1 Timothy 3

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Following the previous section where Paul gave several warnings on some of the people in the church, false teachers, then to how you are to be and act in the church, praying for all peoples, not calling attention to yourself by how you dress and act taking attention away from God and onto yourself, and leading up to not allowing women to teach and be in authority over men, as was the way God ordered his creation, Paul emphasizes what he is about to say with the statement that what he is about to say is trustworthy. This is similar to when he used the words previously in chapter 1, 1 Timothy 1:15 “The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.” Those who seek after, aspire, desire to be an overseer of the church he is seeking a noble task. The Greek words in verse one translated seek, aspire or desire and then translated desire again are two different words. The first is a word that is describing an external action, to do or work towards something, and the second is an internal motive or a strong passion. Those who are seeking to be an overseer, minister, pastor, elder, or bishop as those titles are all referring to the same position must have the internal desire that comes from God and not a selfish self centered desire, and willing to work, to do physical work towards that desire. Paul calling this a noble task is not intended to pour any praise onto the person seeking to be an overseer, but this office is leading and teaching the very sheep that Jesus suffered, bled and died to save.

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So as this task is such an important and serious duty, it is not intended to be given to just anyone who says they want to do it. Paul already disqualified half the population when he said that women were not allowed to be teachers, and with verse two he clearly shows that not all men are to be either.

Those seeking the office must be above reproach. The use of must stresses that whomever seeks the office cannot be involved in any wrongdoings, either legally or morally. How much would the church be scorned and looked down upon if its leaders were breaking laws or involved in an overt sin? An elder is a leader of the church and his whole life is a reflection of the church, not just what happens inside the building on Sundays and must be an example fit to be followed, all the time.

The husband of one wife. What does this exactly mean? That the person seeking the office has only had one wife? What about a man who is a widower and then marries another woman, could he be considered to be an overseer? He then would have had two wives. Does this mean that a man that before he came to the faith went through a divorce and then remarried is not fit? What about someone who after he came to faith had a divorce and remarried? What about a man that is not married, he would not be a husband of one wife as he doesn’t have a wife? The last one first, if Paul was suggesting that an elder of the church had to be married then he would then be disqualifying himself. Husband of one wife is more about how a man lives his life and his relations with, if he is married, his wife. He must be a faithful husband. There was also some discussion that this statement is barring polygamy from the leaders of the church. Yes it is, but while polygamy was often mentioned in the bible by notable men, David, Solomon, the rest of the kings of Israel, and at the time polygamy may have been almost considered to be legal by the Jews, it was because of their sin and not part of God’s plan. This statement is not just barring polygamists from being leaders of the church, its a deeper meaning on how the person is in his relationships, either with his wife, girlfriend or if single staying pure.

Sober-minded, temperate or vigilant, its describing a clear head, alert or watchful. An elder must be able to organize his mind and be able to prioritize his thoughts, this ability aid and helps in one of the later qualifications, the ability to teach.

Sober-minded and self-controlled go hand in hand. The ESV and LEB translate this self-controlled while the KJV translates it as sober, and the ASV sober-minded. An elders should be under control in his own mind and be able to control himself, in anger, desires, temptations, and especially spiritual matters. Again he is a representative of the church and his actions and how he conducts himself will reflect for good and ill on the church to those who are in his spiritual care and also to the fallen world.

And to the world in general an overseer should be respectable, of good behavior, or orderly. The world may not agree with or accept the gospel and Jesus Christ but as a person he should be thought of well to the world. A hard worker, friendly, approachable, not be chaotic in their life, the light of Jesus Christ should be able to be seen to all, whether or not they are a believer.

And to the believer and non-believer alike he needs to be hospitable, this also goes hand in hand with being respectable. The task of an overseer is to lead, aid and teach the flock of Jesus Christ, but also, as we all are called to do, be a missionary to the world, and lead by example in the world, and in both of these tasks being hospitable is very important. If the elder is not seen as to be approachable then the task of leading and teaching is greatly hindered.

Able or apt to teach is the major difference between an elder or overseer and a deacon. At the core an elder like a deacon is a servant of the church and its members, but an elder has the additional task and privilege to lead and teach. Can he who desires to be an elder clearly and accurately convey the word of God? This does not have to be primarily at the main meeting of the flock, smaller groups or one on one, an elder needs to be able to explain and convey the Gospel and salvation. No one will ever be fully knowledgeable about every aspect and every verse of the Bible, at least not in this world, and everyone will always be learning more and more about God and scripture but can he convey the knowledge that has been granted him by the Holy Spirit clearly as to help and not further confuse.

3, Not being a drunkard, or given to much wine should be a redundant statement for all Christians as we are all commended not do drink wine or strong drink to excess. But especially for a leader of the church, as Pastor Isaac has mentioned previously is it worth enjoying a drink worth the possibility that someone sees a leader of the church having a drink and jumping to conclusions, is that his first or fifth? No Christian should have his or her mind fogged with too much drink but the leaders of the church must be hyper aware of this, and I’m not saying that its not to be done just in public and in the home it is allowed, whether in private or public one’s mind should not be clouded. What if an elder was in his home and had a few drinks and is inebriated and one that is in his care calls him up with an issue or spiritual concern, his counsel and help would be severely impacted. The lifestyle of every Christian is to be different and set apart from the world, but this is especially so for its leaders.

Not violent but gentle, one could say that this is repeating being sober-minded, respectable, and self-controlled but an overseer’s actions should never be violent, and able to remain calm in every situation.

Just as not being physically violent also quarrelsome with violent and hurtful words as well, never lashing out verbally intending to cause harm, but in all situations and dealing with everyone be gentle, always honest and true to the word of God but gentle.

Not a lover of money, one cannot serve two masters. An elder is responsible with the stewardship of the church and its finances and he should not be known for desiring after money or personal gain. Judas sold Jesus to the Jewish leaders for 30 silver coins, he was a lover of money and this is not how the leaders of the church should be characterized. There should be no question in peoples mind about how their spiritual leaders are caring for the church’s wellbeing financially, I’m not saying that they cannot question the leaders but the leaders should be able to be trusted and again they should be above reproach.

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An elders home and how he manages and cares for it will be a direct reflection on how he will care and manage the church, with Godly leadership and dignity. If he is blessed with children they should not be know for their rebellion against his leadership, he is not to let the inmates rule the prison. This is not to mean that he is a tyrant and dictator over his home either, all of the other qualifications mentioned before most assuredly apply to his leadership in the home as well as with the public.

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He must not be a recent convert to the faith. Knowing the truths about the faith is essential for being able to convey and explain them, and rushing the installation of an elder to someone new in the faith may lead to an ego, that he is just better than the rest and this attitude will not be fruitful for the church. The devil is ever seeking to attack the church and its leaders and a high ego of oneself is an easy entry point for attack by Satan.

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In general an elder should have a reputation that is above question, not only among believers but to the unbelieving world also. All Christians should strive for this, without compromising any commandment from God, so we can be light to the world and to those whom more is give more will be required. Any disgrace that a Christian falls into reflects on the church as a whole, and so much more its leaders. How can one who does not have a good reputation with the fallen world expect them to be able to share the Gospel.