“For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee:”
My Notes
What Does Titus 1:5 Mean?
Titus 1:5 reveals that Paul's letter to Titus isn't a theological treatise — it's a construction manual for an unfinished church: "For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee."
The phrase "set in order the things that are wanting" — epidiorthōsē ta leiponta — means to correct what's deficient, to straighten what's crooked, to complete what's been left unfinished. The church in Crete existed — Paul had planted it — but it wasn't finished. The structure was incomplete. The leadership was uninstalled. The problems were unaddressed. Paul left Titus behind specifically to do the work Paul couldn't complete himself. Titus is the finisher.
"Ordain elders in every city" — katastēsēs presbuterous kata polin — establishes the structural priority: leadership in every community. Not one centralized leader for all of Crete. Elders (plural) in every city. The model is distributed leadership — multiple leaders in each location, providing mutual accountability, shared wisdom, and protection against the concentration of power in a single person. Paul didn't leave Titus to run Crete himself. He left him to install leaders who would run it after he was gone. The goal of Titus's assignment was to make Titus unnecessary. Plant the leaders. Set the order. Move on.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Where are you called to 'set in order the things that are wanting' — to finish, repair, or organize rather than pioneer?
- 2.How does the distributed leadership model (elders plural, every city) challenge the single-leader structure you might be accustomed to?
- 3.Have you been waiting for someone else to organize the mess — when the Titus assignment might be yours?
- 4.What does it look like to make yourself unnecessary — to install the leaders and structure that will function after you're gone?
Devotional
Set in order the things that are wanting. That's the assignment. Not build something from scratch. Fix what's unfinished. The church in Crete already existed. The foundation was laid. The people were there. But the structure was incomplete, the leadership was missing, and the problems were multiplying because nobody had been appointed to address them. Titus's job: finish what was started.
If you've ever walked into a church, a ministry, a team, or a family system and thought "this is a mess" — Titus is your predecessor. He didn't get the glamorous assignment. He got the repair job. The church that existed but wasn't ordered. The community that had faith but not structure. The people who knew Jesus but didn't have leaders to guide them. Titus's calling wasn't to pioneer. It was to organize. And that kind of work is unglamorous, essential, and often invisible.
Ordain elders in every city. Not one elder for the whole island. Multiple leaders in every location. Paul's model for church health isn't a single charismatic leader running everything. It's distributed authority — several qualified people sharing the weight in each community. The model protects against burnout (no one person carries everything), against corruption (multiple leaders hold each other accountable), and against cult of personality (the church doesn't depend on one human being's presence or gifting).
If you're the one fixing what's unfinished — cleaning up what someone else left incomplete, installing the structure that should have been there from the beginning, doing the organizing work nobody celebrates — Titus 1:5 is your commissioning verse. The work isn't glamorous. It's necessary. And Paul trusted Titus with it because the finishers are as important as the founders.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
For this cause left I thee in Crete,.... Not in his voyage to Rome, Act 27:7 but rather when he came from Macedonia into…
For this cause left I thee in Crete - Compare the notes, 1Ti 1:3. On the situation of Crete, see the Introduction,…
For this cause left I thee in Crete - That St. Paul had been in Crete, though nowhere else intimated, is clear from this…
Here is the end expressed,
I. More generally: For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldst set in order the…
Commission of Titus, generally, and in regard to Bishops or Presbyters
5. The salutation, which has laid down…
Cross References
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