2020-08-02 1 Timothy 3:1 PORTRAIT OF AN ELDER (1): A NOBLE CALLING

PORTRAIT OF AN ELDER (1): A NOBLE CALLING (I Tim 3:1) Date: ____________________ Read I Tim 3:1 – A farewell was being held for a pastor who was moving on. The choir director stood and said, “Well, Jesus brought our pastor and now is moving him on. Let us stand and sing, ‘What a Friend We Have in Jesus.’” Probably wasn’t meant like it sounded. But there is a lot of mystery around this office. There he is on Sunday morning, but what in the world does he do the rest of the week? And why would anyone want to be a pastor? Our subject thru v. 13, is church leadership. The NT knows 2 offices. Vv. 1-7 = elders, pastors, overseers, all referring to the same office. Vv. 8-13 = deacons. Now before you check out bc you’re not a leader, please stay tuned. First, this is for all of us. Second, you need God’s perspective on leadership so you know what to look for when choosing new leaders – or a new church! Now, to most of us, leader = pastor. But the terms elder, pastor, bishop, overseer refer to the same people in NT. Usually there is a paid teaching elder, as we’ll see in chapter 5; others are lay elders. But all are equally responsible for the spiritual well-being of the congregation. So Paul begins his discussion of qualifications: “The saying is trustworthy,” Five times in the pastorals Paul refers to a “trustworthy statement” (1:15; 3:1; 4:9; II Tim 2:11; Titus 3:8). Each time it signals a truth of great importance. Here it introduces a list of qualifications of pastor/elders, but first, Paul gives 4 truths about the office itself. Whether paid pastor/teacher or lay elder this is for all. I. A Limited Calling As we saw in chapter 2, this office is for men only. People have changed their minds; God has not. This has become a test of obedience. Paul says, “If anyone aspires.” In the original language “anyone” (τις) is indefinite. But the numerous adjectives in vv. 2-6 that define “anyone” are all masculine. So, both the KJV and NASB translate, “If any man aspires.” God is saying thru Paul this office is reserved for men. Other evidence also points the same way. For example, a woman could hardly be “the husband of one wife” as required in v. 2. V. 4 indicates, “He must manage his own household well.” Both of these imply a gender-defined limitation, hardly surprising since God assigns leadership in the home to the husband: Eph 5:23: “For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church.” It would be incongruous 1 to say the husband leads at home in the smaller context, but the wife might lead at church in a larger context. When Paul says: Titus 1:5b: “appoint elders in every town”, the term is masculine – as is every usage in the NT. To those who contend Paul was just conceding to the cultural practices of his time – 2 comments. First, he was way out of step with cultural practices where women were allowed no voice at all, were sequestered out of sight in synagogues, had none of the rights of men in society and were generally considered possessions. Xnty restored them to equal personal dignity. Second, in limiting eldership to men, Paul invokes the order of creation, not cultural norms, both in Timothy and Corinthians. So theologian Gene Getz is right when he writes: “This shepherding position should be held by men wherever the church exists. Is this principle as important as the doctrines of the deity of Jesus Christ, the Trinity, and salvation by grace through faith? Not at all! But, if we misapply this principle, it could hinder the goal Paul so clearly stated for the church: ‘attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ’ (Eph 4:13).” To get God’s best requires our best to obey. II. A Compelling Calling Often ambitious men who have been failed at authoritative positions in other areas, community, work, perhaps even home – find the church an easy mark. They’re always looking for help! So men who can’t cut it in other areas of life end up as church leaders – tragic! They desire prestige. That is not at all what Paul has in mind. God promotes men who are hungry to serve, not those who are hungry for power. One of the last lessons Jesus gave His disciples is in Jn 13:14: “If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.” In other words, lead from the bottom up, not the top down. That’s the spirit God desires in elders. Two words describe this drive. He “aspires” and he “desires”. “Aspires” (οργεω) = “to stretch oneself, to reach out one’s hand” – describing one outwardly preparing for leadership. “Desire” describes an inward compulsion. Taken together, these words describe a man who is inwardly compelled to become an elder, and is, therefore, preparing himself for that possibility. If he wants to be a teaching pastor, he would be going thru college and seminary to get grounded in biblical studies and original languages. He would seek out opportunities to serve others, to teach the Word, to develop his gifts and live out God’s high standards. Spurgeon said of men called to preach, “If 2 any student in this room could be content to be a newspaper editor, or a grocer, or a farmer, or a doctor, or a lawyer, or a senator, or a king, in the name of heaven and earth let him go his way. . . . We must feel that woe is us if we preach not the gospel; the word of God must be unto us as fire in our bones.” Any teaching pastor worth his salt must feel this strongly. Lay elders must be equally committed to serving. Such a man will daily “do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (II Tim 2:15). He will be an avid student of Scripture so that he is “able to teach”. He will gain proficiency thru personal study, group studies, on-line courses and any other means available. He will seek out opportunities to serve and to teach. He will build the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22-23) into his life, leading by example. Any man who aspires to this office, will not self-promote, but humbly pray and prepare for God’s leading and affirmation of others. He knows leadership is about serving, not about power. There is a great scene in a Zorro movie where an elderly former Zorro says to a young “wanna be”, “Zorro was a servant of the people, not a seeker of fame, like you.” Similarly, one who aspires the office of elder is not power-hungry, but has a servant’s heart. One seeking prestige has automatically eliminated himself. The one God calls is already serving and preparing right where he is. III. A Responsible Calling Now, the NT uses 3 words to describe this office. Overseer (bishop, KJV), elder, and pastor (shepherd in ESV). All refer to the same men. The idea of bishops ruling pastors is a tradition that developed later; it is not in the NT. They are equal – the same men. In Acts 20:17 at end of his 3rd journey, Paul “called the elders (πρεσβυτερος) of the [Ephesian] church to come.” But in 20:28 he addresses the same men as “overseers” (επισκοπος, same word as I Tim 3:1), and says they are “to care for (ποιμαινω – verb form of shepherd or pastor) the church of God.” So men termed elders/overseers are told to do the work of pastor. In Titus 1:5 Paul urges Titus to appoint “elders”, and then calls them “overseers” in v. 7. And in I Peter 5:1-2, Peter “exhort[s] the elders among you” to “shepherd [pastor] the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight” -- all three terms used of the same men in the same context. Elders, pastors, overseers = one and the same. So why three names? Each gives a nuance of the office. Elder emphasizes the maturity required. Overseer speaks to his governing functions and pastor his shepherding role. In 3 total they describe a man who of mature faith, with leadership ability, and who especially is able to shepherd a flock of people. So what’s a shepherd do? First and foremost, feeds the flock, right? So, in Jn 21 when Jesus met Peter following Peter’s defection and Jesus’ resurrection, Jesus restored him to service by telling him, “Feed my lambs (15), tend my sheep (16) and feed my sheep (17)”. Teach them! Paul reminds the Ephesians elders he was “teaching you in public” (Acts 20:20), and “I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God.” He tells Timothy, “Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching” (I Tim 4:16), and later, “Preach the word” (II Tim 4:2). The apostles knew this. When the admin burden of feeding the poor got too heavy, they said in Acts 6:2b: “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables.” They provided for choosing 7 men, assigned them to serve [διακονος] tables under their oversight and said: “But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word” (Acts 6:4). They are also responsible for protecting the flock from false teaching, for correcting error, for counseling and general oversight. For all of this they will “give an account” to God (Heb 13:17). That’s a sobering responsibility to aspire to. Of course, no one person could do all this, even in a small congregation. So, every time we find the word “elder” or “overseer” in the NT, it is plural. No specific number is ever specified, but always there is a plurality of elders, not just one. Phil 1:1b, “To all the saints in CJ who are at Philippi, with the overseers (plural) and deacons (plural).” It’s a good plan from God. It means no one man gets all the blame if things go wrong; neither does one get all the credit when things go right. It recognizes no one person can minister to everyone; it provides for a multiplicity of gifts among the leaders and it provides for accountability. If one gets off, others are there to pull him back. The NT does provide for some paid and some unpaid elders. I Tim 5:17, “Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor (pay), especially those who labor in preaching and teaching.” All are to be “able to teach” (I Tim 3:3d), but some will do it so much that they are to be paid. So there is a mix of paid elders and those in other professions who are lay elders. Now, you may have noticed owr church fits this model very closely. We have five elders who have overall serve our congregation with overall leadership. They are to “shepherd the flock of God” (I Pet 5:2) and lead by “being examples to the flock” (I Pet 5:3). We have one paid teaching pastor, and four lay pastor/elders. Our by-laws leave a few major decisions to the congregation 4 as a whole (affirmation of leaders, appointment of a senior pastor, approval of major building projects, etc.), but otherwise, the elders are to lead and the Bible instructs the rest of us in Heb 13:17: “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will give account” – to the congregation, yes, but first and foremost to God. We also have a permanent deacon committee under the elders. These are the two offices provided for in the NT, so that’s how we are organized. The office of elder must never be entered into lightly. Yet it is something to aspire to and done rightfully brings great joy. It’s work; in the case of a teaching pastor a lot of work. But what a joy to serve our King in unity, looking forward to the day when we’ll see Him face to face. God says in Hos 4:6, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.” In 4:9, he says, “Like people, like priest.” Godly elders have the glorious responsibility of seeing that God’s people are not destroyed for lack of the Word – and to be Godly examples. We should expect no less, and we should never settle for less. Robt Murray M’Cheyne, great 19th century Scottish pastor who left a huge mark on his world tho he died at age 29, said, “The greatest need of my people is my own holiness.” That’s true of any elder – a heavy, but joyous responsibility – to teach, by precept and by example. IV. A Noble Calling One who aspires to the office of overseer “desires a noble task.” It is a task. It is work. It is not just about a monthly meeting. It is about bringing Christ into the lives of people in every way possible. It’s work. Paul urges in I Thess 5:12: “We urge you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord.” Labor (κοπιαω) = “work to the point of exhaustion.” Learning, teaching, visiting, being involved. To what end? Col 1:28b-29: “that we may present everyone mature in Christ. 29) For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.” If we elders in this church are not praying, teaching, counseling and doing all we can to present all of you mature in Christ, we’re not doing our job. It’s work. But it’s a “noble task.” Excellent, desirable, eternally worthwhile. How could one spend his life more nobly? Wycliffe wrote, “The highest service that men may attain on earth is to teach and preach the Word of God.” Cotton Mather said of the office of pastor/elder: “It is such an honorable, important and useful office, that if a man be put into it by God, and made faithful and 5 successful through life, he may look down with disdain upon a crown, and shed a tear of pity on the brightest monarch on earth.” It is a noble calling. Conc – Let me close with this. If God puts it on your heart to aspire to the office of elder/pastor/overseer, whether as a lay person or professionally, do all you can to prepare yourself for a wonderful adventure. But even if you do not have this specific call to leadership, the opportunity to lead by example, to pray for God’s kingdom, to learn and share God’s word is available to all. Ministry is never limited to leaders. Wm Carey eventually became a great missionary, but when challenged early in life that he was neglecting his shoemending business he said this: “Neglecting my business? My business is to extend the Kingdom of God. I only cobble shoes to pay expenses.” I pray that attitude would pervade all our congregation. Let’s pray. 6