16 But thank God! He has given Titus the same enthusiasm for you that I have. 17 Titus welcomed our request that he visit you again. In fact, he himself was very eager to go and see you. 18 We are also sending another brother with Titus. All the churches praise him as a preacher of the Good News. 19 He was appointed by the churches to accompany us as we take the offering to Jerusalem—a service that glorifies the Lord and shows our eagerness to help.
20 We are traveling together to guard against any criticism for the way we are handling this generous gift. 21 We are careful to be honorable before the Lord, but we also want everyone else to see that we are honorable.
22 We are also sending with them another of our brothers who has proven himself many times and has shown on many occasions how eager he is. He is now even more enthusiastic because of his great confidence in you. 23 If anyone asks about Titus, say that he is my partner who works with me to help you. And the brothers with him have been sent by the churches, and they bring honor to Christ. 24 So show them your love, and prove to all the churches that our boasting about you is justified.
Terrie's Comments:
The thing that stands out over and over again in Paul's writing is how much he shows honor to those around him and how much he encourages others to to do the same. I am pretty sure that none of these men were perfect and could have been picked apart because they are human beings but Paul demonstrates what unity in the body of Christ is supposed to look like practically by the way he writes to the churches he is shepherding! In North America our world is quick to criticize the bad and slow to bring honor to the good in people. We could learn a few things from Paul about how to honor our brothers and sisters in Christ. Perhaps if we can learn to honor each other for the sake of Jesus Christ then it would be true that they would know we are Christians by our love and our love would draw them in.
Tori's Comments:
It's interesting that he puts so much thought into how he is perceived: not because he cares about people's opinion of him, but more because he wants to assure other believers and glorify God.
Take our personal comments or leave them. We would love to hear what stood out to you about today`s passage and how it encouraged you. Tell us in the comments below!
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Please keep all comments respectful. We want to remember that each of us is at a different place in our walk with God. This is a place for us to share openly about what has been revealed to us as we open up Gods word and to learn from others. Please take every opportunity possible to build each other up in love :-)