Leaders in the Church -1 Timothy 3:1-7

Good morning church! A warm welcome to everyone who has joined us here in-person and all who have tuned in online. Our prayer is that by the time we leave this hall today, we would all grow in loving and enjoying Jesus more than we did before. Our prayer is that our hearts would be full with Jesus’ love by the time we step out of this hall. And one of the primary ways by which that happens is when we hear our Shepherd’s voice through the preaching of the Word:

This is what Jesus says in John 10:27: My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.

That’s why we take this time with the Word very seriously. Because the goal is not to hear the pastor’s voice. The goal is not to hear the pastor’s message. The goal is to hear Jesus’ voice as His Word is being preached. And if that’s the goal, then you and I need the Spirit’s help to tune our ears to Jesus’ voice & also give us a humble heart to follow Jesus. Would you join me in prayer?

Pray

Last week we began a new series titled Understanding Church. And what we saw is that we all have a tendency to move away from God’s heart and design for the church. We could very well be a part of a thriving church but have expectations that don’t match with God’s heart and design. And that’s precisely why all of us need to have regular, routine bible reminders so that we can set aside our own human expectations for the church and embrace God’s expectations – God’s heart and design for the church. 

So this week we’ll be turning to Leaders in the Church. Let me clarify that when I say leaders, I’m referring to the pastors or elders within a church. Just to start off – let’s start with the question “Why”. Why have leaders? Why does God place pastors or elders within a church? What’s God’s intention in doing that?

To compare it with sports – is it just because every team needs to have a captain? Or to use an example from the workplace – is it because every company needs to have a CEO? Is that how God is looking at this? Having a strong, decisive leader who makes long term plans & strategies for the church. Someone who is tasked to manage the church just like a captain of a sports team or CEO of a company. Is that God’s corporate style of managing His church? The answer is NO. That’s why we need to get back to the Bible and find out what is God’s heart and design for a pastor. One quick passage before we jump into the qualifications in 1 Tim 3.

Acts 20:28-31: This is Paul’s farewell address to the pastors in the Ephesian church. In this we get a few clues on why God has placed pastors in churches.

28 Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. 29 I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; 30 and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them. 31 Therefore be alert, remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish every one with tears.

1. Feed the church: V28 says To care for the church of God. The original Greek translates that word care as “feed” – Feed the church of God. It’s a picture of a shepherd feeding and taking care of his sheep. That’s the role of the pastor. And how does the pastor feed the church? With the Word of God. Whatever the pastor’s involved in – instruction, encouragement, correction, counselling – whatever it may be, it needs to be done by God’s Word. If God’s Word is missing, (if the pastor is using his idea or some worldly idea) then the pastor isn’t feeding the church.

The other thing to note is that the sheep doesn’t belong to the pastor, the sheep belongs to Jesus. “Which he obtained with his own blood”. Even as the pastor feeds and takes care of the church, He’s called to do it with humility knowing that he’s handling the church of God which Jesus purchased with His own blood.

2. Protect the church: In V29-31, Paul uses the same shepherd analogy to reveal another aspect of a pastor which is to protect the sheep. He’s not just feeding the sheep, but he’s also protecting the sheep from fierce wolves. Who are these fierce wolves? False teachers whose only agenda is to hurt and harm God’s people.

It says “they’ll do these things to draw disciples after them”. Their teaching will probably seem very attractive. It’ll be very appealing to your heart but the reality is that it’ll take you away from your Savior and His work. And so one of the main duties of the pastor is to have a great concern for protecting the sheep. Paul in fact says that for three years with tears, He admonished them to be alert.

So God’s placed pastors in the church to feed and to protect the church. But there’s one more reason why God’s placed pastors in churches, and that’s what we find in today’s passage which is

Be an example to the church: “to model what it means to be a follower of Jesus”. They are called to be pacesetters. To show others what it means to have your life shaped by the Gospel. They are not just called to preach it, they are also called to live it out as examples for the church. That’s why there’s a list of qualifications to be a pastor. I remember in one of my previous churches, people would be viewed as pastoral candidates if they showed enough enthusiasm and involvement in the local church. But this list doesn’t mention any of that, let’s look at these biblical qualifications to be a pastor:

V1: The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task – I find this qualification very very interesting, because it starts with a desire in a person’s heart. God prepares individuals and puts a desire in people’s hearts to become pastors. The pastor doesn’t choose that journey for himself. It begins from a desire that God places in his heart. But what is this desire supposed to be for? A life of position, influence, power, money? None of that. Because the end of the verse says “he desires a noble task”. In other words, he desires good labor or good toil. In other words, the desire is not for position or power, the desire is to labor for people. The desire is to toil for people. The desire is to serve people. The person who is being prepared to be a pastor knows fully well that he is being called to a life of toil and labor for people.

V2 Therefore an overseer must be above reproach – These are must-have qualifications, not could-have or good-to-have qualifications. That word “above reproach” actually means blameless. Now this doesn’t mean “sinlessness”, otherwise no one would qualify. But what this means is someone who is above scandalous reproach. Someone who is not known for his scandalous lifestyle. Someone who has a good moral standing in the church and outside as well. Someone who is currently pursuing purity and holiness. Because this person is supposed to be an example and a pace-setter for the church.

the husband of one wife – Husband which tells us that the role of a pastor is designated for a man and not a woman. Men are not superior to women. Men are not more capable than women. But this is just part of God’s design of how God wants to lead the church. But coming to this qualification – this means a person who is a one-woman man. A man who is faithful to his wife.

And in our corporate world, this would never be a qualification for a leader right? However, it’s a very important qualification in the church because marriage after all is a picture of the committed relationship between Jesus and His church. In many ways, the pastor is called to show how faithful, how loving, how gracious Jesus is to His church through his own marriage.

Sober-minded & self controlled – Somebody who is clear headed and able to make sound judgments. Somebody who is not known for making rash and irresponsible decisions. Somebody who is not easily influenced by what is happening or what is said and is able to still be balanced in their response.

Respectable – Someone who has an orderly lifestyle not an extravagant one. He will have a relatively normal, simple, orderly life which others can look up to.

Hospitable – Someone who is kind and available to guests and visitors. That doesn’t mean that the person would need to host the most grand dinner parties, but someone who is known for being a welcoming person. Welcome begins in the person’s heart first.

Able to teach – Out of all the qualifications listed here, this is the only one that deals with skill. All the others are not skill based but character and attitude based. Able to teach means this person should be able to correctly divide God’s Word for His people. Some amount of training would have been done (maybe formal or informal) to be able to correctly handle God’s Word. He doesn’t fit his thoughts into a passage. He doesn’t take verses out of context. He takes time to understand the passage in its original context and then be able to explain & apply the passage for his congregation. And as he’s doing this, people are being built up and encouraged in the Lord.

3. Not a drunkard – Not given to wine, not known for excessive drinking, not turning to alcohol as a solution for life’s problems, not looking at alcohol to self-medicate yourself.

Not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome – Somebody who is not always trying to pick a fight, someone who’s not always finding themselves in the middle of an argument but instead trying to diffuse fights and bring about peace.

Not a lover of money – The actual Greek word doesn’t just refer to money but greed for money and possessions. There isn’t a constant craving to acquire and buy new stuff. On the other hand, there isn’t a stingyness when it comes to giving money or stuff away. In other words, there is a healthy relationship that they maintain between themselves and their money and possessions. Their heart isn’t tied to their wallet.

4. He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, 5 for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church? – It’s so interesting that one of the qualifications for being an elder or a pastor is to see how we’re managing our families! The reason Paul gives for that is because the church is not a social group that I sign up for, the church is a family. In the church, the pastor takes the responsibility of a father who has been given a divine calling to lead the church spiritually. Therefore the test of that calling actually happens within a pastor’s home by seeing how he cares and shepherds his own family.

5. He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil – He mustn’t be a fresh brand new believer who isn’t matured because then he’ll easily be taken over by pride and fall quickly into the trap of Satan. Pushing people into the position of a pastor too quickly can actually do more harm than good. So Paul’s command is to wait and test the person for maturity before making them a pastor. Even if the need is great, we shouldn’t too quickly fast track a believer to the position of a pastor without examining his maturity.

6. Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil – Also, another important thing is for the pastoral candidate to have a good reputation among outsiders. This is not to say that the pastor would need to be popular and loved by outsiders. It’s basically saying that when outsiders look at the pastor’s life, it shouldn’t be something which brings the Gospel to disrepute. Why? Because that can hurt not only the person’s faith but also hurt the witness of the church to a lost and dying world.

Pastors are called to feed the sheep, protect the sheep and be an example for the sheep. But can pastors do this on their own strength? No, absolutely not. And that’s why it’s important for us to acknowledge that the only way pastors can remain faithful to their calling of feeding, protecting and being an example is if they understand how much the Good Shepherd – The Chief Shepherd has done and is doing for them.

John 10:11-16:

11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13 He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.

We can only mimic what we’ve seen and experienced ourselves.

1. Pray for your pastor: So requesting your prayers not so that I can be the best pastor but so that I get to know my Good Shepherd deeper every single day. The better I know my good shepherd, the better I will be able to do what God has called me to do.
2. Trust & be led by your pastor: Heb 13:17 Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.
3. Pray that God would prepare more pastors from within us so that more can be done to care for the church and also to equip the church for the work of ministry
4. Pastors lead the way, but people also need to pursue these qualities