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Well Happy New Year!
As we start this new year, we are starting a new book, the letter to Titus.
It was written by Paul to this partner in ministry.
Titus was a Greek Gentile convert, who was with Paul and Barnabas when they went to Jerusalem for the council meeting regarding expectations for Gentile converts.
Titus was obviously evidence of what God was doing among the Gentiles around the world.
A Word About Pastors
Paul had first come to Crete on his way to Rome before his 1st imprisonment.
Later after his release he took Titus with him and left him there to help put the church in proper order and appoint elders / pastors in each city.
Paul wrote to encourage Titus in this tough assignment.
This letter is thought to have been written in the summer of A.D. 66.
This letter is for the edification of the church by encouraging good leadership and solid doctrine.
We will take a very short, broad look at this book.
There are all kinds of preachers today.
You can listen to them in person, on media platforms, read their books, get their social media feeds, but they have NO accountability for you.
Then there are preachers, who serve a local church week in and out.
They study, pray, care, share lives, and give of themselves to a local body of believers.
This instruction is for them … So, let’s see what Paul says about the Pastor read with me, and as you pray for your next pastor.
Notice an important phrase in v3 tell us that God “brought his word to light through the preaching entrusted”
says “… God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.”
Folks there is a lot of stuff we could classify as foolishness, and most of it has foolish or meaningless results.
But the most profound and meaningful “foolishness”, is done week in and week out, when faithful godly men stand in the pulpit bringing light to the wonders of God through preaching.
Believer, we CAN read the Bible for ourselves, and we SHOULD read it daily and meditate on.
We CAN pray to God and communicate with him by the Spirit within us.
And we DO have the Holy Spirit within us to lead us into all truth.
But, God has chosen, in his wisdom and plan, to reveal himself to us through his servants, pastors and teachers, given to the church to equip the body until we all achieve unity in Christ Jesus.
There are things that God entrusts to the Pastor that you won’t get any other way or from anyone else.
So, what does Paul teach us about Pastors?
What does Paul teach?
1. Qualifications
Leading people to Christ is not the END of the job of a church, if so we would only need evangelists and people with evangelistic hearts.
And just opening the doors of a church is not the end of the story.
Paul said, we need to straighten out what was left unfinished and appoint elders.
Elders = presbyteros – older, or ruler, mature,
And in v7 Paul describes the same people as those who overseer or episkopos = guardian; overseer, of God’s Household … And he is a Steward with a TRUST from God.
The call of the local church pastor is to lead, and guard, those entrusted to him by God.
These pastors have certain qualifications:
Notice that these are not requirements of perfection but it is about the base character of the man.
A. Blameless in Heart
Anenkletos /an-eng-klay-tos/ = that cannot be called into account, unreproveable, unaccused, blameless
I think of the father of John the Baptist, Zechariah, he was a man who was Blameless, though not perfect.
Noah was Blameless, not sinless.
That doesn’t mean perfect, but it means that the account has been cleared.
Regarding God, and with regards to people, we are right with them.
If there is an issue it is dealt with and the slate cleared.
In order to be blameless with God, I first must be born again, and second have to be in a state of having confessed known sin.
And the same would be true in person to person relationships, in order to have a good reputation.
He is blameless first in heart or home.
He is a
- One Woman Man
I don’t have a lot of time to spend on each of these character traits.
But it says that he is the “husband of one wife” which really obscures for us the understood meaning from those who would hear it.
It means that his commitment is toward ONE WOMAN.
Does that mean he can only have been married to one woman ever in life?
If that is true it disqualifies both divorced men AND men who have been widowed or abandoned.
Does it mean only one woman at a time, with the numbers being whatever he wants?
If so, that wouldn’t show much commitment or character.
So, let’s leave it at a man who is, as we would say, a “one woman man” by character and we will come back to this in just a minute.
He is blameless in his marriage relationship, and he
- Leads His Children
“with faithful children …”
That’s a tough one.
The Pastor must be a faithful husband, but also a successful father – i.e.
He has won his own children, and trained them in such a way that the follow God.
Does it mean they are perfect?
No, but they are followers, with a good reputation.
Does that mean if a Pastor’s children have poor reputation that the pastor may be disqualified?
Possibly.
How? Well I think the question is has he been faithful to teach and to train, or has he neglected them for the work of the church?
If so, he has forgotten his first job to be husband and father.
If he is guilty of that, then he perhaps is not ready and should step down, and focus on his family for a time.
So, he is blameless at home … And then outside the home…
B. Blameless in Deed
See the Elder doesn’t have his own reputation alone, but the reputation of God and his work so he must be …
- not arrogant / overbearing -
He must not be …
Authades -/ow-thad-ace/ self-pleasing, self-willed, arrogant or stubborn
He may passionately pursue the purposes of God, but without arrogance or stubbornness.
And then
- not hot-tempered
Again, it doesn’t mean he never gets angry.
Jesus got angry but without sin.
And perhaps a pastor may sometimes get angry even in a wrong way … but the qualified pastor has a reputation that he is NOT,
Orgilos = inclined to anger –
If he has a reputation for always getting angry, having a quick temper then he is not qualified
And …
- not an excessive drinker or given to drunkenness
Now again, this is a character trait
Paroinos /par-oy-nos/ addicted to wine, drunkard
This man should not be addicted to wine.
Has he ever had a drink, that is not the question in THIS text.
That’s up to the people he serves …
Let me just tell you for free in case you don’t know how I feel.
You may want to tell me that Scripture doesn’t say a Christian can’t drink and I would have to agree.
But I believe that scripture is clear that it is a character break down if it controls you in ANY way.
We could argue that it is one of the most destructive force in America today
- #1 drug problem
- 12 million alcoholics in the U.S.
- 75% of Americans drink in some form and 6% of those are alcoholics
- $200 million is spent daily in America on alcohol!
We could wipe out world hunger with that money!!!!
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