these two passages dealing with the qualifications of elders and deacons, we are primed to think that these positions, which are official functions of the church, should be held by men. And in fact, the first verse says, if a man, if a man desires the position of a bishop, The position of a bishop ought to be held, therefore, by men. And through the rest of this list, what do we find? We find that the bishop must be the husband of one wife. The husband of one wife. We read in verse four that he must be one who rules his own house well. And this indicates what we expect from the previous chapter, that men are to hold office in the church of Christ. So that's the first consideration. The second consideration is that the office of bishop is not to be held by any man whatsoever, but by qualified men. And here I want to stress the significance of one small word that is used here to indicate the necessary nature of these qualifications. Look at verse two, where Paul says, a bishop then must be. A bishop must be blameless. A bishop must be sober minded. A bishop must be gentle. In other words, these are indispensable qualifications for a man to serve as a pastor. Now, I want to be careful here because I don't mean by that, that a man must be married in order to be a pastor. But if a man is married and most men will be, he must meet the qualification found in this text. Again, it's not absolutely necessary that a man have children to pastor, although most men will. But if he does have children, he must meet the indispensable qualification found here. Does that make sense? So it's important to stress the necessary requirements of the office because there is a tendency in the church today to water down these qualities with caveats or even not to take them into account when deciding on an elder. This passage should be the first text a church turns to when examining a potential office bearer. Why? Because Paul states that these moral qualifications are a must. That's the second consideration. The third consideration I want us to note is the reasonableness of these characteristics. These characteristics are reasonable. What does that mean? Reasonableness is the quality of being based on good sense. And the wisdom of these prescriptions for office bearers is obvious. Not only are these practical considerations, but they inculcate common sense judgment. Which one of you would say, I really want my pastor to be a heavy drinker. I hope all of you would say, I don't want a drunk. For a pastor, why not? Because the Bible warns against intemperance and it's not fitting for an elder who represents Christ in a special way to be addicted to wine. Which one of you would say, I really wish my pastor was more quarrelsome. I really would like a pastor who was willing to pick a fight at every moment. Why is that not a good characteristic in a leader? Because it will not make for the peace and unity of the church. and it indicates a proud and haughty spirit. Or think about Paul's statements about examining the way that a man manages his own household, his own children. What a reasonable thing, isn't it? That right judgments can be formed just from looking at the way that a man interacts with his family. Does he claim the respect of his children or not? Are they in submission to him or do they run roughshod over him? Who's really in control of the family? So that's the third consideration here. It is reasonable to argue from a husband's management of a smaller unit, his family, to the management of a larger unit, namely God's household, the church. These are reasonable considerations. They are not unattainable. And then fourthly, and finally, this passage challenges the modern church's prioritization of a man's speaking gifts over the gracious frame of his Christian life. You understand what I mean by that? Modern Christians tend to prioritize speaking ability over a man's personal holiness. But just take a bird's eye view of this text. And what do you see? Yes, an elder must govern well. And yes, an elder must be competent to teach. We'll get to those things. But what makes up the lion's share of the qualifications that we find? They are moral qualifications, aren't they? They're the qualities of a Christian man of integrity. And too often in the church, people will turn a blind eye to patently obvious character flaws because a man is successful in his ministry or a man has great ability to teach. And that's a tragedy. And not only is it a tragedy, but it is a train wreck waiting to happen. And not only is it a disaster waiting to happen, it is a refusal to listen to the clear word of God that prioritizes a man's life. So we can't forget Paul's teaching at the end of chapter two, that the qualifications of 1 Timothy 3 are necessary requisites. These qualifications are eminently reasonable. They are not unreasonable. And finally, they are a challenge to the prioritization of a man's speaking ability over the gracious frame of his Christian life. Now with that, let's dig into this text. If you look at verse one, you'll see that Paul is clearly beginning a new subsection as he writes, this is a faithful saying. Now these faithful sayings are strewn throughout the pastoral epistles. In chapter one, verse 15, Paul wrote the first one. He said, this is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. So writing this is a faithful saying is a way of presenting the solemn nature of what you are about to say. It's like Christ in the gospels drawing attention to specific teachings by saying, truly, truly, I say unto you. And it underscores the importance of the words that follow. The point of a faithful saying is indicated by Paul's subsequent statement that faithful sayings are worthy of all acceptance. So as Christians, we should wholeheartedly receive this saying, commending the work of elders within. The church, Paul says, if a man desires the position of a bishop, he desires a good work. Why is the eldership? Why is the work of ministry? Why is the pastor at such a noble thing? First, because it is in service of the house of God. Remember chapter three, verse 15, Paul calls the church, the households of God, the assembly of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth, the pillar and ground of the truth of the spread of the gospel in this age. So management of that house is a noble work. You cannot take these monikers for the church and apply them broadly to other organizations. And the excellence of the work indicates that the desire for the office is a noble desire for a man to have. In scripture, desires can be good, but in scripture, desires can be evil. And it depends on what you're desiring. that makes it good or evil and why you're desiring it. So when Paul says here, if a man desires the position of a bishop, he's not talking about a sinful ambition, but a legitimate aspiration for the office for the sake of serving Christ and Christ's sheep. So this is a Pauline commendation of the office of elder. It is a noble thing to aspire to, but just because a man aspires to it, does not mean he ought to actually be an elder, a bishop, a pastor. Why not? Because Paul says, a bishop, therefore, must be blameless. Now, notice the word, therefore, in that statement. It's a very significant word. The excellence of the work of oversight demands that a bishop be a particular kind of Christian man. The nature and nobility of the Christian ministry demands moral requisites. And I emphasize that word demands. Now, Paul begins this list with an umbrella term, the term blameless, and all of the other characteristics he outlines in these verses serve to illumine the meaning of blameless. What does a blameless man look like? He looks like the things that follow. Now perhaps your translation says above reproach. A bishop must be above reproach. And what that phrase means is that there should be no area of an elder's life that could be pointed at as disqualifying him from the office. A blameless man is not a sinless man. But a blameless man is a Christian man of integrity whose walk with God is consistent so that he exemplifies the reality of what grace does in transforming a sinner's heart. For example, Paul writes in Titus 2, that the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. And what does it teach us? It teaches us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age. A blameless Christian man has learned what the grace of God teaches him, namely to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts. A blameless man's walk is a consistent walk of integrity before God in the way he speaks, in the way he thinks, in the way he acts, in the way he carries himself, in the way he relates to others. This is the expectation for an elder of Christ's church. Others could point to him and could say, that is a solid Christian man. Now after Paul gives this umbrella term, blameless, you'll notice that he gives several other qualifications here when he writes, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, and able to teach. Let's break down each of these terms and explain them. Probably the most difficult item to interpret in this verse is the next phrase. literal translation, a one woman man, a one woman man. The discussion of this one phrase has been abundant in the history of interpretation with people coming out on very different ends of the spectrum. Some have said that an elder must be married in order to serve. I don't think that's what Paul meant when he wrote this because that would have excluded him from being an elder of a church. Others have said that because polygamy was a continuing practice among Jews of the first century, that Paul was speaking to those who might have multiple wives. And certainly being a one woman man would hinder someone with multiple wives from serving as an elder. That would be a no-no. But I don't think that Paul is speaking specifically to the practice of polygamy in this text. Others have said that this requires that a man who serves as a pastor must have only been married once, including men whose wives have died, but can only continue serving as elders even after their wife has died by not getting married again. Or men, they say, cannot serve who have been divorced in the past. But we have to be careful of reading more into this statement than Paul intended to say. and then applying a rule over circumstances where wisdom is necessary to understand the circumstance of the man. So what does it mean? Here's what I think this means. Is the man a faithful husband to his wife? Is he a one woman man? Is the man a faithful husband to his wife? And has he proved that faithfulness over a period of time? Has he shown himself to be a loyal, committed husband to the wife of his youth? How does he talk to her? How does he talk about her? How does he represent her? Does he take seriously the necessity of cherishing and caring for his spouse? Because how a man treats his wife is an indication of how he will treat the church of Christ. So you want a man serving the church as an elder who has his affections set on one woman and one woman alone. Now, Paul also goes on to say that a bishop must be temperate, which often has the connotation of sobriety. Sobriety. But since Paul goes on in the next verse to mention the man's relationship to alcohol, this probably refers to a broader characteristic of someone who is sober-minded and self-controlled in the way that they live their lives. The way that a man approaches finances matters. Can a man live within his means? The way that a man eats matters. Is he a glutton? Does he tell others to be self-controlled when he himself does not exercise the self-control he calls others to? That's a problem. The next characteristic Paul states can literally be translated as sensible. sensible, a bishop must have a sound or healthy mind. In other words, he must be prudent. He must be thoughtful rather than someone who generally acts on impulse and makes rash choices. It would be a disaster to ordain someone to the ministry with a long string of impulsive decision-making, wouldn't it? The elder must be one who makes balanced, conscientious, level-headed decisions in life that are not spontaneous or snap judgments because that is just a sign of the man's maturity, isn't it? An elder should be stable so that those in the church don't have to worry what next week will be like when he makes a rash decision. And then Paul says here, the elder must be respectable. Respectable, or one who acts according to right behavior. This is the same word that was used in previous verses to describe a woman's modest clothing. She has to dress respectably. And an elder is to act honorably, meaning that he is to live his life in a way that is principled, in a way that is ethical, in a way that is virtuous. Respectable means acting in a way that is good, proper, or correct. And then Paul says that the elder must be hospitable, meaning that he is not to be reclusive, but is to be willing and able to open up his home and to fellowship with others. This is the same word used in 1 Peter 4, 9, when Peter said, be hospitable to one another. without complaint. And many of you do an incredible job at hospitality. And let me just say it is such a blessing as a pastor to be a part of a church that loves to be hospitable to one another. You exemplify a hospitable spirit to me. And Paul indicates here that a pastor as the leader of the flock to quote, must be a man who shows his genuine love for people in his welcoming home environment. A pastor and a cold shoulder or a pastor and an unwelcoming and unfriendly frame of mind ought not to be synonymous with each other. And then Paul says here at the end of the verse, able to teach. able to teach. In a sea of moral qualities comes one of the distinguishing factors of the eldership, as opposed to the diaconate, that the elder is one engaged in teaching the church from God's word. What does it mean to be able to do something, to be able to teach? To be able to teach means to be competent, which means to possess the knowledge and skill to do something successfully, to communicate God's truth effectively. Listen to 2 Timothy 2. And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. Listen to 2 Timothy 2 15. Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. Listen to 2 Timothy chapter 4. Preach the word. Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and teaching. Elders must be able to do that. Now thus far, Paul has been giving us positive characteristics of the man of God, but in verse three, he begins to say what must not characterize him. There are things that ought to characterize the pastor, and there are things that ought not to characterize the pastor. Look at verse three. It says, not given to one. The ESV says, not a drunkard. The NKJV note says not addicted to wine. And we note that a pastor is not called to abstinence from alcohol here, but is called to its overuse and immoderate use of alcohol. The elder must be moderate in the use of alcoholic beverages, exemplifying the teaching of Paul in Ephesians 5, who said, do not be drunk with wine in which is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit. Pastors should not be drinking to excess, but they should instead be images of temperance, craving the filling of the Holy Spirit in their lives. Paul goes on, not a bully. Isn't that an interesting characteristic for a pastor? Not a bully. And one dictionary defined it like this, not one who is bent on getting into a fight. Not a pugnacious person who throws his weight around every chance he gets, but one who is kind, courteous, and gentle. Too often in our desire to strike back at our culture's distaste for what they call toxic masculinity, do we rightly treasure the nature of an elder as one who is not combative, not aggressive, not belligerent, but one who is peaceable, who makes peace with others. And also Paul says here, not one who is greedy for money, meaning someone who is free from the love of money as a reason for his service. Not covetous after material gain, but serving in a right spirit for the sake of God's glory and for the good of the church. Well, in the next four verses, Paul notes three life situations of the man who serves as an elder that either must be true of him or not be true of him, depending on which verse we're looking at, with an explanation as to why Paul gives these prescriptions. So in verse four, he says that the elder must be one who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence. And then he gives the reason why. For if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God? That's an argument from the lesser to the greater, you see. An elder manages or cares for the church of God. And if a man is faithful at managing and governing his children, that is an excellent sign that he has the maturity to govern the church. which is larger and more challenging at times than family life. Children being in submission means that they are obedient to him, that they listen to him and to his instruction, and that they act in a dignified and respectable manner. And if it is clear that a man cannot exercise control of his own children, would it not be a fool's errand to place him into the important position of a manager of God's flock? To ask the question is to answer it. In verse six, Paul says the man must not be a novice, which has a literal translation of he must not be newly planted. In other words, he must not be a recent convert. And Paul tells us why. Lest being puffed up with pride, he fall into the same condemnation of the devil. The devil's original sin was the sin of pride. And Paul says, if a newly converted man is placed into such an exalted position in the church, you put him into the precarious position of being puffed up with pride, which will most certainly lead to what? A fall. And so it would be dangerous and foolish to place a newly converted man into such a position. A pastor in Christ's church ought to be one who has a tested Christian existence outside of the pastorate and has proved a long obedience in the same direction as one person has said. And finally, as we come to the end of this passage in verse seven, Paul says, moreover, he must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into the reproach and the snare of the devil. The point here is that the man of God, the bishop must have a good reputation, not only within the church, but also outside of the church. This is a good indication of what someone is really like. They are a Christian, yes, but what do their coworkers think about them? What do their customers and clients think about them? Are they known for hypocrisy? Are they known to cheat and to cut corners? Are they known to lie if they think that it will get them ahead? All of these are such important considerations for thinking about future elders of our church and for considering the men who are still serving. We do not want men placed into the office who might fall into a snare of Satan through a bad report from an outsider. One person has written verse six and seven, seek to protect both the man and the church's leadership from self-righteous pride and cowardly disobedience. To avoid both demands a mature believer with an established reputation. So let's think about this, beloved, as we come to the Lord's table today and we celebrate together the Lord's supper. And we think about the significance of what we are about to do, remembering the Lord's death, proclaiming the Lord's death until he comes. Think of what our confession says. A particular church gathered and completely organized according to the mind of Christ consists of officers and members and the officers appointed by Christ to be chosen and set apart by the church. Listen to this for the peculiar administration of ordinances. Here we are coming today. to the ordinance of the Lord's Supper, everything we do as a constituted church organized according to Christ's mind relies on these verses from 1st Timothy. Who is appointed to administer the Lord's Supper in the congregation? It is the overseers. They administer as elders, as shepherds of the flock. But who are the overseers to be? It is to be these types of men. Our confession states in chapter 28, these holy appointments, baptism in the Lord's supper, are to be administered, listen to this, only by those who are qualified and there unto called according to the commission of Christ. Why do officers of the church administer the sacraments? Because they manage God's house. But who gets to decide who a qualified man is? Is it the fact that I like to listen to his teaching more than other men? Is it the fact that he's personable? Is it the fact that he makes me laugh in conversation? Who gets to decide who the overseer of Christ's church gets to be? Christ does. And he informs us of his mind right here in this text. The worship and practice of the sacraments hinges on overseers serving and administering these things. for the members of the church. And that's how weighty and important and significant these verses are for the full functioning of the church's existence in the world, the great commission and the preaching of the gospel. So we can't mess with these verses. We can't ignore these verses. We can't water down these verses. And we need to recognize the danger of placing men into these offices who don't belong there but the great joy and flourishing of the church when men who do belong in those offices fill them according to the mind of Christ. Men who have a proven track record and a gracious frame that looks like Christ. And we should be praying as we close this sermon that God would raise up other elders and deacons in our midst who might serve this body in years to come. We should not grow complacent in having six men, three and three, who serve in these respective offices. We must rely upon God and ask that for the future, he would be preparing men from this congregation, from this church, who would be fit men who fit these qualifications. Why? Because the scriptures are our sole and sufficient rule for our faith and for our life. in the church because they tell us this and because this is according to the mind of the risen Christ. Let's bow our heads and pray. Christ, we know that the church is foundations upon you, the cornerstone. Foundations upon the apostles and the prophets who spoke your true word in that first century and that since that time, the church has been led by elders who have governed and ruled your people. We pray that you would help the elders of this congregation, myself, Paul, Robert, to continue in faithfulness to you. The calling is high. And yet we ask Lord that you would be gracious to us and bless us as we serve this body. We pray that you would be raising men from this congregation who might serve as elders and deacons in the future for the blessing of your church, for the furtherance of your gospel, for the sake of the great commission, for your kingdom and for your righteousness. Give us men who look like these men. these qualifications that we find in first Timothy chapter three, as we approach the Lord's table. Father, would you help us to see that in the administration of these ordinances to the church, there are supposed to be called and qualified men who disperse these things to the saints for their welfare, for their blessing, for their management, for their spiritual good. Grow this church in our understanding of a biblical ecclesiology. And we pray that we would never water down these requirements, but continue to examine ourselves in light of the searching eye, the penetrating word that you have given to your church. We pray this in Jesus name, amen. Well, as I mentioned, we come to that time of our service where we are going to celebrate the Lord's table together and I would ask my co-pastors Paul and Robert to come up at this time. As a reminder before we take the Lord's Supper, We want to remind all of us that the Lord's Supper is for believers only. It's for believers. While our observance shows or proclaims to all the world the sacrifice of Christ and his death, this supper is not for the world. It is for those who first have repented of sin and professed faith in Christ. Number two, have been baptized by immersion upon that profession of faith. And here at Grace Baptist, we ask that third, you would be a member in good standing of this body or of a church of like faith and practice or are seeking membership and are not under lawful church discipline. So if you are providentially here and do not meet those requirements, we ask humbly that you let the elements pass by you this morning and quietly consider in your heart what is being displayed here the death of Christ as the only hope for sinners. But for those of you who do fit that requirement, come, come to the table of the Lord, celebrate afresh his death for the sake of sinners. Listen to these words of institution. For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night in which he was betrayed took bread And when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, Take eat. This is my body, which is broken for you. Do this in remembrance of me. Brother Robert, would you ask God to bless our partaking of the bread? Join me, church. Heavenly Father, we thank you so much for your precious son, who on the night that he was betrayed, took bread and broke it and instituted this memorial service, this Lord's Supper, he declared that this bread that was broken would be a symbol that would represent his body broken for all of his people. We thank you for the true bread of heaven, which comes down, that Jesus, our mediator, our high priest, our king, Our great prophet took on flesh, God of gods, became man of man.