1 Timothy 3:1-7

Introduction:

Good morning, Good morning, Good morning New Life Fellowship Church. Yet, another day in the house of the Lord Amen! No place we’ed rather be! You guy’s are going to have to forgive me this morning as I was originally scheduled to preach last week. Most of you know I was on vacation last week, my family and I took a trip to Disney world in Orlando Flordia. While we were out there we saw many different things, we saw beautiful attractions, amazing views of the lake’s and we even went on some pretty intense rides. … Well I don’t if they were that intense but trust me they sure felt intense once you got off. Yet out of all the things we did and saw while we were on vacation, there was one thing that caught my eye. That was the amount of families and crowds of people that were gathered together in Disney world. You had large families ranging for new born babies all the way up until Grandparents. You know that is nothing new when it comes to vactaion spots. Yet what I was taken back by was not the amount of people gathered rather I was immersed in the fact that some of these exact same people come back to this very same theme park year after year, after year. And according to them it never gets old. I said to myself that those people are not so much different than us, because when we come to Church on Sunday morning we aren’t coming to a theme park or to Disney rides. We are coming to worship the king of kings and faithfully hear the Gospel. And just like those people who travel to Disney world every year, we want to hear it again and again and again. Therefore beloved let us all the more gladly say that there is NO place we’ed rather be than in the God’s house this morning Amen!

Therefore if you have your Bibles turn with me in them to the book of 1 Timothy 3:1–7 “The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church? He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil.”

May God bless, the reading, hearing and doing of his word shall we pray!

If you recall this past year Jeremiah and I have undertaken to do a sermon series throughout the Pastoral Epistles. Think back to last month when Jeremiah left us off and closed out chapter 2 in talking about the various roles men and women play in the life of the Church. This morning we continue with our study in the book of 1 Timothy, but we jump head first into chapter 3. Similarly to chapter 2, chapter 3 discusses various different roles certain people are called to play in the life of the Church. We know from background knowledge that a young Timothy is receiving his instruction from an older Apostle Paul. After laying out groundwork for the way men and women ought to be in the life of the Church, Paul transitions into moving into the ways of how ministers, deacons and overseers ought to be in the life of the Church. One very important thing we need to keep in mind, remember when we went over the first chapter and we said that the main issues Paul warns Timothy against is proper Church worship. Well of course that applies directly to those who are held in charge conducting Church worship. At the forefront of God honouring and proper worship in the Church is those whom God has placed in positions of authority. At the place I work at (Chick-fil-A), we have a saying that “everything rises or falls upon leadership”. If that is true in the business world, then we can very much say so that it must be true in the life of the Church as well. Therefore it is no secret that the Apostle Paul makes stern charges to the young Timothy about those who are in positions of leadership in the Church.

We must be careful not to take this passage and blow it off as some people who are not in the positions of leadership in their local churches may do. Rather this text serves as a call for those who already in positions of authority exhorting them on how to live as they ought. This text is also for the members of the congregation who are not in high positions. As this passage also serves as a call to help ALL members on the congregation help spot out and notice other faithful overseers and deacons in the life of the Church. And even use this passage to exhort fellow deacons, ministers and overseers you know who have stumbled into error. As a matter of fact a good friend of ours Pastor Thabiti wrote and excellent book on this very topic titled “Finding faithful elders and deacons” published by 9Marks.

Now that we know this text doesn’t just apply to those of us on the worship team, rather it applies to every member of any congregation anywhere. This morning I have three observations and then a couple of applications that will carry us through this mornings text.

1.) The Task of an Overseer.

2.) The Qualities of an Overseer

3.) The Endurance of an Overseer.

The Task, the qualities and the endurance.

Observation 1: The task of an Overseer.

Our first observation comes from the very first verse in the third chapter of 1 Timothy. Paul says that “If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task”. I find it very interesting that Paul says anyone desiring the task of an overseer, or church elder is a noble one. Nowadays especially with the use of social media, we here so many people talk about the want to be influencers and famous conference speakers and podcasters. While none of those things are wrong in it of themselves, Paul here says that even greater and more noble task. That is the task of being or becoming an overseer of Gods people. I don’t think that Paul said that just because he was Paul and wanted to say whatever he wanted to say. I believe Paul had the idea of an overseer being a noble task because he knew that it was God himself who established elders and overseers in life of his people. People today think that it was the early church that first established these roles but actually this role has been in place even since the Old Testament. Look at what the Bible says in Exodus 18:21–23 “Moreover, look for able men from all the people, men who fear God, who are trustworthy and hate a bribe, and place such men over the people as chiefs of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens. And let them judge the people at all times. Every great matter they shall bring to you, but any small matter they shall decide themselves. So it will be easier for you, and they will bear the burden with you. If you do this, God will direct you, you will be able to endure, and all this people also will go to their place in peace.”” Then Jesus gives the command to the Apostle Peter in John 21 when he told Peter to tend to his sheep. So this office of being overseers in the economy of God’s people has been something brought fourth all the way from Exodus even to the Church today. And it was God who established this role not the plight of man. Therefore anyone who desires to be an elder desires a noble calling from God. John Calvin commented on this text by saying “It is no light matter to represent God’s son, in such a great task as erecting and extending God’s Kingdom, in caring for the salvation of souls whom the Lord Himself has designed to purchase with his own blood, and in ruling the Church which is God’s very own inheritance”…… Boy that was a mouthful. But what Calvin was saying is that the person who seeks the task of an overseer is taking upon himself no light burden, which makes it such a noble task. Yet the problems comes when people want desire this task for things that are less than noble. Paul gives no inclination that people should desire this church office for any other reason, other than faithfully proclaiming and living out the Gospel. This is not an invite for those who desire to be elders for fame, fortune, power or anything else contrary to the law of God. Rather the desire for this task is a call to those who have a heartfelt desire for the care and edification of God’s people.

Observation 2: The Qualities of an overseer.

That brings me to my next point which is the qualifications of an overseer. Because the Church is very susceptible to false teaching and ravaging wolves. After all one of the main point of 1 Timothy is to combat false teaching. Therefore the quickest way to determine wether someone if someone is saying they are something they’re not is to look at their life. What does their lifestyle reflect? Just as I mentioned a second ago people can say they have a desire to be an elder, overseer or Pastor, but only a lifestyle a noble qualities can truly observe that. Therefore it is no one wonder Paul gave Timothy a list of qualities that should be characterized by those who desire to a Church overseer. I am not talking about perfectionism nor am I saying a Pastor cannot make mistakes. If that was the case the the Apostle Peter wouldn’t be on this list. Because Peter was a great minister and he still made many mistakes, yet God allowed him to be a writer of scripture. Rather this text is talking about the general orientation of a persons life, the way of direction that person is heading towards. Which is why Paul says in verse two he must be “above reproach”, look at some of the qualities that Paul says should describe those who are overseers. Paul says he should be “the husband of one wife”. In others words he must be devoted to one woman. This text does not mean an overseer must be married, nor does it mean that an overseer cannot be widowed or divorced. Rather Pauls intent here is that if an overseer is married they should be faithful to one wife. Paul further says he must be, “sober minded, self controlled”. In other word’s an overseer is not to be the abuser of wine or alcohol, and they must learn how to control themselves. The overseer must be “respectable and hospitable”. That means showing a care of concern and treating people with equally. That word hospitable or hospitality translates from its greek word to basically meaning “lover of strangers”. The overseer is someone who is respectful and has his home open to strangers. “Able to teach”, meaning that of course an overseer of God’s Church must be able to properly teach the things of God. “Not a drunkard”, once again Paul mentions not being overcome by substance abuse. “Not violent but gentle and not quarrelsome”. The overseer must be a kind person someone not someone who is hot headed. “Not a lover of money” perhaps the trap we see many people in Church leadership fall into is the snare of money. Paul says an overseer must not be in love with money. An overseer must “manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive”. Paul does not mean that a overseer in the Church must have a family, rather if he does have a family he must lead them in a well mannered way. After all how a person lead’s their home will directly affect the way they lead their church. All of these make up qualities Paul says that should characterize the overseer of God’s people. As I mentioned earlier this doesn’t just apply to those who are already in positions of overseeing the Church, nor does it apply just to those who aspire this position. These are some qualities everyone in the Church should be looking for when it comes to deciding who is next in becoming a overseer in the Church.

Observation #3: The Endurance of an overseer.

Which brings me to my third observation which is the endurance of an overseer. Has anyone ever seen what it is like when someone walks away from the faith? I remember being a Junior in high-school when some people I know who started out well, eventually have walked away from the faith. If it is sad when a church member walks away from the faith how much more sad would it be if a faithful overseer is to walk away from the faith. That is why I get the sense that Paul said in verse 6 that an overseer must not be a recent convert. First we must understand that it is only with great maturity and endurance that an overseer can eximplify some of the qualities we listed out in my previous observation. It takes a great deal of maturity to become well adversed in some of those qualities. And trust me when I say this maturity does not happen overnight. As one expositor said that Christian life is nothing but a long obedience in the same direction. Another expositor said this “Anyone can be a Christian, someone can be a Christian for 6 days, 6 months or 6 years, but it is only those who endure to the end who will be saved”. And being an overseer as a recent convert typically gives that person a sense of pride that Paul says can easily become a snare, and may trap those to fall into the condemnation of the devil. While Paul does not come out and say exactly how long it must be before a person converted to Christ can become an overseer. We know that that person must endure in the Christian faith long enough to becomes someone who models the qualities above. Not only must he have time to instill these qualities he must also have time to build his reputation. As Paul said in verse 7 “Moreover he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil”.

Before we get into our application we must go over one thing. That is the so what? Some of you may be thinking that all of this is great but what about the people who aren’t overseer’s. What does this text have to do with the context of the congregation as a whole? I know and I recognize that not every individual in the Church is called to be a Pastor, elder, deacon or overseer. But that does not stop this text from applying to you. Not only is this passage a call to people in Church leadership it is a guideline to help all church members spot out and finding people who will be faithful overseers. I think I already mentioned that in my introduction. But what this passage of scripture also is, is its a call to not just overseers but every Christian who is apart of a local church body. Because the observations we made are not just applicable to those who want to be overseers, rather they are applicable to every member of the Church. While not every member is called to be a leader or pastor. Every member is called to participate in the noble task of strengthening and edifying the Church. As Jesus said in Matthew 28:19 during the great commission “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”. Every Church member is called to model the qualities that Paul gave to Timothy. As Jesus said in Matthew 5:16 “In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven”. And every Church member is called to endure in the Christian life as Jesus said in Matthew 24:13 “But the one who endures to the end will be saved”.

While every faithful overseer, pastor, deacon, shepherd, bishop or whatever you want to call it is called to take the lead by setting an a good example in the faith. (We will see more of this as we go on in the book of 1 Timothy). Every Christian wether they’re in leadership or not is called to do exactly what this text says.

Now let me give you a couple of applications that we can apply to our personal lives throughout this week.

Application 1: Put your desires in the right place.

Let us jump back into verse 1. When Paul says those who aspire the office of an overseer they desire a noble task. Let us focus on that word desire for a second, that word desire means to “stretch out” and to “reach for”. As Paul says there is nothing wrong wanting to be an overseer of God’s people. Its when that desire is laced with a desire for something else is where trouble lies. This is a problem that is greatly impacting the Church today. I see so many Christians who want influence and clout on social media, that their desire for influence clouds their desire for the betterment of the Church. Therefore brothers and sisters we need to put our desires in the proper place and begin to desire the noble task of faithfully overseeing God’s church. Not for money, not for influence, not for power, but simply because we want to see God’s kingdom expanded and Church members growing.

Application 2: Focus on character not on spiritual gifts.

As important as spiritual gifts are, those gifts means virtually nothing if a person’s character is not right. You can be the most talented, most prolific person in the world, but if you have terrible character then it doesn’t matter because no one would eventually want to be around you. That applies here as well you can be a amazing preacher, an excellent Gospel singer, and even and speak in tongues. Yet if your life doesn’t look similar to what Paul described here in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 then it doesn’t matter how talented you are, your insides can be rotten to the core. Just what Jesus said about the Pharisees that on the outside they looked and seemed good but inside they were nothing more than whitewashed tombs. So my charge to you is don’t be like the pharisees, instead focus on your character more than your gifts.

Application 3: Set a good example.

Finally, my last and final application. Set a good example. Paul says in just one chapter over, which Lord willing, Jeremiah or I will cover within the next few months. Paul told a young Timothy in chapter 4 verse 12 to set a good example. As I said earlier, overseers are called to take lead by modeling before the entire congregation how to live out the Christian life. Even if you’re not a leader, you too can still set a good example. That why Paul said in the last verse of this section “he must be well thought of by outsiders”. Because the world is watching and the example you set is either pushing people towards Christ or away from Christ. Therefore let us strive to be good examples, especially if we are apart of leadership positions in the Church.

And lastly, I want to close with this and then I will be done, I promise. I am sure there are some of you in here now who have listened to this and are not apart of a local Church. Perhaps you are here now and you want to assimilate to a Church but you don’t know where to begin. Well you first begin by giving your life to Christ. As a matter of fact you too can become apart of the Church’s community, you can begin to have your hearts desires changed, you can begin to model Christ like character and you can begin to set a good example for those around you. As a matter of fact it is not because you give your life to Christ, rather it because He gave his life for you! He came to give you life and give it to you more abundantly. So if you’re hear this morning and you hear God’s call I implore you commit you life to Jesus today! And if you’re here this morning and you have slipped away from slipped away from the faith or have fallen far from the Church setting, it is time to get back on track. Therefore renew your commitment to Christ today! Amen!