Are You a Leader Worth Following? (The Answer Might Surprise You)

Meta Description: Leadership isn't about talent or title — it's about character. Here's what the Bible says about becoming a leader worth following in every area of life. URL Slug: are-you-a-leader-worth-following-titus-1 Featured Image: A single person standing at a crossroads or looking out over a landscape — conveying both responsibility and vision. Warm, natural lighting. Could also work as an open Bible on a wooden table with soft morning light.

A few years into ministry, I traveled with a mentor to Boulder, Colorado, to visit some churches. From the highway, those church buildings looked impressive — large, established, clearly doing something significant. But the closer we got, the more a different picture emerged.

One pastor told us he couldn't be in a small group because he couldn't "intermingle with the flock." Another dropped profanity in the first sentence of our conversation. Another led a culture so performatively positive that conflict was simply pretended away. From afar, impressive. Up close, a leadership void.

That trip taught me something I've never forgotten: everything rises and falls with leadership.

And before you assume I'm only talking about pastors or executives — I'm not. Every single one of you is a leader. Your home. Your classroom. Your team. Your carpool line. Your apartment. Wherever you have a sphere of influence, you have a leadership responsibility. The question is: are you a leader worth following?

That's exactly what we're diving into this week as we begin a new five-week series through the book of Titus.

What Paul Sent Titus to Do

Paul wrote this letter around 64 AD to his trusted friend and co-laborer, Titus, whom he had left on the island of Crete — the largest Greek island, 160 miles wide. The churches there were in disarray. The gospel was being confused and diluted. So Paul sent his problem-solver, his "fixer," with a clear mission.

"The reason I left you in Crete was that you might put in order what was left unfinished and appoint elders in every town, as I directed you." — Titus 1:5

The Greek word for "put in order" means to bring order to chaos. That was Titus's assignment. And the strategy? Find godly leaders.

Paul opens the letter with a theological foundation that sets the tone for everything that follows: faith leads to truth, truth leads to godliness, and godliness leads to hope. What you believe creates who you are. And who you are determines how you lead.

1. Lead Well at Home

Paul tells Titus that an elder must be blameless — and I want to unpack what that actually means. To be blameless doesn't mean sinless. It means that when accusations come, people who know you well say, "That doesn't sound like them." Your life creates alibis.

He also says leaders should be faithful to their spouse — not just avoiding adultery, but actively guarding the fidelity of their marriage. And he says their children should be believers, not wild and disobedient.

I spent twelve years leading a young adult ministry that saw over 100,000 people come through. I started noticing patterns in the families who produced the most spiritually grounded young adults. Without exception, every one of those sibling groups came from homes where mom and dad loved each other, loved God, and lived out their faith — not just on Sunday mornings, but in how they spent their money, shared the gospel, and opened their home.

Here's the honest truth: if you tell your children you believe there's a heaven and a hell and that the difference is trusting in Christ — and then you never share that with anyone, never live like it matters — you will confuse them deeply. Our homes have to be consistent with what we say we believe.

2. Lead With Character

Paul moves from the home to the broader community, listing what a godly leader is not and what they must be:

"Since an overseer manages God's household, he must be blameless — not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain. Rather, he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined." — Titus 1:7-8

Notice something important: not one of these qualities is a talent or a skill. Paul isn't looking for dynamic speakers, magnetic personalities, or visionary entrepreneurs. God is far more interested in who we are than in what we can do for him.

Not overbearing — not insisting on their own way. Not quick-tempered — James 1:19 reminds us to be "quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry." Hospitable — using what God has entrusted to them in service of others. Self-controlled — not following their appetite, but asking, "What would God have me do?" and doing it.

God measures maturity by ordinary obedience. And he can do extraordinary things with ordinary obedience.

3. Lead From Truth

Finally, Paul says a godly leader must hold firmly to the gospel:

"He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it." — Titus 1:9

The "trustworthy message" is the gospel itself — that Jesus lived a perfect life, died on a cross, and rose three days later as payment for our sins. If we trust that he paid for our sins, we give our lives back to him. That's it. That's the message.

And here's the sobering reality: we can go entire days in 2026 without reflecting on that gospel. Yet Paul says hold firmly to it. Because what you believe will shape everything about how you live and how you lead.

As Paul writes in 2 Timothy 3:16: "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness." Truth is the tool we use to encourage and to correct — not one or the other, but both, always.

If what you believe never changes how you live, something has gone wrong.

My Hope for All of Us

As I close, I want to be honest with you. I sometimes feel the weight of being watched — waiting for the next pastor to fall. I get it. The list of public moral failures is long and painful.

But I also want to tell you: two days ago, I celebrated 22 years of marriage. I have never loved my wife more. I have never enjoyed my children more. And I am more desperate than ever to finish this race more in love with Jesus than I am right now.

Every week, I meet with two men who ask me hard questions about my soul. Every week, I sit with a group of elders who examine everything — where I go, what I spend, what I give. I share this not to boast, but because this is what accountability looks like in practice. And it's what I want for every one of you.

My deepest hope is that every person at Harris Creek would meet the qualifications Paul lays out in Titus 1. Not just our elders. All of us. Blameless. Hospitable. Self-controlled. Upright. Holy. Disciplined.

That's what God wants to produce in us — and it starts with surrender, not striving. You can't manufacture this. But the Holy Spirit inside you can.

Ready to go deeper? Watch the full sermon on our website or YouTube channel. And if you're in a season where you're struggling with patterns you can't seem to break, I'd love for you to join us on Monday nights at 6:30 for Regeneration — a discipleship ministry where some of our very best leaders have found healing and freedom. You can also reach out anytime at hello@harriscreek.org.

Social Media Excerpt (Facebook/Instagram): Everything rises and falls with leadership — and that includes your leadership. Whether it's your home, your classroom, or your relationships, God has given you a sphere of influence. This week we started a new series in Titus asking the question: are you a leader worth following? Here's what the Bible says.

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