10.12 - People Want to Hear - The Blessing of Elders

In this episode, we continue to consider last week's "People Want to Hear" topic: Elders. Let's look at 1 Timothy 3, Titus 1, and 1 Peter 5 to better appreciate why Elders are a blessing and why their character is a positive challenge to us all.

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Noah preaches and teaches with the Cedar Park church of Christ in Cedar Park, TX. You can visit our site at: https://www.cedarparkchurchofchrist.org/

Transcript

Noah 0:00

Good morning, and welcome back to the Stand Strong podcast. We are coming off of last week's discussion with BJ Sipe. Uh, I really appreciated the time that I got to spend with him, um, working through some questions and working through some important topics of discussion. And I pray that if you listened to last week's episode, I pray that it was a blessing to you and, um, encouraging and even challenging to you to listen to that. And I pray that we can continue that today. I really enjoyed the discussion that I was able to have last week, and I think particularly, I enjoyed the conversation that we had surrounding elders, uh, when we covered the people wanna hear section, uh, and the question had to do with, you know, why are elders important and what is their role? That was a really good discussion, and BJ had some insightful things to say. And as I was preparing for this episode, I thought it would be appropriate and a good use of time to dig in a little bit more to the role of elder. Um, and we see this role referred to, uh, several different ways in scripture: elder, overseer, shepherd. Um, sometimes overseer is translated as bishop, sometimes shepherd is, um, is translated as pastoring. Uh, but those three words, elders, overseers, shepherds, those are generally the terms that, um, that I use to refer to this role that we see in the New Testament church. So what I want us to do with our time today is to look again at this role, and I'm-- we're gonna touch on some of the same passages as last week, but this time I want us to look beyond, um, the characteristics, or as sometimes they're referred to, the qualifications of elders, and I want us to look at the why. And, and I wanna be clear, I'm not looking to meta-analyze this. I'm not looking for us to try to get into God's head about why he requires, um, men of this role to have these characteristics. I think some of that is evident, some of that is clear, uh, and can be fleshed out in other areas of scripture. But what I really want us to do today is to just look at, in these contexts, the places where God, through Paul, says, "This is why I want these men to be this way." Why does a man need to have this characteristic? And sometimes right there in the context, he says, "This is why." And I wanted to look at some of those today, um, so that we can have a little bit, I think, better appreciation for this role. I know that last week we spent a good amount of time talking about why it's important and what role they play. I wanna use this week's episode to emphasize that from just a slightly different perspective. So first, in 1 Timothy 3, um, this is the, the longest of the three passages that we generally go to, and, uh, it also has the most explicit reasons given in it. So I'll just read this section real quickly, and then I'll walk you through what I see here in the text. So 1 Timothy 3:1, "The saying is trustworthy. If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. Therefore, an overseer must be abru- above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. He must manage his own household well with all dignity, keeping his children submissive. For if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God's church? He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into condemnation of the devil. Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil." Okay, so the first half or so of that, um, feels pretty self-explanatory, and Paul doesn't give us reasons for why. He just says, "Therefore, an overseer must be above reproach, uh, the husband of one wife, sober-minded," and so on and so forth. The, the why kind of precedes it. He says, "This office of overseer is a noble task." Because of the nature of the task, this is the kind of man who must fill it. So there's a reason. Um, it's not an in-depth reason, it's not a great detailed reason, but it is a very real, and I think understandable reason. The task is a noble one, and it requires this kind of man. But as Paul unfolds this over the next few verses, there are some of these characteristics that he gives even further, uh, reasons, uh, further explanations for. So for instance, in verses four and five, he talks about managing his own household well with all dignity and keeping his children submissive. But verse five he says, "For if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God's church?" So the fact that he is to, as a husband and a father, be dignified and be a good leader who manages his home well That is necessary in part at least, Paul says, because it, it's proving the fact that he is also able to lead with dignity and manage well the local church. And specifically what Paul calls out is the ability to care for the church. So this is something that's being put into his, uh, responsibility. It's being, being put under his responsibility, and he needs to have proven himself with the responsibility of his family in order to be trusted with the responsibility of the local church. And so it's not just arbitrary, well, he's gotta, you know, he's gotta have a good family. No. He needs to be proven in this area because if he's not, then he is not, uh, he is not capable or trustworthy in the area of the church. Similarly, if we continue reading here, in verse six, Paul says, "He must not be a recent convert." Well, he gives a reason, an explicit reason for that, "Or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into cond- into the condemnation of the devil." So he's supposed to be experienced. And this is a similar idea to, uh, being proven in his family life. Okay, now he's, he's proven over here. That means he's trustworthy in the context of the church. In this case, he says he can't be a recent convert be- because otherwise he will become puffed up. So he needs some experience, some spiritual experience and maturity under his belt, or else pride might get in the way. And the fact is, we know from personal experience that even mature Christians can struggle with pride. How much more, uh, new converts who are thrust into a position of influence or authority? And so verse six speaks to the need for experience in order to remain humble So he's proven, he's humble. Verse 7, "Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil." That one at first can sound like Paul is saying, "Well, you know, um, appearances are a really big deal, and so he needs to be keeping up appearances for outsiders." I, I think contextually, that's not what Paul's talking about. What he's talking about is a man who's consistent in his way of life. And so, yes, he has a good reputation with people within the church, but how does he, uh, lead his life and handle his affairs in his everyday life, in his, in his work, in the people that he interacts with, uh, in, in those who, who see him in other contexts? Does he have a good reputation in those contexts? This is a man who is consistent in his character, in his morality, in his integrity. And so there's a m- there's a measuring stick that Paul is holding up. What is his reputation among those outside the church? If he doesn't have a reputation as an honest man, as a man of integrity, as a man of good character, well, then that indicates something. So my point here in 1 Timothy 3 is I think it's maybe the easiest one to see Paul give some specific reasons. These, these character traits are not just arbitrary character traits. They are important. Um, I don't think it's wrong that we sometimes call them qualifications, but I also want us to notice that Paul calls out for some of them specific reasons why a man must have this characteristic in order to serve as an elder. We can see something similar in Titus chapter 1. Um, in Titus chapter 1, there's a lot of time in this context spent on, uh, the kind of man you don't want in an eldership. So let's begin reading, uh, let's see, in verse 5. Titus 1:5, "This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into order and appoint elders in every town as I directed you, if anyone is above reproach, the husband of one wife, and his children are believers and not open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination. For an overseer as God's steward must be above reproach. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain, but hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined. He must hold firm the trustworthy word as taught so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it." So again, there's a section here where Paul spends some time on this is the kind of man you don't want, and then he contrasts that with some characteristics of the kind of man you do want in this role. And again, I think some of those are self-explanatory. We don't want men in this role who are, you know, open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination. Um, you don't want men of that kind of character in this kind of a role. But I want you to notice in verse 9 there, the very end, Paul gives a specific reason for one of these characteristics. In verse 9 he says, "He must hold firm the trustworthy word as taught." Okay, so he's, he's firm in the truth. Why? So that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it. So he needs to be firm in the truth. That's, that's good. And again, maybe that feels a little self-evident, but notice Paul says he needs to be firm in the truth so that he is able to teach and to correct false teaching That's important. This isn't someone who just knows the word, it's someone who holds fast to it, and holds fast-- uh, holds it firmly in a way that offers instruction and correction. In other words, if some- if a man knows the truth but is unwilling to teach it or unwilling to correct by it, um, then that, that-- he's missing that component of why he was put in that position. Uh, again, there's an explicit why given here. And similarly, in 1 Peter chapter 5, um, we see in 1 Peter chapter 5 kind of a series of contrasts, um, that are given here. So I'll just read the first couple verses of 1 Peter 5. Uh, Peter says, "So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory." So we have this series of contrasts where Peter says, "Don't do it this way, do it this way." Uh, and again, when we see those contrasts, that's fairly natural. I think we get intuitively that we want men in this position that, that look like this But there's one phrase in there that I think is helpful for summarizing these contrasts. The very first one, he says, "Not under compulsion, but willingly as God would have you." As God would have you. God has an intention for the role of elder, for the role of overseer, for the role of shepherd. Um, he has an intention for the work that's to be done, and the kind of man who is to fill that role and do that work. And that intention goes beyond the, the checkbox mentality that we sometimes get stuck in. Does he fit the qualifications? Well, if he does, that's good. But we also have to recognize that God has an intent for the work and the role beyond meeting those qualifications. And those, those meeting of that-- Uh, the, the meeting of those qualifications is the step in the right direction to fulfilling the work that God has intended. So when he says, "Not un- under compulsion, but willingly as God would have you," that's a reminder that a man who steps into this role needs to be doing so in order to fulfill what God intends for the role, not simply to fill a role, but to fill the role the way that God intends for it to be filled So I know that was kind of a, a quick overview of just a few of the points that we can draw from 1 Timothy and Titus and 1 Peter. But I wanted to spend a little bit of time on that from, uh, what I hope is just a slightly different perspective than what we sometimes, um, have when we approach these passages. And for those who are listening, um, there's two things that I want you to consider, uh, as we walk away from these passages here. Um, one, we should thank God for the blessing of elders. He-- God always knows what he's doing, but there are times when you can look at his plan and say, "Wow, God knows what he's doing." Where it just, it feels very clear and evident, uh, that his design is good. And I would say that the role of elder and the work that we see elders doing, and when we see them do it well as God would have them do it, what a blessing that is for a church. When men of character, um, men who are capable, men who care, as, uh, as Paul talks about in 1 Timothy chapter three, when those kinds of men who fit the description we see in scripture step into the role and they do it the way God intends, what a blessing that is. So, um, thank your elders for the work that they do, and thank God for the fact that he has raised up men who are men of character and who are capable and who care. The second thing that I would challenge those listening is that, um, this is not a... Be-becoming an elder, uh, is not a graduation ceremony. Uh, you don't, you don't get promoted into it. Um, what you, what you see in a shepherd as described by scripture is somebody who has gone, gone through the slow slog of lifelong growth. And you will continue to witness that as they shepherd. That growth doesn't stop. It ought not stop just because now they're in this role, um, of, of caring for and shepherding God's people And my point in that is, um, while yes, only some people, some Christians will fill the, fill the description that God has given of an elder or a shepherd, um, you know, it's going to have to be a man. You can't avoid that in, in First Timothy. Uh, it's gonna have to be, uh, a married man who has, uh, who has children and has raised them and has proven himself. And there are some people listening who will never fill all of those descriptions, fulfill all of those. Um- Don't miss that this is still an aspirational description. Um, whether you are male or female, uh, whether you are married or single, whether you have kids or don't have kids, the kind of character that is described in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1 and 1 Peter 5, there is an aspiration there that we should be feeling to, to grow into that kind of a person. Uh, and it doesn't happen overnight, and it certainly doesn't happen because somebody else points at us and says, "You know what? I think that you should be an elder." It happens through a, a slow and sometimes painful process of growth. And so when you look at these passages, consider it a challenge. Consider it a challenge to do the next right thing and do whatever it takes to truly grow in the image of Christ so that when you are going throughout your life, you are demonstrating the kind of character and the kind of care for others that these men are to exhibit, that these shepherds are to exhibit. Because you do not have to fill the role of shepherd to do good in your local church or in the kingdom. God has a role for them, and it is good. But God has a work for you, and I guarantee you that the work you can do for God will only be helped if you will grow and actively pursue the practice of this kind of living. So that's my challenge to you, regardless of who you are. My encouragement, my challenge is don't miss the ways in which you, too, can live out these kinds of characteristics. Thank you so much for listening. Um, I'm still getting used to this format by myself, so I know that this is a little bit different. The, the rhythm and the, the pacing of it may not be the same, and you, and you don't get a break from my voice on these second episodes. But I appreciate the fact that you're following along. Uh, as a reminder, if you haven't done this in the past two or three weeks, I would really appreciate it if you would go to the listener survey in the episode description and fill that out for me. It helps me get an idea of who's listening and why, and that helps me hopefully serve you better. Um, if you have any questions, like the one that we've addressed over the past two weeks regarding the role of elders, if you have any questions like that, feel free to fill out the question and answer form that's in the episode description. And, uh, I pray that as we continue to work together in this, that God will be glorified, uh, that we will grow in the image of Christ, and that through his strength, we will continue to stand strong