Tabletalk magazine - a helpful tool for Bible study

I have been a subscriber to Tabletalk since, oh, 1998 or so, and it's been a wonderful help for me in my daily Bible study and reading. Monday through Friday, there's a meditation on a verse or three - and TTalk usually goes through books of the Bible each year (this year it's 1 Timothy, Titus, and 2 Timothy), or focuses on some of the transcendent doctrines of Christianity, like faith or grace or justification. The weekend has a slightly longer commentary which frequently ties the past week together or looks forward to what next week's study teaches. There is a plan for reading through the Bible in a year, as well as additional Scripture references to add to the day's lesson.

I've found it to be a sound and helpful resource, and I'm very grateful to the staff at Ligonier for writing and publishing it!

This morning's reading (well, yesterday's and today's go together) is Titus 1:1-4 -

Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the sake of the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth, which accords with godliness, in hope of eternal life, which God, who never lies, promised before the ages began and at the proper time manifested in his word through the preaching with which I have been entrusted by the command of God our Savior;

To Titus, my true child in a common faith:

Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.

The meditation-commentary for today was so helpful to me that I'm going to reproduce it in full, and hope that TTalk doesn't object (if they do, I will certainly remove it!). But I hope it blesses you as it did me - and perhaps you'll look into a subscription to this fine magazine!

Even the opening salutations of Paul's epistles are theologically rich, ad his letter to Titus is no exception. When we look at Titus 1:1-4, we find several doctrinal themes that will reappear throughout the epistle. First of all, we find Paul's emphasis on God's authority and how it functions in the ministry of the apostle. Paul does not choose to be the Lord's appointed herald but is compelled to go forth as His messenger on account of the decree of "God our Savior" (vv. 1-3). Consequently, the eternal life our Creator promised "before the ages began" becomes the possession  of the elect [remember my exegesis of Romans 5:1?] as they trust in the preaching of Paul's gospel, which is the Word of God itself (Rom. 1:1; 16:25; 1 Cor. 1:18-25).

Likewise note the high Christology (doctrine of Christ)  displayed in Titus 1:1-4: Both the Creator God and Christ Jesus are called "our Savior," clearly identifying the Father and Son as equal in authority and glory. This text, among many others, helps us to see that Jesus is the incarnation of the Almighty and therefore truly God as well as truly an. Moreover, applying the title savior to Jesus implicitly denounces all other pretenders. In an age when the Roman emperor was increasingly deified and hailed as "savior," Paul's use of the title exclusively for the Father and the Son reminded his readers of the identity of the true Lord over all creation/ Today we also deny the false deities in our culture and across the world when we call upon Jesus as the Savior (Isa. 43:11).

Third, Paul's reference to salvation being manifested "at the proper time" sows us how the work of Jesus forms the center of human history. Kairos [καιρός, Strong's G2540] , the Greek word for "time" in Titus 1:3, is the term used for events of great significance, not the ordinary passage of time. The gospel arrived at the proper kairos, at the time God appointed for its arrival (Gal. 4:4), and now we look back on the cross as the center point of history, much as the old covenant saints looked forward to their ultimate redemption. 

Finally, note Paul's identification of Titus as his "true child in a common faith" (Titus 1:4). Blood ties were important to Paul, but for him our true, eternal family in Christ supercedes mere physical relationships.

1. God is in control; He is sovereign.
2. Christ Jesus is our God and Savior.
3. God's timing is perfect and exact.
4. God's family is eternal.

Four truths to think about, today and for a long time. Do you wonder why I value this magazine so much?