1 Timothy 3:1-7
Ps Paul Cheng
“…What kind of leaders are spiritually qualified to lead the church?…”
~16 min read
As a Bible-Presbyterian Church, our leaders are the board of elders. They are the ones who rule the church. This is what the New Testament teaches us about church government. It is a presbyterian system of government. Here, in this passage, we are going to learn about the leaders. What kind of leaders are spiritually qualified to lead the church?
The first thing we want to learn about the elders is their calling!
I. Their Calling
1 Timothy 3:1, This is a true saying, If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work.
The call into the ministry must never be taken lightly. Today, people enter into the ministry for all sorts of reasons; for money, job and security, honour and respect, recognition and other undesirable motives. If someone says he is called into the ministry, the first thing that comes into our minds would be, “Is he truly called into the ministry, and how does he know he is called into the ministry. Is it true or not?
But in Paul’s time, the situation was totally different. Churches were poor, and ministers were the first target of dreadful persecutions. Preachers were despised, and most certainly they were not in positions of prestige. In fact, the leaders would have to risk their lives in the ministry.
But it does not mean that the standards and expectations have changed. No, they remain the same. Leaders have to be ready to be persecuted, despised, and even risked their lives in the ministry. That was why Paul said, this is a true saying which means it is a true and faithful statement that no man would desire to be found in such a position unless God had called him into the ministry.
Not everyone can be a leader in the church. Notice, the first obvious requirement for the church leader is that he must be a man, if a man desire the office of a bishop. Women have very important roles in the church, in the home and in the society, but there are no women pastors and elders in the church.
The words desire and desireth are two different words. The first word desire means to reach after, it speaks of an external desire. The second word desireth means to set the heart upon, it speaks of an internal desire. In other words, the man who outwardly pursues after the office of a bishop, it is because of this driving compulsion on the inside, and God is the One who has planted this inner desire in his heart.
Some people feel shy to talk about their spiritual aspirations. There is nothing to be shy about, if God has planted this inner desire in their hearts, they cannot help it, but to reach forward with this external desire. This is what it means!
There are three terms used in the Bible for church leaders; bishop, pastor and elder. For example, here in verse 1, we have the word bishop which means overseer, someone who has oversight of the church. Ephesians 4:11 said, “And he (Christ) gave some apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers (added word mine).”[1]
So, the church is to be ruled by the elders (or presbyterians), they are to be overseers of the church. And out of all the ruling elders, some are called to be teaching elders or pastors. In other words, all pastors are elders, but not all elders are pastors. Therefore, there is this distinction between ruling elders and teaching elders.
When the board of elders come together, the pastor (who is the teaching elder) would lead the group or chair the meeting, because he is supposed to use the Word of God to guide the ruling elders to make decisions for the church.
To be called to serve God as an elder, is considered a good work which means a noble, worthy, honourable and excellent work. Why do you think the Bible calls it a good work? Take a moment and consider this, WSC question number 1 asks, “What is the chief end of man?” The answer is, “The chief end of man is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever!” The pastors and elders, not only want to live their lives to glorify God, but they desire to lead others to do that. Isn’t that a good work? Most certainly!
But it is not just any kind of work (they are undershepherds receiving this mandate from the Great Shepherd). It is the undertaking to represent the Son of God in building up and extending His kingdom; in looking after the salvation of the souls of people whom the Lord Himself had bought with His precious blood, and in ruling the church which is God’s inheritance. This is the greatest and most glorious calling to which anyone can ever be called. In fact, according to the Bible, there is a special crown for pastors and elders when they meet the Lord Jesus Christ, 1 Peter 5:4, “And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye (referring to the pastors and elders) shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away (added words mine).”
But not everyone can be an elder, only those who are called by God, and those who are called by God, they must be spiritually qualified.
II. Their Spiritual Qualities
1 Timothy 3:2, A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach;.
The bishop (overseer or elder) must be blameless which means above reproach. Obviously, it does not mean he is perfect, or he is sinless (no man is). What it means is that his life, leadership and authority should not be in question, and there should be nothing you can accuse him of.
The pastors and elders have to live their lives in such a way that they would be the standard of godly living in the church. There should not be any sinful flaws in their lives that would disqualify them from being examples of the believers, and they must never give the enemies of the gospel reasons for attack.
From time to time, we do see believers fall into sin (it is sad), but when the pastors and elders fall in sin, it is very different because their fall would have a devastating impact. The flock would be greatly affected. Members would be discouraged, disappointed and disillusioned, others would think that if the pastors and elders can do that, so can they. Can you imagine, if they do not live according to what they preach and teach, it would be most hypocritical, right? That was why James 3:1 gave this strong warning, “My brethren, be not many masters, knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnation.”
He must be the husband of one wife. The literal meaning is “one-woman’s man.” It is not referring to the leader’s marital status, but rather his spiritual and moral character, otherwise the Apostle Paul would be disqualified because he was not married. Many married men are not “one-woman’s man” because they have been unfaithful to their wives. The “one-woman’s man” is someone who is devoted in his heart and mind to his wife. He loves and desires only her, and he maintains sexual purity in both his thought and conduct. The failure to be a “one-woman’s man” has been the downfall of many leaders, and it has disqualified them more than any other sins. It is a very serious matter!
Next, he must be vigilant, which means to be spiritually alert. Not only must he be able to think clearly, but he must also have the ability to respond correctly. That is why he must be sober. He must have a steady mind and not be impulsive in judgment. His mind is controlled by God’s truth.
He must be of good behaviour. He is known for his honest behaviour. He is given to hospitality, the original word for hospitality means “to love strangers.” He is approachable, ever ready to open up his life and his home to everyone he meets, believers and unbelievers alike. The word given means he is not only willing to extend hospitality, but he is looking for opportunities to do that.
By the way, just a reminder. It does not mean that all these qualifications are only meant for pastors and elders. The pastors and elders must have all these qualifications so that they would be able to teach others to do the same thing. Dear friends, are there people in the church whom you can open up your house to; overseas students who do not have their parents with them, you may invite them over to your home for a hot meal, new visitors whom you can open up your life and your home, to encourage them. We must always look for opportunities to show hospitality!
He must be apt to teach. Remember, there are ruling elders and teaching elders (pastors). The primary work of the pastor is to preach and teach God’s Word, obviously he must be able to teach. But all the other ruling elders, they must also have certain knowledge of God’s Word, and be able to explain, illustrate and communicate God’s truth to the people. That is why Paul told the elders at Ephesus in Acts 20:28, “to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.”
As ruling elders, oftentimes they must refute errors, and they can only do that by teaching the right thing. So, if they are not apt to teach, which means skillful to teach, how can they rule the church? Can you imagine, the elder telling the church, we must do this? Why? “Well, I don’t know, you just have to listen and do it.” Or we must not do that because it is wrong? But why is it wrong? “Well, I don’t know, you just have to listen and do it.” God forbids, therefore all elders must be apt to teach!
So, Paul had focused on the calling, and the spiritual qualities, now he moved on to speak of the moral character.
III. Their Moral Character
1 Timothy 3:3, Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous.
He must not be given to wine. A drinker cannot serve as an elder because he is incapable of the kind of sober judgment that good spiritual leadership requires. The Bible teaches total abstinence from alcohol, and if the elder is a drinker, how can he teach this doctrine?
He is no striker. Notice, at the end of this verse, it says, he must not be a brawler, that is a reference to physically attacking someone. So, most likely, here this striker is not about physically abusing someone but rather verbally abusing someone. Some people are very sharp with their words, and they are able to hurt others with their words. To emotionally hurt them, and it can be even more painful than physical abuse. Pastors and elders must never do that.
He is not greedy of filthy lucre. Money should be the last thing on his mind. Sadly, there are elders, pastors and preachers, who would gravitate toward those mega-churches, or toward those members who are rich and wealthy. They would spend all their time and attention on them, hoping to receive something in return. They would only preach in big churches, not the small churches. The late Rev Timothy Tow used to say of such preachers, “More money, more preach, less money, less preach, no money, no preach!” Jesus had warned us, “But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep. The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep (John 10:12-13).” We must never ordain such pastors and elders into the ministry!
Next, he is patient. There will always be trouble in the church. We must remember that the local church is made up of sheep and goats (referring to believers and unbelievers), as Jesus said, “The sheep will hear my voice.” So, when the pastors and elders faithfully preach the Word of God; only the sheep will hear and obey, but the goats will not hear. They will laugh, mock and attack the Word of God. Bethel BP Church is not exempted, there will always be struggles, therefore the pastors and elders must be able to bear those trials patiently. They must not be people who throw in the towel, and walk away from the ministry easily.
He must not be covetous. Since Paul had already mentioned about, not greedy of filthy lucre, this covetous could be referring to something else, not just money. It could be, being covetous of praises, recognitions and acknowledgements from men. There are some people who are in the ministry, not for the money, but for the praises of men.
The church is filled with such people, is it not true? Why do you think some people give up serving in the different fellowship groups and ministries? Sometimes it is because of troubles, and they are not willing to face troubles. But at other times, it is because they want to be acknowledged by men, be praised for their services, and when they do not receive the recognition, they are discouraged. Dear friend, are you such a person? Someone who is covetous not for the money, but for the recognition? Let us search our hearts and ask ourselves, if we are serving God, and nobody acknowledges what we do, or praises us for our services, will we still do it?
1 Timothy 3:4 One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity;
It is possible for a man to meet all the spiritual qualifications for elders, and yet be disqualified because of his lack of leadership in the home. The word ruleth has two primary meanings, one is to supervise and the other is to nurture. He must be able to lead his wife, and bring up his children in fear of God.
The elder must have his children in subjection with all gravity. In subjection is a military term which speaks of lining up in rank under the one who is in authority. With all gravity means with respect. In other words, the children know the father is the leader, and they respect his authority.
Here, it also describes how the father treats his children. (1) He treats them with respect, as individuals created in the image of God, (2) he does not manipulate them, or tries to control them in an abusive way, or provokes them, but rather, he loves them, and seeks to bring them up by being an example to them.
But what happens if he is not able to do that? 1 Timothy 3:5, (For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?)
How can the pastors or elders rule over the church, if they do not have the courage, will, determination and spirituality to rule over their own homes?
Once, someone said to me about a certain minister or preacher, that the problem is with his wife. She is the one who caused him to make those wrong decisions. No doubt, the wife could be contributing to the problem, but the real problem is with him, because if he is not able to rule his own house well, then he should not be in the ministry.
Take a moment and consider this, when a man leads his own house, he has to deal with his wife, and his children, right? The home is the place where he spends most of his time in a loving environment. There may be many problems, but they are all concentrated on these few individuals, the wife and the children, people whom he knew very well. On the other hand, when it comes to ministering in the church, with people of different spiritual maturity and age groups, young and old, as well as new and long-time believers, people whom he knew and people whom he does not know. Can you see the amount of difficulties?
So, if the man is not able to handle the situations at home, how can he be entrusted to handle the situations at church which is of a larger scale? No man can be the leader of the church if he is not already the leader in his own home. If he cannot pastor his own home, he cannot pastor the church! It does not mean that his wife and children are perfect (again no one is), they are just as sinful as everyone else, and they need the gospel of Jesus Christ to save them. But he must be able to rule, by leading them with the Word of God.
1 Timothy 3:6, Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil.
The word novice means a young convert or young believer, sometimes this term had been used to refer to a newly planted tree. Putting someone who is young in the faith in a leadership role, would expose him to the temptation of pride, lest being lifted up with pride.
This word, pride, is very interesting because it comes from a root word meaning “smoke” like to puff up in a cloud of smoke. In other words, when you put a young believer into spiritual leadership, it would cause him to puff up, to put his head above the clouds (so to speak). That would put him in the same danger as the condemation of the devil.
Remember it was pride that caused the condemnation of Satan. Isaiah 14:12-14 said, “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou has said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds (he was like putting his head above the clouds, and when that happened, he said); I will be like the most High (in other words, I will be like God, but God said to him) Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit (added words mine).”
Sometimes, people think that we should help to give the people opportunities. We should put them up as preachers, elders and even pastors, to encourage and motivate them. The Bible says, “You are not helping them. In fact, when you put a novice, someone who is not ready for ministry, into the ministry, you are putting him in great danger (the same danger as the condemnation of Satan). Whatever happened to Satan, could easily happen to the immature believer when he is elected to leadership.
That is why an elder must always be elected from amongst the most spiritual believers in the congregation. For this reason, in our church constitution, it is highly recommended that only when the deacons have served for at least three terms (which means 9 years), then they would be considered for eldership (not automatically, but if they are eligible).
Finally, 1 Timothy 3:7, Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without; lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.
The pastors and elders must not only be godly in their families and the church, but also outside, in the community. Which means he is not a “Sunday elder” only. In his workplace, and in his community, amongst his friends, he must live a life of righteousness, love, kindness, generosity and goodness. The world may not agree with his Christian faith, and he may face rejections and hostilities whenever he stands for the truth, but one thing they cannot deny is that he is a spiritual man. He is a man of good reputation.
Dear friend, do your colleagues know that you are a Christian? If they do not know, is it because you are ashamed of the gospel, or is it because you are living a double life, in that you are only a “Sunday Christian”? When you are in your workplace, do you join your colleagues, gossipping, laughing at dirty jokes, and engaging in other worldly activities, so much so that you dare not let them know that you are a Christian. There is no such thing as being a Christian only on Sundays. When the Lord saves us, the Holy Spirit indwells in us and transforms our lives, and we become new creatures in Christ. The old is gone and the new is come, from then onwards, we are to live as new creatures, all the days of our lives.
We are not perfect, but we will be growing spiritually, and producing the fruit of the Spirit. There is no such thing as a Christian who does not produce the fruit of the Spirit. It is either much fruit or lesser fruit, but there will always be fruit. And out of all those who are growing spiritually, God would specially call some believers. He would set this desire in their hearts, that they would aspire to serve Him as pastors and elders, and God says, “that is a good work.” Then the pastors and elders would die, and other believers would grow spiritually, and God again would call some, and set this desire in their hearts, that they would aspire to serve Him as pastors and elders. And this cycle would go on and on, for as long as the Lord would tarry in His return. Some of the young people in the church, the little children in the Sunday school may be future elders, deacons and deaconesses.
But the moment they are called to serve as church leaders, they would become the special target of Satan. And one of the ways in which Satan would attack them is through their qualifications; he would cause the enemies of the gospel to challenge their qualifications. That is why the church must be very careful to choose the right leaders, otherwise, he would fall into reproach and become the snare of the devil.
Remember, when the leaders fall, it would have a devastating impact, because the flock will be greatly affected. When the leaders fall into the snare of the devil, the sheep will be scattered. That is why we should pray for our leaders, that they will remain faithful, and godly, and always focusing on the chief Shepherd, our Lord Jesus who is the author and the finisher of our faith!
1 Pastors are to be teachers, that is why these two words are placed together, pastors and teachers. 1 Timothy 5:17, Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine. Notice there are two types of elders; ruling elders and teaching elders, elders that rule and elders who labour in the word and doctrine.
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