Ponderings by Andrea: ‘The Titus Mandate’ by Ted Bigelow

The Lord warns us that we need to be aware of wolves in sheep’s clothing (Matthew 7:15) – “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.” In his book, ‘The Titus Mandate,’ Ted Bigelow shows us how to spot the wolves and protect yourself and those you love from this effective satanic tactic.

Here is information on ‘The Titus Mandate:’

The church is supposed to be the safest place on earth for Christians, so why is it often a place of deep dissatisfaction? Many Christians suffer from difficult church situations and are unsure how to live and worship with such stress, let alone grow in the midst of it. Much of this pain comes from being under poor church leadership. According to Ted Bigelow, if your church doesn’t follow God’smandate for leadership as set out in the book of Titus, it is almost certainly headed for disaster.

All Christians want to be a part of a safe and godly church so that they can invest in its ministries and mission without fear or compromise. Yet thousands of real churches, perhaps yours, have been infiltrated by dangerous men. Many Christians have been so hurt by these wolves that they have left church, vowing never to return. Other sheep, unaware of what they are witnessing week by week, pay the wolves to preach their error.

In The Titus Mandate, readers will follow Paul’s special attaché Titus on his treacherous mission to the Mediterranean island of Crete. You’ll learn for yourself what Titus experienced as he went toe-to-toe with the wolves, carrying out God’s very public mission to rescue Christians and churches from danger. Paul’s journey will teach you to spot the wolves and protect yourself and those you love from Satan’s most prolific form of spiritual peril.

Through reading this book, Christians will be equipped to:

· Understand the biblical reasons for most negative church experiences and gain scriptural wisdom about their church trials.

· Trust in the Lord whose wisdom brings such trials into His children’s lives, enabling them to move forward in their walks with Christ.

· Discern safe churches from unsafe churches.

· Participate in church in a way that draws them closer to the Lord.

Taking the truth from Scripture and applying it in the church is easier said than done, so The Titus Mandate provides specific instruction on how to live out God’s principles that make church a secure place. One’s confidence in church will be restored as God’s ways are explained, applied, and contrasted with those ways that bring danger. The Titus Mandate is a rescue plan for Christians and their churches. Readers will be able to feel confident that the leadership they have chosen will be trustworthy shepherds for their families.

Here is the biography of this author:

Ted Bigelow is Senior Pastor of Grace Church in Hartford, CT, USA. He holds the Master of Divinity and Master of Theology degrees from The Master’s Seminary and a Doctorate from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Here is a Question and Answer session with Pastor Bigelow:

Q: Your book discusses how so many have been hurt by the church today. Have you had any personal experiences that affected your knowledge of this?

Indeed! One time especially. Now I can say, many years later, that I am thankful to the Lord for this, but at the time I was hurt, confused, and there was no one to go to for counsel.

I had been so scared to bring up the issue I had with a pastor in our church that I had waited a year to speak to him. When I did, my own pastor hung up on me, and I was devastated! There were other men who were leaders in that church, so I went to one of them and asked for his help, but he told me that this problem shouldn’t get in the way of the pastor’s successful ministry. I didn’t share the issue with anybody else but, when I tried to talk to the pastor again privately, he and the other leaders literally kicked me and my wife out of church. That really hurt us, and it took several years of being under godly leaders before my heart sort of thawed and began to see perhaps why the Lord allowed us to go through that. The pastor left ministry soon after and, sadly, many aspects of his life fell apart.

Q: Who is qualified to be a shepherd in the church? Where are these qualifications found in Scripture?

Before any man can serve the Lord in church leadership, he must meet a list of 26 requirements in his life. When a man meets all these requirements, he is to be recognized by the sheep as a truly qualified shepherd. The list is found in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1. It is stringent and weeds out a lot of men who might like to be church leaders. But this list also motivates men to become more like Christ, the True Shepherd of the flock. It provides a God-given target for men to aim their lives and ministry. Furthermore, this list is the same for every church in every culture, because every man who grows in Christ-likeness looks more and more like the qualities of this list.

Q: How does a great church begin to lose the Gospel?

A great church loses the Gospel by violating God’s word on safety and protection. You see, when a great church makes its decisions using the world’s methods, the sheep treat each other in a worldly way. Instead of preferring each other as more important than one’s self, church decisions are made selfishly, instead of in the manner of preference (Philippians 2:3-4).

Furthermore, a great church marks its own obsolescence when it makes leadership positions a matter of popular vote and not biblical qualification. Leaders are relegated to consultancy not shepherding, while their policies are up for public review and possible censure. The kind of men who succeed well at popularity are never those who confront sin and error, and yet this is exactly what God requires from a leader.

The Titus Mandate relieves the stress of complying with the world’s methods and enables both sheep and shepherds to put into motion all the competency and power God’s Word grants them.

Q: What is the priesthood of the believer and why is it needed in the church today?

Like a little pill that eradicates a deadly disease, the priesthood of every individual believer is a tool of healing in your church in the hands of a mighty God. Just as Jesus has made all Christians “a kingdom, priests to his God and Father” (Revelation 1:6), so we are “being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood” (1 Peter 2:5). We offer ourselves to Him in prayer and obedience. Only a church that pursues obedience to God in all things is a safe church for the priest of Jesus Christ. The priest of Jesus Christ must represent Him and say, “No compromise allowed!”

Where there is compromise, the believer has authority to call the church to obey Christ’s Word because he or she is empowered by their mighty priesthood. It is an honor bestowed by Christ upon every genuine Christian and authorizes each Christian to demand that God’s Word is obeyed in every aspect of personal and church life. Without believers living up to their priesthood, every church corrupts itself.

Q: Will my church be void of disagreements if it follows the model of leadership from Titus?

No church will be void of disagreements in this life but, in spite of our tendency to disagree, Jesus Christ nonetheless commands us:

“…that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment” (1 Cor. 1:10).

In order for that to happen, we need to live together in a church that, first, has a single leadership team—the kind commanded by Paul in The Titus Mandate. Secondly, we need a way of handling our disagreements so that everybody submits their own roles and responsibilities to Scripture, not personal preference. Since God shows us who and how decisions are to be made in His church, we need to esteem His ways in Scripture as higher than our own.

Q: How can readers find a church that follows the guidelines for leadership as expressed in The Titus Mandate?

It’s actually really easy; in fact, you can find out in two questions. First, ask if the leaders are appointed by the qualifications in Scripture or by votes. And second, ask if the leaders must receive approval from other people before they can make a decision. If they must do this, they don’t have the authority God wants true elders to have.

You can order this book here.

This book was published by CreateSpace and provided by The B & B Media Group for review/promotional purposes.