Titus 1:16, commentary and pictures

To claim to know God while the life contradicts the claim is to deny Him by conduct, for outward profession, hearing truth and religious forms are nothing unless the life matches the words. True knowledge of Him requires His mind and Spirit within, a sanctified humble heart whose inward grace appears in blameless conduct, heavenly conversation and visible fruits of righteousness, peace and love. The verse describes a very large company who take the Christian name and count themselves His chosen people with great light and privilege, including members, workers and leaders, yet remain unsanctified, with carnal hearts and no imitation of Christ's self-denying life. That denial is shown chiefly in actions such as idolatry of money and possessions, dishonesty in handling what belongs to God, conformity to the world in pleasure and display, corrupt speech and temper, licentiousness, neglect of the poor and suffering, and resistance to the Spirit. Such a life dishonors God more than open rebellion, becomes a stumbling-block and reproach to truth, and must be sharply rebuked and put away, with the call to come out and be separate, fall broken on the Rock, and show true profession by obedience, benevolence and self-denying love.

Profession and Denial Defined

To profess to know God while the conduct contradicts that claim is to deny Him in works, for outward profession alone is never enough unless the life matches it. Hearing and seeing the truth, religious ceremony, and confession with the lips do not prove knowledge of God when actions oppose the principles of truth and righteousness professed. Those who claim Christ's name yet bear no image of His character deny Him day by day, retaining traits that mark service to the enemy rather than to Christ, and if Christ controlled them their lives would represent Him and the Father. Seeing and hearing truth with great light and clear argument is insufficient when its claims are not understood in a life-changing way, obeyed, and allowed to sanctify; mistaking religious form for the spirit and power of godliness leads to false confidence that God accepts works even while sinning against Him, hiding true spiritual poverty and lack of His saving presence. Teaching or hearing the truth must therefore be shown sound through upright conduct and good works, since a disobedient life is morally corrupt and unfit for every good work.

True confession of God requires His mind and Spirit dwelling within, shaping the life by His character and by truth's purifying influence. It demands a sanctified, humble, submissive heart whose inward grace and truth appear outwardly in blameless conduct, heavenly conversation, humility, and visible fruits of righteousness, peace, and love. Words of humility and love without daily conduct governed by grace do not truly confess Christ, for conduct must express the grace and truth within. Love of ease or self, seeking worldly honor, joking, prideful appearance, costly clothing, conformity to the world, unkind or dishonest speech, selfishness, neglect of duties, sinful pleasure, discourtesy, self-justification, self-pity, and an impatient, passionate spirit in the family instead deny Christ. Such denial occurs when the heart lacks an indwelling Saviour and remains the stronghold of the enemy, where idols are established, the place of truth is occupied by a deceptive spirit, carnal lusts and the mind of the deceiver are revealed, remuneration is much thought of, spiritual discernment is lost so sacred and common are leveled, and cold formal service is called religion while Christ is not formed within as the hope of glory, showing the foundation was never laid on the sure Rock or the purging from old leaven by the blood of the Son of God was forgotten.

Denial is made not by open words of denial but chiefly by actions, and includes denial in word and in action and in method as well as deed. A mind absorbed by commercialism and turned away from Christ, coming under control of other human minds and eclipsing His light, makes such a denial. It treats with indifference subjects needing clear presentation to the people, fails to seek and save perishing souls entrusted as blood-bought, leaves darkness to cover the earth and gross darkness the people, and turns away from the preparation essential for the last days without realizing where one stands in God's sight. This denial is also pharisaism and self-righteousness, turning thoughts and feelings against one another, cherishing evil surmising, claiming to know more than brethren, lacking humble Christian politeness and respect in rising up and sitting down and going out and coming in, failing to help the downcast and bind up the brokenhearted, fashioning self by imagination, and becoming a vessel unto dishonor of whom Christ is ashamed to call brethren.

Judas exemplifies this denial, for he professed to be Christ's disciple and had the form of godliness while denying Him in both words and works. His outward profession did not reflect a godly character, but a character opposed to Christ. Yielding to temptation and dishonesty showed he was not transformed by divine grace.

A profession of holiness, sanctification, childhood of God, or power to secure God's promises and kingdom is false when the life contradicts it. Ministers claiming sanctification while transgressing God's law and committing evil acts deny their profession by corrupt lives, with pious appearance concealing deception and wrongdoing. Thousands profess to be children of God while not knowing Jesus Christ nor the Father, but no one can be a child of God while choosing his own way and doing as he pleases; being a whole-hearted Christian requires rational understanding, bringing the whole soul and mind into captivity to Jesus Christ, forsaking all sin, and serving the Lord with undivided affections. Profession of faith without repentance and good fruit has no power to secure God's promises or a place in Christ's kingdom unless justice, benevolence, mercy, and love of God appear in daily life.

Words and Their Sense

To profess to know God is to claim to follow Christ and to believe His Word and make it the rule of action, while to deny Him in works is to have a practice not in harmony with profession, being unchristlike in words, in spirit, and in business dealings. It is claiming godliness while living in much ungodliness, pretending to be saints while acting like the worst sinners, and using the name of Christian as a cloak to hide evil deeds. This course brings dishonor upon the name of Christ and upon His church, brings reproach upon the truth of God, and encourages others to go astray. Many today miss the higher standing they could occupy because their practice contradicts their profession, and only by experiencing the power of divine grace can a person become pure and elevated.

Those so described are blessed with great opportunities and privileges as members of churches and workers in God's service, who ought to act as children of the light and subjects of Christ's kingdom and stand faithful and just and true to principle. Instead they act as worldlings, governed by the same spirit that governs worldlings, letting worldliness and earthliness predominate, turning aside from the commands of God, carrying the principles of the world into their work and introducing worldly policy, then attempting to justify their course. Maxims and principles born in the natural heart pollute the places where God's Spirit should dwell, and deceived by their own hearts, they teach for doctrine the commandments of men and measure themselves by themselves. The lynx-eyed world sees the inconsistency and scorns the pretense of those who claim to believe the day of the Lord is near and hasteth greatly, while by ungodly lives they are preparing for their own destruction.

To be abominable and disobedient is to live a morally corrupt, evil, disobedient life that dishonors God and brings reproach on the truth. Outward profession is not enough, for those who teach or hear the truth must show its soundness through upright conduct and good works. Profession without godly works is denial of God, and profession of faith does not excuse conduct that dishonors Him.

To be reprobate unto every good work is to be void of judgment and unfit for any good work. Without God's saving grace a person cannot withstand temptation or be fit for any good work. Conviction and knowledge of truth alone do not make a person obedient, for people may witness God's power and have their understanding convinced and conscience aroused, yet refuse to yield their will to God.

Setting and Persons Described

The verse stands joined to the declaration just before it that to the pure all things are pure, but to the defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure, even mind and conscience being defiled. It exposes unruly and vain talkers and deceivers whose mouths must be stopped. Profession without godly works is itself the denial it names.

It describes people who see and hear the truth under great light and privilege, with clear arguments and the right foundation, who count themselves God's chosen peculiar people. Yet they do not recognize its claims upon them and are not sanctified by it. They mistake the form of godliness for its spirit and power, and remain falsely confident that God accepts and favors them. With many the love of the world and with others the deceitfulness of riches has choked the word, leaving them unfruitful and in great darkness without His presence and power to save from temptation and folly, though the light itself has not diminished.

It describes a very large company who take the Christian name and believe in Jesus, His crucifixion and His resurrection. Their faith provokes no good works and leads to no imitation of Christ's self-denying life. Their hearts remain carnal, hiding deformity under the Christian name and passing along with unsanctified natures and evil passions unsubdued. Their belief is no more than the faith of Satan and his angels, who fully believe and tremble.

In the last days it applies to a large class of professors, including names on the church roll, church members, workers, ministers, physicians, and others in responsible places and leadership. They claim conversion, membership, and knowledge of God while living unsanctified, disbelieving lives. Blessed with great opportunities and privileges, they ought to act as children of light and subjects of Christ's kingdom, faithful and just and true to principle, but instead act as worldlings governed by the same spirit that governs worldlings. Their empty profession shows dim perception of the true spiritual condition, keeps back greater light, and leaves them satisfied without evidence that God is truly among them to save from Satan's snares.

How Denial Appears in Life

Denial appears as idolatry of money, houses, lands and possessions, for selfishness and covetousness are idolatry and treating entrusted goods as one's own for self-glorification makes professors idolaters, apostates and worshipers of mammon whose profession God records as false. Though not bowing literally before treasure, they worship it as god, offer to the things of this world the homage due to God, withhold entrusted wealth from benevolent use, and live as His almoners in name only. Love of riches makes wealthy professors selfish, demanding and overbearing and weakens what is noble and Godlike in them, while leaving home and foreign missions without needed support. A true profession is shown in deeds that serve God and benefit others, not in a claim contradicted by works.

Denial appears as dishonesty and unfaithfulness in handling what belongs to God, failing to live by the principles of the law professed and taught. It includes handling the Lord's goods dishonestly, using entrusted means for personal or family expenses, borrowing without plan to repay, prevarication in business, laziness and indolence which are not fruits of Christian life, and works that reveal character as the basis of judgment. It includes professing belief in Jesus' coming yet giving little or nothing to God, refusing adequate sacrifice, for each lives out the faith actually held and Jesus knows works and rejects selfish meager offerings. Profession must be matched by changed character and faithful conduct, for claiming to keep the commandments does not make the claim true.

Denial appears as conformity to the world instead of separation from its customs, maxims, sentiments, fashions and influence. It is selfishness, love of pleasure and dress, worldly show and display, frivolity, cheap conversation, want of high-toned piety and low aims that mislead others, with plainness abandoned in dress, simple healthful food, and modest homes and furnishings. Physicians deny Christ when they put on outward show to reach higher classes and appear as physicians of the world, exalting self and departing from godliness, saying by works that they want their own way and not His, in contrast to Christ's humiliation and sacrifice to save suffering humanity. Such worldliness stupefies God's people, weakens gospel influence so others are less likely to believe, and the failure of the message is not for lack of Heaven's blessings but because conduct conflicts with profession. Those who profess conversion and membership yet follow their own imaginations and the world's pattern deny the Christ they claim to follow, and imitating Christ means being separate from all sin.

Denial appears in speech, temper and spirit, in speaking evil, foolish, unkind, false or dishonest words, gossip, envy, malice, pride, joking, complaining, touchiness, impatience, discourtesy, self-justification, self-pity, sentimental thoughts, neglect of duties and sinful quarrels and division. Christ is denied not only by words but by character lacking His spirit, by avoiding duties, seeking sinful pleasure, pride, worldliness, and by temper, manner, complaining spirit and even facial expression that testify against faith and make efforts to win loved ones ineffective. When church members are consumed by division instead of laboring in love to win sinners, their conduct misrepresents the faith and deceives sinners. True confession requires His mind and Spirit within, a sanctified humble submissive heart whose grace and truth appear in daily conduct governed by God, for words of humility and love are not enough.

Denial appears as licentiousness, adultery, gratifying the lusts of the flesh, and violating physical law and the Bible standard. Professing truth while practicing such indulgence disobeys God and makes persons unfit for every good work. Deliberate gratification cannot coexist with being Christ's servant, and profession without agreement with God's revealed will shows the claim false and out of God's favor.

Denial appears as failure to reflect Christ's character toward the poor, suffering and sinful, disregarding their needs, suffering and rights and putting selfish interests first. Calling oneself Christian while not loving, serving and obeying Him reveals lack of true godliness and principle and leaves professors spiritually dark rather than lights to the world. Such conduct discredits Christianity and causes the Lord's name to be blasphemed. Knowing God is shown by obedience and a life of active benevolence and brotherly love, not by selfishness, complaining, frivolous talk, preferring worldly amusements and resisting self-denial.

Denial appears as listening to Satan's counsels while claiming to follow Christ, professing Him in words and denying Him in works. It means transgressing God's laws, despising the precepts of Jehovah, fighting His government, making void Christ's order, resisting His grace, and bringing in disorder and unrighteousness. Those who do this are counted unconverted, unsanctified and unholy, without truth in their lips, showing by guile, dissembling and open falsehood an influence that destroys the virtue of truth.

Denial appears as absorption by commercialism, coming under control of other minds, eclipsing Christ's light, treating with indifference subjects needing clear presentation, and failing to seek and save perishing souls. It appears as spending on personal gratification instead of the work of sharing truth, which misrepresents Christ's religion and contradicts the claim that the end is near, leaving vulnerability to deception unless there is repentance and return to first works. It appears when attention is taken by objects that conceal God, with idolatry entering the churches, heathen idols obscuring the view of God, and true worship mingled with self-worship. Those entrusted with blood-bought souls who so turn away do not realize where they stand and are turned from the preparation essential for the last days, leaving darkness to cover the earth.

Denial appears as pharisaism and self-righteousness, turning thoughts and feelings against brethren, cherishing evil surmising, claiming superior knowledge, lacking humble politeness and respect, failing to help the downcast and bind up the brokenhearted, and fashioning self by imagination into a vessel unto dishonor. It appears as being forward in controversy over points of faith while asleep to holiness, purity from iniquity, sober righteous godly living and perfection like the Father, with apathy that makes prayer worthless while iniquity is regarded in the heart. It even appears as using faith as excuse for wrongs such as depriving children of education, where conduct contradicts the plea not to deny faith by works. Unless there is thorough conversion and decided change contrasting with Christ's life, such deniers grow weary of reproof, less susceptible to the Spirit, blinded, lacking wisdom, self-control, moral power and zeal, and finally apostatize entirely.

Denial appears as resisting the Spirit, cherishing and talking unbelief, rejecting the Word and sent messages, and growing like Laodicea into worse condition than if the message had never come. It means claiming godliness while living in much ungodliness, with practice not in harmony with profession, though blessed with great opportunities and privileges as members, workers, ministers, physicians and others in responsible places who ought to act as children of light. Instead they act as worldlings governed by the world's spirit, letting worldliness predominate, turning from God's commands, carrying worldly policy into His work, teaching commandments of men, measuring self by self, and polluting where His Spirit should dwell. Unbelief so revealed in life, conduct and character works like a canker, deceiving the unfaithful and encouraging them in sin. The watching world sees the inconsistency and scorns the pretense of those who claim the day of the Lord hastens greatly while by ungodly lives preparing for destruction.

Denial appears as a lax loose Christian life far behind practiced principles, with strict integrity toward God rare and little spiritual strength. There are many professors but few who do not deny Christ daily in practical life, showing dishonesty toward God though everything has been done to make them Christians in practice as well as name. Self-denial must be practiced and the cross borne at every step, lying low at its foot and cultivating faith, fervor, humility, meekness and lowliness, that God may be glorified in all said and done.

Seriousness and Results

To bear Christ's name while failing to live circumspectly and be sanctified by the professed truth dishonors Him more than open rebellion and brings greater condemnation. A very large company merely assumes the Christian name while the heart remains carnal, believing in Jesus, His crucifixion and resurrection yet with no more than the faith of Satan and his angels who believe and tremble, provoked to no good works and to no imitation of His self-denying life, hiding deformity and unsanctified nature and unsubdued evil passion under that name so that God does not recognize them as His and has no pleasure in them, and Satan can use them better than if they made no profession. Cherishing selfishness, pride, envy, malice, gossip and other sins contradicts the profession of knowing God and shows no acquaintance with Him and no obedience to Christ, so that such prayers are an abomination to the Lord and it would be better not to profess the truth than to disgrace it by the life.

Such inconsistency becomes a stumbling-block that harms those who might have been helped, misrepresents the truth, discourages others from standing for God by giving the false impression that following Christ makes the condition worse, repels instead of winning, and leads others astray. Being asleep to Christianity while forward in controversy over points of faith is a perilous, reckless position that draws others into the same path, with apathy toward holiness, purity from iniquity, and sober, righteous, godly living and perfection like the Father in heaven.

Calling oneself a Christian while failing to reflect Christ's character by disregarding the needs, suffering and rights of the poor, suffering and sinful makes the profession false, betrays Christ, discredits Christianity and causes the Lord's name to be blasphemed. Pretending to be saints while acting like the worst sinners, using the Christian name as a cloak to hide evil deeds in words, spirit and business dealings, brings dishonor upon Christ and His church, brings reproach upon the truth of God, and encourages others to go astray. When those blessed with great opportunities and privileges, as members of churches and workers in God's service who ought to act as children of light and subjects of Christ's kingdom faithful and just and true to principle, instead act as worldlings governed by the same spirit, letting worldliness and earthliness predominate, turning from God's commands, carrying worldly principles and policy into the work, teaching for doctrine the commandments of men and measuring themselves by themselves, the lynx-eyed world sees the inconsistency and scorns the pretense of those claiming the day of the Lord is near while by ungodly lives preparing for destruction.

The condition is great darkness and unfruitfulness, even while counting themselves God's chosen peculiar people on the right foundation with clear truth and powerful arguments, because they lack His presence and power to save from yielding to temptation and folly, with the love of the world in many and the deceitfulness of riches in others choking the word. Empty profession that fails to make life correspond with profession, satisfied without evidence that God is truly among them to save from Satan's snares and attacks and failing in love and respect shown in kind words and courteous actions, reveals dim perception of the true spiritual condition, keeps back greater light, dishonors Christ and disgraces the Christian name. Being far behind in practicing professed principles leaves little spiritual strength, with lax and loose Christian life, rare strict integrity, daily practical denial of Christ and dishonesty toward God, though everything has been done to make professors Christians in practice as well as name. Unless there is thorough conversion and decided change of character, regarding iniquity in the heart makes prayer worthless, and those who so deny Christ will grow weary of reproof, less susceptible to the Spirit, blinded, lacking wisdom, self-control, moral power and zeal, and will finally apostatize entirely.

Preachers who present important truths and then join in pleasure and frivolity contradict their profession of knowing God, make it ineffective, comfort the unrepentant, bring contempt on the ministry, and become responsible for the harm their influence does to souls. Professing to know God while holding a worldly attitude of desire for show and display, worldly policy and conformity to the world denies Him in works by fruits, example and influence directly opposed to the Word and to Christ's example, marring the work God would do, proving an unsafe leader, exerting a deleterious influence on fellow workers that must be counteracted by men of experience, and giving Satan advantage to scatter away from Christ.

Rebuke Discipline and Remedy

Titus 1:16 stands with the declaration that to the pure all things are pure but to the defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure, even mind and conscience being defiled, and it identifies unruly and vain talkers and deceivers whose mouths must be stopped as those who profess to know God but in works deny Him, being void of judgment, abominable and disobedient and unfit for every good work. Faithful ministers must rebuke such persons sharply that they may be sound in the faith, calling sin by its right name and laying it plainly before the wrongdoer in order to maintain order in the church instead of letting sin pass as righteousness. Shunning that unpleasant duty leaves the blood of souls on their garments, and this rebuke applies to workers in every department whose iniquity, dishonesty, and selfish earthly ambition for place and money bring religion down to a low level, who first neglect God's warnings, then despise them, then stubbornly assail them, and to one who from blindness makes serious charges against ministers who have dealt with his case after being reproved.

The Word must be applied not merely in preaching but in ministering with faithful personal labor to reprove, correct, and reclaim the erring, for inside the church are busybodies speaking evil, sowing doubt and unbelief, paying no heed to light, counterworking Christ's minister, murmuring, finding fault, and sowing disaffection and division that dishonor God's name, break unity, defile the church, and sap its life. If after the steps required by Christ they will not listen and change their course, they and those who persist in sympathizing with them must be separated or suspended from fellowship and not allowed to continue their evil influence with the sanction of the church, in order to preserve order and unity and set the church in order. The test of discipleship, already at baptism, is whether they give evidence they fully understand their position and take their stand on the Lord's side as true faithful stewards of grace; those who show worldliness by selfishness, love of pleasure and dress, frivolity, cheap conversation, want of high-toned piety, and following the customs, fashions, and sentiments of the world are to be faithfully dealt with, and if they feel no burden to change they should not be retained as members.

The call is to come out from the world and be separate and touch not the unclean, putting on the Lord Jesus Christ and making no provision for the flesh at whatever cost or humiliation, if eternal life would be inherited. Self-denial must be practiced and the cross borne at every step for one's own good, for the good of others, and for the glory of God, lying low at the foot of the cross and cultivating faith by exercising faith, with fervor, humility, meekness, and lowliness of mind, so that God is glorified in all said and done, for many professors are lax and loose and far behind in practicing principles, rare in strict integrity and dishonest toward God despite all God has done to make them Christians in practice as well as name. The remedy for denial by pharisaism and self-righteousness, which turns thoughts and feelings against brethren, cherishes evil surmising, claims superior knowledge, lacks humble politeness in rising and sitting and going out and coming in, fails to help the downcast and bind up the brokenhearted, fashions self by imagination, and leaves one a vessel unto dishonor of whom Christ is ashamed to call brethren, is full consecration that lets the plowshare go deep to uproot self, sees nothing righteous in self, dreads sin, falls on the Rock broken, keeps Christ daily before the mind, remembers sinners as Christ's blood-bought purchase for whom He bridged the gulf by dying on Calvary, and then lets Christ mold the broken one into a vessel of honor.

True profession is shown by a new truthful life whose words are faithful and whose good works express Christlike character through perfect obedience, active benevolence, brotherly love, self-denial, sacrifice, meekness, lowliness, and purity, with an intense desire to become like Jesus. Truth must become reality in daily life, entering the heart to drive out self-love, self-indulgence, impatience, touchiness, and pride; those who claim to love truth but do not practice its principles lose influence and withhold the service Christ purchased, while selfishness, complaining, frivolous talk, preferring worldly amusements, and resisting self-denial expose a false profession. Against idolatrous denial, where attention taken by objects conceals God from view and the spirit of idolatry enters with heathen idols between heaven and earth and the incense of true worship mingled with self-worship, God calls for sincere heart-worship with the door to light and intelligent knowledge open to every sincere worker, offered in faith and hope with life in harmony, requiring devotion of heart, mind, soul, and strength, the noblest powers used in homage, thoughts conformed to His will and affections sanctified to His service.