The Elder 1 Timothy 3 Titus 1
The office of an elder is the highest office in the Church today.
Those who are ministers are simply ministering elders. Then, when
we looked at Scriptural Church Government we saw that in the NT
Church there were a number of elders in each Church. We also showed
you how that the office of a bishop in the New Testament and the
office of a bishop are the same thing. The word "elder"
has to do with the person's qualifications as a person and the
word bishop has to do with the job that he does. The word "bishop"
means "overseer" and we saw that it is the job of the
elder to be an overseer and a shepherd. Remember how Paul instructed
the Ephesian elders to feed the Church of God. The Word "feed"
means "shepherd". He is to look after the flock and
care for them and to safeguard their spiritual welfare. He is
also to administer discipline if that is necessary. If the sheep
are wandering away or doing what they shouldn't be doing it is
the job of the elder both to encourage them or give them a rap
across the proverbial knuckles if need be. So the job of the elder
is a very high and a very responsible office indeed.
The problem may be that when people begin to realise the responsibility
of the office and when we look at the qualifications of the office
that many of the brethren may say. "I could not do that"
or "I am not qualified to take on such a high office".
The first thing I want to point out is that those who are the
more spiritually minded often have a heightened sense of their
own sin. The fact is that the closer a person comes to God the
more clearly they will see their own loathsomeness and they will
lament over things that those who have never drawn as near to
God have never seen in themselves. Those who are of a less spiritual
mind can go on blithely disobeying the precepts of God with hardly
a thought and they will often justify their behaviour and make
excuses for their behaviour and throw the blame on other people.
It will never be their fault that they behave as they do. It is
the fault of the minister or their friends or their family or
their circumstances but they are the best they can be. A spiritual
person is a person who makes no excuses but throws himself at
the mercy of God and struggles to put to death the old man. A
spiritual person is a person who studies God's Word and compares
himself in the light of it so that he will often see things that
another would never see. Therefore a more spiritual person is
apt to judge themselves more harshly. Now that does not make excuse
for the faults but I just want to point that out as a fact. If
you are more spiritual you may be judging yourself on a level
above the person who is quite happy to let his name go forward.
The second thing that I want you to see is that the Bible urges
the brethren to have an ambition to be an elder. 1 Timothy 3:1
says This is a true saying, If a man desire the office
of a bishop, he desireth a good work. It is not wrong
to desire this office indeed it is something that you should desire.
It may be that if you were qualified for this office and you refused
to take the responsibility that you would be refusing a service
God wants you to do and that ultimately you won't have used the
the talents that God has given you. We think of the parable of
the talents that the Lord told and how the master was angry with
his servant who had buried the talent in the ground as he had
not used the talents he had been given. So it is a good thing
to desire the office of a bishop or an elder. However in desiring
the office of an elder you are not going to get very far if you
are not seeking to display the qualifications of an elder in your
life. In this life if you want any job you have to have the qualifications
for it. It is no different in the work of God. There is no point
in you desiring the office of an elder if you have not sought
to get the qualifications and you cannot blame the people for
not voting for you if you have never sought to get those qualifications.
The Bible lays down very clear qualifications for those who occupy
the office of an elder and given that it is something every man
who is saved here today should desire I think it would be good
if we IOC at the qualifications and see that they are put into
effect in our lives whether we become elders or not. There are
a number of different kinds of qualification then that I want
you to see.
I The Elder's Authority
First of all we look at the elder's authority for there are certain
qualifications that naturally flow from the nature of the office
itself. First of all we have said that he is an overseer. Now
if a person is an overseer in any capacity he has to have a certain
amount of authority and respect. That authority or that respect
might come from different aspects about the person. It might come
because he is a caring person. If somebody is concerned about
you and you know that if they do something it is for your good
that will carry a certain amount of respect with it. So an elder
should have a concern But respect may come also from knowledge.
A doctor or a solicitor has your respect and he carries authority
because of has a knowledge of his field and so an elder ought
to have a knowledge of the Word of God. If he is going to oversee
the flock then at least he should have some knowledge of what
is right and what is wrong. If you are looking for someone to
be an elder then that person should be one who has some knowledge
of the Word of God.
But secondly as an overseer who may have to administer discipline
against those who do not attend the house of God or who do not
come to communion he needs to be an attender at the house of God.
If someone was to be summoned to the session because they were
not faithful in their attendance it would be a bad thing if that
person could point to the elder and say " Sure, you're not
there half time either." Any person standing for an elder
will have be determined that as far as lies within them, and we
understand that people cannot be there sometimes for legitimate
reasons, but as much as lies within you you will be at every meeting.
It ought to be as big a scandal that the elders of the congregation
do not come to a meeting as it would be if the minister of the
church did not turn up because if you do not turn up you will
discourage those who you are trying to encourage as an overseer
and you will loose authority. I do not want a situation where
the people of this congregation can make an excuse for staying
away from the meetings by saying "Sure some of the elders
aren't there either." So if you are not going to give a commitment
that as much as you can you will be there at the meetings I would
like you to withdraw your name right now. (And I don't want the
excuse that you had visitors. Your visitors should know that you
go to Church). Elders must be willing to give time to the Work
of God. If you want the honour then you must also take the responsibility
and I hope you can see that that is only but right. We see the
elder's authority
II The Elder's Testimony
Secondly I want you to see the Elder's testimony. If you turn
to 1 Timothy 3 and other passages the Bible gives us various features
of the testimony of the elder. If you notice he has to have a
good testimony in two ways. He has to have a good testimony inside
the church and he also has to have a good testimony in the world.
But let us look at some of the things that should be true of the
elder that are to do with his testimony.
First of all notice that an elder is to be blameless. That is
the very first characteristic that Paul puts in 1 Timothy 3. By
"blameless" he means literally that there is "nothing
to take hold of" That is the literal meaning in the Greek
of the word used here. In other words there ought to be nothing
in his life that the world can take hold of or that the devil
can take hold of to criticise the church. When people begin to
hear about the fact that elders have been elected in Coragarry
or when the pictures appear in the newspaper people should not
be able to say, "Look at who has become an elder? Do you
know what he did?" Do you know where he was? Now having said
that there is no man living that is sinless. Day by day we do
things we shouldn't do but it should be the desire of an elder
to live above reproach not only in the church but in the community
as well.
Secondly he is to be "given to hospitality." That is
literally that he loves strangers. The tradition of hospitality
is a very strong one in the east. A stranger will be taken in
and treated royally. We have lost a lot of our hospitality today
in the rush. We do not have that care for others. But in the Church
that hospitality will be manifested at the very least in welcoming
strangers into the church and in trying to befriend them. You
hear people say "that is not a very friendly church"
It should never be said. We should shake hands with the people
and be friendly to them and make them feel at home
Then the elder should have the testimony that he is not given
to wine. You find that stated at the start of verse 3. He should
not be a drinker of wine. Then he is no striker . In other words
he is not the sort of person that is always looking for a fight.
C.H. Spurgeon told his Pastor's College students that they should
not go about the world with their fist doubled up for fighting.
There are people like that you know. There are people who always
seem to be getting themselves into fights and contentions. The
Backwoodsmen in olden days America used to go about with a chip
of wood on their shoulder daring anyone to knock it off so that
they could get a fight with them. Well there are people who seem
to take offence at anything so that they can get fighting. A person
like that is not suitable as an elder.
But then let us examine his testimony further. He is not greedy
of filthy lucre. In other words the amassing of earthly treasure
should not be his chief goal. You say "what is wrong with
making money?" There is nothing wrong with it but there are
more important things. A person whose mind is always on the money
firstly will be like Judas and focused on the money but he will
also not be spiritually minded. You will not be willing to spend
time with the things of God if money is your interest. You will
be so caught up with your business that it will take precedence.
If you are not willing to let your business take second place
on some occasions at least then you also should think of withdrawing
your name.
Then he is not a brawler. Elders need to be peacemakers not trouble
makers. Sometimes people want to take position so they can force
through an agenda of their own. No we don't want brawlers. The
Bible tells us that we need to be willing to forego our own rights
at times for the sake of the peace of the Church and certainly
elders will be called on to do that. Y ou will be called to go
the second mile in forbearance. He is not a brawler.
Then he is not covetous. You can be covetous of many things other
than money of course. You can be covetous of fame or power or
position. If those are the reasons you want to an elder then please
think again!
But not only is the elder to have a good testimony inside the
Church but he is to have a good testimony outside the church .
How imperative it is that we have elders who are well regarded
in the community- that are not one thing on Sunday and something
completely different the rest of the week. We should have men
who are known for their godliness in the community and people
who are known for their zeal for the things of God. We certainly
do not want the type of person who the world points at as the
hypocrites. The kind of people who profess to be Christians and
then live like the world. That person is certainly not qualified
to be an elder. He is to have a good testimony both in the Church
and out in the world as well. Now the world may hate him because
he is a christian. The world may not like his Christianity but
at least the world should acknowledge that he does walk as a child
of God. We see the Elder's testimony.
III The Elders Personality
Thirdly I want you to see the Elder's personality. If you turn
again to 1 Timothy 3 there are different characteristics that
should be true of the elder and I want to look at some that have
to do with his character or his personality.
Notice how verse 2 tells us he is to be Vigilant.. That word means
he is to be temperate. He should be able to keep his head in tough
situations. He should not be the kind of person who flies off
the handle as soon as he is crossed. Now this is the kind of personality
God likes. Some people pride themselves that they do fly off the
handle. They say "Nobody tramps over me." Well an elder
is someone who will knowingly let himself be tramped over at times
for the sake of the greater good. There have been many times when
I have allowed myself to be tramped over. The old man within me
was crying out to let fly and tell people what I really felt but
I had just to let it go. But that is what an elder has to do.
In the parallel passage in Titus chapter 1 we are told that an
elder is not self-willed, not soon angry, Have you got
a bad temper? Are you easily aroused in anger? Then you wouldn't
make a good elder and what you need to do is get yourself under
control. You need to be vigilant about yourself because your attitude
is not a spiritual one. Notice too that he is not self-willed.
Some people want to become elders to impose their own will. Some
people want to be an elder so they can be top dog and get their
agenda implemented. That is what is meant by being self willed.
It means being over-bearing. It means always pushing to have your
own way. If you will take no other way but your way then you would
not make a good elder
Then he is to be sober. 1 Timothy 3:2 gives that characteristic.
That means that he is to be serious minded, Now it does not mean
that he is not able to enjoy a good joke. It does not mean that
he has to go about with a permanent scowl on his face. But it
does mean that he knows that the business of the work of God is
a serious business. HE knows that we are dealing with eternal
realities and that he takes the commands and precepts of God's
Word seriously. He does not treat them lightly and he does not
take it lightly when he sees violations of the Word of God. He
is sober
Then he is of good behaviour. The thought of being orderly would
be a good translation of the word used here. He is a person who
is organised in his thinking and his living. You know the old
Methodists like Whitefield and Wesley had their days organised
that there was no wasted time. They got up early and they used
every waking moment. How we waste time don't we? You know we all
think we are busy but somehow when an emergency crops up and we
need to do more things we get everything fitted in. We waste time
and then when it comes to reading the Word of God and prayer we
feel we have no time. We need to organise ourselves and that's
what good behaviour means in the context here. An elder should
be like that. He makes good use of his time so that he is able
to fit in the most important things which includes the worship
of God. He will order himself so that he can get time with the
Lord.
Then he is Patient. we have dealt with this in some ways already
but could I say that he should be patient in listening to people
and he should be patient when people show faults to encourage
them and get them into the right way. Things often do not happen
overnight in the work of God. It takes the slow process of building
line upon line and precept upon precept. I have seen people take
up office in the work of God and they thought they could transform
things overnight. But often times slow and steady is the right
course. Sometimes the only way to turn a big ship around is to
do it slowly because to do it too quickly would damage the ship.
There are certainly things that need to be turned around but sometimes
we just need to be patient.
So there are definite indications of the character and the personality
of the elder that we should take into account. But not only do
we see the elder's personality but look at
IV The Elder's Family
The family of the elder is a factor that needs to be taken into
account because the family will tell a lot about him. If a man
cannot run his family then he is not going to be able to run the
affairs of the Church.
Notice that he is to be the husband of one wife. That is stipulated
both in Titus 1 and 1 Timothy 3. Now that indicates that the elder
is going to be a man for a start . The Lord did only appoint men
as his apostles and we read that an elder is to be a man so no
matter about the fashions and women's lib we must go with the
Scriptures. That does not mean that a woman is inferior any more
than yo are inferior if you are not elected in this election.
Please do not get the idea that this election is some kind of
spiritual beauty contest. Different people have different talents
and different roles but the Lord has said that the elder is to
be the husband of one wife. Now that meant more in days when some
people had more than one wife but it does help us to understand
that the elder is a man. It does not mean however that the elder
has to have a wife. He does not have to be married.
But then he is also able to govern his children. Now some the
greatest preachers have had chidden who were not saved. Probably
it was because they were away from home too much but we also know
that personalities are different. One child may be more difficult
than another. However when none of the children have an interest
in the things of God and perhaps despise the things of God it
quite often is an indication of hypocrisy at home. Titus says
that an elder should have Believing children His children,
or many of them should be saved. A man who is an elder should
set such an example in his home that many of his children come
to know the Lord. So what is your home like, what is your family
like? That is important too. The Elder's family. Then notice
V The Elder's Spirituality
There are a couple of particular spiritual qualities that an elder
should have. First of all 1 Timothy 3:2 says he is to be Apt
to teach and Titus 1 : 3 says that he should be Holding
fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be
able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers
Now there are those who are specifically teaching elders and they
are ministers or pastors but every elder should possess this ability
to some extent. Now that does not necessarily mean that he should
be able to preach although it would be good if he could. He may
be better on a one to one basis. There are people who never have
preached but they are great encouragers. We think of Barnabas
who took Paul in when no other would and was always encouraging
people. We think of Onesiphorus of whom Paul said that he often
refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain They encourage
other people. They are able to speak a wee word privately. That
is a great ability on its own. But nobody will be able to teach
unless they themselves are taught, unless they have a knowledge
of spiritual things and a knowledge of the word of God. That is
what is needed for an elder.
Then there is one more thing. He is not a novice. A novice is
literally one who is "newly planted" That does not necessarily
mean that a young person cannot be an elder. It means that he
is not one that is newly saved or who is a "babe in Christ"
There are some people who grow very quickly in the grace of God
and so it is very possible for a young person to be an elder but
if a person is not sufficiently mature in the grace of God and
if that person has not been tested it is very possible that having
been lifted to office that they could get lifted up in pride and
make a mess of themselves and the work. Are the people you are
thinking of voting for spiritually mature enough to carry the
office in the right way. They might be saved for years and yet
be a spiritual novice.
But do you see how many qualifications are needed to be an elder.
We are aware that none of us are perfect but to be an elder you
need the qualifications. We need men who care about the things
of God and about the Work of God. We need men who will think of
the work of God and how it should best be run and who are willing
to give time to run it and build people up in the things of God
and see precious souls saved. Now we have said that it is a good
that a man desire the office of a bishop. If you do not have the
qualifications now then make sure you have them when another election
comes. But could I give a word of warning about electing someone
on the basis that if they are elected they might be encouraged
and attend meetings when they didn't before . No they need to
have the qualifications now. Let us take this seriously and let
us see the work of God go forward.