The Qualifications for Elders (1 Tim 3:1-7)

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Prayer of Repentance and Adoration

Preaching of God’s Word (1 Tim 3:1-7)

Introduction

If you have your Bible with you, please turn it to 1 Timothy 3:1-7.

As you turn there, let me refresh your memory as to where we are in the letter to Timothy from Paul. What we have seen thus far in this letter is concern from Paul about some issues in the church of Ephesus—and he’s writing to Timothy to not just confront these issues, but also give Timothy some encouragement.

The primary issue that we’ve seen at hand in 1 Timothy is the issue of false teaching—it takes Paul literally three verses before confronting the issue of false teaching, thus, the implication is that there’s a severe issue that needs handled immediately. At this moment in 1 Timothy, we don’t have much of an idea of what exactly that false teaching is, but it does seem to point at some who have made assertions concerning the law of Moses—meaning, they’re asserting that Christians must keep the law in addition to following Jesus.

Timothy is reminded of the Gospel and he’s called to pray for all people, particularly that all people might come to know Jesus before Paul continues in a line of thinking concerning proper worship in the church setting. That’s actually where we’re still at—this idea of how the church should function together during church services and in the thirteen verses that we’re studying this evening and next Wednesday, he focuses on the qualifications needed for two particular offices within the church—deacons and elders. Despite us dividing the text into two weeks, I do want us to read 1 Timothy 3:1-13 as a whole.

Let’s read 1 Timothy 3:1-13 together.

1 Timothy 3:1–13 ESV

1 The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. 2 Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, 3 not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. 4 He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, 5 for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church? 6 He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. 7 Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil. 8 Deacons likewise must be dignified, not double-tongued, not addicted to much wine, not greedy for dishonest gain. 9 They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. 10 And let them also be tested first; then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless. 11 Their wives likewise must be dignified, not slanderers, but sober-minded, faithful in all things. 12 Let deacons each be the husband of one wife, managing their children and their own households well. 13 For those who serve well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and also great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.

As we study this passage together, we’re going to break it into two parts (and I think those parts are relatively easy to see): (1) Qualifications for Elders (1-7) and (2) Qualifications for Deacons (8-13). This week, we’re only focusing on the first section, vv. 1-7, qualifications for elders and next week, we’ll focus on qualifications for deacons. In our local church, we believe that there are two biblical offices that lead or serve the church—we do technically have two additional officers (the clerk and treasurer), but note that those officers aren’t necessary according to Scripture.

Since elders and deacons are required by the Bible, then any qualification that the Bible lists for those offices must be taken seriously. Thus, as Paul reminds Timothy to select elders and deacons, he gives Timothy some qualifications to look for in the people of Ephesus. This evening, we’ll take an in-depth look at these qualifications for elders, in particular, and I’ll explain the need for us to take them seriously. And for those thinking, “I’m never going to be an elder or deacon,” let me assure you, this will be highly applicable to you as well.

Prayer for Illumination

Qualifications for Elders (1-7)

Our text starts by affirming the trustworthiness of what Paul is about to say, before saying that “if anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task.”

Now, if you’ve been paying close attention, you’ve noticed that I keep saying the term elder and you might be curious as to why, when the term used here is overseer, so let’s discuss this before we dig into this passage.

Typically, in most non-denominational or Baptistic churches today, the understanding is that there are three different terms utilized in the Bible to refer to the same office within the church.

In 1 Timothy 3:1, Acts 20:28, and Titus 1:7 it is the term επισκοπος, which is translated as overseer.

In Acts 20:17 and Titus 1:5 it is the term πρεσβυτερος, which is translated as elder.

You can see just in the references, that the two terms are interchangeable, but to show you more clearly, let me read Acts 20:17-28 and Titus 1:5-7.

Titus 1:5-7 “5 For this reason I left you in Crete, that you would set in order what remains and appoint elders [πρεσβυτερος] in every city as I directed you, 6 namely, if any man is beyond reproach, the husband of one wife, having faithful children, who are not accused of dissipation, or rebellious. 7 For the overseer [επισκοπος] must be beyond reproach as God’s steward, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not addicted to wine, not pugnacious, not fond of dishonest gain,”

See how the terms are utilized interchangeably?

Acts 20:17-28 “17 Now from Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called to him the elders [πρεσβυτερος] of the church. 18 And when they had come to him, he [spoke to them] . . . ‘behold, I know that all of you, among whom I went about preaching the kingdom, will no longer see my face . . . [so] Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers [επισκοπος], to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.”

Again, see how the terms are used interchangeably?

So, I’ve give you two of the terms, and you might think, “where is the third?” The third term is the Greek word ποιμην, which we see utilized throughout the New Testament. It’s often translated as shepherd.

So, consider Acts 20:28 “28 “Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd [ποιμην] the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.”

Or Ephesians 4:11 “11 And He Himself gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as shepherds [ποιμην] and teachers,”

And you might think, “how did that become pastor instead of ποιμην or shepherd?” — it became the term most readily recognized because of the influence of the Latin Vulgate, which translates the word ποιμηνι as pastor.

The terminology utilized and translated as overseer, elder, and pastor though not identical, are very similar. And in its original use was restricted to those who exercise oversight in the local church (see Donald Guthrie in Pastoral Epistles: An Introduction and Commentary (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1990) 94).

That’s why Acts, Ephesians, and Titus all utilize the terms in a way that refer to the same office or the same role within the local church.

We could read this verse as, “The saying is trustworthy: if anyone aspires to the office of [overseer, elder, or pastor], he desires a noble task.” Now, the questions are, what does it mean to aspire to the office? And why is it a noble task?

To aspire means “to desire.” Or in other words, the one who is to serve as an elder or pastor or overseer must actually want to do the work.

There is no such thing as a qualified pastor who doesn’t want to be a pastor because the moment that he doesn’t desire to be a pastor is the moment that he disqualifies himself.

The idea, here, is that the person who serves and leads in this capacity genuinely wants to do the work. This is reflected by Peter in 1 Pet 5:2 “2 shepherd the flock of God among you, overseeing not under compulsion,” don’t be forced into doing it “but willingly, according to God; and not for dishonest gain, but with eagerness.”

Now, of course, there will be times when the individual serving and leading in this capacity will struggle with wanting to continue in this work—and the reason why is simple, it’s a lot harder than what most people think it is.

This simply means that at the end of the day, the individual still wants to shepherd the church of God. There needs to be a decisive sense of calling.

Now, the reason the task is so noble or good has nothing to do with the individual serving as a pastor or elder.

The pastor, elder, or overseer doesn’t make the role good—the role is already good; or put differently, the work is good regardless of who the pastor is.

Why is the work good? Because it involves the care of souls—pastors carry the burden of helping people follow Jesus—and that is a good thing.

Clearly then, the role of an overseer, elder, or pastor is very important for a local church. Because it is such an important role, there are multiple qualifications that an individual desiring to serve in this capacity must meet. Or in other words, these qualifications aren’t optional—they aren’t qualifications that we can pick and choose. This is what Paul by inspiration of the Holy Spirit wrote, which emphasizes how important it is to have leaders in the church that are characterized as such. Now, I don’t just want to read through the list, I want us to really understand what each characteristic means—so, I’m going to take each qualification list it and then expound on it. This is where the bulk of this evening’s sermon will focus.

Paul gives a list of 14 qualifications to be an elder in the local church, let’s look at each one:

Above Reproach—let me start by saying that above reproach does not mean perfect nor does it mean that a person with a questionable past couldn’t serve in the office of an elder.

To assume that it means that the individual is perfect, neglects the simple truth that Scripture says none of us on this side of eternity can be perfect. To make the arguments that pastors need to be perfect places them in a position that they simply cannot win or achieve.

To apply this standard to a person’s past neglects the truth that Scripture expects us to learn, to grow, and to mature. Who we were a year ago should be different than who we are now; and who we are now, ought to be different than who we were ten years ago. Who we were before we became believers in Jesus Christ is different than who we are now—and if that’s not the case, you ought to ask yourself if you truly believe.

What above reproach is referring to, is a characteristic in which other people can’t brings up a charge of being unfit for the job. Or in other words, being above reproach doesn’t speak of perfection, but rather, the person’s character is upstanding enough that when being accused of sinful behavior that disqualifies them, everyone has a difficult time believing it.

You shouldn’t be able to hear someone accuse a pastor of egregious sin and think, “hmm, yeah, that certain sounds like him.” It really ought to be a, “you know, I’m not too sure about that, let me go talk with him.”

The Husband of One Wife—this qualification has been subject to much confusion—to the extent that you’ll find churches throughout the world that practices this concept differently.

In the past, the argument was made that because of this qualification, men who have been divorced or even widowed and remarried cannot be in the ministry.

The problem with this is two-fold, first, it doesn’t take into the biblical reasons for divorce and it punishes those who have been widowed when Scripture doesn’t condemn a widow from getting remarried.

The NIV translation implies that this is referring to the practice of polygamy amongst the elders, but honestly, for Christians in the first century, the practice of polygamy was so repugnant that it would seem unusual for Paul to have to condemn it amongst the elders.

Probably the best way to look at this is to actually consider how the wording is in Greek. In Greek, the wording is that an elder is to be “a one woman man,” which gives the impression that this isn’t really speaking of just marriage and it’s not really speaking of polygamy or divorce or being widowed.

Rather, the impression given by this statement is that whether the man is married or not—he is not to be a womanizer or a philanderer.

The idea at hand is that regardless of his marital status, he should be the type of person that is faithful to one woman; which then can be applied to his marriage—if he’s married, he should be completely faithful to his one wife.

If he happens to be divorced or widowed and remarried, he should be completely faithful to his current wife.

Again, the idea is that he ought to be faithful to his spouse or be the type of person that isn’t a womanizer or a philanderer.

The next three characteristics are actually closely related, so why don’t we take them at the same time?

Sober-Minded—is rather an easy concept to explain because we can simply look at it in its converse. What is the opposite of being sober? To not be sober-minded means to not think clearly; to not be level-headed.

Self-Controlled—sort of plays off this idea because being self-controlled relies on being sober-minded. Or in other words, if you can’t think clearly, you won’t be able to control yourself.

And Respectable—doesn’t mean that an elder is uptight or lacking in fun, but rather, lives in such a way that people respect him.

All three ideas put together describe the idea of living a life that is ordered and in control.

Hospitable—is an idea that I think we have a weak understanding of in our modern-day western world. In our concept of hospitality, we think just saying “hello” to others is hospitable, but that’s not what the Bible means when it speaks of hospitality.

Hospitality in the Old and New Testaments involved much more than just saying “hello.” Consider the Good Samaritan, who didn’t even know this person laying on the side of the road, but bandaged him, took him to an inn, paid for him to eat, sleep, and rest. The Good Samaritan gives enough to cover what he thought the person might need, but told the innkeeper to essentially put the man on his tab. This is hospitality.

Or consider, how the apostles traveled throughout the known world. They weren’t known to live extravagantly, rather, they were known to stay in the homes of fellow disciples who would provide them with food, shelter, and a place of rest. They didn’t charge the apostles, they simply opened their homes for anyone who needed it. This is hospitality.

An elder ought to be willing to open their home for others, to share what God has given them, and to be hospitable. It’s actually a huge red-flag if the local pastor never has dinner with the people in the congregation, or he never invites anyone into his home. It’s a huge red-flag if a pastor’s primary concern is pragmatism rather than hospitality.

Now, that doesn’t mean that an elder needs to be a doormat that allows anyone to take anything from his home in the name of hospitality, but it does mean that if the person can help, he does help.

Able to Teach—the quality of being apt to teach differentiates the elder from the deacon. Much of the other qualifications fit both offices, but the elder is tasked with teaching and preaching, so the elder must be able to teach.

This doesn’t mean that he’s necessary the greatest orator in the world; and it doesn’t necessarily mean that the elder through his teaching ability needs to gather crowds of 10,000 people.

All this means is that when people are listening to him exposit the Scriptures—he makes sense, he can logically show you what the passage means, and he encourages you to apply the passage how the author intended the passage to be applied.

Again, it’s not necessarily that the person needs to be the most gifted or greatest speaker on the planet; it simply means that he can take the truths of Scripture and explain it in a way that people can understand it, learn it, and apply it.

Now, just as a side-note, I’ve heard of churches that hire pastors that can’t really teach; and they justify it by saying that they really wanted a pastor who cared for the people and they can overlook his ability to teach because he genuinely cares for the people. What that tells me is that the church either doesn’t know what the qualifications for pastors are or they simply don’t care—because if someone desiring to be a pastor can’t teach, they aren’t qualified to be a pastor.

Likewise, I’ve also heard of churches that hire pastors that are exceptional at teaching, but they are not qualified in other ways; but they justify it by saying that they really need a strong preacher and teacher. So, they overlook the fact that he is pugnacious, or not hospitable, or a recent convert. Again, what that tells me is that the church either doesn’t know what the qualifications for pastors are or they simply don’t care—because if someone desiring to be a pastor can teach, but they’re pugnacious, inhospitable, or a recent convert, they aren’t qualified to be a pastor.

Be wary of churches that regularly hire unqualified people to lead their church.

The next four characteristics are closely related in kind, so let’s look at all four together:

Not a Drunkard—I think is fairly simple to understand; note, that it isn’t a complete abstinence from alcohol that’s commanded, but rather a command not to drink to excess.

Not Violent but Gentle—the KJV utilizes the term striker to define someone “not violent but gentle.” The idea being that he’s not one to automatically jump to fist-fighting to fix problems. Or in other words, if there’s a disagreement, he’s not going to be the one who says, “why don’t we take this outside?” Note, that this doesn’t mean that he won’t defend himself or his family if necessarily; it just means that his first response won’t be to duke it out in the parking lot.

Not Quarrelsome—means to not be contentious, which simply means that an elder is one who isn’t looking to start an argument, they’re not looking to start controversy—of course, when something needs to be said, they would, but they’re not looking to argue just to argue.

Not a Lover of Money—another fairly simple idea to understand; and I think the best way to see whether someone is a lover of money is by seeing how they spend their money. Very few people would say “I absolutely love and adore money,” but quite a few people show their love for money either by hoarding all the money they possibly can or by spending a large amount of money frivolously—it’s really a warning against a devotion to materialism.

All four of these characteristics really speak of extreme cases of excess. The person who drinks to excess, or is excessively violent, or overly contentious, or materialistic should not be an elder in the church.

Able to Manage His Household—there are two aspects to this concept of managing one’s household well:

One has to do with the general, what we might call operations of the household—keeping things running well financially, taking care of the house itself, and managing how things function in the home—how exactly all this functions is really dependent on the household itself. For instance, in our home, I handle our financials, but if Natalie was better able to handle them, then she would handle them. Or, if we purchase something that requires a lot of work to put it together—Natalie’s usually your better bet at getting it done than I am. That’s not always the case, but usually it is.

The second has to do with his children—that his children are under control. Now, that’s not to say that his children are perfect—it’s to say that generally speaking, his children are well-behaved, obedient, and under control.

Note that his children being under control only pertains to when they live in the household—when they’re older, they’re responsible for their own behavior. If they don’t live in the household, then someone else is responsible for their behavior.

You can’t expect someone to be able to keep “his children submissive” if they no longer live at home—it’s no longer that person’s responsibility.

In the qualification to manage his household, we’re actually given a reason for it unlike the other qualifications—personally, I think Paul gives this reason to help us understand how important this qualification is. The reason is simple, in v. 5, “if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church?”

How can you expect someone who can’t keep his home functioning or his children under control to be able to lead a church filled with other people and other people’s children?

How could you expect someone who has financially wrecked their own lives to handle the financial situation of the church?

If someone’s home is completely out of order, then more than likely, they won’t be able to handle the organization of the church.

Must not be a Recent Convert—now, there does have to be a little bit more of an understanding for this because in the past, this has been taken to mean that an elder must not be young, but that’s not even remotely true—Timothy was younger in age, which is why Paul tells him not to allow those around him to look down on him for his youth.

The KJV utilizes a word that might help us understand this a bit better—in v. 6, an elder is “not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil.”

Or in other words, it has nothing to do with physical age, but rather spiritual maturity and the reality is that this has very little to do with how long someone has been a Christian—or in other words, some have been Christians for decades and still would be considered a novice. Others, have been Christians for a few years and have grown past simply being novices.

The key being that you don’t want someone who is spiritually immature leading the church—you want someone who is spiritually mature leading everyone in the right direction.

Like the previous characteristic, Paul does give us a reason for it—he must not be a recent convert, “or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil” or in other words, being asked to be an elder might cause him to become prideful and through his pride, he will be condemned.

And lastly, Paul ends with the qualification that an elder must be well thought of by outsiders—or in other words, he needs to have a good reputation in the community or communities that he serves.

There’s a little bit of subjectivity with this one because it’s really up to the local church to determine if the pastor has a good reputation or not and there’s a load of discernment that has to be used to make this determination as well.

For example, if the pastor has a bad reputation because he’s known to be outspoken against sin—is that what disqualifies him? Absolutely not.

But if the pastor has a bad reputation because while he’s being outspoken against sin—he harasses people or he calls people derogatory names—does that disqualify him? Absolutely, if it’s proven.

Or, for example, what if his bad reputation comes from how he was before he became a believer? Maybe, he was the town drunk, does that disqualify him from ministry?

This is where it gets subjective—he might not be disqualified from ministry altogether, but he may be disqualified from ministry in that specific setting.

Why? Because he’s been redeemed and he’s going through the process of sanctification, he’s no longer the town drunk, but since everyone still sees him the same, it might be wise for him to go elsewhere.

Not to mention, the Bible does repeatedly tell us that the world is going to hate us; so, how can he be well thought of to unbelievers while still being hated?

Let me put it bluntly—there’s a difference between being hated for believing in the Gospel or being hated because you’re a jerk.

And in this case, the idea is that those outside the church see this person; and if they have anything negative to say about him, it has to do with his faith being strong, his Gospel-witness being solid, and his hope in Jesus being readily apparent—it’s not because he’s mean, pugnacious, a jerk, or any number of other issues.

The key is that his reputation must be generally good, so that he doesn’t fall into disgrace and into the snare of the devil.

Thomas Lea and Hayne Griffin write, “An effective church leader needs the respect of even the unsaved world. If the behavior of the leader does not present a creditable witness, the devil can entrap the church by making outsiders wary of believing the gospel . . . This is an appeal that the church leader have a good name and standing in the wider community. The mention of the leader’s name should not cause derision among the opponents of the gospel. The behavior of the leader should provide an example of integrity and commitment to the gospel he professes.” (Thomas Lea and Hayne Griffin, 1, 2 Timothy, Titus, The New American Commentary (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1992) 114)

Again, note, that in none of these characteristics or qualifications is the elder or overseer or pastor required to be perfect—as we all know, we all struggle with sin and it would be foolish to assume that an elder would never struggle with any of these issues. The key is that in general, when you think of this person, you think that he fits the description given here.

Now in the remaining few minutes, I want us to look at application—and in this case, I think it’s clear that there’s two ways that we ought to look at application for this text. (1) the way that it was originally intended—as a description of elders; and (2) characteristics that every believer should strive for.

Application

So, let’s look at this passage how it was originally intended. It is intended to provide a guideline for who should serve as elders within the church, so obviously, the first way we have to look at the passage is by looking at these qualifications and making sure that our elders and those who are preparing to fill this role fit these qualifications.

Now, let me start with one principle in doing this—we cannot be legalistic in our attitude towards this.

Don’t think of it as a checklist—think of it more like a general description of an elder; and I think you’ll understand how best to properly utilize this passage.

Don’t look at it like, “alright, it’s Wednesday, let’s make sure Daniel still fits this to a T”

Let’s work through every characteristic—is he above reproach, sure; is he respectable, I suppose; is he sober-minded? Nope, I heard him tell a joke, he’s disqualified from ministry.

That’s absurd because I’m just as much of a human as you are; and I struggle with sin just as much as you do.

It isn’t within the spirit of this passage to utilize it as a rubric or checklist that the person needs to be 100% all the time—because I will struggle and I will sin.

Again, look at it like a general description. Meaning, when you think of me or any of our elders in the future:

Is that person generally above reproach?

Is that person a one woman man?

Is that person self-controlled, sober-minded, and respectable?

Or is he a drunk, is he violent, does he like to argue just to argue?

Of course, be gracious—consider the fact that he is still human.

But be firm in these qualifications—don’t overlook his quarrelsome nature just because he can teach; don’t overlook his inability to teach just because he’s gentle.

Be firm and balanced with these qualifications—this describes what an elder is to be like. If a person doesn’t mesh with this, even on issues that might seem minor, he isn’t qualified to be an elder.

And when you have unqualified elders leading a church—the church will always suffer more than what they know.

Be firm in the qualifications, but be gentle when addressing perceived issues concerning the qualifications.

These are qualifications for elders—you need to make sure your elders can be described the same way as this passage describes elders.

In addition, though these are qualifications specifically for elders, no one here should read this list and think, “well, because I’m not an elder, I don’t need to be like this.” Rather, this gives us some characteristics that every believer should seek to be; while teaching us that our elders must fit these characteristics. Or in other words, even if you aren’t an elder, you should still look at these characteristics as if you’re looking in a mirror.

For instance, no one should look at this passage and think, “hmm, I’m not an elder—guess I can have multiple wives” or “I’m not seeking to be an elder—guess I can be a violent drunk, with a quarrelsome attitude.”

Nothing given here (with the exception of being able to teach) are attributes that everyone really ought to strive for (and I say, with the exception of being able to teach because not everyone is called to teach).

All the characteristics given here are the result of following Jesus and allowing the Holy Spirit to develop fruit within you—a person doesn’t become above reproach or sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, or not quarrelsome in the sense that Scripture speaks of them without the Holy Spirit working within them.

Or put a different way, the only reason anyone is qualified for pastoral ministry is because they’ve been following Jesus and by doing so, the Holy Spirit has transformed them in such a way that the description given in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 matches them; and God has placed it in their heart to desire the work of ministry.

So, the implication is rather simple—those who have been called to ministry aren’t qualified for ministry simply because they want to pastor a church.

They’re qualified for ministry because by following Jesus, the Holy Spirit has worked with them to the point that when people think of the individual they think:

This person is “above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable . . . not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money.” He manages his own house well, he isn’t a recent convert, he has a good reputation, “oh, and he can teach.”

Or put a different way—those called to be an elder, overseer, or pastor are regular Christians who seek Jesus and through following Jesus, the Holy Spirit has laid upon their heart the desire to lead His church and the ability to teach the church.

In other words, regardless of if you’re an elder or called to be an elder or will never be an elder—everything in this list with the exception of desiring the office of eldership and being apt to teach applies to every believer.

You can rightly ask yourself, “am I above reproach?” Am I faithful to my spouse? Am I sober-minded, self controlled, and respectable? Am I hospitable? Do I manage my house well? Do I have a good reputation in the community? Or am I a drunk? Am I violent? Am I quarrelsome? Am I materialistic?

When you find yourself contrary to this text—repent, cry out to Jesus for help, and keep seeking Him.

Though these are mainly qualifications for elders—you need to check your own spiritual state with this list, as well.

From 1 Timothy 3:1-7, we learn that the office of overseer, elder, and pastor is a noble task, a good work; but because it is such an important role within the church, our elders must be described by the words of vv. 1-7 and held accountable to this description—so, you need to hold me and every elder we have accountable to this description. We also learn that though this passage speaks primarily about elder qualifications, most of these are applicable to the average Christian—so you need to hold yourself accountable to this very same list.

Pastoral Prayer

Prayer Requests

This is this week’s prayer requests:

Melissa Bush has requested prayer for the family of her friend’s dad, Walter, who passed into eternity; and her dad’s aunt, who also passed into eternity.

Sean Herbst — Addiction

Pray for Alexus (Tom and Raenelle’s great niece) — struggling with seizures; pray for the doctors to have wisdom in how to best help her and pray for the family

Caleb Miller — Medical Issues

Alan Wisor — Medical Issues

Pray for the church’s building fund

Pray for Bansuk Korean Baptist Church in Bossier City, LA and their pastor Yong Koo Lee.