Insights on Leadership from Paul (6)

1 Timothy 3:2–7 KJV 1900

A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach; Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous; One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity; (For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?) Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without; lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.

By whatever comparison, Paul was certainly one of the most versatile leaders the church has known.

Paul had a brilliant grasp of the Old Testament.

Galatians 1:4 KJV 1900

Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father:

Galatians 1:14 KJV 1900

And profited in the Jews’ religion above many my equals in mine own nation, being more exceedingly zealous of the traditions of my fathers.

His supreme love for Christ coupled with the obligation to share Christ’s message were his powerful lifetime motives

Romans 1:14 KJV 1900

I am debtor both to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise.

2 Corinthians 5:14 KJV 1900

For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead:

The selection from 1 Timothy quoted at the head of this chapter spells out qualifications for spiritual leadership.

If a charge is preferred against him, it fails because his life affords no grounds for reproach or indictment of wrongdoing.

An example of a man of this nature is the Prophet Daniel.

The Spiritual leader is to enjoy a good reputation

We cannot hope to lead people to Christ by living an example of contradiction.

When a Christian leader full of high ideals lives a holy and joyful life in front of unbelievers, they often want to cultivate a similar experience. The character of the elder should command the respect of the unbeliever, inspire his confidence, and arouse his aspiration. Example is much more potent than precept.

Moral principles common to the Christian life are under constant, subtle attack, and none more so than sexual faithfulness.

Faithfulness to one marriage partner is the biblical norm. The spiritual leader should be a man of unchallengeable morality.

Sanders, J. Oswald. Spiritual Leadership: Principles of Excellence for Every Believer (Sanders Spiritual Growth Series) (p. 45). Moody Publishers. Kindle Edition.

Sanders, J. Oswald. Spiritual Leadership: Principles of Excellence for Every Believer (Sanders Spiritual Growth Series) (p. 44). Moody Publishers. Kindle Edition.

The spiritual leader must be temperate, not addicted to alcohol. To be drunk is to show a disorderly personal life.

A leader cannot allow a secret indulgence that would undermine public witness.

My Uncle once worked for a pastor who suffered from a secret of drunkeness. It eventually took his ministry and hurt the church greatly. A church that once ran over 1,000, dwindled to just a few hundred in part because a man was not morally qualified led the flock.

A leader must be prudent, a person with sound judgment.

This principle describes “the well-balanced state of mind resulting from habitual self-restraint”—the inner character that comes from daily self-discipline. Jeremy Taylor called this quality “reason’s girdle and passion’s bridle.”

a disciplined mind not swayed by sudden impulse or flying to extremes.

way, the Christian leader who possesses a sound mind has control of every part of his personality, habits and passions.

The Leader must be respectable. A well ordered life is the fruit of a well-ordered mind.

The Leader must be ready and able to teach. It creates opportunities to help others understand the meaning of spiritual life. Moreover,t eh leader’s responsibility for teaching those under him should be supported by a blameless life. Teaching is hard work, and doing it well takes time, preparation, study and prayer.

Samuel Brengle lamented: Oh, for teachers among us; leaders who know how to read hearts and apply truth to the needs of the people, as a good physician reads patients and applies remedies to their ills. There are soul-sicknesses open and obscure, acute and chronic, superficial and deep-seated that the truth in Jesus will heal.2

The Christian leader must be genial and gentle, not a lover of controversy. R. C. Trench says that the leader should be one who corrects and “redresses the injustices of justice.” Aristotle taught that the leader should be one who “remembers good rather than evil, the good one has received rather than the good one has done.”

The Leader must show hospitality. one that offers the privilege of service. The Shepherd of Hermas, a widely used book written in the second century AD, mentions that a bishop “must be hospitable, a man who gladly and at all times welcomes into his house the servants of God.”

Covetousness and its twin, the love of money, disqualify a person for leadership. Financial reward cannot enter a leader’s mind in the exercise of ministry.

Paul urges a well-ordered home where mutual respect and supportive harmony are the keynotes. To reach this goal, a spouse must fully share the leader’s spiritual aspirations and be willing to join in the necessary sacrifices. Many a gifted leader has been lost to high office and spiritual effectiveness because of an uncooperative spouse.

While a leader cares for church and mission, he must not neglect the family, which is his primary and personal responsibility. The discharge of one duty in God’s kingdom does not excuse us from another.

Spiritual maturity is indispensable to good leadership. A novice or new convert should not be pushed into leadership.

The church in Ephesus was a decade old when Timothy became its pastor. This church had in it a galaxy of gifted teachers, so there were many men of mature experience in it; hence Paul’s insistence that the new minister be mature—not as old as the others but as spiritually rooted and fruitful.

Paul warns that a person not ready for leadership, and thrust into the role, “may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil (v. 6)

It is unwise to give key positions too early even to those who demonstrate promising talent, lest status spoil them. Instead, the promising convert should be given a widening opportunity to serve at humbler and less prominent tasks that will develop both natural and spiritual gifts.

Acts 14:23 KJV 1900

And when they had ordained them elders in every church, and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord, on whom they believed.

Example: Timothy was converted during Paul’s first journey, but not ordained until the second journey.

“It is the mark of a grown-up man, as compared with a callow youth, that he finds his center of gravity wherever he happens to be at the moment, and however much he longs for the object of his desire, it cannot prevent him from staying at his post and doing his duty,” wrote Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

Maturity is shown in a magnanimous spirit and broad vision. The indwelling Christ enlarged his passion for others, broadened his view of the world, and deepened his convictions. But even in Paul’s case, these changes took time.

Which of the training areas mentioned in this chapter (social, moral, mental, personality, domestic, and maturity) has God been emphasizing recently? In what ways?

How would you describe the level of Christ-centered ambition in your life? In what areas does it express itself most clearly?

Sanders, J. Oswald. Spiritual Leadership: Principles of Excellence for Every Believer (Sanders Spiritual Growth Series) (p. 52). Moody Publishers. Kindle Edition.

Sanders, J. Oswald. Spiritual Leadership: Principles of Excellence for Every Believer (Sanders Spiritual Growth Series) (p. 51). Moody Publishers. Kindle Edition.

Sanders, J. Oswald. Spiritual Leadership: Principles of Excellence for Every Believer (Sanders Spiritual Growth Series) (p. 50). Moody Publishers. Kindle Edition.

Sanders, J. Oswald. Spiritual Leadership: Principles of Excellence for Every Believer (Sanders Spiritual Growth Series) (p. 49). Moody Publishers. Kindle Edition.

Sanders, J. Oswald. Spiritual Leadership: Principles of Excellence for Every Believer (Sanders Spiritual Growth Series) (p. 48). Moody Publishers. Kindle Edition.

Sanders, J. Oswald. Spiritual Leadership: Principles of Excellence for Every Believer (Sanders Spiritual Growth Series) (p. 47). Moody Publishers. Kindle Edition.

Sanders, J. Oswald. Spiritual Leadership: Principles of Excellence for Every Believer (Sanders Spiritual Growth Series) (pp. 46-47). Moody Publishers. Kindle Edition.

Sanders, J. Oswald. Spiritual Leadership: Principles of Excellence for Every Believer (Sanders Spiritual Growth Series) (p. 46). Moody Publishers. Kindle Edition.

Insights on Leadership from Paul (6)

Social Qualifications

The Leader is to be above Reproach

Moral Qualifications

Mental Qualifications

Personality Qualifications

Domestic Qualifications

Maturity

For Reflection: