to our salvation.
~Biblical Illustrator
God’s Word manifested through preaching
I. The manifestation of God’s word. This was
gradually made to men—to all nations, both Jews and
Gentiles—in general, and to particular places. ~Biblical Illustrator
Notice this from the Popular commentary
New construction begins. What is ‘manifested’ is not
the ‘eternal life’ of Titus 1:2, but the ‘word.’ Yet
the sense is the same: the Gospel is the final
revelation of life eternal. Things promised are
still in part concealed; performance alone is full
manifestation.
Due times (rather, ‘proper
seasons’) denotes either, as in Galatians
4:4, an epoch in history when all things fitted, or
at God’s own time.
Former preferable.
Read ‘our Saviour God,’
a phrase of the Pastoral Epistles (see
marginal references). Saviour is applied
elsewhere to God only in Luke 1:47 (with Old
Testament reference) and Jude 25
~Popular commentary
[Emphasis mine]
Quoted
verses:
Galatians 4:4
But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent
forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
Luke 1:47
And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.
Jude 25
To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and
majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever.
Amen.
Notice this from the Pulpit commentary:
In his own seasons for hath due times, A.V.; in the
message for through preaching, A.V.; wherewith 1 was
entrusted for which is committed unto me, A.V. In
his own seasons. The margin, its own seasons, is
preferable (see 1 Timothy 2:7). The phrase is
equivalent to "the fullness of the time"
(Galatians4:4 ~quoted above).
Quoted verses:
1 Timothy 2:7 [see
Lesson]
Whereunto I am ordained a preacher, and an apostle,
(I speak the truth in Christ, and lie not;) a
teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity.
Manifested his Word.
There is a change of construction. "The relative
sentence passes almost imperceptibly into a primary
sentence"; "his Word" becomes the object of the verb
"made manifest," instead of "eternal life," as one
would have expected. His Word is the whole
revelation of the gospel, including the Person and
work of Jesus Christ. Compare Peter’s address to
Cornelius (Acts 10:36).
Quoted verse:
Acts 10:36
The word which God sent unto the children of Israel,
preaching peace by Jesus Christ: (he is Lord of
all:)
This "Word," which lay in the mind of God through
the ages, and was only dimly expressed in the
promises given from time to time (1 Peter 1:10-12),
was now "made manifest," and proclaimed openly in
that preaching of the gospel of God’s grace which
was entrusted to Paul. This same idea is frequently
expressed (see Romans 16:25; Ephesians 1:9-10.
~Pulpit commentary
Quoted verses:
1 Peter 1:10-12
10 Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and
searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace
that should come unto you:
11 Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit
of Christ which was in them did signify, when it
testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and
the glory that should follow.
12 Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto
themselves, but unto us they did minister the
things, which are now reported unto you by them that
have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy
Ghost [Spirit]
sent down from heaven; which things the angels
desire to look into.
Romans 16:25
Now to him that is of power to stablish you
according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus
Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery,
which was kept secret since the world began,
Ephesians 1:9-10
9 Having made known unto us the mystery of his will,
according to his good pleasure which he hath
purposed in himself:
10 That in the dispensation of the fulness of times
he might gather together in one all things in
Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on
earth; even in him:
Now to the specific commentaries:
Most commentaries I encountered broke the verse out
in four parts:
1] But hath in due times.
2] Manifested his word through preaching.
3] Which is committed unto me.
4] According to the commandment of God our Saviour.
1] But hath in
due times.
But hath in due times -
At the proper time; the time which he had intended;
the best time. ~Barnes
Notes
But hath in due times -
Καιροις ιδιοις· In its own times. God caused the
Gospel to be published in that time in which it
could be published with the greatest effect. It is
impossible that God should prematurely hasten, or
causelessly delay, the accomplishment of any of his
works. Jesus was manifested precisely at the time in
which that manifestation could best promote the
glory of God and the salvation of man. ~Adam Clarke
But hath in due times
manifested his word - Either Christ, his
essential Word; or the word of truth, the Gospel of
salvation; or rather his word of promise of eternal
life in Christ Jesus. ~John
Gill
And he hath in his own times
- At sundry times; and his own times are
fittest for his own work. What creature dares ask,
"Why no sooner?" ~John
Wesley Explanatory Notes
2] Manifested
his word through preaching.
Manifested his word -
Containing that promise, and the whole "truth which
is after godliness." ~John
Wesley Explanatory Notes
Through the preaching
wherewith I am intrusted according to the
commandment of God our Saviour - And who
dares exercise this office on any less authority?
~John Wesley Explanatory
Notes
Manifested - God has
manifested the eternal life promised by his word in
the gospel. ~People's New
Testament
Manifested his word through
preaching - The meaning here is, that he has
made known his eternal purpose through the preaching
of the gospel. ~Barnes
Notes
Manifested his word -
Τον λογον αὑτου· His doctrine - the doctrine of
eternal life, by the incarnation, passion, death,
and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
~Adam Clarke
Through preaching -
through the ministry of the word by the apostles; in
which Christ is revealed in the glory of his person,
and the fulness of his grace, and in the efficacy of
his blood, righteousness, and sacrifice; and in
which the Gospel, that was ordained before the world
was, and is the fellowship of the mystery which was
hid in God, is published; and in which the promise
of eternal life, which lay in God's heart, in the
covenant of grace, and in the hands of Christ, and
which with Christ, and his Gospel, were hid under
the dark types, shadows, and sacrifices of the law,
is clearly made known: "in due times"; appointed by
God, agreed between the Father and the Son, and
suitable to the state, case, and condition of men.
~John Gill
3] Which is
committed unto me.
Which is committed unto me
- Not exclusively, but in common with others; see 2
Timothy 1:11. ~Barnes Notes
Quoted verse:
2 Timothy 1:11 [see
Lesson]
Whereunto I am appointed a preacher, and an apostle,
and a teacher of the Gentiles.
Which is committed unto me
- That is, to preach it among the Gentiles.
~Adam Clarke
4] According to
the commandment of God our Saviour.
According to the commandment
of God our Saviour - Paul always claimed to
be divinely commissioned, and affirmed that he was
engaged in the work of preaching by the authority of
God; see 1 Corinthians 1:1.
~Barnes Notes
Quoted verse:
1 Corinthians 1:1
Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ
through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother.
According to the commandment
of God our Savior - This evidently refers to
the commission which he had received from Christ.
See Acts 9:15 : “He is a chosen vessel unto me, to
bear my name before the Gentiles.” For, “I have
appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a
minister and a witness both of these things which
thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I
will appear unto thee; delivering thee from the
people and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send
thee; to open their eyes, to turn them from darkness
to light." This is the commandment; and according to
it he became the apostle of the Gentiles.
~Adam Clarke
Recap:
1] God's purpose for all humanity was always one of
salvation.
2] God first desire is to save.
3] Your eyes, mind and heart are blessed by seeing and
reading the gospel.
4] True ministers have a calling of God to preach the
gospel of salvation.
5] All firstfruits have a calling and are called to
specific purpose.
6] God saves all humans through His Son, Jesus
Christ.
7] The Word of God is manifested by its preaching.
That preaching is about salvation and salvation is
about eternal life.
8] Salvation is revealed by preaching and immersion
in the Word of God.
9] God does all things in His timing, according to
His will and all His ways are perfect.
10] Christ, the Word of God, the word of truth and
the gospel of salvation and eternal life is in Jesus
Christ.
These are the lessons and truths of verse 3.
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